XN000022-1983-01-28 — Page 5

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FRIDAY, JANUARY 28, 1983

BIG POTENTIAL SEEN IN ELECTRONICS INDUSTRY

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HONG KONG'S INDUSTRY WOULD UNDERGO CONSIDERABLE CHANGES IN THE FORESEEABLE FUTURE, AS SHOWN BY ITS DEVELOPMENTS IN THE PAST THREE DECADES, THE ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF INDUSTRY, MR HUGH BOYLE SAID TODAY,

THE CHANGES WOULD BE +MORE EVOLUTIONARY THAN REVOLUTIONARY+ MR BOYLE SAID, ADDRESSING A SEMINAR ORGANISED BY THE BUSINESS AND MANAGEMENT STUDIES STUDENTS' SOCIETY OF THE HONG KONG POLYTECHNIC.

OUTLINING THE DEVELOPMENT OF HONG KONG'S INDUSTRIES SINCE THE EARLY 50'S, MR BOYLE POINTED OUT THAT THE PRESENT TREND WAS TOWARDS THE MANUFACTURE OF HIGH QUALITY, MORE SOPHISTICATED CONSUMER AND INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTS.

ALTHOUGH HONG KONG COULD EXPECT CONSIDERABLE DIVERSIFICATION AND A WIDENING OF ITS INDUSTRIAL BASE, TEXTILES AND GARMENTS WOULD REMAIN AN IMPORTANT, OR EVEN DOMINANT, SECTOR FOR THE FORESEEABLE FUTURE, HE PREDICTED.

THIS WAS BECAUSE OF THE SECTOR'S UNDERLYING STRENGTH, ITS GUARANTEED ACCESS INTO THE MAJOR DEVELOPED COUNTRIES AND THE FACT THAT IT WAS PROFITABLE AND IDEALLY SUITED TO HONG KONG'S INDUSTRIAL ENVIRONMENT, HE EXPLAINED.

+THERE WILL UNDOUBTEDLY BE A NEED FOR CHANGE, NEW, MORE EFFICIENT MACHINERY WILL HAVE TO BE INTRODUCED IN MANY FACTORIES OPPORTUNITIES TO INTRODUCE NEW TECHNOLOGY WILL HAVE TO BE EXPLORED, MANAGEMENT AND PRODUCTION TECHNIQUES WILL HAVE TO BE UPDATED AND CONSTANT ENDEAVOURS MADE TO CAPTURE AN INCREASING SHARE OF THE HIGH FASHION MARKET, HE ADDED.

TURNING TO THE RELATIVELY NEW ELECTRONICS INDUSTRY, MR BOYLE SAID, IT WAS, IN WORLD TERMS, THE GROWTH INDUSTRY+.

MOST OF THE WORK OF THE INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT BOARD, THE HONG KONG PRODUCTIVITY CENTRE AND THE TERTIARY EDUCATION SECTOR WAS DIRECTED TOWARDS THIS INDUSTRY, SIMPLY BECAUSE THE REWARDS FOR HONG KONG COULD BE ENORMOUS.

+RECOMMENDATIONS WHICH ARE AIMED TO STRENGTHEN THE INDUSTRIAL INFRASTRUCTURE TO SUPPORT THIS INDUSTRY ARE BEING DRAWN UP BY THE CONSULTANTS ON THE TECHNO-ECONOMIC STUDY OF THE ELECTRONICS INDUSTRY.

+THESE ARE LIKELY TO INCLUDE THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A PRECISION MACHINERY INSTITUTE AND AN ELECTRONICS DEVELOPMENT LABORATOR WHICH WILL - TOGETHER WITH RELEVANT TRAINING COURSES AT OUR INSTITUTES OF TERTIARY EDUCATION - GO A LONG WAY TO MEETING GAPS IN OUR PRESENT INFRASTRUCTURE, HE SAID.

MR BOYLE EXPLAINED THAT THE GAPS EXISTED BECAUSE THE INDUSTRY WAS IN A TRANSITIONAL STAGE BETWEEN TRADITIONAL, COMPARATIVELY LOW TECHNOLOGY PRODUCTS AND THE HIGH-TECHNOLOGY, HIGH-QUALITY PRODUCTS WHICH WERE BEGINNING TO BE PRODUCED HERE.

/IN HIS