PROTON BREAKS GROUND FOR NEW STAMPING LINE
-
RM253 million earmarked for investment in new stamping E and F-Line
-
New facility to facilitate Saga production in Tanjong Malim and increase localisation content
Tanjong Malim, 26 July 2024 – National carmaker PROTON recently performed a groundbreaking ceremony for new additions to its stamping facilities in Tanjong Malim. The new lines will be known as stamping E and FLine and will expand the volume of parts stamping at PROTON Tanjong Malim as the company prepares to relocate production of the Proton Saga from Shah Alam by 2026.
A sum of RM253 million has been earmarked for the project, which is expected to also cater to growing overall production volume as well as any new models to be introduced in the near future. This is the second planned expansion to PROTON’s parts stamping capabilities in recent years after the inauguration of the D-Line stamping plant on 14 March 2023 by the Menteri Besar of Perak, Datuk Seri Saarani Mohamad.
Speaking during the ceremony, Dr Li Chunrong, Chief Executive Officer of PROTON said “The addition of the parts stamping E and F-Line are critical to PROTON’s future volume expansion plans as it gives us more flexibility to ramp up our production and meet market demand. For the whole of 2023 and up to June 2024, our Tanjong Malim plant has stamped out 6,067,064 components, of which 395,211 are from the new D-Line, and this number will grow exponentially when production for the PROTON Saga is relocated here in 2026,”
The new E-Line will feature a four stage stamping process with a 1600-tonne stamping machine and three 800- tonne machines while the F-Line will have a five stage stamping process utilising a 2000-tonne, 1200-tonne and three 1000-tonne stamping force machines. Aside from the stamping machines robots will also be used to transfer parts between workstations while IR 4.0 technology will be implemented using real-time data and machine learning to improve the quality of parts produced.
Additionally, the new stamping lines will help to further reduce PROTON’s reliance on imported parts for its models, insulating the company against potential disruptions to global trade, and improving local parts supply. At the same time, the investment further builds on competencies available in Tanjong Malim and will contribute towards the ongoing development of the Automotive High Tech Valley (AHTV).
“As PROTON moves towards consolidating our production operations in Tanjong Malim, we continue to work towards increasing our local parts sourcing. Aside from cost and parts security considerations, we continue to champion the government’s aim to grow local participation in the automotive industry via job creation on multiple levels,” added Dr Li Chunrong.