Chan said that having these new customers was a testimony that Nova's products appealed to the region, and over the next couple of years, it intended to also penetrate other Asian countries and European markets.
“We chose healthcare and e-government as we wanted to specialise in application software that would enable a critical industry to be more efficient, save cost and provide better customer service,” he said.
Another reason was because the founding members were very familiar with these two industries, Chan said, adding that the Nova group originated from Singapore in 2000, started by four technopreneurs.
Chan said the main challenge for an information technology company like Nova was whether there was a customer base for its products.
“With a notable customer base in Singapore as well as in the country, we are confident there is demand for our applications,” he said.
Nova's key sources of revenue are its licences of application software for e-government and healthcare solutions, specialised professional services (design and customise the system according to customer specifications) and maintenance of application software.
Chan said that at present e-government was the higher contributor to Nova's revenue mainly because of the size of the contracts.
Nova recorded a pre-tax profit of RM1.8mil on revenue of RM20mil for its year ended March 31, 2002. For the first 10 months ended Jan 31, 2003, the company recorded a pre-tax profit of RM4.8mil on revenue of RM20mil.
He said one of Nova's strengths was its research and development (R & D) and the company planned to continue to invest 10% to 15% of its turnover annually in R&D. In the past three years Nova had invested RM13.9mil in R&D and had its own in-house R&D department and owned all the intellectual property developed.
“Going forward, our strategy is to tie up with business partners in the different countries to perform direct selling and general system integration work for us. This would result in lower cost of marketing and be more effective throughout the region,” he said, adding that Nova would concentrate on selling its application software licences and specialised services.
Nova currently has a business partner in Thailand, Thai GL Co Ltd, and a state government-owned partner in China called Sino-Overseas Construction Information Co Ltd, which is its distributor for e-government software there.
“As we expand further, we also plan to set up additional marketing and technical support offices to support our partners. However, setting up a base would also depend on how big the contract is, and the amount of resources available from our partners,” he said.
Chan said the company was still prospecting for clients in Thailand and China.
“Although the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) has caused a temporary set-back in the penetration of the Chinese market, it is overall something positive for Nova. Because of SARS, the demand and potential for our products have become more obvious. The Chinese government would be very keen to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of its hospitals. A full hospital information system would be needed to track customers in the case of infectious diseases,” he said.
Chan said the outlook for the e-government and healthcare solutions business was good as there was a growing demand for such solutions globally.
“Governments and hospitals are always looking for ways to cut costs, be more efficient and provide better customer service,” he said.
In the healthcare division, Nova has successfully developed and commercialised its Total Hospital Information Systems, better known as VESALIUS, which supports hospital administration, patient administration, operating theatre management, pharmacy, inventory, billing and also includes clinical modules such as physician support system, order management and nursing care.
Among its customers are the Singapore General Hospital, Singapore National University Hospital and the Puteri Specialist Hospital in Johor.
Meanwhile, Nova’s e-government suite of solutions is used in various governmental establishments like Perbadanan Putrajaya, the Urban Redevelopment Authority, Building & Construction Authority and the Land Transport Authority of Singapore.
The e-government suite of products is made up of three main solutions, namely PAVO which enables the government and private sector to collaborate in carrying out transactions over the Internet, OCTANS which supports management of a local council and FORNAX, a solution developed to check electronic building and development plans in compliance with building regulations and land planning guidelines.
Quelle: The Star
