Dagang Net led Malaysia in the pioneering initiative to automate Customs procedures for shippers, carriers and third party logistic companies in an increased electronic environment in 1995 with the introduction of SMK-DagangNet, the Customs electronic data integration project. It is the exclusive electronic linkage to the Royal Customs for import and export declaration and clearance.

"Our plan is for SMK-Dagang Net to be rolled out across Malaysia by the end of this year," Saifol told Business Times in an interview.

"We feel Dagang Net Technologies is now well positioned to go nationwide as we have the infrastructure and technology in place. Dagang Net has, after all, earned its reputation as the pioneering and premier e-commerce service provider," he said.

Currently, seven seaports and three airports are submitting electronic customs declarations.

The ports are Port Klang, Port of Tanjung Pelepas, Tanjung Puteri Port, Pasir Gudang Port, Tanjung Kupang Port, Penang Port and Kuantan Port, while the three airports that are already using the electronic system are KL International Airport in Sepang, Senai International Airport in Johor and Bayan Lepas Airport, Penang.

The roll-out will see this service provided to other smaller ports and airports such as Butterworth Port as well as ports in the Sabah and Sarawak.

Saifol said with the electronic clearing system these ports and airports would be able to benefit with a faster cargo turnaround time, a very much lower document error rate, increase document processing time and resources and a single standard document format. In all, these benefits would translate to significant cost savings to the ports and airports.

He also said the company's plans to go nationwide will help to boost its revenue significantly next year with transaction volume for SMK-DagangNet expected to increase by 40 per cent.

Services for SMK-DagangNet are charged on a transaction basis.

Dagang Net posted a revenue of RM38 million for the year ended December 31 2002. For the half-year ended June 30 2003, the company managed to churn in a revenue of RM15.8 million.

"We expect our revenue to grow by some 20 per cent for this year," said Saifol.

Meanwhile, Saifol said the company is talking with companies, namely within the UEM Group of Companies, for joint-venture collaborations in e-commerce businesses. The companies include TimedotCom Bhd, Teras Technologies Sdn Bdn, and Rangkaian Segar Sdn Bhd.

The financing for these projects is expected to come from internal sources.

Saifol said the company is also looking to overseas collaborations in e-commerce businesses.

It is currently talking with Pakistan, Nigeria, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka for this purpose.

"We have signed a memorandum of agreement with Pakistan to look at a business plan on e-commerce for submission to the Government. The e-commerce is similar to our electronic clearing for the Customs," said Saifol.

He said the overseas business venture is also likely be in a form of a joint venture with funding through internally generated funds.

When asked whether Dagang Net would take the advantage of the current bullish equity market to list the company on the Mesdaq Market, Saifol said the current focus of the company is to enhance its operations, but admitted that the potential is there for such an exercise.

To date, Dagang Net has invested a total of RM86 million in building the nation's electronics exchange infrastructure.

Dagang Net, a national e-commerce exchange service provide, has pioneered and spearheaded initiatives aimed at creating a paperless, electronic Custom-related services to ease the facilitation and streamlining of international trading processes for import and export as well as trade & logistics industries.

Founded in 1989, Dagang Net today handles some RM1.8 billion worth of electronic document transfers annually between members of its trading community made up of manufacturers, forwarders, shipping agents, terminal and port operators, banks, port authorities and Customs.