Proton, through its subsidiary Proton Edar and logistics provider Konsortium Logistik Berhad, has officially launched two centralised logistics hubs, one in Sijangkang and the other in Tanjung Malim. The company says that the hubs, in offering a fast delivery system and centralised supply chain, will allow it a more competitive edge in the global marketplace.

The Centre for Logistics, Allocation, Storage and Services (CLASS) hubs were launched by Proton advisor Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad at an official opening ceremony in Sijangkang, Kuala Langat, yesterday.

With both hubs in operation, cars from the Proton Shah Alam manufacturing plant are now sent to the Sijangkang hub for staging, storage, pre-delivery inspection and pre-shipment inspection before being sent via trucks to sales outlets, to be subsequently delivered to customers.

Cars from the Tanjung Malim manufacturing plant go through the same processes at its CLASS hub, located within the plant. Other services provided at the hubs are logistics planning, vehicle storage, stock storage maintenance, washing and fuelling.

Operational wise, Proton Edar, from April last year, has outsourced the task of managing its deliveries to KLB in an effort to improve its supply chain. The event yesterday also saw the signing of a service level agreement which officially sets the service level of Konsortium in terms of storage maintenance, pre-delivery inspection and delivery preparation.

Both CLASS hubs have been operational for a while now, catering to local demands. In the second phase, both hubs officially began preparing cars for shipment to the export market on April 4 by means of a rigorous pre-delivery inspection.

The 50-acre Sijangkang hub, which started operations on April 1 last year, can accommodate 7,000 cars at a particular time while the 45-acre Tanjung Malim hub, which began operations in June 2010, can accommodate 6,000 cars at a go. In April this year, the hubs successfully delivered a total of 14,573 units of vehicles to its distributors and dealers.

Proton Group managing director Datuk Seri Syed Zainal Abidin said Proton would be able to maximise its logistics efficiency by reducing costs and delivery time, thereby helping increase customer satisfaction domestically and globally.

“Previously, pre-delivery inspection was handled by local and international dealers at the respective service outlets prior to handing the cars to customers. That is no longer the case, as the process is now done at the hubs,” he said.

“The hubs will help us standardise the pre-delivery inspection of all vehicles, and this is significant in ensuring fast delivery of cars for domestic market. The CLASS process enables us to reduce a host of problems, including multiple handling by 40%, unnecessary waiting time to a maximum of three days, secondary defects and excess inventory at staging points,” he added.