SMBA Visit in Penang
SMBA organised a trip to Penang for its Members on 5th and 6th October to visit SMBA members and colleagues who are based in Penang. This first ever SMBA trip to Penang was organised by a Sub-Committee comprising of Aileen, Nurizan and Pauline, and in collaboration with Stoppani Systems Sdn Bhd, a SMBA Member with a manufacturing facility in Prai. Mr. Marcel Wismer, Managing Director, and his team prepared an excellent local programme for the two days in which 31 SMBA Members and 4 Non-Members participated.
The programme started on Friday, 5th October, with the participants’ arriving at Stoppani’s facility, coming from Melakka and KL, in time for a buffet lunch, sponsored by the SMBA. After the lunch, Mr. CS Tan, Stoppani, gave a short presentation on the size and significance of the contract manufacturing industry in Penang and on Stoppani as a contract manufacturer with core competencies in designing and manufacturing large steel frames with high precision welding. Mr. Marcel Wismer then gave an overview of the history of Stopani, talking about the new ownership, due to a management buyout this year, and the change of the name to Kemikon, A new factory shall offer up to five times of the current production capacity per shift.
After the guided company tour, Ms. Lyne Lee, Senior Manager, Invest Penang, shared a presentation on the history of Penang and it’s culture, followed by some information about the agency’s role. Invest Penang acts as a single point of contact for investors, in collaboration with Federal and States agencies. Penang has attracted many manufacturers from multinational companies.
The evening programme started with a cocktail at Bora Bora, a bar and restaurant at the beachside in Batu Ferringhi: Definitely a highlight of the Penang Visit, including a beautiful sunset and evening setting upon the beach, offering everyone a relaxing atmosphere and a wonderful setting for networking and drinks. We would like to extend our thanks to Roedl & Partner Malaysia who sponsored the cocktail at Bora Bora. Roedl & Partner’s services include tax consulting and compliance, advisory, outsourcing, accounting, payroll, audit and corporate services.
Back in Georgetown, Kemikon hosted a dinner at a quaint nyonya restaurant, called Auntie Gaik Lean. Marcel not only spoilt the guests with many tasty Peranakan dishes, including lobak, brinjal sambal, beef rendang, nasi kerabu, fried chicken, assam fried prawns, assam fish and petai prawns, but some bottles of nice Italian wines. The party-goers finally ended up at the Rockafellas Kitchen & Bar, enjoying live band performances.
Not surprising, the programme on Saturday started with a slight delay of one hour. Some SMBA Members were able to make it to China House, a cafe with a rich history and high reputation in Penang. The cafe does not only offer coffee and cakes, but a myriad of old antiques adorning the interior of the cafe made this visit particularly interesting.
The final stop of the SMBA visit was at the Ocean Green Restaurant where CAREelec Sdn Bhd sponsored a seafood lunch to the SMBA Members. While a few of the SMBA Members decided to stay on in Penang for another day, the rest of the SMBA Members made the way back home to KL and Melakka – after a successful event with very positive feedbacks and requests to organise another SMBA visit to Penang in 2019.
