By SHAFIQQUL ALIFF / Pic TMR
UMW Toyota Motor Sdn Bhd (UMWT) has resumed its sales, service centres and manufacturing activities for Toyota and Lexus vehicles from Monday (Aug 16) following the easing of Phase 1 of the National Recovery Plan restrictions that allows the automotive sector to reopen.
UMWT president Ravindran K said the carmaker would start to fulfil the backlog of orders that have built up during the lockdown period.
“Despite the less encouraging sales numbers for the months of June and July, we still have a strong order bank of bookings for the various models and will move forward swiftly to respond accordingly to minimise any impact to our business and customers,” he said in a statement yesterday.
He said the group’s two assembly plants and related factories will be able to operate at specified capacities depending on the percentage of workers who are already vaccinated, with full capacity permitted if more than 80% are vaccinated.
Meanwhile, UMWT deputy chairman Akio Takeyama said the company would proceed with its plan of locally assembling Toyota hybrid electric vehicles (EVs) after the preparation was disrupted in the last two months.
“We will now proceed as quickly as possible to make up for the time lost,” Takeyama said in the statement.
On the retail and services front, the company welcomed the easing of the restrictions, which have posed an increasing challenge to its business over the past two months.
“Resuming our business activities, especially at Toyota and Lexus retail outlets, will enable a return to some form of normalcy so we can move forward and do our part to help in the economic recovery of the country,” Ravindran said.
Since the Movement Control Order (MCO) last year, he said the company has implemented many of the standard operating procedures (SOPs) at its showrooms and service centres, which include temperature scanning, registration with MySejahtera, use of hand sanitisers and facemasks, and regular sanitisation of premises.
He added that vehicle owners visiting service centres were required to make appointments in advance while contactless payments are encouraged and social distancing is to be observed at all times.
“We assure our customers that we have made sure that our premises have a safe environment for them to visit,” he added.
He further said that the company has been carrying out a vaccination programme for all its employees.
He said the company would strictly follow the SOPs set by the authorities to ensure the safety of the public and its employees.
Recently, the Malaysian Automotive Association (MAA) revealed that local automotive dealers had lost over RM14 billion in June and July due to a significant drop in domestic vehicle sales as businesses were closed under Enhanced MCO.
MAA president Datuk Aishah Ahmad said its members, around 1,300 dealers nationwide, had also lost much in revenue from exports of vehicles and components as well as sales of spare parts locally.
RELATED ARTICLES





