BMSPA 2021: An industrial park that feels like home - Frontier Park

Below 10 Years Specialised Category (Gold)

Frontier Park

In Desa Cemerlang, Ulu Tiram, Johor is an industrial park that has lifted the profile of industrial properties in the state to a new level. Embracing and applying the essence of strata community living, Frontier Park is an industrial park managed within a gated-and-guarded enclave that offers facilities to promote community interaction and living. These facilities include a lush two-acre central park, an amphitheatre with a capacity for 800 people, sports courts and a modern workers dormitory adjacent to the central park.

Designed on the concept of “home for business”, the award-winning industrial park added another accolade to its name when it emerged as a Gold winner at EdgeProp Malaysia’s Best Managed & Sustainable Property Awards 2021 in the Below 10 Years – Specialised Category.

Frontier Park was launched in 2014 and completed in 2016. It makes up Phase 2 of a larger industrial development in the area by WB Land Sdn Bhd.

“We focus on security, maintenance and property management services so that our operators can focus on their businesses,” notes Kevin Woon, director of Frontier IP Management Sdn Bhd, WB Land’s property management company. 

Overcoming challenges together

The 63-acre Frontier Park has attracted mainly small and medium-sized enterprises and a few multi-national corporations operating in the 64 semi-detached and detached industrial units.   

To ensure that Frontier Park remains as a modern industrial development offering a holistic environment is not without its challenges. In fact, one of the biggest the management team had to face was during the prolonged lockdown in March 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

During the Movement Control Order (MCO) period, the management team had to work from home, but they still had to be wary of possible infections that could happen on the ground at the industrial park. The team also had to ensure that the assets of their operators in the industrial park were well taken care of without compromise.

Woon recalls that the management team had to work closely with the operators so that everyone had a common understanding that security and hygiene were to be their topmost priority.

“[During the MCO] we had to ensure the security team was ready at all times to safeguard the premises while at the same time, ensuring their food and essentials were available.

“We have also enhanced entry screening procedures, more frequent patrols and cleaning work at the common areas,” says Woon, reiterating that health and safety will not be compromised no matter how tough the conditions.

The prompt response by the management team against the pandemic had also helped the operators in the industrial park bounce back to resume their businesses as soon as the market opened up again.

Overcoming such and other challenges together takes good communications and a healthy relationship between the management team and the operators.

“We conduct surveys and often check with the business operators to get their views and suggestions on improving the park management. This helps us to identify where we have done well and where we need to put in more effort and attention,” shares Woon.

Woon notes that sustainability must be incorporated in the planning, design and management for the longevity of the park. The main goal of the management team is to be an effective, fair and transparent body to ensure its long-term sustainability.

“Believing in this and in line with our policy of being end-user oriented, we adopt a long-term view in all that we do,” he says.

Every party involved in the management of Frontier Park – from its unit owners, business operators, service providers to the management personnel – they all share a common goal in ensuring that it is managed sustainably for the benefit of all stakeholders, he adds.

Notably, occupancy and collection rates are both currently at 100%.

“We believe we have won the business operators’ buy-in and commitment to work with us to ensure a sustainable and conducive environment for them to operate their businesses,” Woon concludes.

Check out the microsite for Edgeprop’s Best Managed & Sustainable Property Awards 2021 here

This story first appeared in the EdgeProp.my E-weekly on April 9, 2021. You can access back issues here.

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