NEVER in his wildest dreams did Malaysian Pua Khein-Seng expect to own one of the most successful information technology (IT) companies in Taiwan.

The 33-year old Pua is the president and one of the founders of Taiwanese pen drive maker Phison Electronics Corp, the world's number one in terms of market share for pen drives and products related to NAND flash memory.

It manufactures about 65 million to 75 million pieces of pen drive and memory controller a year and has a 35% market share globally.

Pua's success story started when he arrived in Taiwan in 1993 to further his studies in electrical control engineering in National Chiao Tung University.

“My plan was to graduate and go back to Malaysia to get a good job. To be an engineer with a salary of RM3,000 to RM4,000 per month – this was still good for 1993 standards,” he told StarBiz during a company visit in Taiwan.

However, fate had other plans for Pua who hails from Sekinchan, Selangor.

In 1997, a professor at the university offered Pua a salary of NT$5,000 per month to research and develop memory controllers for him. Pua then worked for the company after graduation.

Due to some friction in the team, Pua and some of his fellow engineers moved on to another company, a spin-off from the first.

“The original shareholders promised to invest in the spin-off company but the money never came and it closed in 2000. We decided to source funds from other investors and started Phison.

“We had no intention in the beginning to start our own company. We just wanted a place to work in,” Pua recalled.

Phison was set up in November 2000 by Pua and four engineers – a Malaysian and three Taiwanese – all from Chiao Tung University with an initial investment of US$1mil.

The name Phison was derived from the fact that five persons started the company.

Product development

Within six months, the young entrepreneurs came up with their first invention: a USB storage device called pen drive. Business began to boom and the company grew by leaps and bounds.

At last count, market capitalisation has grown to over US$700mil from about US$65mil when Phison was listed on the over-the-counter market in Taiwan in December 2004.

Despite their success, Pua and his partners – who are still involved in the company – realised that they would need to position the company strategically to weather a global slowdown due to the US subprime crisis and for continued business growth.

According to Pua, the way forward for Phison would be to focus on developing products based on NAND flash memory (electronic memory) applications.

“It will be the next big market for us from this year. We started supplying the product in a small way last year,” he said, adding that Phison was looking at manufacturing NAND flash memory for notebooks which currently used hard drives.

The hard drive usage makes them heavier, consume more power and crash easily.

“The use of NAND flash memory will reduce the weight and power consumption of the notebooks as well as make them more cost-effective to produce,” Pua said.

A NAND flash memory drive has the capability to hold and store data even when the power is off.

This makes it an excellent storage solution for many applications such as MP3 players, USB drives, removable storage cards and cell phones where mobility, power use, speed and size are the key factors.

Pua said Phison was also developing memory controllers for cell phones in collaboration with Japanese tech giant Toshiba Corp, a major shareholder of the company with some 17% stake.

Vertical integration

“We are also on the lookout for vertical integration,” he said.

“We have invested in two start-up companies – one involved in software development such as anti-virus programmes and application software for cell phones for NAND flash application and the other in semiconductor packaging. This will help add value to our products.”

Pua said Phison's investment in a 40% stake in the software company, which started one year ago, was less than US$1mil while its investment in the semiconductor packaging company was over US$10mil.

He expects the semiconductor packaging company, which started in March 2006, to be listed in the first quarter of next year.

“It is very profitable as it is supported by Phison, which owns a 25% stake in the company. The other shareholder is a US customer.

“Competition is very tough, especially with the lower cost producers in China; hence we are using vertical integration to add value to our products,” he said. - StarBiz

I am born into a middle class Malaysian family of Chinese descent. My late father Mr. Tan Yong Seng is a second generation Malaysian Chinese. Our family’s root traces back to Guanzhou, a province in the southern state of China, My father was a small time businessman in Malaysia, having businesses in hardware and fishing equipment in a sleepy fishing island of Pulau Ketam.

My parent named me Tan Yeow Kiang which is hard for most people to remember. One creative method I used to tell children and friends on how best to remember my name was a story I created.

My father was extremely happy at the time of my birth. My mum went into labour and as I was about to be born, the mid- wife asked for some hot water. As my father rushed to the kitchen to fetch the hot water, he knocked his head against the frying pans and caused the sound TAN!!!!. He then accidently stepped on a cat’s tail and let out a loud yell which sounded like YEOW. My father was shocked and in his clumsiness he went off balance and hit the utensils on the kitchen table top. KLING KLONG KLING KIANG, the sound of the pots and pans dropped on the floor.

That’s how my father gave me the name TAN YEOW KIANG.

I believe by now you can remember my Chinese name better.

Uncle Bugs

7th July 2009

Hi,

There is a story about this person, Christopher who does not believe that money will fall from heaven. Christopher also believes that if something belongs to him, it will automatically come to him. If something does not automatcially come to him, then he thinks it is not his.

The story goes like this. Christopher did pray to God for some money. And after some intensive praying for a few months, true enough one day God like him and rewarded him with some gold bars. But the trouble is that the gold bars were sent just outside his door step. It's on the pavement outside his house. Lilian, Christopher's wife saw the gold bars and quickly informed her husband. Christopher then took a peak through the door and saw those bars. He silently said to himself "that's not mine". So Christopher did not bother to claims the gold bars at all.

He has this obstinate behavior. He told his wife that if God is willing to give him those bars to him, God should have send them directly into his house and not outside the house.

Just a couple minutes later his neighbors saw the gold bars. Hurray and hysterical shout can be heard. Hurriedly they pick them up took them away, leaving nothing for Christopher.

The moral of the story is that when money dropped from heaven, we should open our doors and quickly get them. Claim ownership over the fortune. We should not be too pessimistic about it. We also should not be too arrogant and think the money should be delivered right into the house. When fortune comes knocking, we must know how to open our doors to welcome the opportunity. We should quickly run and get them.

Now on the same note, do you know that the Malaysian government has allocated billions of Ringgit each year to give away to people who needs it? This has been going on for a couple of decades now. And it will go on for on as long as there is a need to improve our economy through research, science, technologies and innovations

Grants are FREE money for you. You do not have to pay them back. Yes you read me correctly, FREE MONEY for you. No need to pay back to the government.

This book will discuss where are these grants. Who manages them. How do you go about applying for one. And it disclosed all necessary details about what you should know in order to secure a grant to support your projects.

Good Luck

Uncle Bugs

2nd July 2009

If someone wants to give you free money, why not? Without doubt, that is the general perception all of us have. But it is easier said than done. You need to go through a whole lot of process before they actually give it to you. Which I think it's only fair. The fund manager must do their job and only gives grant to those who deserve it.

Kindly allow me to relate to you one story which I thought is meaningful to share it here with you. Mr. Razak (not his real name) works as a consultant in a company. His job is to promote a certain kind of grant to entrepreneur offered by a government fund manager. I attended his workshop and at one instance he told us this.

He being a consultant is not allowed to apply a grant for himself. He told us it is very frustrating for him because others get free money and he don’t. So to know how painful it was to him for not being able to secure a grant for himself, he started to do some calculation. The results of his finding was astonishing,

Mr. Razak asked us do you know how much money you have to set a side in order to accumulate it to become RM 150,000? For your information, the grant amount the fund manager whom Razak works for is RM 150,000 for each good idea. Mr. Razak went on to explain.

He said in order for you to set aside RM 1,000 a month for the use in your project. It will take you 150 months to make RM 150,000. He provoked our thoughts by asking us, how many of us can actually set aside RM 1,000 every month for our project? He continued to make us to reflect on the situation. He said 150 months is 12 ½ years! Is that a realistic time frame for us save money for our project?

The point Mr. Razak tries to drive in to us is that even though there are free money out there for grabs, it won’t be easy for us to secure it unless we work hard and convince the fund manager why we deserve the grant. We must show proof and go beyond reasonable doubt that our project far exceeds the objectives and requirement set out by the fund manager. And you must convince the fund manager that your project truly deserves the financial aid to make your project successful. This, in due course will help the government in entrusting the country forward.

In short, you want the fund manager to know you are the best horse to bet on.

I hope by now you have realized that it actually requires you to have an idea or project that deserve the grant. You need to really convince the grant officers that you have a great idea that is realistic and is feasible. This project of your will benefit you, benefit your company, benefit the people who are supporting your project and benefit the country as a whole.

I would also like to mention here that there beside you there are hundreds, if not thousands of other applicants like yourself trying to secure a grant for their project too. Therefore, you really need to pitch yourself appropriately. You need to investigate which fund manager is giving out what grant. Who are their target community (business sector) they wished to support. Are you one of them?

Due to the large number of grants available in Malaysia, I will not be able to touch in each and every grant, but instead, I have selected a few grants which I think is relevant to the groups of inventors and SMEs. Therefore, I hope you will go through one by one that I have listed out here in this book and see for yourself which grant is the most appropriate one for your project.

The information contained in this book are just basic information, hence, I would be pleased if you could pick up the phone and talk to the relevant fund managers. It would be even better if you could meet them in person. It will do you a world of good if you could have a face to face discussion with the respective fund manager prior to submitting your application forms.

My personal experience in dealing with these fund managers has been excellent. They are ever ready to serve me. In fact it has always been a question in my mind all these years. I often asked myself, why are they so friendly to me? They are the one who is giving me money. Wouldn’t it be the other way round? I should be friendly to them because I am the one receiving the money. This strange phenomenon has left unanswered till today.

May I also take this opportunity to touch on some moral issues. Many people have approached me thinking that there is free money from the government and it would be great to go get some for themselves. But the real fact is, these people are not sincere. They do not have a specific project for this financial assistance. They thought, all they have to do is to cook-up a story and secure a grant.

But we must remember, this free money are people’s money. The fund managers are very stringent in their work. They gaze at your project with a big microscope and will know if you are trying to cheat. So, you better have a project that is worth every Ringgit they invest in you. Or you can forget about it. There is no such thing as free money for you to spend on a holiday or go shopping. The free money is ONLY for the use for a good project that will bring benefit to the nation.

On the other hand, I must admit that there are some creative but unscrupulous entrepreneurs out there who are very good at writing an incredible paper with hopeful business plan and have successfully secured grants for themselves. But the truth is that it never went any further after the money are spent. It is not worth the while to cheat because you will be black listed and the entire market will come to know about it. You lose everything after that.

So please try not to cheat, your karma will not allow you to go very far. This is a strong message and I sincerely hope you heed this advice.

Good luck

Uncle Bugs

30th June 2009

Was back in Ipoh for the weekend to celebrate my little sis' birthday. We headed to Pusing for some fabulous seafood. Apologies as it totally slipped my mind to take photos of the scrumptious. Was just too eager to devour everything served.

I did remember to snap a photo of the cake mummy had bought. Fresh mango but it was missing pieces of mango in it. All it had was mango jelly on the top. Disappointment! We're never going back there for cake next time.

Here's one with the candles lighted up.

And here's my little sis cutting the cake.

And then on Sunday, rushed back to KL to celebrate Steven's birthday with his siblings. Again, we were too hungry and forgot to snap photos of the feast we had. Roast duck and roast pork was on the menu.

Here's the cake.



Little Wen-Burque was fascinated with the candle lighted and was trying to grab the cake. He wanted to blow out the candle together with Steven but I think Steven was too quick :)


Steven cutting his cute little birthday cake. We each had 1 tiny slice. Had to keep space in the tummy for JJ swiss rolls :)

a) Approaching the Finish Line- As you approach the finishing line, I like to congratulate you for getting this far. You are now approaching the light at the end of the tunnel! A few more steps to go and you will collect your pot of gold. It is very exciting at this leg but you need to stay calm. Remind yourself that you cannot count the chicken before they are hatched.

Do not lose sight of your project and do not celebrate yet. Anything can happen and ruin your deal, which will bring disaster to you financially and emotionally. So stay cool. Stay focused.

b) Your lawyer This is the time when you have to work very closely with your lawyer. He will be there to protect your interest, but you would need to make the necessary business decisions. In my case, I normally ask my patent lawyer for advice when necessary. They have the experience because they have done many deals like this before. They will know what is good for you, so it is beneficial to be friendly with your patent lawyer at all times. Remember he is your right hand man on the negation table.

c) Your Mentor If you are able to have a close friend as your mentor, do go ahead and you would have to him informed of your progress about the potential licensees and investors you are meeting. Don’t trouble him too much but forward sporadic brief report so that he knows what you have been up to.

He will read your report and from time to time he will give you some advice. Do appreciate his advice because he is looking from a different angle. Sometime, things which are right in front of us, we tend to miss it completely. He will be there to keep you on track and to pull you back when you have gone off tangent.

He is what I would call my left-hand man. When I entered into the meeting for this final round (step 4), I would normally bring my right and left hand man along, that is my lawyer and mentor. But in such meeting, I will introduce my mentor as my commercial manager for the project. Again my advice to you is always to be nice to your friends. You do not know when you will need their help again.

In this meeting, the finer details of the Licensing Agreement will be ironed out. The normal case is that the final conclusion will be decided where both parties negotiate on a you-take-some, I-take-some basis. Finally, it will be a win-win business deal for both sides.

d) Your Future Role As mentioned earlier, you will also need to discuss about your role in the scheme of things. In my case, I offered myself to be the consultant to the license’s company for a year. Again, you will need to spell out the terms and conditions. It is advisable that you sign a separate service agreement for the license’s company to engage you as a consultant to that project.

The main Licensing Agreement can run as long as the life span of the patent. Under Malaysian laws, there is a provision of 20 years protection to the inventor who owns the patent.

After finalizing the details on the checklist, and after both parties have come to an agreement, your lawyer will prepare the Licensing Agreement. Upon which, both you and the licensee will sign it. At this stage, you can proudly say at the top of my voice -

CONGRATULATIONS

Well done, indeed!. You have successfully commercialized your first invention. It will bring you financial comfort for the next few years, as well as peace of mind. Besides it will boost your confidence for your next project. Definitely, it will do you a world of good for both yourself and family, and on a broader scale, for the community of innovators, and surely it will do a lot of good for the country. Congratulations, once again.

e) The Transaction During such a transaction, you will be subjected to provide all relevant documents that reveal the secret of your technology to the licensee. If there is some up-front money to be paid to you, you will get it on this day.

Typically, in my case, these are the documents that I will need to hand over to the licensee after we have signed the Licensing Agreement.

Uncle Bugs

29th June 2009

I am still saddened by the demise of Michael Jackson. Thinking of him, I have been listening and reading any materials related to my idol.

A friend of mine had the opportunity to watch his live concert in Kuala Lumpur. He recap that the most mesmerizing moment happened when MJ performed his anti-gravity lean for 'Smooth Criminal'. The crowd was awed and there were some questions raised on how he performed the lean.

I did some digging and found that MJ was awarded US patent 5,255,452 for devising a method for creating anti-gravity illusion. The props that enable the effect consists of pegs that rise from the stage and shoes with unique heels. The method enabled MJ and his dancers to perform the anti-gravity lean on stage throughout the world - with no strings attached.

MJ King of pop and 'dance' inventor.

PETROLIAM Nasional Bhd (Petronas) retained its position as the top Malaysian brand this year with the highest brand value of RM10.7 billion, up from its last year's brand value of RM8.3 billion.

Genting Bhd also retained its second position by maintaining its brand value of about RM4.1 billion, followed by Tenaga Nasional Bhd, which jumped from 5th place with a RM3.5 billion brand value.

Budget carrier AirAsia Bhd has been picked out as the best performing Malaysia brand when its investment in multiple daring brand promotion activities successfully reinforced customers' awareness of its brand image.

Despite shrinking global air passenger traffic, the best performer among the country's top 50 brands carried 11.8 million passengers last year, up one-fifth from 2007, and its capacity rose by one-third to 18.7 billion. - Business Times

Yesterday was my little sis' 26th birthday. She's a big girl now but of course still acts like a kid. We'll be having a birthday celebration for her this weekend. Those of you who know me well will know that she's a special child and we love her dearly.

ONE should not look down on the humble herbal industry in Malaysia, which of late has been attracting steady interest both in terms of consumers and investors following a global resurgence in the usage of traditional and complementary medicine (TCM) treatment versus modern medicine.

Local herbs and plants that thrive in our backyards and rainforests and increasingly making their mark internationally include kacip fatimah (labisia pumila), pegaga (pennyworts or centella asiatica), peria (bitter gourd), misai kucing (cat whiskers), mas cotek (mistletoe fig), limau purut (kaffir lime), tongkat ali (Eurycoma longifolia Jack) and jambu batu (guava).

Pegaga is currently vastly commercialised for its antibiotic properties that support the immune system and is especially beneficial in treating a variety of skin problems.

Tongkat ali, meanwhile, is one of the most expensive herbal plants sold on the market and for good reasons too given its nickname as nature’s testosterone booster.

The shrub is very rare and some said searching for tongkat ali in the Malaysian jungle is akin to searching for truffles in France or Italy.

At the same time, many herb-based industry players are exploring ways to merge various herbal cosmetics, healthcare and services, biotechnology, food and natural medicine into a single tourism product.

Apart from direct herbal manufacturing operations, new market segments could be developed including home spas, herbal clinics and pre-and post-natal care using local herbal products.

In fact, the thriving herbal industry in Malaysia is expected to reach almost RM10bil in 2009 and likely to grow 8% to 15% annually in line with the growing acceptance for herbal based natural phyto-medicine globally.

The World Bank has also estimated that the global market for herbal-related medicinal products is poised to escalate to US$5 trillion in 2050 from about US$200bil in 2008.

Capturing 1% of the global market share by then could easily translate into a RM190bil industry for Malaysia!

Taking these facts into account, Malaysia is doubling its effort to position itself as a “rainforest herbal hub” where local and foreign companies can conduct research to develop more TCM products for healthare and other related applications.

At the same time, since early 2000, the Government has set up the Malaysian Herbal Corp (MHC) under the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (MOSTI).

MOSTI also has three biotechnology institutes, namely Malaysia Institute of Pharmacetical and Nutraceutical, Malaysia Genome Institute and Agrobiotechnology Institute to work synergistically with industry players to lead the industry to greater heights.

Given that Malaysia’s rich flora and fauna support over 20,000 plant species, of which 2,000 plant species have been identified to have medicinal value, it is worthwhile for herbal-based industry players to seriously look at this thriving business opportunity.

Why not take advantage of the current mounting interest in natural product remedies as more and more people are becoming concerned over the side effects caused by synthetic drugs, the rising cost of healthcare and the failure of mainstream medicine to treat certain diseases? - Hanim Adnan, theStar

Malaysia can expect more home-grown inventions as scientists and researchers will be given financial remuneration for their creations and findings.

Starting this month, those who carry out research and development funded by the Government will be paid RM15,500 if their work is approved and patented.

Creators will also receive benefits in the form of profit-sharing from the commercialisation of their products or technology, and be given equity in spin-off companies which will be set up.

Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Datuk Dr Maximus Ongkili said the move was in line with the introduction of a policy to commercialise intellectual property to motivate researchers, scientists and institutions to be involved in research and development to create new technology.

“We want to produce a conducive environment that will continuously encourage new innovations and findings.

“As it is, the level of intellectual property being commercialised is at a very low rate of 3.4% but we hope to double the percentage as we enter the 10th Malaysia Plan,” he told reporters after launching the policy yesterday.

Under the policy, each disclosure of invention will receive RM500 and the creator will receive an additional RM5,000 for each creation filed. Those whose work is approved and patented will be paid an incentive of RM10,000.

Dr Ongkili said creators whose products and technologies were commercialised would receive RM250,000 as initial profit.

He said that with the various incentives, Malaysian R&D creators have the potential not only to make a name in their respective fields but may also be millionaires from successful ventures.

Dr Ongkili said his ministry would formulate the national innovation policy that would help determine the country’s future plan in the fields of technology, creation, findings and innovation.

“We hope to have a draft ready by next year,” he added. -theStar

Hi,

Hi,