MBAM PARTICIPATE IN SYMPOSIUM OF DIFFERENTIATED INNOVATION IN CONSTRUCTION MACHINERY DESIGN FOR DIVERSIFIED MARKET REQUIREMENTS IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE 3RD XIAMEN INTERNATIONAL CONSTRUCTION MACHINERY EXHIBITION 2011 IN XIAMEN ON SATURDAY, 9TH APRIL  2011

Master Builders Association Malaysia (MBAM) sent a delegation of 17 MBAM members headed by Mr Matthew Tee, MBAM Deputy President to attend the “Symposium of Differentiated Innovation In Construction Machinery Design For Diversified Market Requirements in conjunction with the 3rd Xiamen International Construction Machinery Exhibition 2011 (8th to 11th April 2011) held in Xiamen on Saturday, 9th April  2011. MBAM attended the event on the invitation of the Fujian Machinery Industry Federation (FMIF).
Mr Matthew Tee, MBAM Deputy President spoke on the “Prospect of Construction Planning in Malaysia and Market Demands for Construction Machinery”. In his speech, it was highlighted that MBAM will continue to look forward to further sharing of expertise, especially in the field of fast construction methods and international exposure so that we can further notch our presence in the third world countries and Middle East and create positive impact wherever we have our presence.

MBAM also highlighted that there will be huge opportunities for construction machinery companies to explore, penetrate and expand their business to support in the massive implementation of construction projects in Malaysia. In fact, MBAM has also written to the Government to reduce the import duties for heavy machineries in Malaysia.  MBAM suggested that the Government to reduce the import duty and sales tax for heavy machineries used in construction on a systematic basis within 2 years from currently as high as 20% until it is reduced to 5% for import duty and 5% for sales tax in order to remain competitive within the ASEAN countries. The existence of import duty and sales tax is still required to avoid large scale dumping of second hand machinery in Malaysia. As majority of the construction machineries in Malaysia are already quite old and MBAM is encouraging the use of newer machineries to improve efficiency and also for safety purposes as older machineries may have higher safety risk due to metal fatigue.

Through the visit, MBAM members hoped to share our experience and expertise in the local and international construction markets so that other international contractors will have a better understanding on how to handle and overcome the challenges and take advantage of the opportunities that are available in the global market.

In conclusion, MBAM would like to find opportunities to work together, to explore such latent opportunities where members’ respective strengths could be further integrated and maximized through joint venture partnerships to take on the economic opportunities available in the global construction industry.

KWAN FOH KWAI J.M.N.
President