‘Good signs’ for manufacturing
British ambassador Stephen Lillie says ‘the experience in Peza zones is extremely positive’
BRITISH Ambassador to the Philippines Stephen Lillie agrees with talks of a possible resurgence of manufacturing in the country.
Lillie, who was in Cebu yesterday to visit a British-based company’s electronics manufacturing facility, told Sun.Star Cebu that manufacturing is essential for the development of the Philippine economy to provide a balanced and more broad-based structure.
He said there were “good signs” of the return of manufacturing to the country. A factor that can help propel this sector is the establishment of the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (Peza).
“The experience in Peza zones is extremely positive,” he said, adding that it is a selling point in attracting manufacturing investments into the country.
He pointed out that businesses that have registered with Peza have reported reliable infrastructure and power, low bureaucracy and a corruption-free environment. Companies also report that Peza is responsive to their needs. He considers the Peza “a great success story” for the Philippines.
Challenge
The challenge, he said, is for the entire country to be as efficient as Peza.
If electronics exports seem to be in trouble in the Philippines, there were no signs of it at the manufacturing plant of Surface Technology International-Philippines (STI-P).
The company expects to have be- tween 500 and 600 employees by the end of the year to work its 24-hour operations everyday at their facility at the Mactan Export Processing Zone.
The company also plans on spending an additional $5 million for the next two years for additional equipment and expansion.
STI is an electronics manufacturing company specializing in “high reliability, low volume specialist printed circuit board assembly and final box-build.” They serve different sectors in aerospace and defense, automotive, energy, industrial and commercial, medical, space and telecommunications.
Workforce
Currently, the company employs 215, who work in three shifts. When required, the facility is capable of assembling nearly five million components per day.
STI head of sales for Asia Daniel Romero Folch told Sun. Star Cebu that they chose the Philippines for their expansion because of the quality of its workers and their ability to communicate in English.
“You can talk to anyone and they can answer in English. That is very important,” he said, adding that it gives the Philippines an advantage over other locations because it makes it easy to give instructions and for them to respond.
He also cited the country’s quality of human resources, noting the training they get from local universities makes them qualified to hold certain positions and eventually be trained for higher posts.
The company recently sent two of its workers to the United Kingdom for a six-month training program last January and is in the process of organizing another set of training.
STI acquired the 1,300-square meter facility from a Spanish-based company in 2010 and invested $5 million in new equipment and training.
Capabilities
Its capabilities include surface mount assembly, conventional through-hole assembly, wavesolder, testing, box-build and test and special processes. It serves multiple customers in Asia, United States, United Kingdom and Europe.
In a tour of the facility, Folch and his team showed the critical steps in assembling components used in different electronic devices such as ankle bracelets used for monitoring those under house arrest, parking sensors, medical equipment and the like.
Lillie, who paid a visit to the plant yesterday, found impressive the way things were done at the facility after seeing how workers put together components with the help of machines to ensure a high level of accuracy.
He hopes to see more UK-based companies doing business in the country.