Rehau Group establishes Phl office

MANILA, Philippines - German polymer product manufacturer Rehau Group has established an office in the Philippines as it expects the strong local construction and real estate industry to support higher sales.

Rehau Pte Ltd. chief executive officer Vijay Jain told reporters the company decided to establish its presence in the country by opening an office at the Taipan Center in Pasig City, as it seeks to grow its business here.

“In the next eight to 10 years, the Philippines can become an important part of our business in Southeast Asia,” he said.

From accounting for less than five percent of sales in the Southeast Asian region at present, he said the Philippines’ share could grow to 20 percent within the eight to 10-year period.

“Our target is from last year to this year, (we) would double sales,” he said.

The firm provides polymer products for manufacturers of appliances and furniture as well as for companies engaged in the construction sector here.

Prior to setting up an office in the Philippines, the company’s Philippine clients were being served through its office in Singapore.

Rehau Philippines representative office head Christopher delos Reyes said the company expects its growth to be supported by the strong local construction and real estate industry.

“Rehau is optimistic about economic prospects of the country in the long term. The boom in the construction and real estate industry is promising,” he said.

For his part, Elliott Burke, business unit director of Rehau Pte Ltd. said the company would introduce new products here to tap more clients and achieve higher sales.

The firm is set to introduce a new plumbing product which would cater not just to the premium niche market, but also to the middle-income market this month.

“Condominium developments can use our product. It is suitable for what we call the mid-market and that’s big volume and that will be part of our growth,” Burke said.

Asked if there are plans to locally manufacture products, Jain said it would depend on the growth of the company’s business here.

In Asia, the company’s manufacturing facilities are located in Indonesia, Thailand and China.

Founded in 1948, Rehau provides polymer products for the industrial, construction and automotive sectors. It counts Panasonic and Mercedes Benz as its customers.