PETALING JAYA: Budget 2027 should focus on ensuring technology investments translate into measurable gains in productivity, quality and supply chain resilience, rather than merely encouraging manufacturers to adopt new technologies, according to technology company Epicor.
Epicor regional sales director for Malaysia and Singapore Ben Lim said the approach was particularly important for SMEs, which needed support to turn digital investments into long-term productivity gains.
“The opportunity for Budget 2027 is to move the conversations from technology adoption to technology outcomes. The question is not simply how we encourage manufacturers to invest more, but how we help them turn those investments into higher productivity, better jobs and stronger competitiveness,” he said in response to a Bernama query.
Lim said Malaysia’s manufacturing sector already had strong momentum, with manufacturing sales reaching RM177.3 billion in July, an increase of 9.1% year-on-year, while export-oriented industries accounted for more than 72% of sales.
Against this backdrop, he said, government support should increasingly be measured by what technology delivered, including higher productivity, lower downtime and waste, better quality, stronger local supply chains and higher-skilled jobs.
Lim said having the right operational and data foundations was critical to ensuring manufacturers could realise tangible business value from artificial intelligence (AI), as separate systems for purchasing, inventory, production and finance could make it difficult to build a consistent view of operations.
“AI is only as useful as the information and processes it can draw on. Where purchasing, inventory, production and finance operate in separate systems or spreadsheets, manufacturers can struggle to create the consistent operational picture needed to use AI effectively,” he said.
He said digital investment should also be accompanied by investment in people, particularly through practical training in data analysis, digital production planning and AI-enabled workflows, to enable employees to move into higher-value roles.
On supply chain resilience, Lim said Budget 2027 should help manufacturers diversify their suppliers and markets while reducing reliance on individual sources of critical materials.
He said stronger supplier-development programmes connecting Malaysian SMEs with multinational and larger local manufacturers, together with support for certification, technology upgrades, digitalisation and workforce training, could help more local businesses participate in higher-value supply chains.
“Ultimately, the aim should be to help Malaysian manufacturers build greater agility into their operations,” he said, adding that businesses needed to be able to see changes coming sooner, understand their impact and respond quickly while continuing to compete for new opportunities.
Budget 2027 is scheduled to be tabled by Prime Minister and Finance Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim in Parliament on Friday.
