MENTION Sirim, and the first thing that comes to mind is the crash helmet worn by motorcyclists.
This is quite expected because Sirim is renowned as the agency which has always championed quality.
Sirim’s mark of quality is prominently displayed on all approved helmets. The helmet is not the only product that has been certified by Sirim for its adherence to quality standards. Thousands of consumer products which meet quality standards bear the Sirim mark.
Most are electrical products where safety is a prime concern. Sirim is known to have provided reliable testing of such products to ensure conformance to international standards.
In fact, when we talk about the growing business of product certification, Sirim has taken the lead in the country.
Under the Sirim group of companies, its certification arm, Sirim SQAS, has done good business not only in product certification, but also in the certification of a growing list of management standards.
These include quality, environment, health and many safety related management systems. As the world business becomes globally linked in terms of the supply chain, the need for certification has grown too.
Many may not be aware that Sirim has also built strong R&D in many technology areas, such
as biogas, mould-making, machine-building, materials development, cosmetics, computer-aided engineering and automotive parts.
Its Advanced Materials Research Centre, Amrec, in Kulim, Kedah has, over the years, come out with products which have made some mark in the commercial arena.
I am aware of the synthetic bone material produced by its R&D laboratory, called granumas, which has made some headway in the local market.
There were a few other products which have been quite impactful. But as is true in all R&D ventures, there have also been some disappointments.
Sirim is well positioned to contribute to industry development. And it has done so in testing and certification.
However, in technology development, especially to help industries cope with the growing global competition, it still has some way to go.
In the past, complaints have been raised by some industry players that Sirim, instead of working alongside SMEs to improve their competitiveness and productivity, has become a competitor, but with the unfair backing of the government.
As rightly put by the prime minister in a recent dialogue, a government should not be in the business of making money.
Its business is in collecting money from the business community through the 24 per cent corporate tax.
And government entities such as Sirim are there to make sure the business community grows so that the government can collect more tax.
It was not easy for Sirim to forge strong links with the SMEs, more so when the latter see it as another competitor.
Putting Sirim under the International Trade and Industry Ministry will change things for the better. But Sirim will have to change its ways, especially the R&D arm.
The government should also not impose unrealistic profit-making KPIs on Sirim R&D. Maybe it is time to separate it from the testing and certification arm of Sirim.
Make it an autonomous R&D centre which will cater to the needs of the nation’s SMEs. As shown by Germany and Japan, their strong economies are attributed in no small measure to their strong command of manufacturing.
Sirim R&D should just concentrate on manufacturing as its research focus.
PROFESSOR DATUK DR AHMAD IBRHIM
Fellow, Academy of Sciences Malaysia, UCSI University