Pages

Showing posts with label Komtar. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Komtar. Show all posts

Saturday, March 29, 2025

Penangites shocked as Myanmar quake shakes high-rise buildings

 

GEORGE TOWN: A powerful 7.7-magnitude earthquake that struck Myanmar sent shockwaves as far as Penang, causing tremors that rattled high-rise buildings and left many startled.

Office workers in skyscrapers described feeling sudden dizziness, with some even witnessing objects wobbling around them.

Buletin Mutiara writer M. Thanushalini, 38, was focusing on work on the 47th floor when she suddenly sensed her surroundings swaying.

"I was in the middle of typing an article when I unexpectedly experienced vertigo. At first, I thought I was feeling dizzy as it only lasted a few seconds, so I continued working.

"It was only later, after learning about the earthquake, that I connected the dots. In my eight years here, this is the first time I’ve felt tremors from an earthquake," she said on Friday (March 28).

Penang Economic Planning Unit assistant secretary Zeulqarnain Wahid, 33, also felt the unsettling tremors from his 26th-floor office.

"The Hari Raya decorative lights in our office began to sway, and I felt lightheaded. Several colleagues also mentioned feeling the same, and we realised it was unusual.

"Fortunately, there was no need for evacuation," he said.

Those working in Komtar, Penang's tallest building, also reported feeling the tremors shortly after the earthquake struck at 2.21pm.

According to the Malaysian Meteorological Department, the earthquake occurred approximately 55km southwest of Mandalay, Myanmar, at a depth of 57km.

No tsunami threats were detected in Malaysia following the quake.

Related stories:

A powerful 7.9-magnitude earthquake struck Myanmar on Friday, with its epicenter near Mandalay, the country's second-largest city, at a depth of 30 kilometers. This is the strongest earthquake Myanmar has experienced in nearly a century. Experts described the ...



Thursday, February 9, 2012

Swiss VAT plant proposed for Penang

Swiss firm to open new plant in Penang

By SIMREN KAUR simren@thestar.com.my

GEORGE TOWN: A Swiss semiconductor company has chosen Penang to open its first manufacturing plant in Asia.

VAT Manufacturing Malaysia Sdn Bhd will be built on a 3.035ha in Batu Kawan and is expected to commence production by December this year.

VAT executive vice-president Quality and Procurement Andreas Scheibe said it was a big step for VAT to open its first branch in Asia.

“A lot of our customers in the United States have moved to Asia, so we decided to move as well to be able to better serve our customers,” said Andreas.
An artist’s impression of the proposed VAT plant in Penang.

“After surveying several Asian countries, we chose Penang because it is the only one that meets our requirements,” he said.



VAT is the world's leading supplier of vacuum valves for state-of-the-art applications in the semiconductor industry, for manufacturing flat screens and solar panels, as well as for coating optical systems and tools.

Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said that he was delighted that VAT had chosen Penang over China, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam.

“We are proud that our human resources, suppliers in mechanical and electronic components, infrastructure and logistics support as well cost of living comply with the requirements of VAT,” he said.

Lim was speaking at the sale and purchase signing ceremony between VAT and Penang Development Corp at his office at Komtar yesterday.

He added that the new facility, with investments totalling US$25mil (RM75mil) was expected to generate 100 new jobs.