Axis Capital Group Singapore

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Axis Capital Group Review: Heavy Equipment Safety on the Road

Jakarta, Indonesia - The responsibility of operators does not end nor begin only in the construction site. Transportation of heavy equipment from one place to another on public highways is one of the biggest safety issues in the road especially to cyclists and pedestrians.

Axis Capital Group, a company which sells and rents capital equipment from Singapore, has reported more 12 injuries and accidents in the last 16 years of operation. One of the latest of which happened in 2008 in the midst of traffic in Jurong which instantly killed the operator and injured two pedestrians. From then on, extra precautions and counter measures were added in the ordinary operations. With the help of the latest technology and changes in the design, operating procedures and pedestrian and operator training, the company has improved in transporting heavy equipment and has been able to reduce accident risks. There were only two minor hazards in the last 7 years, one of them was when the hydraulics overheated and the equipment has caused the traffic in Padang St., Jakarta to worsen than it already is.

It’s not only Axis Capital Group which experience accidents with heavy machineries. Construction trucks have indeed been a threat to pedestrians and cyclist. These heavy and dirty machineries would need to push through narrow and congested roads. Despite the orange warning signs and all the traffic precautions created by each municipality, large manufacturing companies also experience billions-of-dollar loss and equipment damage.

To lessen the risk, large manufacturing companies have created different designs and operating systems. Mercedes-Benz, for example has launched a whole new generation of Econic vehicles capable of higher payloads, which improve the driver’s ability to spot vulnerable road users such as cyclists and pedestrians. Vehicles already in operation include a tipper, mixer, skip loader and curtain-sider (SIG).

The Econic provides the operator a wider range of vision with a deep panoramic widescreen. It may take a lot of training to get used to the odd screen but for safety, operators are trained for a few weeks mastering the dependency on the screen through simulation program before they can fully take over the real thing.

Operators are also equipped with communication devices which could patrol their company of an impending accident which has been developed through the use of telematics. They should also be provided with communication gadgets to be used to immediately warn highway patrols if ever a major or minor emergency occurs. Protocol also requires them to be informed of any road blocks or traffic updates provided for by the local highway unit.

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Online Heavy Equipment Rental Booming

Heavy equipment has literally and figuratively been a big industry in Asia for the last decade. Developing countries have been growing towards urbanization and infrastructures are constantly being built. In the midst of it, investors are creating more projects and needing more construction materials, manual labor and equipment. The construction industry goes in demand until it has become one of the leading markets and has been driving Asia’s economy.

As one of the pioneers in the business, Axis Capital Group, a company which sells and rents heavy equipment in Singapore acknowledges the fact that the sudden boost in business has also been because of the integration of technology to present machines. It made the workload easier and the task more convenient for timely realization of the project. Although the industry has been lagging behind for more advanced technological updates, it has adapted enough modernity to keep up to today’s demands.

One of the leading game changer in the boom of heavy equipment is the renting scheme. Since machines can easily be obsolete with new models and units in the market, heavy equipment rental can be relatively useful for short-time usage. Nowadays, it’s a huge business in Asia and is considered as a billion-dollar industry.

Since rental has started to become popular, other developing cities and countries who are separated by oceans and different regions, those who do not have their own local heavy equipment manufacturer complain of the lack of availability of high-quality equipment. Oceans and the separation of islands became a hurdle in the procurement of equipment.

Online equipment rental has been developed to solve the issue of isolation. Ever since shipment and online shopping has been available, isolated developing cities which are also developing their own urban world. Developing cities like Jakarta, Indonesia, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and the Philippines had slowly risen to surprise the world of high city potential. China, Japan and other leading manufacturers also developed connection to other regions to selling and renting used equipment made by the likes of Komatsu or Hitachi to companies in other Asian countries.

However, the industry is not without issues. The most prevailing issue in online heavy equipment sales are fraudulent sales and online scams which have been a part of almost all e-commerce businesses. Clients are being fooled at taking prior payment for equipment which will never come or by delivering rusted and poorly maintained equipment which is not returnable.

The online world of heavy equipment can be unpredictable but the demand continues to grow. Despite this, the industry is promising higher growth and more development.

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Construction Industry Recruits Women

Seldom do we see women in a construction site. Since the industry requires every aspect of manual labor, women, who are always considered physically weaker than men, seemed not fit for the job. Gender diversity is not usual in the workplace with women only occupying 11% of the whole construction employees’ population, most of whom are employed for administrative task, working behind the desk and in-charge of data organization.

Sexism is one of the main reasons for the low number of women hiring in construction industry. Axis Capital Group, a company which sells and rents quality equipment, states that both of their offices in Singapore and Jakarta, Indonesia has high attrition rate of female workers. Aside from family and risk issues that women need to adhere to as the reason for their resignation, some have complaints of worse treatment experience regarding the distribution of work or promotion opportunities.

Today’s bigger challenge is to educate the next generation that the industry is not one-gendered. Similar manual careers also have the same gender proportion problems. Analysts have concluded that the issue is one of the main reasons why there are also a low number of laborers and workers in the field.

Construction industry is taking the warning of the lessening number of individuals interested to work in the sector at a more serious level. A person’s gender is no longer important when hiring as long as he or she can do the job and has the qualification to do so. Moreover, the industry is already recognizing women attributes which can help in the betterment of the projects. With an industry struggling to find workers, the insights are worth reviewing for contractors.

1. Learning ability

When it comes to training, women don’t take anything for granted. In our culture it’s sometimes assumed that all men have a certain mastery of machinery. That can lead to overconfidence or lack of attention in the training stage. Women operators also do better than men in pursuing additional educational opportunities. If there are classes in GPS or any other technology related to the job, they’ll be there if it can help them upgrade their abilities. The guys pick it up as they can, but women try to stay ahead of the curve.

2. Attention to detail

It is an innate characteristic of most, if not all of women to keep a keen eye on detail. There is even a study stating that women give more attention to even the tiniest thing and are very observant. You can seldom see a machine operated by women to be as messy as men’s. They keep them clean and don’t leave trash in the cabs. If there was a drop of oil coming out of a wheel or something small like that they let you know about it.

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Electrical Problems in Heavy Equipment

Electrical problem is one of the most dangerous issues that a contractor or any construction-related company can face. Even some of the most expert technician, when faced with electrical problems blank out. With the project looming with the deadline, it is best to fix it fast. Unless you have purchased your machine from an online scam rampant nowadays which has a higher probability of unfixable parts, electrical issues in equipment can be fixed intuitively than with logic.

Axis Capital Group, Singaporean-based company which sells and rents capital equipment across Asia admits that in electrical issues of their fleet, the problem is considered hazardous and grave. Because of the lack of expert hands in their branch in Jakarta, Indonesia, the company even deploys their technician from Singapore to fix the issue.

The diagnosis can be different in each case. With mechanical problems, you can easily determine it through the noise, the condition of the hydraulics, shavings in the oil pan, smoke, idle movement and sometimes, even fire. In these cases, the problem can be easily identifiable. With electronics, it can be more drastic when the machine entirely stops. An expert technician studies schematics, mechanics, hydraulics and operations. In a sense, he never stops learning and reading.

Some companies employ substandard technicians to lessen employment cost. However, this trend is strongly not advisable- and in some cases, illegal without the license and permit- as it poses a very hazardous risk not only for the operator but for the overall project and can jeopardize the name of the company.

Your client may complain when you say that the usual diagnostic time would amount to 4 hours but this is the minimum time it would take for a technician to really know the problem behind electrical malfunction.

Electrical diagnoses and repairs are the inverse of mechanical. A mechanic may diagnose in a few minutes what’s wrong with a mechanical system. But the repair could take hours or even days. The electrical problem will likely require hours of diagnosis, but then only minutes to repair – often just a corroded connector or frayed wire.

One of the issues that technicians avoid studying schematics is because of the jargons that may have been taught to them in vague details. Since the world of electrical is as complex as the wires themselves, it can be understood that there are oftentimes a mix and match of standards in each company.

The only way for electrical issue to be solved is to get rid of ignorance and listen more to intuition. Feigning ignorance can just lead to a more serious problem.

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High Percentage of Skill Shortages Troubles Construction Industry

Skill shortages in the field of construction seem to have no plans of stopping. Despite the best efforts, there is still a big shortage and lack of skilled workers willing to work in this arduous kind of job. 

Let’s do the math and take Axis Capital Group’s statistics as an example. Since operating from 1999, Axis has grown to employ an estimated 150 machine operators, mechanical engineers and shipment crews and admin staffs. Among these employees in the main office in Singapore and office branch in Jakarta, Indonesia, more than 75% are now in their middle aged years. While the business is improving and growing, in 10 years, these middle-aged employees will be retiring. When that happens, those remaining 25%, assuming zero attrition rate, would already be middle aged and promoted. If there is still a shortage of skilled workers, there is a bigger risk of deterioration in the construction industry despite machines doing most of the labor works. 

Manual labor is already being reviewed as one of the reasons which can greatly affect the already developing industry. In more studies, 47% of UK’s construction industry and related businesses were unable to fill the vacancies in the previous two years. While many leaders in this sector plea for help and complaints are already filing up for not properly marketing the benefits of the industry, experts say that the solution would be vocational training. 

Companies should allot time, effort and budget for trainings and educational seminars for aspirants to be able to regain the number of workers. Companies should take advantage of the high rate of unemployment among young adults and offer benefits befitting for a regular employee and for the risk that they are to undergo when working as a construction worker. 

Since, as analysts mention, that the need for manpower, the benefits they will be getting and the demand for workers are not highlighted in schools and universities and instead being belittled, construction companies should do their part to presenting a better image and marketing their names through these interactive seminars and trainings. 

Since businesses are struggling to contain the shortage which seems to have no plans of abating, there is already a surge of significant pay growth in this sector of almost 5%. 

While the business is continually growing, many companies are already imploring assistance to other sectors and even from the government to find other solutions for the increasing manual labor. If the shortage continues, global economy may also be affected overtime.

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Capital Equipment Rental Remains One of the Biggest Industries

Thousands of start-ups are currently under construction and a thousand more are projected to materialize in a year or two. Along with this, there comes a high demand for heavy equipment for construction. 

However, instead of buying heavy machineries which can be outdated overtime, many companies prefer to rent equipment from reputable sources in order to cut cost and ensure fully maintained heavy machineries. 

Many rental companies across Asia have admitted to increase in revenue since the start of 2015, and the sustained increase of sales within 7 months of this year’s operation. Those with an increase include even mediocre sustaining construction and rental company, Axis Capital Group and have the greatest impact to stock market’s darlings, Komatsu and Deere&Co. 

Companies have been aggressively pushing their way to the top and have been tightening their machineries. The biggest market review in Asia includes that of the developing city, Jakarta, Indonesia, Singapore and Hong Kong. 

According to many analysts, the high demand for heavy equipment rental trace back to the 2008 economic breakdown. Because of the uncertain economic outlook, renting heavy machineries seems the best option. Some construction companies are also hesitant to buy new machineries since emission control standards have boosted prices by 15% - 20% on prices of more sophisticated filters and other gear for the pollution reduction. 

In the United States of America, 54% of rental profit comes from heavy machinery market. It also remains as one of the biggest industries in dire need of operators and workers. Jobs related to this industry may be a little bit tough and risky but it pays well. In the present times, there’s a lot more confidence but capacity expansion is slightly muffled by a lack of drivers. In this particular issue, a warning was released by analysts that the growth of the industry may waver when the number does not increase. 

Companies are currently unthreatened by this debacle while the growth of the industry still promises big potential. The lack of manpower is being resolved through mass hiring and higher compensation. 

Another reason for the recent shift toward new equipment relates to technology. Through ergonomic joystick controls, quick-change attachment couplers, and cab designs that lessen operator fatigue, technology has made earth moving machines more comfortable for operation while simultaneously bolstering the versatility and efficiency of the machines themselves. 

There is more to expect in heavy equipment’s future. What that is and how it can be realized are yet to be discovered.

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Axis Capital Group to join IGBC 2015

Singapore is set to prove its place when it comes to green building construction and the events to back it up are continuously pouring. This coming September 2-4, 2015, International Green Building Conference is said to be one of the largest events which will serve as a catalyst for more seminars and eco-friendly awareness in the years to come.

Axis Capital Group, a company which sells and rents capital equipment in Singapore and has extended to Jakarta, Indonesia, is also expected to come to Marina Bay Sands Hotel, the event’s venue along with other non-profit organization, private institutions and interested individuals to learn more about green construction and its coming future.

Organized by the Building and Construction Authority of Singapore and into its seventh run, IGBC 2015 is the anchor event of the Singapore Green Building Week. IGBC 2015 will play host to more than 1000 participants from over 30 countries - international green building experts, policy-makers, academics, built environment practitioners, tenants and end-users, including members of the public and students.

Months before it is about to take place, reviews are already being written on the various expectations prepared for this event. A congregation of ideas, collaboration and learning among global and regional stakeholders to achieve a shared vision of a greener planet through the green building movement are some of the many expectations.

IGBC 2015's theme will be 'Build Green, Live Smart', focusing on the call for greener infrastructure and on the need for end users to act more responsibly and live sustainably based on meaningful smart data collected.

Since 2005, Singapore has topped the world on the cleanest and greenest city all over the world. With the development in infrastructure of the so-called Lion City, one cannot totally imagine how environment and modernization were incorporated.

Not only is today’s façade of the city green and eco-friendly. The government, along with other private and public institutions are already planning an 80% green overall requirement of each and every infrastructure found in the country. In response, buildings and projects are already including green and healthy designs and systems in their projects.

By encouraging and even demanding the use of innovative architectural green ideas and energy-saving technologies, Singapore has become a model of improving civilization in Asia – an important development in the region as it is a home of struggling and growing urbanization and housing the largest number of people anywhere else in the world.

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Large Data in Construction

Machine to machine communication has been rampant nowadays. With the emergence of new systems which helps in distinguish issues that were once too look into, the use of data in construction has been considered important and necessary. Aside from the fact that it is used for daily activities, it is also used in equipment. With its integration to capital equipment, many rental and selling companies like Axis Capital Group which is a Singaporean based company distributing across Asia and has expanded to Jakarta, Indonesia have been able to identify fraudulent products in its machineries.

Big data analytics is being used in a wide variety in every industry. It enables businesses to manage and analyze vast amounts of data at ultrafast speeds, and obtain valuable insights that can improve their decision-making processes.

One of the industries that are reaping the benefits of this technology is the construction industry. Construction companies are using big data to perform a wide range of tasks, from data management to pre-construction analysis.

Construction industry oftentimes handles many projects at once. Having large data management system can help reduce the stress that can result to unorganized information gathering. As these data are stored in the clouds, strict security rules are being implemented as a way to prevent scammers from hacking confidential information that may affect large scope projects and even the government or the public as a whole.

In order to plan and execute projects effectively, construction companies need to be able to predict risks accurately through intelligent use of data.

By implementing big data analytics, they can gain valuable insights that enable them to improve cost certainty, identify and avoid potential problems, and find opportunities for efficiency improvements.

The ability to solve issues and problems quickly is essential in construction projects with deadlines to meet and budget that is allotted with only limited time frame.

According to reviews, forensic issues usually occur in major construction projects and they can cause big problems such as failure to meet deadlines if they are not fully addressed.

In order to fix forensic issues efficiently, construction companies have to be able to collect the right data in an organized way and make the data accessible to the right people at the right time. This can be achieved through the implementation of big data solutions.

Presently, big data analytics is relatively immature in terms of functionality and robustness.

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Equipment Rental in the Future

Equipment rental is one of the most booming industries in today’s generation. Given the option to rent or to maintain heavy equipment with the risk to be outdated in the near future, many people choose the path to better renting. Maintenance is also one key factor that prevents people from buying heavy machineries. 

Now that machineries are more patronized nowadays, have you also wondered what the future for construction equipment is like in 5 years? 

Axis Capital Group, a company which sells and rents capital equipment based in Singapore and has now expanded to Jakarta, Indonesia has also been wondering where the industry be in the near future. Our experts are constantly analyzing today’s construction industry’s status to better prepare our clients for what is to come. 

Rental companies are emphasizing service in everything they do. And many dealers who once said they happened to have a rental division are now more likely to describe themselves as full-service rental companies who happen to do sales. What does full-service rental mean today? It means more convenient locations, faster check-in and check-out procedures, faster field response, better customer training. 

Many of these services in a construction industry are not new. But more and more, these services are no longer considered an added value or an extra benefit. They are considered part of the basic rental package - an operating necessity in a maturing business and something that must be done to survive.

The quality of equipment fleets is also improving. And so is fleet utilization. According to reviews of contractors, availability of equipment is far and away the most important factor in why they choose a company. Availability is even ahead of price. To serve this demand, companies continue to expand and modernize their fleets while they also implement systems to manage it all more efficiently. 

Another trend is toward newer fleets. Companies used to hold equipment for as long as it would hold up - the longer it rented, the better the return on investment. Now all things being equal, the customer wants to rent the latest models. Both large and small companies are reporting fleets with average ages as low as 24 and 36 months. 

However, despite the growth and development, the rental industry remains fragmented. These companies still remain to be a minority in many nations. It would take a lot of time for the industry to establish its position but will continue to control their destinies.

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The Story behind forklifts

As we all know, forklifts are used to handle materials from one place to another and has been very useful in the daily activities of a construction project. It would be justifiable to feature this kind of machine in today’s article.

Just like any other capital equipment companies, Axis Capital Group has laid a huge emphasis on the use of fork lifts. This kind of machine of every available brand has been one of our top sellers in both of our offices in Singapore and Jakarta, Indonesia. The demand for this equipment spread across all over Asia.

Handling has once been done by different kinds of equipment but with the creation of forklifts, it has made a great spur in the industry. The development, however, has taken years of review and research to truly evolve.

In the middle of the 19th century through the early 20th century, the world has seen the development of lifting tools which had led to today’s modern forklifts. The forerunner of the modern forklift was manually powered hoist that were used to lift loads.

On 1919, some high lift trucks were built which raised their platforms several feet to provide a greater range of operation and permit handling the many different types of skids. From here it was only a short step to tiering. Warnings of demolition caused by wars did not hinder the development of this useful equipment. Post war standardization the same year eliminated the rest of the trouble, and has resulted in keeping the platform truck skid system useful right up to the present day.

The year 1919 also saw the development of vertical lifting cantilever trucks as well as the introduction of forks and rams. The cantilever feature enabled these trucks to drive right up to a stow without requiring clearance underneath for projecting front wheels, while the forks and rams provided a means of handling many different types of objects. Some of the first trucks with forks were merely platform trucks to which bars had been welded.

Forklift hydraulics is controlled either with levers directly manipulating the hydraulic valves, or by electrically controlled actuators, using smaller "finger" levers for control. The latter allows forklift designers more freedom in agronomical design.

Forklift trucks are available in many variations and load capacities. In a typical warehouse setting most forklifts have load capacities between one and five tons. Larger machines, up to 50 tons lift capacity, are used for lifting heavier loads, including loaded shipping containers.

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Heavy Construction Equipment on a Tight Perspective

Today’s construction industry requires different number of capital equipment in different sizes, types, and groupings for earth moving, excavating and/or lifting. Construction equipment today is specifically made for certain purposes to design and perform specific tasks and mechanical operations. Working capacity is direct function of the size of the machine and the motor power. 

The dependency on capital equipment in the creation of buildings and infrastructures lays a deep root on the growth of the industry. As long as there is equipment fit to do the more tedious tasks that manual labor cannot do, there will always be a demand. 

Axis Capital Group, a company which sells and rents capital equipment with its head office in Singapore and its subsidiary in Jakarta, Indonesia, is among the few companies which emphasizes the need for heavy machineries in today’s generation. With the increasing number of infrastructure projects not only in the already developed countries of America and Europe but also on the developing nations of Asia, the need for construction equipment has been greatly acknowledged. Both foreign and local manufacturers from all over the world has been busy producing and distributing new models almost every week. 

In some cases, there is a threat that these machineries will replace manpower, a warning of a possible increase in unemployment rate especially in developed countries. However, when local producers and manufacturers have been greatly affected by the increase in attrition rate caused by the recession, the demand for operators and construction workers are proven to be as highly important as the need for these machineries. In a sense, it is a give and take scenario. If there is no manpower, there is no one to operate these heavy machineries and if there are no machineries, workers can obviously file tantamount of complaints on the extremities of labor and tasks. 

The dependency and need for construction equipment have grown with the size and the complexity of the projects. The development of automated machineries for earthmoving, excavating and lifting has had an overwhelming evolution in the last two centuries. Today, when some new model of equipment does not exist to perform specific tasks, it can be designed and built. Heavy construction equipment manufacturers are very responsive to the market’s needs and to client’s feedback and comments. A lot of innovators and idealists make it so simple to create a machine which was once a big challenge. How effectively a new machine is done will greatly affect and influence the construction project. 

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Indonesia partners with China in Infrastructure Industry

Japan has been overlooked by Indonesia as a partner. Instead, it chooses China, one of the most rivaled and sought-after country to be allied with. Many critics say that this is because of the worsening status of traffic in the archipelago’ city, Jakarta. 

Jakarta, infamous for its traffic gridlock, recently won the dubious distinction as the city with the world’s worst traffic jams, according to a study by the British industrial and automotive lubricants company Castrol. 

This once again highlights not only the Indonesian capital’s infrastructural shortcomings but also the limited land and sea transport networks across the entire archipelago, as well as the frequent power outages that are the Achilles heel of the country’s economy. 

Jakarta is nonetheless a developing city and one of the most advanced cities in the world. Businesses seem to flock this growing city and investors have pointed out a lot of potential. One of the companies which sells and rents capital equipment all over Asia is  Axis Capital Group which is based in Singapore has expanded their services to Jakarta and is now partnering with government agencies, private institutions and non-profit organizations to help Indonesia’s infrastructure.   

Critics though, say that Indonesia is in dire situation, a reason why they have reached out to China. 

Keen observers of the Indonesian economy believe that China is well placed to meet this demand for infrastructure as an investor, especially with the China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) expected to launch by the end of this year, which will be dedicated to funding infrastructure development in the region. 

According to reviews, China is regarded as the most viable economic giant to support the development of infrastructure in Indonesia backed by the world’s biggest foreign exchange reserves. Despite warnings of fraudulent acts in China and scams on their products which are now known worldwide, Indonesia continued with their partnership. 

During President Xi Jinping’s meeting with his Indonesian counterpart Joko Widodo, popularly known as Jokowi, in Beijing last month, China expressed its interest to invest an estimated $63 billion in infrastructure and other projects in Indonesia, according to the Indonesia Investment Coordinating Board. 

During Jokowi’s visit, the two presidents also oversaw the signing of a joint project to link Jakarta and Bandung by high-speed railway, alongside a memorandum of understanding for closer cooperation in infrastructure, including toll roads, railways, power plants and ports.

Indonesia has made infrastructure its top priority since its new president came to power in October. An ambitious plan to build 1,000 kilometers of toll roads, 5,000 km of railways, as well as 15 airports and 24 seaports in the next five years has been laid out in Jokowi’s 2015-2019 National Medium-Term Development Plan.

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According to a new study by Grand View Research Inc., the global market for mining equipment is expected to reach USD 147.69 billion by 2020. Growth in mining activities such as drilling and earth moving is expected to boost demand for shredders, loaders and crushers among other mining equipment. Increasing demand for fertilizer minerals is also expected to favorably impact market demand over the forecast period. 

Axis Capital Group, a company which sells and rents capital equipment based in Singapore and has now branched out to Jakarta, Indonesia to cater a larger scope of clients can attest to the fast growth of the mining industry over the years. 

Mining operations rely on major mineral production regions such as North America, Australia, South Africa, etc. Water scarcity and dry spells in these regions has resulted in growing demand for effective mining solutions. Technologically advanced mining solutions are also estimated to witness growing adoption due to the need for robust hardware in mining locations. However, mining equipments produce harmful gases including carbon monoxide and sulfur oxides, which adversely affect the environment. This is expected to be curbed by the development of hybridization applications in the coming years. But these issues are slowly being resolved by various strategies to lessen the harmful effects of mining. 

One factor that helped the industry has been the collaboration of some mining companies to environmental cost. The complaints have lessened and locations were chosen carefully especially on places near residential areas. Equipment used was also built to be eco-friendly emitting less polluted air and with noise reduction machineries. 

The report further elaborated their predictions: 

• Surface mining equipment is expected to continue being the largest product segment over the forecast period. Demand for these equipments including service trucks, bulk trucks, bulldozers, etc. is estimated to be driven by demand for commodities such as iron ore and bauxite. Mining drills and breakers are expected to witness the fastest growth over the next five years. 

• Metal mining is being reviewed to be the largest and fastest growing application market over the next five years. Price-driven increases in resource exploration and mine development activity are expected to be the key driving forces for expected growth in metal mining application. Furthermore, growing demand for precious metals such as gold, silver, and platinum is expected to favorably impact segment growth. 

• Asia Pacific and accounted for over 59% of global mining equipment demand in 2013, and is expected to dominate the market over the next five years, at an estimated CAGR of 8.7% in 2020, primarily due to high estimated demand from China. Growing mine production and machinery sales is expected to fuel regional growth over the forecast period. Government restrictions on coal fired power plants and coal mine operations in the U.S. may act as a barrier to overall revenue generation.

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Wage Theft in Local Construction

We all know that the works in a construction industry involves dirt and hard manual labor. But aside from the usual dirt that is involved in the construction site, there is also the existence of dirty business inside the administration, far from the prying and hard stares of hardworking laborers who risk their lives every day.

Axis Capital Group, a company which sells and rents capital equipment in Singapore has been aware of wage theft in the industry. Ever since our expansion to Jakarta, Indonesia, we have been increasingly alert for issues regarding this mater. In fact, we have put warnings to our partner companies and clients as well.

Wage theft is a rampant problem in the non-union construction industry and it drives down standards for all workers. It is the unlawful withholding of wages or benefits due to an employee. It can take many different forms – from illegal “deductions” from an employee’s pay to outright not paying an employee at all.

Here are the different forms of wage theft that you should be aware of:

1. Overtime

According to the law, unless exempt, employees are entitled to receive overtime pay calculated at least time and one-half times pay for all time worked past forty hours a week. Some exemptions to this rule apply to public service agencies or to employees who meet certain requirements in accordance to their job duties.

Since some unseen factors like the weather may hinder meeting deadlines, construction companies usually extend man hours even until at night despite complaints filed against noise pollution. In these cases, some companies would only pay regular fees to their manpower, not counting the overtime done by their employees.

2. Minimum wage

Since in some cases, manual labor is considered as one of the dirtiest job and blue-collared jobs are considered to be in the lowest rank in society, manual laborers ae also paid in the lowest rate.

3. Misclassification

Misclassification of employees is a violation that leaves employees very vulnerable to other forms of wage theft. Independent contractors do not receive the same protection as an employee for certain benefits. The difference between the two classifications depends on the permanency of the employment, opportunity for profit and loss, the worker's level of self-employment along with their degree of control. An independent contractor is not entitled to minimum wage, overtime, insurance, protection, or other employee rights. Attempts are sometimes made to define ordinary employees as independent contractors.

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Axis Capital Group to Launch New Off Road Vehicles

Jakarta, Indonesia – Axis Capital Group, a company which rents and sells capital equipment in Singapore and has now expanded to Jakarta, Indonesia to deliver heavy machineries across Asia, is about to launch new off-road machineries manufactured by trusted brands in the construction industry. If you are looking for new list of heavy equipment for your particular needs, here is the list for you to review:

Gang Reel

This type of mower is used to produce consistently short and even grass on bowling greens, lawns, parks and sports grounds. When pulled by a tractor, these mowers are often ganged into sets of three, five or more, to form a gang mower. Hardly can you find fraud materials in its system.

Skid Steer Loaders

A skid steer loader is a small rigid frame, engine-powered machine with lift arms used to attach a wide variety of labor-saving tools or attachments. Though sometimes they are equipped with tracks, skid-steer loaders are typically four-wheel drive vehicles with the left-side drive wheels independent of the right-side drive wheels. By having each side independent of the other, wheel speed and direction of rotation of the wheels determine the direction the loader will turn.

Skid steer loaders are capable of zero-radius which makes them extremely maneuverable and valuable for applications that require a compact, agile loader.

Bobcat 3600, 3650 Utility with Hydraulic Drives

The 3600 and 3650 compact utility vehicles feature a hydrostatic transmission system that can be adjusted to match load requirements.

Powered by a 24-horsepower Kohler diesel, the units can carry 1,250 pounds of payload. Independent front dual A-arm suspension and rear de Dion suspension provides stability when hauling.

Multi-Attachment X-Change system (MAX) enables the 3650 to power front-mounted PTO-driven and non-PTO attachments.

Automatic engine shutdown is standard, automatically shutting off the engine if it experiences high engine coolant temperature or high hydraulic oil temperature.

John Deere 210g LC Excavator Updated To T4-F

The hood is larger than the previous model, and provides better access to the engine. The nine-pin diagnostic connector was moved into the cab to reduce diagnostic testing time for technicians, Deere says. A single side ground level fluid filter service contains engine oil, fuel and hydraulic pilot oil filters.

Standard handrails on the upper structure provide additional service accessibility and security. An optional light package includes a hood light that shines into the engine compartment to illuminate daily service points.

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Jakarta Releases Its Biggest Building Projects

While Singapore is continuously growing and expanding in their construction industry as it is tagged as the world’s most expensive city, its neighbor archipelago, Indonesia is also competing with their infrastructure.

Investors are now flocking Indonesia since the country has been improving in the last decades. A lot of potential has been realized in its 17,000 archipelago. Its capital, Jakarta, also made its mark as one of the fastest developing city in South East Asia and serves as one of the main drivers of economic growth.  Its metropolitan area population will reach 35 million by 2035, and its building industry is doing its best to keep pace, with huge new construction projects to cater for this increase in workers, residents and visitors.

Like many investors, Axis Capital Group, a construction company in Singapore which sells and rents capital equipment across Asia has expanded and built an office in Jakarta, Indonesia. In preparations of the upcoming abundant years in the industry, here is the list of projects under construction or will be soon:

Pertamina Energy Tower

With the trend in green construction nowadays, Jakarta has been in. Pertamina Tower is no different nor a fraud. The energy tower will soon be the world’s first net-zero skyscraper with its planned 99-floor mega project.

Cemindo tower

Another tower with green building at its heart, the 63-floor Cemindo luxury office tower will be the new home of the Indonesian state cement producer when it opens next year. At its current stage of construction it is Indonesia’s tallest building, although it will be eclipsed when some of the other major projects in the city appear on Jakarta’s horizon.

Jakarta Sea Walls

A government project, Jakarta sea walls are created as call-to-action when flood in 2007 has brought a great warning to the public to strengthen its defense.  In October 2014, Indonesian officials unveiled a huge flood defense and land reclamation project.  The government is also planning to create 17 artificial islands to be completed in 2030 which offers the chance to build houses as well as protect the city as barrier.

Citra Towers

The Indonesian company Ciputra Group announced this December that it will spend $164m on building two commercial towers in Central Jakarta.  The company has said that it chose the Central Jakarta site to offer its tenants an alternative to the Golden Triangle business district, and the decision looks to be wise – 80% of the space in the towers has already been sold. The towers should be finished in the next four years, according to the Jakarta Globe.

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Identifying where it had Gone Wrong

Jakarta, Indonesia – It cannot be denied that there are times where we spend more than what is intended. Yes, it also happens in construction projects. Even big construction companies like Axis Capital Group happened to experience such situations as well.

During the execution of a project, procedures for project control and record keeping become indispensable tools to managers and other participants in the construction process. These tools serve the dual purpose of recording the financial transactions that occur as well as giving managers an indication of the progress and problems associated with a project. The problems of project control are aptly summed up in an old definition of a project as "any collection of vaguely related activities that are ninety percent complete, over budget and late." Sometimes, we ask where our plans had gone overboard. 

Better take note of these main types of estimating issues to prevent complaints: 

•              Omissions: These are items accidentally left out of the estimate – either soft costs (permits, fees, etc.) or hard construction costs. Omissions may be due to items missing from the plans and specs that were, therefore, not included in the estimate and bid.

•              Wrong assumptions: These are items that you assumed were covered under a contractor’s or subcontractor’s bid, but aren’t. Or you may have assumed that a standard septic system would be approved, but a $30,000 mound system is required. Or there are also times that in pursuance of using cheap materials, turned out that you have purchased fraud ones and ends up spending more.

•              Inadequate allowances: You may get an estimate from a contractor or subcontractor with a material allowance that’s too low, a very common problem.

•              Price changes: Material cost or labor costs may rise between the estimate and the project.

•              Unclear or incomplete plans and specifications: The absence of clear plans leaves much room for disagreement about what, exactly, was bid on. This can lead to change orders and extra costs for extra work.

•              Cost-plus bids: Unless you have a guaranteed maximum, the final cost is unknown, and often more than you estimated.

•              Job-site surprises: hidden conditions (insect damage or wood decay in remodeling, underground ledge or water problems, etc.) In some cases, these could and should have been detected by more diligent investigation.

•              Construction/design errors: If you build something wrong, have to tear it out and build it again, you may be able to get someone else to pay – the architect, a sub, a supplier – but most likely you’ll end up paying for it twice.

•              Owner changes: You, the owner, may decide to use better windows, roofing, flooring, etc., during the project; or decide to move walls, windows, etc., after installation.