Perodua to build new plant

KUALA LUMPUR: Perusahaan Otomobil Kedua Sdn Bhd (Perodua) will expand its annual production capacity to 300,000 vehicles with a new RM790mil plant, which will be adjacent to its 19-year-old manufacturing facility in Rawang.

Perodua managing director Datuk Aminar Rashid Salleh said the new plant will have more automation, improved systems and new technology.

"This new plant is part of our five-year strategic roadmap to stay competitive in the ever liberalising automotive industry by helping us to be more productive and efficient, as well as reduce cost," said Aminar.

The new plant will have an annual production capacity of 100,000 vehicles on a single shift cycle, compared with the existing plant's annual capacity of 200,000 units on a two-shift cycle.

Aminar says the new plant will improve Perodua's competitiveness 

and efficiency.

The plant will be set up under a new company, and mass production is slated to begin in mid-2014.

Aminar also said the new plant was essential as Perodua is aiming to compete at a global level.

"There is increasing competition also in the domestic market. We also want to at least maintain our dominant 28% to 30% domestic market share."

The expanded production capacity would also cater to the domestic market, which is projected to hit a Total Industry Volume (TIV) of one million units by 2020 according to the Malaysia Automotive Institute (MAI).

In 2011, the TIV was 600,123 units according to data from the Malaysian Automotive Association.

Perodua is also aiming to increase its exports to 20,000 units per year by 2015, from the 10,000 units exported this year to Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Mauritius, Brunei, Singapore and Fiji.

Aminar also said Perodua had recorded sales of 170,000 units as of end-November, and was on track to achieve its target sales of 188,000 units this year.

Meanwhile, in a press statement, Daihatsu Motor Co Ltd said the new Perodua plant would produce fuel-efficient and affordable compact cars.

Daihatsu Motor holds a 20% stake in Perodua.

"In anticipation of intensifying global competition in the future, Daihatsu is working on structural transformation of local operations in Malaysia, which it has determined to be a key base for its overseas business."

Perodua and Daihatsu's announcements today came in the wake of news that their rival Proton is collaborating with Honda and has bought Petronas engines to use in future models.

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Perodua showroom with a difference

RAWANG: Business is war and Perodua underscored that point in its latest showroom that opened in Bukit Beruntung, Selangor.

The outlet, 10km from its headquarters and plant here, not only sells cars but is a training hub for its sales force before they are posted to their respective showrooms nationwide.

“This showroom will serve as a living-breathing training centre for our staff on the best customer service practices for us to shine in the eyes of our customers,” said Perodua managing director Datuk Aminar Rashid Salleh at the opening ceremony on Tuesday.

The showroom in Bukit Beruntung.

Perodua has invested RM560,000 into setting up the 6,660 sq ft centre, also known as a "Sales Dojo" (a Japanese word that means a martial arts training centre).

This brings the total number of Perodua sales outlets to 185, and service centres at 169.

To mark the occasion, Perodua presented donations to five charity homes.

The homes were Ephrata Charity Organisation, Sri Saradha Devi Illam, Pusat Jagaan Kanak-kanak Kurang Upaya KIRTARSH, Sivananda Ashram Kuala Kubu Bharu and Independent Living & Training.

Perodua newest showroom is located at PSSB Bukit Beruntung,  No 29-G, 31-G, 31-1, Jalan Adenium 2G/12, Pusat Perniagaan Adenium Sek BB5, 48300 Bukit Beruntung.

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Perodua 9-month sales up 10%

Rawang, 17 Oct: Perodua sales for the first 9 months of the year increased 10% to 139,400 vehicles compared with 127,200 units in the same period last year due to healthy sales of the New Myvi and an increase in demand for the Alza.

On a quarter-to-quarter basis, Perodua sold 46,500 vehicles, down 3% from 47,700 units in the same period as the tighter guidelines on Responsible Lending impacted the sales of the Viva models during the period.

“We believe that there is still an upside for our sales in the fourth quarter as the demand for our vehicles is still healthy with bookings recorded in 3Q12 reaching 61,800 units against a registration of 46,500 units in the same period,” Perodua Managing Director Datuk Aminar Rashid Salleh said.

He added that baring no unforeseen circumstances, and based on the number of bookings Perodua received so far; the national carmaker is cautiously positive in achieving its 188,000 sales target by year end.

“Based on the forecasted total industry volume by the Malaysian Automotive Association of 615,000, we expect to maintain our 30% market share by year end,” Aminar said.

On a month-on-month comparison, Perodua sold 13,900 vehicles in September from 13,200 vehicles in the same month last year as the Hari Raya Aidilfitri celebrations shorten the number of working days in September 2011.

“Moving forward, Perodua will aggressively engage in traditional marketing campaigns and will introduce new packages specifically targeted to key demographics in order to further enhance sales,” Aminar said.

“One such campaign is the recently launched “What’s Up, Graduates!” campaign specifically designed to attract those who recently graduated and undergraduates to purchase our vehicles,” he added.

On exports, Perodua exports jumped 53% to some 7,800 units for the first 9 months of the year from some 5,000 units in the same period last year.

“Indonesia, which Perodua export under the Daihatsu brand is our biggest export market with 4,600 units sold, representing nearly 59% of our total exports,” Aminar said.

On after sales, Perodua saw 1.34 million vehicles patron its service centres nationwide for the first 9 months of the year; up 5% from 1.27 million in the same period last year.

“This means that 53% of the total number of Perodua vehicles still in operation has returned to our service centres for their motoring needs.”

“We will strive to further improve our service levels – in both sales and after sales – in order to give our customers the best motoring experience because here at Perodua You Matter Most!” Aminar said.

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Siswa kini boleh beli kereta

KUANTAN: Pelajar tahun akhir institusi pengajian tinggi (IPT) awam dan swasta berpeluang membeli kereta PERODUA dengan bayaran serendah RM299 sebulan.

Tawaran itu diberikan Perusahaan Otomobil Kedua Sdn Bhd (PERODUA) yang juga pengeluar kereta nasional kedua, menerusi program pemilikan kereta terbarunya iaitu ‘What's Up Graduates’.
Pengarah Urusannya, Datuk Aminar Rashid Salleh, berkata program itu adalah inisiatif PERODUA untuk memberi peluang kepada kumpulan pelajar tahun akhir memiliki kenderaan sendiri tanpa bayaran pendahuluan.

Katanya, tawaran itu terbuka untuk semua model PERODUA Viva dan MyVi yang bermula semalam dan akan berakhir 31 Mac 2013.

Tunjuk kad pelajar

Beliau berkata, pelajar hanya perlu menunjukkan kad pelajar dan membawa seorang penjamin bagi memohon tawaran berkenaan ketika melaksanakan urusan jual beli kenderaan di semua cawangan PERODUA.
“Program ini ditawarkan kepada pelajar tahun akhir hanya untuk tempoh bayaran bulanan bagi tahun pertama saja, sebab mereka ini bakal memasuki alam pekerjaan sementara gaji pula masih kecil.

“Selepas tahun pertama, bayaran bagi tempoh seterusnya akan beransur-ansur meningkat dari tahun ke tahun sehinggalah habis tempoh pinjaman, sejajar dengan kenaikan gaji mereka,” katanya ketika berucap pada majlis perasmian Expoconvo 2012 Universiti Malaysia Pahang (UMP), Gambang, dekat sini, semalam.

Turut hadir Timbalan Naib Canselor (Penyelidikan dan Inovasi) UMP, Prof Datuk Dr Rosli Mohd Yunus dan Timbalan Naib Canselor (Akademik dan Antarabangsa), Prof Dr Badrulhisham Abdul Aziz.

Perlindungan insurans kemalangan

Selain pembelian kereta, Aminar Rashid berkata, kumpulan pelajar itu juga akan menerima perlindungan insurans kemalangan bernilai RM20,000 secara percuma, di samping diskaun 50 peratus bagi servis asas di semua pusat servis PERODUA di seluruh negara.

Dalam pada itu, Aminar Rashid yang juga Ahli Lembaga Pengarah UMP berkata, penganjuran program Expoconvo itu penting untuk mempromosikan pesta konvokesyen yang menjadi acara tahunan universiti berkenaan.

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Budget boosting auto industry indirectly, says Perodua

KUALA LUMPUR: Perodua expects the automotive industry in general to receive an indirect boost from Budget 2013 which generally increases disposable income through tax cuts and other goodies provided.

Among the notable proposals is the RM1.9 billion allocated for affordable housing, the 1.5-month bonus to civil servants and the Bantuan Rakyat 1Malaysia or BR1M 2.0 scheme, which is now extended to singles aged 21 years old and earning less than RM2,000 a month, said its managing director, Datuk Aminar Rashid Salleh.

Aminar Rashid

These initiatives will help ease the burden of a large portion of the population as it addresses two major themes, namely housing and disposable income, he added.

He said the reduction in the individual tax rate by one aggregate point and the continuation of the RM100 to each school-going child will also help in easing the burden of the general population.

Aminar Rashid said an allocation of RM1 billion for the SME Development Fund is most welcome as a majority of Perodua's vendors are under the small and medium enterprises category.

He said the fund will help them invest in new technology, find foreign partners for joint ventures, invest in human capital and upgrade equipment in preparation for market liberalisation as well as becoming globally competitive.

"This is in line with the government's intention to make Malaysia an auto production/manufacturing hub," he added.

He also reacted positively to the RM5.8 billion allocated for tourism.

"We believe this will help spur the transportation sector, including the auto industry to further support the success of tourism in Malaysia," he said.

He said Perudua also supports the direction to improve further on vocational and technical training.

"Perodua would like to work with the relevant Ministries to increase the intake of our current CSR programme, the Perodua Youth Training Programme, along the same objective to train and produce skilled and semi-skilled workers for the auto industry," Aminar Rashid said.

He added that this will help reduce the dependency on foreign workers, especially for the auto vendor community.
 -Bernama

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Attract Japanese vendors, Perodua urges Govt

Aminar Rashid

KUALA LUMPUR: The Government has been urged to offer incentives that are as good or better than neighbouring countries' to attract Japanese vendors in the car sector to set up facilities in Malaysia.

"Let us not miss the boat. Offer incentives that are good or better than neighbouring countries', and if possible encourage tie-ups with local vendors that could meet their requirements," said Perodua managing director Datuk Aminar Rashid Salleh at a luncheon with senior writers and editors here on Tuesday.

Aminar Rashid said many Japanese vendors were trying to relocate their businesses as it was now more difficult to do business in Japan because of natural disasters such as earthquakes and the strengthening of the yen.

"They see opportunities in Asean, with Thailand, the 'Detroit of Asia', still the darling for the automotive sector and Indonesia is also fast catching up," he said in a Bernama report.

He said Perodua would offer better facilities at its headquarters and plant in Sungai Choh, Rawang, to attract and retain staff and also to improve productivity and efficiency.

One of the facilities Perodua aims to provide is affordable homes for at least half of its employees.

It said it is looking to tie up with a property developer to develop the houses

Aminar Rashid said the company employed around 7,000 people in Rawang.

“Around 45% to 50% of the people working at our headquarters and plant in Rawang already have their own homes.

“We want to help cater to the remaining 50% of our employees in light of the rising cost of living,” he said.

Asked if Perodua plans to build low-cost houses, Aminar said: “I won't say low-cost, but they will be affordable. We want to build the houses as close to our plant as possible."

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