The Malaysian Furniture Industry Unravelling Its Growth and Challenges

• Main Author: Ratnasingam, Jegatheswaran (Author)
• Format: Book
• Language: English
• Published: Serdang Universiti Putra Malaysia Press 2015
• Edition: State or province government publication : English
• Subjects: Furniture Industry And Trade > Malaysia
• Online Access: Click Here to View Status and Holdings.
• Physical Description: xix, 203 pages illustrations 25 cm
• Bibliography: Includes bibliographical references (pages 189-195) and index
• ISBN: 9789673444120; 9673444129

This book provides an overview of the furniture industry in Malaysia, followed by a discussion of its industrial structure, production characteristics, product types, design attributes, key actors of the industry, incentive schemes, health and safety issues, trade scenario and a detailed economic analysis its performance and how it measures up in the wake of growing competition from other emerging furniture producing nations, especially China and Vietnam. Although the furniture manufacturing sub-sector is the star-performer within the Malaysian wood products industry, contributing almost one-third of total export earnings and total employment in the wood products industry, it is dogged by weak value- adding, design and innovative dynamisms due to the structural features of the industry. Weak investments in human capital and innovation activities are undermining its ambitions of becoming a net exporter of high value-added, branded furniture. The government is the principal driver of the nation's wood products industry, and despite a sound industrial development framework, the furniture industry is characterized by low value-addition and poor design and innovation capabilities. Signs for the Malaysian furniture industry in its journey towards becoming an original-design and original-brand furniture manufacturer are however not obvious and limited. As this treatise has repeatedlyemphasized, policy makers will do well to pay attention to aspects that will boost productivity, design capability, linkages and human capital development to improve the overall competitiveness of the Malaysian Furniture industry in the years ahead.