MALAYSIA: Hartalega pursues quality in rubber glove market

One of the world's largest rubber glove producers, Malaysia's Hartalega Holdings, has achieved rapid growth through its commitment to improving the manufacturing process.

While compatriot Top Glove, which controls 25 % of the global market, can be considered a department store offering all sorts of products, Hartalega is more like a specialty store that sells just medical gloves made from synthetic rubber.

"Our passion for innovation has always been the driving force behind our growth and success," says Kuan Kam Hon, executive chairman of Hartalega. Kuan founded Hartalega in 1988 after working for his family's construction company. While Malaysian competitors expanded by making gloves from cheap natural rubber, he insisted on using synthetic rubber. Kuan anticipated growth in demand for medical gloves amid the spread of AIDS and other new infectious diseases. Synthetic rubber gloves are more expensive than those made from natural rubber but are said to be less likely to cause allergic reactions.

Initially producing the gloves in a makeshift building, Kuan aspired to become a global player, convinced that his company's gloves would be sought after in the U.S. and other industrialized nations. The first production equipment was cutting-edge at the time, yet Kuan was not satisfied and he continued to make improvements in-house. He says that his obsession with quality was cultivated while working in the construction business, where the aim is building better homes. Hartalega's productivity per worker is almost double the industry average.

Some 76 % of Hartalega's products are for the medical industry, and the U.S. market accounts for half of sales. The company logged record sales in the year ended March 2015. Thanks to the weak ringgit, net profit in the most recent October-December quarter surged about 50% from the year-earlier period. But competition is intensifying as Top Glove ramps up production of synthetic rubber gloves.

Some have argued that very little innovation takes place in Asia. Hartalega, which constantly strives to improve its manufacturing prowess, stands out in this regard.

Source: Daily “Nikkei Asian Review”, Tokyo, 8 Mar 2016
(Syed Rashid Ali, Karachi, Pakistan)