Talam walks the talk
NST 5/4/2004 By Zoe Phoon

Tired of being perceived as a developer of only low- and medium-cost housing - and with defects to boot - Talam Corp Bhd has launched its first 52 units of high-end, two-and-a-half-storey terrace houses in Taman Puncak Jalil, Selangor.

Marketed under the “Talam Premium Homes” brand, the units priced from RM250,000 will be part of phase 10B, named Bayangan Mewah in the RM2.2 billion, 801-acre Taman Puncak Jalil. Talam has so far delivered 4,000 of the 8,000 units sold in the residential development of 14,000 units, which is planned for completion by 2007.

This month, Talam will release its second batch of premium houses - 850 units of double-storey terraces with built-up areas of at least 2,000sq ft pegged between RM250,000 and RM280,000 and 140 semi-detached units costing about RM700,000 apiece in Ukay Perdana 2, located between Bukit Antarabangsa and Bandar Melawati in Ampang, Selangor.

Talam Premium Homes come with value-added features and specifications such as minimum built-up areas of 2,000sq ft, ceiling heights of 10ft, floor to ceiling wall tiles in the kitchen and bathrooms, leak-proof stainless underground water piping and metal door frames.

Other features include air-conditioning, TV and Astro points in the living areas and master bedrooms, gate bell and gate light points, extra power and light points and termite treatment that comes with a three-year warranty. Over time, high-end homes are expected to make up 10 per cent of Talam’s residential mix.

Despite these features, the houses are not expected to cost a bomb. As executive chairman Tan Sri Chan Ah Chye put it: “We’re not going to charge you double for the extra features; we just want to recover our costs.”

He said this at the recent launch of the Talam Premium Homes brand and the revamped Customer Service Action Centre (CSAC) which are part of the company’s strategies to drive future sales.

A similar house in Taman Puncak Jalil’s neighbouring developments, such as a 20ft by 70ft double-storey terrace in Bandar Kinrara, is currently priced from RM280,000 while a 22ft by 80ft double-storey super link in Bukit Jalil is from RM500,000.

Explaining the rationale for the launch, Chan said: “There’s this remark about us, ‘You’re a developer of affordable homes ... can you build high quality houses?’ From today, with the introduction of Talam Premium Homes and CSAC, we’re committed to eliminating the image problem associating Talam with only low- and medium-cost housing and houses with defects.

“We want to create an image that we’re capable of building the entire range of houses, including high-end, and quality ones at that. With Talam Premium Homes, we’re entering a new market segment, so we’ve to address the negative perceptions. Putting in place CSAC and emphasising quality will enable us to do that.”

On a lighter vein, he said, “I don’t want to be cursed after I retire, that ‘Chan Ah Chye builds defective houses’. I want to be remembered for the good things.”

The CSAC was set up to attend to buyers’ inquiries and complaints on defects, utility supply and Certificates of Fitness.

Other measures Talam is undertaking include completing infrastructure upfront before the buildings are put up and the creation of a Quality Audit Unit to strive for zero defects.

“We want to enhance our products so that our buyers’ investments are also enhanced. CSAC was not achieving its objectives in the initial years due to attitude problems. Some supervisors and contractors dragged their feet, an attitude we can’t afford to have today,” said Chan.

“We have to be stringent, especially when we have over 10,000 workers, including those from our 70 building and infrastructure contractors. We now handpick contractors for added quality assurance and we inspect the properties before we hand them over.

“We guarantee that specifications will be met and workmanship is up to standard. Feedback shows over 95 per cent of our houses are okay. However, given the 10,000 to 12,000 units we’re building a year, the number of complaints, although only a few hundred, looks big in absolute terms. Still, we’re taking action to resolve them.”

Basically, Talam would give contractors two weeks to rectify complaints and if these are not tackled, Talam would do the job and deduct the costs from them.

“We’re through with talk. We want action. We won’t hesitate to dismiss non-performing staff or drop contractors. If you can’t get through to the CSAC, contact my secretary,” he said.

He cited another proactive move: Talam will start becoming more objective.

“We’ll build model houses according to the specifications, so that buyers can see what they’re buying. For instance, we’ll supply the specified tiles for the houses to eliminate the problem of contractors using tiles of lesser quality. We want to dispel the perception that if you own a Talam house, chances are its quality is no good,” Chan said.

Asked to comment on the property market, he said: “Property prices were very high in 1994, 95 and 96 … it’s a 12-year cycle. The market is now moving up. Two years ago we sold a terrace house for RM179,000 and today it’s worth RM219,000. I expect the cycle to peak in 2007.”