PEKAN: DRB-HICOM Bhd's wholly-owned subsidiary Suzuki Malaysia Automobile Sdn Bhd rolled out its first locally-assembled Suzuki Swift 1.5L in a simple ceremony here on Friday.

It was officially launched by Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak in conjunction with Pekan Fest 2007.

Also present were DRB-HICOM Group managing director Datuk Mohd Khamil Jamil and Suzuki Malaysia Automobile chief executive officer Bastamam Hamzah.

The roll-out was in line with Suzuki Malaysia??™s commitment to the Swift 1.5L??™s complete knocked-down (CKD) operations and the launch of its RM20mil robotic welding line in February, the company said in a statement.

It also stated that in March 2006, Suzuki Malaysia signed a licensing agreement with Suzuki Motor Corporation of Japan, allowing Suzuki Malaysia to assemble the Swift in the country.

"With this new robotic welding technology, Suzuki Malaysia is confident that the locally-assembled Swift 1.5L will rise to customer expectations.

"The company is the first automotive company in the non-national category for small volume production to adopt this robotic welding technology and it aims to achieve an initial monthly production of 300 units," the company said.

Suzuki Malaysia was incorporated in December 2004 to undertake the distribution of Suzuki??™s four-wheeled vehicles and related services for passenger vehicles in Malaysia. It has an authorised capital of RM25mil.

Source: [url=http://biz.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2007/6/2/business/20070602135938&sec=business]Malaysia Star[/url]