FRP Works toward Diversified Composite Products

FRP, Finland New Horizon One Member Co. Ltd, was set up in 2007 in Can Tho City but it relocated to Bac Lieu province in May 2010 to better meet market demand. At the end of 2010, the company was granted the investment certificate by the Bac Lieu Provincial People's Committee. Its business lines include manufacturing and repairing canoes and boats, household water tanks, drainpipes, and building composite boats.

 

Director Quach Minh Dau said: With working knowledge and experience acquired in Finland, he returned to Vietnam after 20 years living in foreign countries to realise his ambition of building ships and manufacturing seafood in the motherland.

 

Since it started operations in Bac Lieu, the company has established a broad relationship with authorities, organisations, individuals, scientists and specialists in Vietnam and in the world to hold regular meetings sharing experience and knowledge to power up its capabilities in the new era.

 

In the first phase, the company embarked on building workshops on over 3,000 square metres of land, installing facilities and equipment, and training personnel. Although the company did not need a large number of staff at first, it remained a challenge to convey European standard technologies and working capabilities to them. To address that situation, the company applied a very flexible mechanism which allowed paid workers to learn on site. Its efforts started to bear fruit, as its products like marble-like and wood-like tables and chairs, doors for interior decoration, shrimp hatching tanks, boats and canoes expanded their presence on the market, although the quantity remained small. Especially, its canoes are supplied to the upmarket resort Vinpearl Nha Trang in Khanh Hoa province.

 

With its competencies, FRP Finland New Horizon Company plans to enlarge its working site to 4,000 square metres to manufacture composite materials. The company is applying for approval to producing composite fishing boats and passenger boats under European technology. The development orientation is realistic, because timber supply for building boats will decrease in the next few years for various reasons, including the necessity for forest protection to mitigate natural disasters and global warming. Timber value will rise on decreased supply. Composite materials are an ideal alternative for timber in both civil and industrial uses.

After the project is ratified, the company will put priority on manufacturing composite boats for near-shore fishing. Composite boats are superior to similar ones made from wood as they are better looking, safer, more durable, lighter, and more economical.