Wee: Coachwork manufacturing is heading the right way due to huge demand

Flying high: Gemilang Coachwork Sdn Bhd’s chief executive officer CY Pang (left) accompanying Dr Wee (second from right) during a visit the coachwork factory in Senai, Johor.

KULAI: Malaysia’s coachwork industry will grow to over RM750mil by 2020 due to the huge demand for new buses in the country as well as globally.

Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong said in all regions of the world, bus remained the most widespread mode of public transport.

He pointed out that in Malaysia, improving public transport was part of the National Key Results Areas (NKRA) under the Govern­ment Transformation Programme (GTP) launched in 2010.

“It is the Government’s aim to improve the reliability of public transportation as well as its accessibility so that the percentage of people living within 400m of a public transport route increases from 63% to 75%,” he said.

He was speaking during a memorandum of understanding signed between Gemilang Coachwork Sdn Bhd and Greenpower Motor Company Inc from the United States at Seelong here yesterday

Dr Wee said it was not surprising that the local coachwork manufacturing industry had grown from RM184.1mil in 2010 to some RM551.7mil in 2015 at a compound annual growth rate of 24.5%,

With the sale of buses expected to increase in the next five years, he said the industry was expected to grow in tandem to meet the demand in the country.

“Global demand for buses is also projected to grow an average of 5.3% annually to 418,000 units in 2020.

“It is expected that the coachwork manufacturing industry will grow to reach RM763.1mil by 2020,” he said.

He also congratulated Gemilang Coachwork, which would be expor­ting 100 units of electronic school buses to the United States and Canada.

Citing Gemilang Coachwork’s success as an example for other local small and medium-sized entrepreneurs, Dr Wee said the company has grown from strength to strength since first starting out some 30 years ago.

“It (Gemilang Coachwork) has now become a big player within the region.” said Dr Wee.

“The company also exports its buses to over 10 markets, such as Singapore, Australia and China where it works closely with reputable firms like Scania, Volvo and SMRT.”