Philippine Business Magazine: Volume 8 No.2 - Geographics
Factories, as you want them
At Carmelray Industrial Park II, locators can choose from lots only, ready-built, or customized factories

At the heart of the historic hometown of the late national hero Dr. Jose Rizal stands a large legendary pot. Today, Calamba in Laguna is indeed a melting pot – an urban and industrial enclave with a labor force of 135,000, cradling estates and hosting locators of various nationalities.

One of Calamba’s successful manufacturing sites is the 230-hectare Carmelray Industrial Park I developed by Carmelray Industrial Development Corporation. With only a limited number of lots left at Park I, the company partnered with Jurong-Town Corporation International based in Singapore to develop another 145-hectare property — Carmelray Industrial Park II (CIP II).

What edge does Carmelray Industrial Park II enjoy over other industrial parks in the CALABARZON region or in the whole nation for that matter? JTCI Development (Philippines) Corporation’s Public Relations Executive Bambam Co points out its advantages: track record of Ascendas – the developer’s foreign partner — for the past 30 years, excellent accessibility, world-class infrastructure and reliable power. The park also boasts of two features unique to it: ready-built solutions as well as build-to-suit solutions – manufacturing structures that locators will find very attractive.

CIP II’s developer, Ascendas Pte Ltd is the union between JTC International — a developer of 25 industrial parks in the Southeast Asian region – and Arcasia Land of Singapore. With the combined expertise of two equally-powerful companies, Ascendas hopes to be the leading developer, manager, and marketer of science, business and industrial parks in the Asia and Pacific region. The company intends to become Asia’s leader in business space solutions with US$1.2 billion in assets and over 1.2 million square meters of land. It has a subsidiary in the Philippines, Ascendas (Philippines) Corporation. Ascendas is proud of its customer-orientation, efficient administration, and transparent customer deals. Under its portfolio are four affiliated companies: Carmelray-JTCI Corporation, RBF Development Corporation, Business Facilities Development Corporation, and CIP II Power Corporation.

The Philippines

Easy Access
CIP II lies forty-five minutes south of Manila, along the national highway in barangay Canlubang, Calamba, Laguna. The project is three kilometers away from the South Luzon Expressway, 50 kilometers from the Ninoy Aquino International Airport, 54 kilometers from Makati City’s Central Business District, 62 kilometers from Manila’s North and South Harbors, and 64 kilometers from the Batangas Port. Road access from Manila has even been enhanced with the construction of an elevated highway that avoids major bottlenecks along the South Superhighway. Moreover, a planned railway under the Philippine National Railroad connecting Manila’s sea ports with the Batangas Port in the south will cut through CIP II.

Managers and employees of CIP II locators will be privileged to have a university town nearby. A learning center is in the works by Carmelray Development Corporation — CarmelTown will bring together the exclusive schools of Ateneo de Manila University, St. Paul’s College, and University of Asia and the Pacific’s teaching hospital. A commercial and business center is also planned to host banks, restaurants, shops, theaters, and conference venues. A 36-hole golf course, sports and country clubs will also surround CIP II.

World-Class Facilities
Infrastructure facilities in CIP II are definitely world-class. An all-weather road network is complemented by street lighting, perimeter landscaping, a drainage system of reinforced pipe culverts, manholes, and outfalls.

The park’s uninterrupted and reliable power supply is no accident. Bambam Co further notes, “we are the only industrial park with its own dedicated 56-megawatt (MW) power plant.” Thanks to CIP II Power Corporation, electric power generation and distribution for locators are ensured. XLPE insulated copper cables are laid underground, leaving a landscaped environment with lush greenery and clear signages. A black-start generating electrical facility is available for emergencies.

CIP II’s Carmelray-SMART Communications, Inc. can provide 5,000 lines to industrial and commercial locators. An integrated services digital network of underground fiber optic cables is capable of video conferencing, 64 kbps data connectivity, national direct dialing, international direct dialing, frame relay, and asynchronous transfer mode.

CIP II’s centralized water supply system taps into nine deepwells and a reservoir for potable water. A sewerage treatment plant processes domestic and industrial wastewater into environmentally-acceptable chemical and biological oxygen demand levels before being released into the natural waterway system.

Roadways and utilities occupy 12% or 17 hectares of CIP II while commercial and recreational amenities account for another 8% or 12 hectares. Industrial lots comprise more than half (62% or 90 hectares) of CIP II. To provide convenient access to locators, an administration and amenities center inside the park houses the following government agencies and facilities: the Philippine Economic Zone Authority, Bureau of Customs, seminar room, clinic, fire-fighting facility, banking facility, and a cafeteria. Moreover, an estate management group oversees the maintenance of roads, open spaces, and common facilities; manages round-the-clock security, waste disposal, and public transportation; helps locators on labor-related issues; and institutes an environment management system.

Customer’s Choice
CIP II counts among its world-class facilities its ready-built factories (RBF) which can either be for sale or for lease. These are modeled according to standards of Singapore’s JTCI and built by the RBF Development Corporation. RBFs allow a quick and hassle-free start-up for manufacturers. They vary in area from 500 square meters to 4,000 square meters. Each has its own enclosed fenced-up compound and driveways, parking lots, green buffer, and naming rights. Bambam Co explains that CIP II has four product designs in its RBF portfolio. Four units measure 1,243 square meters each and are designed for dual tenancy. Two units measure 2,209 square meters, while only one unit measures 4,050 square meters. The park also offers smaller units of 485 square meters each.

Apart from ready-built factories, CIP II also provides locators the chance to specify their own requirements via BTS or build-to-suit solutions. According to Ms. Co, “we take the design and build the facility for them. We then lease it back to them on a long term basis.” As of April 2001, Ms. Co reveals, “we have a total of 20 locators leasing RBFs, one locator leasing a BTS, and nine locators occupying purchased lots in Carmelray Industrial Park II.”