THE Malaysia Automotive, Robotics and IoT Institute (MARii) will assist micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) to increase their digitalisation levels in order to respond to the disruptions in the business ecosystem once the Movement Control Order (MCO) is lifted.
Its CEO Datuk Madani Sahari said various capacity enhancement programmes have been developed by the government agency to help SMEs adopt digital technology into their day-to-day operations, and it is now expanding these programmes to even more SMEs to cope with the post-MCO era.
The Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI) has given approval for economic sectors (companies) that were allowed to operate at half capacity during phases one to three of the MCO to carry on business at full capacity starting today.
This is aimed at revitalising the supply chain of goods and services to meet both domestic and foreign demand with the positive impact, especially on SMEs.
Madani said companies need to begin embracing “the new norms” by complying with the standard operating procedures (SOPs) and health guidelines set.
“Once the MCO ends, we expect to witness changes in the patterns and behaviours of consumers, who will be more cautious and prone to shop online, causing businesses that are unfamiliar with digital technology to become less relevant in the market,” he said in a statement today.
The Covid-19 pandemic will also change the methods and SOPs of companies in the long term.
Thus they need to embrace digital technology such as data analysis, automation, inventory management, production planning, and equipment maintenance, he said.
In 2019, MARii launched two programmes to enhance technology adoption for SMEs.
The Technopreneur Development Programme (TDP) was launched in October 2019 to empower the use of digital systems and tools in business operations.
Ten MSMEs from the handicraft, furniture and food industries were selected to participate in a six-month programme to adopt technology in product design, operations management, and digital marketing and sales in their respective businesses.
Another programme called the MARii Intelligent Technology Platform (MITP) was developed to support infrastructure requirements in the fourth industrial revolution (Industry 4.0) technology for SMEs.
The MITP is a one-stop solution for both small and large companies in managing and controlling operations using Industry 4.0 technology, especially through Big Data Management.
“This platform enables the collection, analysis and integration of data from all aspects of the company’s operations, in order to identify business trends and patterns more accurately, leading to better decision making by the management,” Madani said.
Companies interested in joining these programmes can contact MARii through its website (www.marii.my), email ([email protected]) or social media channels (@MARiiMalaysia). — April 29, 2020, Bernama
