Steelcase Inc, an office furniture maker and designer from the U.S., has chosen Malaysia as its first Global Shared Services (GSS) center, local media reported on Saturday. The multi-million dollar center in Kuala Lumpur is one of Steelcase's largest investments in Asia Pacific, company executives said. GSS-KL will serve Steelcase's offices and customers globally through the centralization of resources including its data and innovation centers as well as finance, information technology (IT), administration and sales communications services. Malaysia's centralized location within Asia, along with its good IT and telecommunication infrastructure were major factors for the selection, Steelcase president and chief executive officer Jim Hackett said. The availability of a deep pool of talented, skilled workers with strong English capabilities was crucial too, Hackett said at the opening of GSS-KL on Friday. The center will employ 140 people initially, with another 100 expected to be added in the near future, the New Straits Times reported. Steelcase, founded in 1912, has a fiscal 2008 revenue of 3.5 billion U.S. dollars and manufacturing facilities in 35 locations worldwide including one in Malaysia. The Malaysian factory in Puchong, central Selangor state, is one of the company's three major facilities. The other two are in Kyoto, Japan and Shenzhen, China. The bulk of the Puchong factory's output is shipped to markets in Asia Pacific, Hackett said. Steelcase's business in Asia Pacific has grown faster than anywhere else in the world, he said, adding that some 35 percent of its sales are generated outside the U.S. The share for office furniture market in Asia, Hackett said, is fragmented as there are more than 2,000 manufacturers competing in the region.
Source: xinhuanet
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