Awang Tengah (seated centre) together with (from left) Azanam, Mohd Naroden, Zailani and Dzulkornain in a group photo with symposium participants.
MIRI: The shipbuilding and ship repair industry has been urged to reduce reliance on foreign designs by developing their in-house capacity and capability to come up with their own designs.
Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Amar Awang Tengah Ali Hasan said currently, the designs for nearly all naval and enforcement vessels are procured from overseas, representing lost opportunities for local talents who he believes are more than capable to produce their own designs if given the proper and necessary training.
“As technology changes rapidly, we need to continuously innovate and improve our shipbuilding and ship repair capability for both sea and shore operations to address the challenges ahead, especially for the security and defence sector.
“We cannot be too dependent on foreign technology for the maritime industry.
“We must try to produce by developing our own in-house capacity and capability,” he said at the launch of the second National Symposium on Marine Technology 2019, here yesterday.
Awang Tengah, who is International Trade and Industry, Industrial Terminal and Entrepreneur Development Minister, said as part of efforts to address this issue, Universiti Kuala Lumpur Malaysian Institute of Marine Engineering Technology (UniKL MIMET) and Technology Depository Agency (TDA) initiated the establishment of the Asia Marine Design Centre (AMDeC) with the aim of becoming a centre of excellence in maritime technology and to promote local content of Malaysian vessels through design and engineering works.
“With this setup, local design houses will have an opportunity to upgrade their capability in producing more complex designs and giving competitive advantage to the shipbuilding industry,” he said.
He also urged industry players to work closely with the relevant government agencies, especially TDA and AMDeC, as well as institutions of higher learning to increase local content, starting with local design.
Adding on, Awang Tengah said the shipbuilding and ship repair industry in Sarawak continues to be vibrant and has the potential to contribute significantly to the state economy, especially for Sibu and Miri.
“Malaysia has about 100 shipyards – 60 are located in Sarawak. In 2018, Sarawak’s total export of ships, boats and floating structures was valued at RM279.8 million, with major export destinations being Singapore, Indonesia, Australia, United Arab Emirates and Vietnam.
“Despite the current global economic uncertainties, Sarawak continues to be among the top three preferred investment destinations
in Malaysia for the past six years.
“To date, the state has approved 43 investment projects worth RM17.85 billion and is expected to create 10,000 employment opportunities in the state. Another 19 projects worth RM726.8 million are still
under consideration,” he explained.
However, he said the industry is also facing many challenges such as the slow recovery of crude oil prices, the US-China trade war, tighter ship financing, and new regulations imposed by the International Maritime Organisation.
In this regard, he called on industry players to continuously upgrade their capability and leverage on modern technology, greater automation and digital technology.
“In facing the challenge, my ministry together with Curtin University, Swinburne University of Technology, Universiti Malaysia Sarawak and Sarawak Skills Development Centre have conducted nine programmes on IR4.0 (Fourth Industrial Revolution) last year.
“Additionally, we have also conducted two specific courses for the industry on ship stability and wiring, ducting and automation in shipbuilding technology together with University College Technology Sarawak,” he said, adding the priority for the government is towards promoting local content on every final product delivered, starting from design up to shipbuilding and ship repairs.
More than 250 participants from various sectors including shipbuilders, ship repairers, ship owners, ship designers, marine associations, institutions, classification bodies, bankers and government agencies from Malaysia and other countries took part in the one-day symposium to meet and discuss current issues pertaining to the generation of skills and capability, enhancing the cooperation of the local design houses and developing interactive networking with all marine industry clusters.
Awang Tengah’s assistant minister Datuk Mohd Naroden Majais, TDA Berhad CEO Dato Zailani Safari, UniKL deputy president of International, Industrial & Institutional Partnership Dato Dr Azanam Shah Hashim, and the ministry’s SME and Entrepreneur Development Division head Dzulkornain Masron were among those who attended the symposium.