KUALA LUMPUR (March 19): Mah Sing Group Bhd has allocated RM28 million for its digitalisation transformation for three years, from 2017 to 2019.

Executive director Datuk Steven Ng Poh Seng said as of now, slightly over RM6 million has been spent for the said digital initiative.

“We need to ride on digital transformation for sustainable value creation, in order to stay ahead of the times,” Ng told reporters at the Invest Malaysia 2019 here today.

He said Mah Sing has embraced digital initiatives in every part of the property developer’s journey, from sales and marketing, construction management and quality assurance, customer experience and engagement, to property management.

“This [transformation] is at a very initial stage. What we are doing here is basically to cut down all the papers so that customers have easy access [to our projects]. They can look at our projects via our apps.

“Over the medium to long term, we are looking at data analytics. With data and artificial intelligence, we can study our prospective buyers’ behaviour.

“But at the moment, we just want to ensure that we develop apps to have all the things in place for buyers to enjoy a seamless customer experience,” he said.

Launched in April 2018, the property developer’s MY Mah Sing app provides a number of services that caters to a home buyer’s journey, from when one first signs the sales and purchase agreement to the moment one receives the keys to one's unit and start a home.

With this app, customers are now able to keep abreast of construction progress and keep themselves updated on any defect rectifications, Ng said, adding that the app further enhances customer experience and provides convenience to buyers, like allowing them to book facilities, and register guests and renovation contractors.

Leveraging on the strength of its digital marketing strategy to enhance the lives of its customers and reach out to wider market segments, Ng highlighted that Mah Sing, in November last year, became the first property developer in Southeast Asia to collaborate with Lazada to list homes online.

He also reiterated that the group is planning to launch RM2.2 billion worth of properties for 2019, and is targeting at least RM1.5 billion worth of sales, of which 81% is expected to come from affordable homes priced below RM700,000 in strategic locations.

With a remaining landbank area of 2,105 acres, which will provide the property developer with eight years of earnings visibility, Ng said Mah Sing is still aggressively looking to increase its landbank area, particularly in the Klang Valley.

He also noted that the company is in net cash position with RM1.22 billion of cash and bank balances as at Dec 31, 2018.

Additionally, he said the company’s unsold units now stood at RM580 million, comprising large units such as penthouses and corner units, of which the company is planning to dispose of soon.