Malaysia can take on high-value engineering work done in India, says French group

Malaysia can take on high-value engineering work now being done in India if it develops the right skills, says a senior executive of French engineering group Segula Technologies.

Arun Rajendran, the Segula Technologies India and Southeast Asia CEO and managing director, said Malaysia already had strong car, aerospace, electronics, and semiconductor industries, along with good roads, ports and air links.

“Malaysia is seen more as a manufacturing hub,” he told FMT after meeting Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on the sidelines of the BRICS leadership summit on Saturday.

Arun said much of the more specialised design and engineering work was still being carried out in countries such as India, but Malaysia could take on more of this work by training local engineers.

Segula plans to set up a global engineering centre in Malaysia by the end of 2026, according to the Prime Minister’s Office.

The centre will hire Malaysians and use Segula’s expertise in artificial intelligence to support the car, aerospace, energy, and manufacturing industries.

Arun said Segula’s global customers in the car and aerospace industries were already asking whether more work could be carried out in Malaysia instead of being sent back to India.

“We need people to deliver from Malaysia. That’s the need of the hour for all my customers,” he said.

He said experienced engineers could initially be brought in from India to train Malaysian teams for about three to four months before local staff take over more of the work.

Arun said Malaysia was also becoming more attractive as skilled engineers in India became increasingly costly and harder to retain.

“India has also become very expensive. It’s not cheap anymore,” he said, adding that it was becoming more difficult to retain talent.

Segula is also in talks with HICOM Engineering on a possible partnership in Malaysia.

He said Malaysia’s other strengths included reliable power and water supply and the presence of many major international manufacturers.

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