By DERRICK VINESH derrickvinesh@thestar.com.my
BUKIT MERTAJAM: Ixmation Malaysia has spent a whopping RM5.2mil to equip its new facility in the Penang Science Park in Bukit Minyak here with a self-designed state-of-the-art solar roofing system.
Ixmation group chief executive officer Dr Martin Pfister (pic) said the company had installed third generation solar tubes covering an area of 1,672 sq m (18,000 sq ft) on the three-storey building, located on 3,901sq m (42,000 sq ft) plot of land.
“The cylindrical solar tubes, which used thin solar films produced by Ixmation, could help supplement the company’s annual energy consumption by 240-megawatt hours using solar energy.
“A quarter of the new plant’s energy needs is supplemented by solar energy,” he said when Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng opened Ixmation Malaysia’s second plant yesterday.
Pfister noted that the innovative tubes ensured a complete circular absorption of solar energy.
“Our industrial focus has changed in the last three years, more to alternative energy production, electronics, medical devices and test systems for the automotive industry.
“The move was the company’s contribution toward the national ‘1Malaysia Green, 1Malaysia Clean’ campaign as well as the state government’s ‘Cleaner, Greener Penang’ campaign,” he said.
Pfister said Ixmation, which was a business unit of the Swiss-based Conzzeta AG, hoped to chart a group sales turnover of RM310.5mil (USD$100mil) in the next two to three years compared to its present turnover of about RM217.3mil (USD$70mil).
He said Conzzeta’s sales turnover was about RM3.1bil (USD$1bil).
Lim said according to the World Economic Forum’s Global Competitiveness Report 2010-2011, Switzerland ranked number 1, with the highest per capita income of RM71,426 (USD$23,000), in term of exports.
“Despite not having any natural resources, this achievement shows that Switzerland has got the right model that focuses on building human talent.
“That is why we too must look towards branding Penang as a land that celebrates excellence and inspires innovations,” he said.
Also present were Conzzeta AG board of directors’ chairman Jacob Schmidheiny, Conzzeta AG chief executive officer (CEO) Robert Suter, Ixmation Asia chief exe-cutive officer (CEO) K.C. Loh, Ixmation Malaysia general manager K.K. Lai and Swiss ambassador to Malaysia Dr Urs Stemmler.
