KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 2 (Bernama) — SIRIM Bhd has spread its wings to China to set up Hunan SIRIM Huasheng Certification and Inspection Co Ltd, a joint venture company between SIRIM QAS International and Hunan Huasheng International Trade Consultancy to provide certification services.
SIRIM chairman Tan Sri Dr Ahmad Tajuddin Ali said the joint venture company located in Hunan province will begin operation in January 2023 providing certification services, particularly International Automotive Task Force (IATF) 16949 standard, inspection and training activities.
“With this joint venture company, SIRIM QAS International has a foothold in China, chiefly in the China automotive manufacturing sector, which is the world’s largest sector, accounting for the production of 21 million passenger cars in 2021,” he said during the Majlis SIRIM Industri (MSI) 2022.
The IATF 16949 standard is an international standard for automotive quality management system developed by IATF, and SIRIM QAS, a wholly owned subsidiary of SIRIM Bhd, is the only certification body in Southeast Asia recognised by the IATF.
President and group chief executive officer Datuk Dr Ahmad Sabirin Arshad said the investment for the joint venture company valued at about RM1 million with the target to generate millions in revenue in years to come as the industry has been booming recently.
“The intention for the certification through this collaboration was to bring certified products to the international market and not just into Malaysia,” he told reporters.
As China is under lockdown at the moment, Ahmad Sabirin said the certification work would be done remotely and to be intensified by next year once the lockdown has been eased, expected to be after the Chinese New Year festival next year.
On the MSI 2022, he said the environmental, social and governance (ESG) themed event is an annual affair to strengthen the relationship and collaboration between SIRIM, the industry and the government agencies, while helping the government to embrace ESG as the main agenda.
“We are also working with the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI) to come out with a new certification which combines all three elements in ESG into one certification and Malaysia wants to take the lead to embark on the journey,” he said.
Meanwhile, Ahmad Tajuddin noted that there may be some reluctance over adopting ESG due to misconception and higher cost, however, the organisations should be aware that safeguarding the future was not something that could be measured in ringgit or sen.
“I hope that more organisations in Malaysia will engage with SIRIM and our subsidiaries and take up our various programmes and certifications to show that they are ESG conscious,” he said.
The event was officiated by MITI deputy secretary general (Investment) Datuk Bahria Mohd Tamil.
— BERNAMA
