New blueprint for auto sector
It is to prepare the industry for global technological enhancements up to year 2025
PETALING JAYA: The Malaysia Automotive Institute (MAI) is developing a blueprint that will detail the development and enhancement of the local automotive industry up to year 2025.
Chief executive officer Madani Sahari said the blueprint, known as Malaysia Automotive Industry Roadmap 2025 (MAIR 2025), is to gear up the local automotive sector for the global technological enhancements that was expected to take place by 2025.
Within MAIR 2025, the roadmap will include technological, industry and market directions.
“We're developing a roadmap that will define the local automotive industry as a whole. Its scope ranges from the manufacturing sector right up to after-sales,” he told StarBiz.
Madani said MAIR 2025 would be different from the National Automotive Policy (NAP), which detailed policies that extend up to 2020.
“The NAP is from a policy angle but it doesn't really give you a blueprint. We have set a mission for 2015 and 2020 (under the NAP) but 2025 is another key milestone and important deadline.
“We need to adopt, adapt and innovate the right technology into our auto industry and we need to understand what is the technology, going forward,” he said.
Madani noted that the issue of “going green” had become an increasingly important factor in the global automotive scene.
“Globally, everyone is venturing into it, doing a lot of research on how to green the automotive industry in totality.”
Apart from developing its own technology, he said Malaysia also needed to be able to attract players that could supply green technology that could be applied locally.
“One of the ways to achieve the right technology in Malaysia is to have the right strategic foreign direct investment (FDI).
“We need to attract some strategic FDI and there is some domestic investment that we will need to do. There are players in Malaysia that want to invest domestically and this needs to be promoted and enhanced to complete the local automotive eco-system.”
Madani also said the blueprint was to cater to the “re-proliferation” of vendors and original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) come 2025.
“In the late 1990s, a lot of vendors came into the sector and a lot of proliferation (of vendors and OEMs) took place during that time. Then, from the year 2000 until now, there was a consolidation among the OEMs and suppliers.”
Citing research done by the MAI, Madani said there would be a re-proliferation of suppliers and at certain levels, OEMs, from 2015 onwards.
“But this re-proliferation is about suppliers coming in with a different business plan and the fundamentals of their business plan will involve the use of information technology and digital virtual reality concepts that are and will continue to move the automotive industry.
“This blueprint is to prepare Malaysia, moving ahead. We need to resolve our structural issues and enhance the eco-system. Then, the next step is to get the businesses ready to incorporate this new technology and that's what I mean by re-proliferation,” he said.
Madani also said the development of human capital was an important aspect of MAIR 2025.
Since last year, MAI had been collaborating with various local universities to develop talents for the Malaysian automotive industry.
“To create the manpower with the necessary skill and knowledge at each level of the (automotive) industry, we've started a customised human capital development programme.
These are for people already within the industry and it's a flexible initiative that can be done over the week or weekend.
“We want them to be enhanced in the skills and knowledge that they have to perform their existing jobs,” he said.
MAI has also commenced a “talent management programme” to cater to retirees with the relevant expertise in the automotive field.
“The local automotive industry is about 25 years old and there is now a large batch of retirees.
But this group of people have specific skills, knowledge and culture that we don't want to lose.
“So we have this talent management initiative where we get the retirees and we document their experiences to those that are willing to contribute. We take them in and make them our associates to advise companies that require their expertise,” Madani said.
MAI is also collaborating with the Higher Education Ministry to set up an industry centre of excellence to enhance the development of the different sub-systems (such as cooling, heating and suspension) involved in the development of a typical automobile.
An agency under the International Trade and Industry Ministry, MAI was established as the focal point and coordination centre for the development of local automotive industry.
“We need to do things in a manner that is different to quantum leap our improvement. This year, we are implementing a strategic, adaptive engagement and coordination approach to achieve our targets,” Madani said.
Source : The Star
Date : 7 February 2012
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