Category: Traditional Trades

Power supply boards, printed circuit boards, and transistors are puzzles levels to be solved, screwdrivers and soldering irons are handy weapons, while copper wires and various spare parts are regular inventory items. To father-son duo Chiew Soon Foo and Chiew Chin Hong, repairing domestic appliances is an exciting game, to clear levels with all stars is an achievement they intently seek. From large appliances like televisions, speakers, to small appliances like rice cookers, clothes irons would all be taken apart for a thorough inspection, faulty parts are then repaired or replaced, and the appliances would be in good working order after reassembling. 

Heading southwards from Klang on the Federal Route 5, passing by Jenjarom, a giant bridge over the Langat river connects to the streets of Banting. Banting is the principal town of Kuala Langat district, having developed from farmland to an agricultural and industrial hub within the past century, its main street is bustling with traffic. Pertama Electronic Services occupies a double-storey shophouse facing the main street, its predecessor being a grocery store founded by Chiew Soon Foo’s grandfather upon settling in Malaysia, hence the wooden signage bearing “Tuck Heap Huat” above the entrance.

Since his childhood, Chiew Soon Foo stayed on the second floor of the shophouse. After his grandfather passed away, his father took over the reins of the grocery store. Having completed Form Three, Chiew Soon Foo dropped out of school, working at a furniture manufacturer during the day while studying electrical and electronic repairs at night. Upon completion of his diploma, he worked at Klang for six years before returning to Banting to start his own business. In the beginning, Chiew Soon Foo took up a corner of his father’s shopfront, and went performing on-site services around neighbouring villages. He gradually made a name for himself, customers would send their appliances to the shop for repairs, as well as refer him to their friends and family. Since the grocery business was going downhill, after clearing out the inventory, the shop officially became a repair store. 

Shelves and tables inside the shop were handmade by Chiew Soon Foo with his furniture manufacturing skills, whereby at home he is in charge of all maintenance and repairs. All along, Chiew Soon Foo works together with his wife and son, without hiring helpers. His wife, See Pey, who has no prior knowledge, went on to become a steady assistant, from coiling copper wires, soldering, to reassembling appliances. His son, Chiew Chin Hong, who sparked a keen interest since a tender age, joined him in the repair shop after graduating from school. Together they continually explore, practice, and master progressive skills in repairing electrical appliances. 

Electrical technicians make a living using their skills, charging fees which include parts, materials, and labour, yet may not be profitable. The Chiew father and son will negotiate prices with customers, the repair job will only be carried out upon achieving a mutual agreement. From finding the faulty parts to completing repairs or replacements, the entire process usually take two to three days. If the parts are hard to come by, which requires sourcing online, it will take a longer time, even without taking into account that the parts ordered online might not be suitable. Certain antiquated parts have been discontinued and therefore could not be replaced, in such cases Chiew Soon Foo is powerless despite his talent in appliances repairs. 

Back when supplies were scarce, domestic appliances were rare and precious, repairing was more cost-efficient than buying a new one. Nowadays domestic appliances have became daily necessities at affordable prices with a warranty period. In case of faulty or damage, most would opt for making a new purchase rather than sending for repairs. Chiew Soon Foo laments that discarding broken appliances is not environmentally friendly, to repair is a sustainable practice which may extend their lifespan as well as reduce e-waste. If customers no longer want their appliances back, Chiew Soon Foo will retain usable parts and send the remaining to registered collection facilities.

Cathode-ray tube televisions and radios, cassette players, videocassette recorders were rendered obsolete by advancing technology, and cannot be repurchased once discarded. Some may retain them for the sake of nostalgia, even though they have fallen into disuse. Through the magical skills of a repair technician, they might once again be in a usable condition, so why not?

Pertama Electronic Services is Chiew Soon Foo’s pledge to put in patience and effort to achieve the best outcome. The family of three enjoy working together, to them, life is always fun and never boring.

有你 UNI Production
Producer : Daniel Lim
Cinematographer : Amelia Lim / Evon Pang / Michael Lerk
Drone : Daniel Lim
Video Editor : Amelia Lim
Copywriter : Pua Hui Wen

COPYRIGHTS 2022 ECHINOIDEA SDN BHD

Ko Hou Kam herbal tea, the first sip fills the mouth with bitterness, yet yields a lingering sweetness once it slips down the throat, hence its name meaning sweetness after consumption. A nationwide popular beverage back in the 90s, Ko Hou Kam advertisements were aired on various television stations, and even distributed abroad. With a superfluity of health drinks available nowadays, Ko Hou Kam eventually diminishes, and can only be found at certain traditional Chinese medicine store or its place of origin – Mambau.

Mambau is a small town on the outskirts of Seremban, Negeri Sembilan. At the beginning of the 20th century, as the rubber industry flourished, large-scale plantations were developed in Mambau. The village was established in the 50s, the majority of the 200 households were rubber tappers. Due to its strategic geographical location, the rail freight route from Port Dickson pass through the border of Mambau village (now demolished), and so does the Federal Route 53 linking Seremban and Port Dickson. Before the construction of Seremban–Port Dickson Highway, Federal Route 53 is the main road leading to Port Dickson, tourists usually stop by Mambau for rest and refreshments.

Located just off the main road, Mambau Khek Yong Tau Fu may have a shabby appearance, however it is the birthplace of Ko Hou Kam herbal tea. The founder, the late Mr Kum Loong Poh, used to work in the construction industry. However, business failure due to the global economic recession of the early 1980s caused him to seek new opportunities in the food and beverages industry. In order to finance the household, Mr Kum worked long hours till the point that he suffered from health complications. After consuming a herbal tea prepared according to a prescription which his ancestors brought over from China, his condition improved. Since the herbal tea has proven health benefits, Mr Kum decided to promote it so that others can enjoy improved health too.

The original herbal brew has a bitter aftertaste, therefore the late Mr Kum Loong Poh researched and developed an ideal herbal tea formula suitable for general consumption as well as offering a lingering sweetness. The main ingredients of Ko Hou Kam herbal tea are camellia, silver needle, and chrysanthemum. Silver needle tea leaves are subjected to processing in order to neutralise acidity: sun-dried after being harvested, stems removed, and the tea leaves are then fermented for 100 days. Ko Hou Kam herbal tea comes in individually sealed tea bags for ease of consumption.

Ko Hou Kam herbal tea was initially sold in Mambau Khek Yong Tau Fu as well as a friend’s coffee-shop. Back then, the health drink market just started to grow, imported health drinks were expensive, and there were barely any local manufacturers. Mr Kum Loong Poh’s savviness in launching Ko Hou Kam herbal tea at an affordable price instantly gained market popularity, hitting the shelves of medical stores as well as being distributed nationwide. As manual packaging became inefficient due to increasing demands, he set up a small factory and invested in an automated packaging system to ease operations and storage.

After the passing of the late Mr Kum Loong Poh, his sons Kum Han Soon and Kum Han Loong took over the operations of Mambau Khek Yong Tau Fu and Ko Hou Kam, thus prevented disappointing regular customers. However, intensifying market competition led to business decline, structural market changes dealt another severe blow – younger generations prefer to consume unhealthy beverages such as bubble milk tea, only a few would appreciate herbal tea. Even so, Kum Han Loong did not give up, but turned to taking phone orders and online marketing to explore new opportunities.

The Kum brothers are born and bred in Mambau, plus Ko Hou Kam was founded by their late father in this small town, tight bonds flourish within the local community, therefore they chose to stay in their hometown to carry on the family business. Nevertheless, herbal tea is not some magical remedy. Kum Han Loong gently reminds everyone not to simply rely on herbal tea for health benefits, but to combine with regular exercise, maintain a daily routine, and eat a balanced diet, living a healthy lifestyle to keep the mind and body fit.

有你 UNI Production
Producer : Daniel Lim
Cinematographer : Amelia Lim / Evon Pang / Michael Lerk
Drone : Daniel Lim
Video Editor : Evon Pang
Copywriter : Pua Hui Wen

COPYRIGHTS 2022 ECHINOIDEA SDN BHD

Rubber trees stand tall and straight in neat rows, bright rays of the morning sun shine through the leaves. Madam Chong Sew Cheen stoops slightly to score a rubber tree with the pull-type rubber tapping knife in her hands, milky-white latex sap flow downward the diagonal cut. Madam Chong inserts a metal spout to allow the latex to drip into a collection cup held in place by a galvanized wire.

In the 20th century, there was a massive boom in rubber trade, Malaya became the world’s largest producer of natural rubber, which attracted swarms of British capitalist investors. As Malaya gained independence from British rule, plantations were divided and sold upon British capitalists leaving the country, several locals spent their hard-earned money to buy over and became smallholders. Mambau, where Madam Chong resides, was mainly consisted of rubber plantations. At eleven years old, she followed in her mother’s footsteps to tap rubber at a British-owned plantation. Over the next six decades, she moved around to work under different smallholders. 

The rapid economic growth since Malaysia’s formation led to urban sprawl, property developers acquired plantations in Mambau and surrounding areas to build new townships such as Seremban 2 and Bandar Sri Sendayan. In order to sustain a livelihood, Madam Chong had to work at remote Malay reserved lands, making daily trips alone via motorcycle for about twenty minutes, passing by residential and commercial properties which used to be rubber plantations, to reach her current workplace. 

The switching of workplace brought on changes to Madam’s Chong working mode, where she now rents rubber trees from the landowner for a fixed monthly fee, and she is free to arrange her own working hours and workload.  Due to the amount of latex sap produced by rubber trees being limited, she divided the six-acre plot into two patches to be tapped alternately, the downscaled working area means that she no longer need to rush to work before dawn, as it can be completed throughout the morning.

Around seven in the morning, Madam Chong arrives at the rubber plantation on her motorcycle, ties on her apron and headscarf, lights a mosquito coil to hang upon her waist, then goes around the rubber trees with her bucket of tools. A regularly used tapping knife, a spare one, some metal spouts, a parang to collect firewood, and spare spark plugs in case her motorcycle misfires. After completing her work around noon, she goes home to have lunch and rest, later in the evening she sharpens the tapping knives and gets ready for the next day’s toil.

Mambau’s rubber industry dwindled in line with weakening global demand, smallholders converted to palm or durian plantations. Local rubber tappers either change their jobs or retire, only a handful remain persistent lke Madam Chong. Big cities offer more opportunities, younger generations rather flock to urban areas than tap rubber. Nowadays rubber plantations face workers shortage, even in hiring foreign labour. Local Chinese rubber tappers are becoming increasingly rare. 

Septuagenarian Madam Chong has been working as a rubber tapper for the majority of her life. Although she occasionally suffer leg pain from walking on slopes, she remains jovial and have no plans to retire yet, as she may pass time and exercise through her work. Despite the decline of the rubber industry, Madam Chong still manage to make a living.

有你 UNI Production
Producer : Daniel Lim
Cinematographer : Amelia Lim / Evon Pang / Michael Lerk
Drone : Daniel Lim
Video Editor : Evon Pang
Copywriter : Pua Hui Wen

COPYRIGHTS 2022 ECHINOIDEA SDN BHD