Another manufacturer in the electronics industry here is now undertaking facilities expansion to boost its competitive edge in face of the economic slowdown that affects economies worldwide.
Koryo Subic, Inc., which has been producing high precision plastic molding for electronics products here since 1996, recently sought the approval of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) to construct a new building adjacent to its factory at the Boton logistics area.
The expansion project, which will include building construction and acquisition of new machines, will cost P180 million, said SBMA Administrator Armand Arreza.
According to Shin-Ichi Suzuki, factory manager of Koryo Subic, the new building would be used as a “clean room facility” for the painting of molded plastic products.
“As the global recession still continues, this new facility will be part of our strategy to attract more clients and additional jobs from our current customers,” Suzuki said.
“This new painting facility will be a controlled environment and the features will be somewhat more advanced than our current painting process,” he added.
Suzuki said that their company has set the completion date of the new building before the audit to be made next month by Sony Corp., one of their biggest clients, which shall be evaluating their suppliers to determine who gets the contract for the production of components for the upcoming 2010 model of its digital camera series.
“This is the main reason why we can’t afford to delay the construction of the new building,” Suzuki said.
Initially, Koryo will not be requiring additional manpower once the new building becomes operational, as the current recession has left the firm with “a lot of excess manpower,” Suzuki said.
But when the expansion project starts to bring in more clients, the firm will eventually increase its manpower, Suzuki said.
The expansion project by Koryo is so far the second to be announced this year by a Subic Freeport firm involved in the electronics industry, one of the sectors hardest hit by recession, said Administrator Arreza.
Last week, Japanese firm Hitachi Terminals Mechatronics Philippines Corp. (HTMP), a leading manufacturer of automated teller machines and terminal card reading machines, inaugurated its new warehouse here despite the ongoing global economic slowdown, said Arreza.
The firm, which is located at the Subic Techno Park, constructed a new 3,564-square meter warehouse that will be used in receiving of goods, stocking, warehouse controlling, keeping and materials handling, picking or withdrawal of parts, delivery of picked parts to production, as well as for shipping.
Like Koryo’s planned “clean room”, Hitachi’s new warehouse was designed as part of the firm’s business strategy to control cost and improve its efficiency to be able to compete strongly, said HTMP president Kiyotaka Adachi.
Arreza, meanwhile, has described HTMP’s establishment of a new warehouse facility as “a sign of the company’s business foresight and continued competitiveness.” (SBMA Corporate Communications)
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