Friday, April 25, 2008 Roperos: Industrial pride By Godofredo M. Roperos Politics Also
WHEN the history of my hometown Balamban, which is on this island province’s west coast, shall have been written, one of the salient points of its contemporary existence is its rise from a mere agricultural hamlet boasting of rice paddies and shallow salt water fishing grounds into an industrial community.
The increasing number of homes of industrial workers surrounding the shipbuilding facilities of two boat manufacturers is a testimony to the emergence of an industrial enclave in what was once grassy land.
At a time when the economic prognosis of the province amidst an inflationary trend in the global economy indicates food shortages and rising prices of basic commodities, triumphs of Tsuneishi and the Aboitiz-owned FBMA Marine Inc. give us a sense of optimism.
A few days ago, we read in the business page of this daily the report that the FBMA boat-building plant in Balamban has just produced and is ready to launch a 70-meter car and passenger ferry boat of the “catamaran type with steel hulls.”
The boat that Pentland Ferries of the United Kingdom ordered in February last year, and named Pentalina, “will reportedly be used in northern Scotland.” It is designed for the rough waters and large waves. Its estimated cost is from $10 to $15 million.
Not to be outdone is my wife’s hometown, Liloan. Coastline Moldings, Inc., which manufactures glass fiber-reinforced products, had built a 42-foot yacht. Established in April 2007 by an Australian boat builder and an English businessman, the firm launched and held the blessing and the maiden voyage of the motor yacht, its first premier product, along with other fabrications.
What the FBMA achieved is something that we should take as a positive sign that Cebu is well on the way to becoming a competent global boat-maker. And it is not the lone performer. The Liloan boat maker can pass as manufacturer of luxury yachts for the nation’s moneyed, while FBMA and Tsuneishi are producing ocean-going vessels of various types.
While the two dominant tenants of the Aboitiz industrial estate are reportedly suffering from loss of skilled workers to foreign employment, they are able to withstand it through their own training programs. FBMA has invested on an in-house training center to develop skilled potential workers while Tsuneishi has its own training program where potentially good workers are sent to Japan to acquire further training.
Thus, the two shipbuilders are able to remain bullish.
