- By: Valisa Krairiksh
- Published: 24/02/2009 at 12:00 AM
- Newspaper section: Business
Bathroom Design wins awards and builds business by bringing out the best in employees.
One hardly expects the maker of luxury bathtubs costing as much as 600,000 baht to be a champion of His Majesty the King's sufficiency economy initiative, but that is exactly what Wacharamongkon Benjathanachat says is the key to his success.
‘‘Our creative teams are encouraged to think freely. This builds loyalty. The more we give, the more we get back from our employees,’’ says Mr Wacharamongkon.
His 500 employees at Bathroom Design Co get numerous benefits, which is Mr Wacharamongkon's way of sharing with the people he sees as an integral part of the enterprise.
For example, in the wake of the economic downturn, the company has been unable to raise employees' salaries, but has instead initiated programmes to help them save.
"We make our own herbal drinks so that employees don't have to buy them outside the factories. We raise fish and plant rice fields. Defective bathtubs from the production line are used to grow vegetables. Instead of giving them a 7% raise, I'm teaching them to save 12-15%," said Mr Wacharamongkon, the company's president.
The company was founded in 1997, just as the economic crisis hit, with an initial investment of only 1 million baht, and in 1999 it began to make its own designs to adapt to changing times.
"This financial crisis means we must adapt again. Instead of aiming only for the mid- to high-end market, we must look at the mid- to low-end," he said. "We're aiming at lower prices and better design."
The company was the winner in last year's Design and Innovation Contest (DIC2008) hosted by the National Innovation Agency (NIA).
"We provide grants of up to 5 million baht to small enterprises, and support larger ones how we can. Bathroom Design needed 30 million, so we offered to pay the interest," said NIA director Supachai Lorlowhakarn.
Mr Wacharamongkon is also looking ahead to closer economic and trade integration within Asean. "We already have dealers in Hong Kong, Malaysia, Vietnam, Burma, Laos and Cambodia."
Eard Charuratana, deputy managing director of the company, said the idea of "Made in Thailand" has gained wide acceptance as a quality label within Asia.
About 20% of the company's products are exported, to diverse places such as The Netherlands, the Maldives and the United Arab Emirates.
"Since we aim to be among the top five companies specialising in bathrooms internationally, it is important that our clients have a reason to trust our label. This is why we enter international competitions regularly," said Mr Eard.
Mr Wacharamongkon added that winning awards was "more cost-efficient than advertising" , providing very good, credible and free publicity.
"We don't aim to maximise profits, but rather to optimise them, which is why we treat our employees with respect," he said. "Our creative teams are encouraged to think freely. This builds loyalty. The more we give, the more we get back from our employees."
Universities and companies have bought into Mr Wacharamongkon's business management style. He teaches innovation management and business at several universities, such as Chulalongkorn, Thammasat, Sripatum, Prince of Songkla and Ubon Ratchathani universities, as well as running programmes for Kasikorn and Krung Thai banks.
According to Mr Wacharamongkon, the company owes its success to being focused on what it is good at - making bathtubs - and careful management.
"Being an entrepreneur is not only about profit. We must also maximise happiness in what we do," he said.
http://www.bangkokpost.com/business/economics/12219/different-by-design
fon @ Monday, February 23, 2009 link to post * *
Global demand drop drags down prices
- By: VALISA KRAIRIKSH
- Published: 18/02/2009 at 12:00 AM
- Newspaper section: Business
Thailand's diamond and gemstone trade is in deep trouble with a fall of 20-30% in projected demand this year, similar to the global demand slide, said Chirakitti Tang, president of the Thai Diamond Manufacturers Association. Last year, Thailand exported 36 billion baht worth of diamonds alone. The biggest drops in demand have been in the US market, with a 20% decline in demand, followed by Europe, with a 15% drop.
Asian markets are more resilient, with consumers in Japan consuming 10% fewer diamonds, while only India and China may experience increases in demand. The international diamond trade last year was worth around US$20 billion.
''The [international] market is set to shrink 40-50% as demand decreases and prices plummet. As the industry suffers, banks are calling back loans. This means that jewellers are forced to cut product prices, dragging market prices downhill,'' he said.
''Before September, when the world economy started to crash, the price of diamonds had risen 17%.''
The slowdown could translate to 20% of the highly trained diamond-cutting personnel in Thailand losing their jobs this year.
''There is a high investment in training qualified personnel. Real diamonds have to be used in their schooling, and this costs many hundreds of thousands. Once they have to find new jobs, they are not likely to return to the industry,'' said Mr Chirakitti.
As for the market for coloured gemstones from Thailand, such as rubies and sapphires, the situation has been deteriorating for the past nine years, as the value of goods exported has been declining despite rising export volume.
''Prices are already so low that it's unlikely they will get any lower,'' said Mr Chirakitti.
In 1999, Thai researchers invented a new way of heating gemstones to produce colour. Not all gemstone suppliers disclosed their products were unnaturally coloured, leading to a loss in confidence in Thai gemstone suppliers.
''Over the past six years, 80% of the factories in Chanthaburi have closed down,'' Mr Chirakitti said of the province that is a regional hub for coloured stones.
''The government only wants to look at good news, which is why they only look at the amount of jewellery exports,'' he added.
''If we are going to maintain our 30-year reputation for quality gemstones, the government needs to work with the private sector to correct the perception that Thai gemstones are inferior.
''For those in the industry, we need to ensure that we are transparent about our products. There is nothing wrong with stones that have been coloured. We just need to be open about the process.''
http://www.bangkokpost.com/business/economics/11842/industry-in-rut-as-diamonds-lose-lustre
fon @ Wednesday, February 18, 2009 link to post * *
By: VALISA KRAIRIKSH
Published: 12/02/2009 at 12:00 AM
Newspaper section: Business
''Oxo-biodegradable'' bags commonly used by big retailers marketing themselves as environmentally friendly in Thailand are under heavy fire overseas. ''If a material is truly biodegradable, it means that micro-organisms can consume and convert them in the environment,'' said Dr Teerawat Teeraphatpornchai, business development manager of Advance Packaging Co Ltd.
An oxo-biodegradable bag is essentially a conventional plastic bag with chemicals added so that it simply breaks down into smaller pieces without being naturally degradable by micro-organisms.
''What's scary about oxo-biodegradable is that when they break down into small pieces, they end up in the soil and water, and thus, in the food chain,'' said Dr Wantanee Chongkum, director of the innovation department of the National Innovation Agency (NIA).
The National Advertising Division in the United States ruled that plastic bags that were oxo-biodegradable could not be marketed as being biodegradable according to Federal Trade Commission (FTC) guidelines for the use of environmental marketing claims.
''We have attempted to educate retailers about the potential harm in using them, but the level of awareness remains low. If they don't know, it's excusable. But if they know and continue to use them because it's cheaper, this is unacceptable,'' she continued.
Biodegradable plastic bags are up to four times more expensive than conventional plastic bags. Thus, retailers opt for cheaper oxo-biodegradable bags, which are only around 1.5 times more expensive than conventional bags and are touted by manufacturers as being fully biodegradable.
''Biodegradable plastics are expensive, but their price has dropped in the past 10 years. Their edge over conventional plastics should improve through more effective processes, economy of scale, and increasing competition from new players,'' said Assoc Prof Dr Songsri Kulpreecha of Chulalongkorn University
http://www.bangkokpost.com/business/economics/11483/some-biodegradable-bags-not-as-green-as-claimed
fon @ Thursday, February 12, 2009 link to post * *
NIA: Just B70bn could create B200bn return
By: VALISA KRAIRIKSH
Published: 12/02/2009 at 12:00 AM
Newspaper section: Business
Crops available locally in abundance, such as cassava, can be used to create plastics with a wide variety of commercial applications.Thailand has the potential to compete and become a leader in bioplastic production but legislation and funding are needed to boost the scale of production.
"With an investment of 70 billion baht across the bioplastic production chain, we would see a yearly return of 200 billion baht," said Dr Wantanee Chongkum, director of the innovation department of the National Innovation Agency (NIA).
"Compared to other applications, making bioplastic from agricultural goods is the most profitable. Cassava can be made into bioplastic with a return of more than 20 baht per kilogramme, compared to 25 satang for cassava oil. We should be exporting finished products, not raw materials."
Domestically, building the production facilities requires a large amount of investment while the demand for bioplastics in Thailand is still small.
"We are in a research phase. Economic analysis needs to be conducted properly in order to determine the costs of switching from normal plastic to bioplastic," said Dr Wantanee.
In order to spur the growth of the bioplastics industry, suitable policies must be developed.
"We need to implement a policy that is suitable for Thai consumers' behaviour," she said.
For example, many Thais already separate their food waste into plastic bags before discarding it with the trash.
"If these bags were biodegradable, then we could use them for fertiliser production like they do in Japan," she elaborated.
Rising public concern over the effects of global climate change has been an important catalyst for business operators to start using bioplastic, whether to enhance their image or out of genuine concern.
The growing demand could improve the economies of scale for production with the implication that the industry would become more commercially viable.
In fact, large companies such as Nokia, Sony and Mitsubishi are already manufacturing products with bioplastic components as a marketing gimmick.
"Luxury items such as phones, radios and cars can absorb the higher prices of bioplastic, whereas plastic bags cannot," said Somsak Borrisuttanakul, president of the Thai Bioplastic Industry Association. He sees the future of bioplastics shifting away from packaging, where it is now largely concentrated.
Mr Somsak urges the government to invest further in the development of bioplastic, and come up with adequate green policies to diversify and increase the usage of bioplastics in Thailand.
"In Europe, the growth of demand for bioplastics is around 20% per year," said Assoc Prof Dr Songsri Kulpreecha of the Faculty of Science of Chulalongkorn University at a recent seminar on developing the local bioplastics industry.
The university invested 15 million last year and will be investing more than 30 million baht this year in machinery to test bioplastics.
"Ninety-five to 98% of bioplastic packaging produced in Thailand is for direct export. Even within Thailand, sales are mainly to clients who export to companies requiring biodegradable packaging," said Teerawat Teeraphatpornchai, business development manager of Advance Packaging Co Ltd.
Nonetheless, the company, predicting the profitability of the market within five years, has invested five million baht in trial raw materials.
It is considering investing another five million in developing bioplastics with the aim of seeing whether their properties are suitable for the Thai packaging market, such as moisture-resistant and breathable plastics.
While consumers' knowledge centres mainly on packaging and convenience, supermarket customer Darai Thirawat said, "Convenience is important - but if there were two retailers offering the same products in the same mall, but one used biodegradable bags and the other did not, then I would choose the one that offered the biodegradable option.
"It may be a small trend now, but young people will get involved, and eventually, it will become a movement, as in western countries," she added.
http://www.bangkokpost.com/business/economics/11482/bioplastics-need-laws-and-funding
fon @ Thursday, February 12, 2009 link to post * *
By: VALISA KRAIRIKSH
Published: 10/02/2009 at 12:00 AM
Newspaper section: Business
Encouraged by Board of Investment incentives, Bio-Net Asia Ltd has decided to push through its 300-million-baht two-year investment plan for research and development of a second-generation vaccine for pertussis. Better known as the whooping cough, the ailment affects 50 million people and kills 300,000 per year worldwide, placing it amongst the most deadly vaccinable diseases.
Bio-Net Asia's partner, Mahidol University, developed a vaccination that requires five times less dosage of the active ingredient, which could lead to lower production costs.
Normally, it costs 450 to 500 baht per dose, and is currently used only in Europe, North America, Japan and Korea.
''It's definitely a good time to invest. We decided against it five years ago, but thanks to a new category of the BoI, we decided to move operations to Thailand,'' said Dr Pham Hong Thai, the company's joint managing director.
BoI privileges granted to biotech projects include an eight-year waiver of corporate income tax and tariffs on imported machineries.
Bio-Net Asia plans to build a factory that would be able to produce up to 50 million doses of the vaccine per year, 95% of which will be exported, if the research and development phase go according to plan, he said.
''If we develop an efficient means to produce the vaccine, then we'll invest about $US50 million over five years into a production facility,'' he added.
The first generation, known as a whole cell vaccine, is widely used in Thailand but has been out of the market in most industrialised nations due to the gradual increase in harmful side effects incurred with each of the 4-5 doses.
''Because of this, parents usually opt to stop before the series is complete'' he acknowledged.
Current second generation vaccines produced by foreign firms are 'acellular vaccines' while Mahidol developed a 'recombinant acellular vaccine'.
fon @ Tuesday, February 10, 2009 link to post * *
Published: 9/02/2009 at 12:00 AM
Newspaper section: Business
You can have your cake and eat it too. It can even be made of plastic, be calorie-free and yet 100% natural and non-toxic. And it might also cure your athlete's foot.
Making pullulan does not require any agricultural cultivation or fermentation. As a consequence, no more methane, or any more carbon, is created than a living creature naturally releases into the atmosphere. So, essentially, producing pullulan is carbon-neutral.
fon @ Monday, February 09, 2009 link to post * *