IPTN to shed 4,000 staff and two directorates

BANDUNG (JP): State aircraft company PT IPTN, often called inefficient for employing 16,565 people, will be restructured, the general manager said yesterday.

Hari Laksono, also senior executive vice president, said the company's number of directorates would be cut from five to three.

The reorganization would result in the transfer of about 4,000 employees to IPTN's subsidiaries, Hari said.

The divisions to be scrapped are the directorate of production and directorate of commerce. The research and development directorate, fixed wing directorate and non-fixed wing directorate will remain.

The research and development directorate will be led by Said D. Djenie, the fixed wing directorate by Ilham Akbar Habibie and the non-fixed wing directorate by Yusman.

The heads of directorates will be on a par with senior vice presidents and they will report directly to the managing director, B.J. Habibie, also the state minister of research and technology.

Djenie had been the senior vice president of the advanced technology division, which specializes in research on an Indonesian satellite and other projects. Ilham Akbar and Yusman had been chairmen of N-2130 and N-250 projects respectively.

Hari said the non-fixed wing directorate would manufacture components for products outside the company, including missiles, weapons, rocket equipment and helicopters.

The universal maintenance center, previously managed by Hari, will become an independent unit to provide maintenance services for non-aviation products and the company's industrial machinery.

The Humpuss group, controlled by President Soeharto's youngest son Hutomo Mandala Putra, and two other companies are expected to manage the center, which has 950 staff, according to weekly newsmagazine Tiras.

"Support departments including finance, human resources, information systems, supplies, strategic planning and other departments will be set up, although a corporate secretary would not necessarily follow because everything is already being coordinated," Hari said.

He said he would assume the position of deputy managing director to assist Habibie. Each of the company's new core units would be given one month to consolidate their operations.

PT IPTN, established 20 years ago, has 16,565 staff: 2,220 hold bachelor's degrees in engineering and 50 are doctoral graduates.

"One thousand of our staff are due to return from overseas studies," Hari said.

Tiras estimates that 4,000 staff will be transferred to maintain the company's target of a reduced workforce of 12,000. Restructuring is expected to be completed before the May 29 general election.

It said the company, with assets of US$1.6 billion (Rp 3.5 trillion), experienced heavy losses of Rp 185.5 billion (US$77 million) in 1995. (ahy/01)