CONSTRUCTION activities for some of Aspen' s ongoing developments in Malaysia - namely Vivo Executive Apartment and Viluxe - are to be affected slightly by the country' s latest Movement Control Order (MCO 3.0) from May 12 to June 7, said the group in a business update on Monday.

 

Nonetheless, it said it will take advantage of available incentives from the Malaysian government with the intended launch of four projects in H2 of 2021.

 

These comprise the second phase of Viluxe a new residential development in Aspen Vision City, Batu Kawan, Penang a high-rise development in Tanjung Bungah, Penang and a serviced apartment in Kajang, Selangor.

 

Additionally, the group targets to launch an integrated logistics and warehousing facility on its recently-acquired land in Selangor together with Logos. The project will have a total development area of 785,000 square metres (sq m), and the gross leasable area for its five warehouse blocks will be approximately 589,000 sq m. It is expected to be one of the largest one-stop logistics solutions providers in Malaysia upon its completion, said Aspen.

 

As for its other main business segment in the healthcare sector, the group' s glove-making subsidiary Aspen Glove has commenced its first phase of glove production for shipment.

 

According to Aspen, day-to-day operations at Aspen Glove are running smoothly despite a slight delay and the company is " well on track to meet its contractual obligations" . Its first shipments are scheduled for delivery by end-May.

 

Staff who are involved directly in Aspen Glove' s production lines are allowed to work at full capacity, taking into account the Malaysian government' s prescribed standard operating procedures and the MCO 3.0. The company currently uses three teams working eight-hour shifts to " provide 24/7 coverage" , said the group.

 

Aspen added that construction works for Aspen Glove' s Phase 1 manufacturing facility have been fully completed, while piling works for the next phase of the facility have also been completed and main building works will commence " soon" .

 

Construction works for Phase 2 of the manufacturing facility are expected to be completed by October 2021. Aspen targets production of gloves under Phase 2 to commence in stages from Q4 2021. The facility is expected to achieve full production capacity by Q1 2022 with 24 production lines.