S-Form Opens Factory to Cater to ASEAN Market

SEREMBAN (Negeri Sembilan), Nov 23 (Bernama) -- South Korea’s manufacturer of construction moulds S-FORM Group is looking to cater for demand from the ASEAN market with the opening of its first overseas aluminium formwork system fabrication facility, S-Form System Formwork (M) Sdn Bhd in Sendayan near here. Its Chairman, Kim Joon Nyun said the completion of the factory was a historic moment for S-FORM Group in making a leap to the global market. "We aim to start exporting the output from this Sendayan's factory to Singapore, the Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam, early next year," he told reporters after the launch of the factory in Sendayan near here Thursday. Situated on a 36,875-square metre site, the aluminium formwork system factory was officiated by Second International Trade and Industry Minister Ong Ka Chuan. Kim said the factory, which has obtained the Industrialised Building System (IBS) Status Manufacturer, would also cater to the demand from India. Currently, he said the factory provided sales and rental of aluminium formwork system for high-rise buildings such as Perumahan Rakyat 1Malaysia (PR1MA) and the People Housing Programme (PPR), as well as for landed properties. He said the company had chosen Malaysia to set up its first overseas manufacturing plant because of its business-friendly environment and industrial base for foreign companies. "This is further supported by the government's encouragement to utilise IBS in the construction industry. "This eco-friendly aluminium formwork system produced in our factory will contribute greatly to the development of the local construction industry and protection of Malaysia’s environment," he said. In his speech, Ong said he hoped to see more companies would be producing high-end IBS products for both local and overseas projects. He said currently there were only 260 IBS manufacturers in Malaysia and most of them carried out only simple processes by producing the basic IBS components. "I understand that investing in IBS requires a high initial investment capital for the purpose of procurement of machinery, steel mould, foreign technology, transportation and payment of wages for skilled workers. "However, this should not hinder companies from making a paradigm shift to adopt IBS methods in their construction works and to remain competitive in the global construction arena," he said. -- BERNAMA