Supply hubs for furniture industry to go up in several regions

Depots of raw materials for furniture will go up all over the country to provide manufacturers a steady supply of raw materials and bring down costs. "We are starting these hubs all over the country that are close to raw material base. Hopefully, it will provide less expensive raw materials for us," Chamber of Furniture Industries of the Philippines national president Nicolaas De Lange said in a statement. A pilot program for the set-up was conducted in timber-rich Gumaca, Quezon, De Lange said. Now, there are plans to build more supply hubs in Nueva Ecija, Zambales, Ilocos, Cagayan de Oro, Davao and the Visayas region. Semi-processed and raw materials should be nearer the manufacturing centers for better production efficiency, de Lange said. "If we can use our factories as an assembly point and finishing point, it can increase our capacities, lower our costs and help the industry in the whole supply chain. It is really a win-win cycle," he said. De Lange said the industry is working on strategies to improve product development, such as capacity building and the use of sustainable raw materials, to double the sector's export revenues in the next three years from this year's $200-million sales target. — BM, GMA News