Shipping and logistics specialist MISC Berhad is determined to set standards and aims to establish itself as a leading integrated service provider focused on energy transportation, marine and heavy engineering and offshore floating facilities.
"We want to be a global champion, and in order to do this we need to achieve operational excellence and invest in infrastructure and people," says Nordin Mat Yusoff, Vice President Fleet Management Services, MISC Berhad, formerly known as Malaysia International Shipping Corporation Berhad.
In just over three decades, the group has established itself in the fields of liquefied natural gas (LNG), petroleum & chemical shipping, liner and integrated logistics, ship repair and heavy engineering, and maritime education. Its vision is to become "the preferred provider of world-class maritime transportation and logistics services."
"As a publicly listed company, MISC has a strong desire to position itself and build up its capacity and capabilities in several sectors" says mr Nordin. "To achieve this in today's challenging environment, we need to maximise our growth through various means. These include enhancing our reliability, building strong relationships and optimising resources. As we utilise what we have, we can continue to drive MISC into expanding business areas."
Business is going well for MISC. A good foundation for the business was created by the company's success in the early 1980s. Over the years, the company has built up a diversified fleet and currently operates over 100 vessels and two offshore floating facilities.
Expansion plans
According to mr Nordin, MISC will continue to grow its energy shipping business through the expansion plans in place for LNG carriers, petroleum and chemical tankers. "In view of the expected downcycle in the shipping industry, MISC will proactively look for mergers and acquisition opportunities to build critical mass and expand its global coverage," says mr Nordin.
MISC has also made substantial investments in qualified personnel and procedural areas. Explains mr Nordin: "We're proud of our achievements but are continually striving to improve. With our ongoing investment in maintaining a large, modern, high-quality fleet, the assets side is well in hand. The operational procedures area is also important to us and, over the past few years, we have strengthened our best practices through several initiatives, including comprehensive training schemes and ship safety performance."
More recently, MISC began its corporate-driven "triple plus" initiative, which focuses on three areas: leadership development, behavioural changes and capability building. The latter involves the development and implementation of a capability building programme for Fleet Management Services, work that is being supported by DNV.
Explaining the background, Mr Nordin points to the escalation of costs driven by costly raw materials and scarcity of resources. "To cope with MISC's aggressive fleet expansion plans and the increasing cost of fleet management and operations, it became critical for us to develop a pool of capable personnel with the right skills, knowledge, experience and mindset to meet the industry's challenges."
Capability building
"As a consequence, we embarked on a capability building exercise and hired DNV as our consultant to build capabilities in the areas of ship superintending, crew management and ship building management. Phase 1, which we concluded earlier this year, involved a review of the systems, processes, tools and procedures, leadership skills, mindsets and behaviours. We also benchmarked ourselves against industry leaders to assess capability gaps and identify improvement opportunities" says mr Nordin.
In the next phases, MISC plans to "develop, implement and institutionalise the requisite capabilities within the group," says Mr Nordin and adds, "With the capability building initiatives in place, Fleet Management Services is better positioned to support MISC's business needs."
DNV's work focuses on operational excellence and the development of new practices to support MISC in meeting its strategic ambition of becoming a leading industrial shipping company.
In the initial phase, MISC chose to focus on areas that are at the core of its fleet operations, namely maintenance, docking, fuel efficiency, procurement and business performance management. Work is ongoing and DNV has provided solutions that have contributed to the bottom line, particularly in the area of fuel efficiency.
With increasing competitive pressure and rising fuel prices, Mr Nordin believes that operational excellence has become a key factor in ensuring cost-efficient operations and asset reliability.
Enhanced competitiveness
"Sound management and investment in operational procedures, infrastructure and people will reduce costs and boost our competitiveness and efficiency. There is no alternative because there will be no future if we don't achieve these goals. We will simply be too expensive," says mr Nordin.
Commenting on the cooperation with DNV, mr Nordin says: "For us, it's important to have good relationships with all of our suppliers, subcontractors and consultants, like DNV, as they are key to achieving optimal services and delivery in a competitive marketplace."
"Given our strategic ambitions, we must seek innovative, international partners to develop relationships that put quality, price and delivery hand-in-hand with efficient services," mr Nordin says and concludes "This in turn, will help enable MISC to achieve its vision of becoming the preferred provider of world-class maritime transportation and logistics services."
PHOTO: MISC BERHAD