Bosch Enjoys Continued Growth in Malaysia
Petaling Jaya – Bosch, a leading global supplier of technology and services, with sales of RM 528 million (132 million euros) achieved a healthy growth of some eight percent in sales in Malaysia, up from RM 488 million (122 million euros) compared to the previous year. “With this continued growth, Malaysia remains the third largest contributor out of the ten countries in Southeast Asia that Bosch is present in, after Singapore and Thailand,” said Martin Hayes, president of Bosch in Southeast Asia and managing director of Bosch in Malaysia and Singapore.
Despite the challenging global economic situation, Bosch projects a positive outlook for 2013 with continued growth and the expansion of its footprint in Malaysia.
Currently, 44 percent of Bosch’s more than 5,500 associates in Southeast Asia are located in Malaysia. Malaysia will continue to be the stronghold for Bosch in housing the most sizeable pool of its workforce in this region. The company expects a continued steady growth in headcount for the coming years.
Sales revenue across the various business divisions developed positively, with the Thermotechnology division posting the highest increase of nearly 40 percent due to key projects in the food and beverages industry. The Car Multimedia, Original Equipment, Security Systems and Drive & Control divisions enjoyed double digit growth. The Power Tools and Automotive Aftermarket divisions also performed well in 2012.
Expansion of footprint across Malaysia
“We are maintaining a steady momentum in Malaysia and intend to make further inroads into other markets such as Kelantan and Johor Bahru, as well as beyond the peninsular into Sabah and Sarawak,” said Hayes. “We expect to progressively expand our footprint in line with the rising affluence of Malaysia and its increasing demand for cutting-edge technologies in everyday life.”
Bosch will be introducing its latest line-up of web-based surveillance cameras designed for high performance under extreme low-light conditions, as well as a series of automotive spare parts for local and Asian-made passenger cars within this year. The Automotive Aftermarket division will expand its distribution network to enhance the availability of its products such as spark plugs, wipers, batteries and other spare parts to customers. Partnering local workshops across the country, motorists will be able to access Bosch’s high quality and reliable products, installed by their trusted workshop.
With the introduction of Iskandar Malaysia, Sabah Development Corridor (SDB), East Coast Economic Regional (ECER) and Sarawak Corridor of Renewable Energy (SCORE) attracting substantial investments in manufacturing and infrastructure, these projects also present opportunities to Bosch as a one-stop solutions provider with a diverse portfolio of products and solutions to offer.
“Malaysia is well-entrenched to be a key growth market in Southeast Asia. The country is undergoing further industrialization and rapidly expanding its infrastructure to be increasingly competitive, regionally and globally,” added Hayes.
Course of business in Southeast Asia and Asia Pacific
Bosch closed its 2012 fiscal year at RM 2.8 billion (702 million euros) in sales in Southeast Asia to realise a remarkable increase by almost 30 percent. Amidst a rapid growth within the region, the company also saw an overall healthy increase of some nine percent in manpower for the region.
In Asia Pacific, Bosch increased its sales by 5.6 percent to some RM 50.4 billion (EUR 12.6 billion). Sales in the Chinese and Indian economies developed less dynamically in 2012 than in previous years. To reach its long-term target of generating 30 percent share of its sales in Asia Pacific, the company invested some RM 3.12 billion (EUR 780 million) there last year, on a par with the previous year.
Bosch Group business development 2012 – 2013
In fiscal 2012, the Bosch Group sales grew 1.9 percent to RM 210 billion (52.5 billion euros). Pre-tax profit came to RM 11.2 billion (2.8 billion euros).
Developments in the business sectors differed. In 2012, Automotive Technology, the largest business sector, increased its sales by 2.1 percent to RM 124.4 billion (31.1 billion euros). Sales of the Industrial Technology business sector stagnated at RM 32 billion (8 billion euros). The Consumer Goods and Building Technology business sector generated sales of RM 53.6 billion (13.4 billion euros), a 2.5 percent increase.
Headcount, adjusted to match the company’s business development over the course of the past year, rose only slightly by 3,400 to 305,900. In total, Bosch invested some RM 32 billion (8 billion euros) in the company’s future in 2012: RM 19.2 billion (4.8 billion euros) for research and development and RM 12.8 billion (3.2 billion euros) in capital expenditure.
For 2013, Bosch expects global sales growth of two to four percent. The measures to improve result that were started in 2012 – such as limits on fixed costs, capital expenditure and company acquisitions – are to be continued.
The supplier of technology and services will also continue to rigorously pursue the main lines of its strategy – with systems for environmental protection, energy efficiency and safety. Bosch believes that there is huge energy efficiency potential, as well as sales potential, in modernizing the power supply, energy management and insulation of buildings. On 1 January 2013, Bosch brought together the areas of its business that deal with this to form a fourth business sector, Energy and Building Technology. This new business sector generated sales of RM 20 billion (5 billion euros) in 2012.
The company also expects sales growth to come from innovative and beneficial products, web-based business models and the further expansion of its international presence. At the company’s recent annual press conference in Germany, Dr. Volkmar Denner, Chairman of the Bosch Board of Management, said, “Bosch’s broad footprint has never been as valuable as in the age of connected life.”
