Building & Investment (Jan - Feb 2016) (Jan - Feb 2016) | Page 23

Special Feature

TOP TO BOTTOM:
Seremban High Court at Seremban 2, Negeri
Sembilan and new warehouse.

business portfolio which, over time, has had a
history of innovation and development. The
business here in Malaysia began in 1985 when
Fletcher provided a licensing agreement to a
company called MRI - they built the facility
that is currently at Nilai – under which they
were entitled to produce and sell the Decra®
brand in Malaysia. During that time, AHI in
New Zealand was already exporting Decra
products to Asia, including markets such as
Japan.
In 2005, Fletcher acquired MRI - since
then we have been operating under the AHI
Roofing entity in Malaysia, producing and
distributing Decra® brand into Malaysia
and other Asian markets. We also produce
for several markets in Africa to support
RTG’s growth there. RTG operates with
ISO-accredited production in New Zealand,
Malaysia, Hungary (Europe) and Corona,
California (USA), supplying into markets
across Asia, Europe, Africa, the Americas and
New Zealand / Australia. In that context, RTG
is the largest manufacturer of stone-coated
metal roof tiles in the world and the only
stone coated metal roof tile producer to have
a multiple plant network with a truly global
reach.
As for AHI Roofing Malaysia, what’s
interesting is that our production is almost

entirely destined for export outside of
Malaysia. In the Asian context, Japan is a
leading market for us, the Philippines is a
growing market and we have footholds into
many other regional markets.
B&I: AHI Roofing’s flagship product
Decra® Roofing Systems has been around
for ages - what distinctive features set it
apart from the others?
RA: If you think about the traditional
roofing market here in Malaysia or in the
region, clay and concrete tiles are traditional
“heavyweight construction” materials. Our
product range falls into the “lightweight”
category and by comparison can weigh 7
times less than other traditional materials.
In other words for an equivalent area of roof
coverage, our product would be lighter by a
factor of 7. This offers architects, developers
and homeowners a variety o