Bangkok, 27 June 2001—- Thai Airways International Public Company Limited held a Board of Directors’ Meeting, chaired by Mr. Chai-anan Smuddavanija, THAI’s Chairman, with the following results:

1. Expansion Plan of THAI’s Catering Services Department

The Board of Directors has approved the hiring contract with P. Construction and Material Company Limited to begin the construction to expand THAI’s Catering Services Department production area at Bangkok International Airport. P. Construction and Material Company Limited proposed the lowest construction cost out of all the six tenders; the cost was lower than that estimated by THAI.

The Catering Services Department is part of THAI’s supporting activities, which has continued to yield the highest revenue to THAI, calculated at 37.3 per cent annually. Currently, the Catering Services Department caters for some 40 customer airlines at Bangkok International Airport including THAI. Its current daily production capacity reaches 42,000 sets of meals, with the market share in Thailand of 64 per cent. The expansion plan has been designed to accommodate the rising demand for inflight meals, which will enable the unit to produce over 47,000 meals per day and maintain its quality service for both THAI and customer airlines.

THAI’s Catering Services Department has recently been awarded the Prime Minister’s Industry Award 2001 under the Quality Management category.

2. Hiring Forklifts for THAI Cargo

The Board of Directors has approved the budget of 230 million Baht under a three-year contract (2002-2005) for THAI Cargo to hire 63 forklifts and drivers to boost its operational efficiency and effectiveness.

According to company regulations, all functions within the airline are required to review all hiring contracts at least three months prior to expiry date. The current forklift hiring contract of THAI Cargo will expire in February 2002. 

THAI Cargo now serves 56 customer airlines and occupies a total cargo area of 64,000 square meters at Bangkok International Airport, out of which 37,000 square meters were allocated for Warehouse 2 and 27,000 for Warehouse 3. THAI Cargo now offers added services including export cargo, transfer of consolidated cargo to Warehouse 3, and Express Cargo Center. 
——-