SSI bullish on growth prospects

SSI bullish on growth prospects

SSI Schaefer Thailand, a Germany-based provider of warehouse management systems and equipment, expects revenue growth of 10% per year for the foreseeable future.

"Warehouse operation is a labour-intensive business, one that requires efficient warehouse management, and that provides us room for continuous growth," country manager Sarawut Laoprasert said.

"We see many opportunities, as each warehouse has different requirements and equipment needs. This is an area in which companies must be able to compete, and that's why we're confident about our growth rate."

He expects demand for warehouse management systems to increase, particularly when businesses want to control and reduce costs during economic slowdowns.

However, growth in demand for warehouse services will be at a minimal rate this year, in line with the present weak domestic economy and less than in the previous three years, Mr Sarawut said.

SSI Schaefer will start bringing warehouse automation products into Thailand next year.

Mr Sarawut said the trend was heading more towards warehouse automation, but the adoption rate will be very slow in the first stage.

It is likely to be at least five years before warehouse automation is widespread in Thailand due largely to the high cost involved, particularly for equipment installation, well above the present level of labour costs, he said.

SSI Schaefer can supply warehouse equipment to each business sector, but the company sees consumable goods, retail, e-commerce, health care and cold-chain storage to be the areas of greatest growth potential.

The company's core customers are multinationals and other large companies that require high standards for warehouse management and reliability.

Mr Sarawut said the Asean Economic Community was likely to create a bigger volume of goods and therefore more demand for warehouse space.

Modern warehouse management can help to ease pressure on the labour-intensive market, he said.

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