SCT Co Ltd, a distribution company in the Siam Cement Group, is pursuing the group's innovative organisation road map with a Bt250-million investment in three projects, which it says will add value to its business.

Managing director Kalin Sarasin said the projects include the establishment of paper-bailing stations in many countries, an electronic international distribution centre to pinpoint shipments and deliveries, and a coal-water mixture project, which aims to replace bunker oil as an industrial fuel.

The company will spend Bt160 million to set up paper-bailing stations in seven countries to supply raw materials for its customers, Kalin said, adding that waste paper is expected to become scarce and more expensive.

SCT opened its first paper-bailing station in Laos at the beginning of this year and two more are expected to open in Cambodia and the Philippines before the end of the year. In the future it plans to open additional stations in Vietnam, the US, Singapore, the United Arab Emirates, and a second in Cambodia.

Kalin said the paper-bailing stations will have a total production capacity of 350,000 tonnes per year, which will help serve the one-million-tonne demand of Siam Cement Group's paper business. The stations will also be able to compress plastic and aluminium scrap, which will be used to expand the company's business.

SCT has also invested Bt40 million to develop an electronic international distribution centre, in conjunction with Accenture Company. The centre aims to help customers check the status of their product shipments and deliveries to boost their competitive advantages and reduce costs.

The centre will connect all import and export information in a supply chain system, including customs departments, banks and shippers. It is expected to be operating before the end of next year, Kalin said.

SCT is also studying a mixture of coal and water as a replacement for bunker oil as an industrial fuel. The project, in which it has invested Bt50 million, also involves the Alternative Energy Devel-opment and Efficiency Department.

The new fuel will be tested in the Siam Cement Group's paper plants before being launched in the first quarter of next year, Kalin said. If it succeeds, the project could lead to a 30-per-cent reduction in the use of bunker oil in Thailand, which currently adds up to six billion litres per year.

SCT targets sales of Bt27 billion this year, up 10 per cent on last. In the first half it achieved Bt17.5 billion, up 5 per cent on last year. The sales growth will help SCT expand its overseas business and boost exports.

Chalida Ekvitthayavechnukul

The Nation