If there was one singular driving force for Bayam’s Managing Director, Mr. Azman Ismail, that would be empathy. “My business started from my empathy for others,” says Azman. As the Managing Director of Bayam Group of Companies, he oversees the running of the group that provides a range of facilities that serve the oil and gas industry players here in Malaysia. Though Bayam Group is now one of the largest service providers, their mission at the start was a humble one: see a problem, provide a solution.
Destiny calls at a coffee shop
In the early 2000s Azman was enjoying a cup of coffee at a kopitiam on Jalan Bayam when he heard about the plight of a group of oil platform workers who were stranded on Perhentian Island during a monsoon. Due to the lack of infrastructure, the workers would be stuck there anywhere from a few days to a few weeks! Short on food and medication with no way to reach them, the workers had to wait out the storm at sea without any other option. Not only was this not the first time for such an occurrence, but he would also soon find out that this happened on a frequent basis, with no one offering solutions. “My business started from my empathy for others. I created my own idea to solve these problems that the oil workers were facing and to give them what they needed,” Azman continued. It was on the eponymous Jalan Bayam where his company found its name and this initial desire to help people continues to instill his company’s core values. His entrepreneurial journey began in 2002 in Tok Bali Port, Kelantan.
The start of Bayam Enterprise
Bayam began its operation by providing petroleum products and fresh water to marine vessels out of Tok Bali Port in Kelantan which is only six hours by sea to most offshore locations in the MalaysiaThailand Joint Development Area. The company would later increase its offerings to provide ground handling support to oil and gas companies in Kota Bharu Helibase and Kemaman Supply Base. In 2008, having serviced the oil and gas industry for over six years, Azman was able to better fulfil his promise of solving the problems of offshore workers and Bayam began its expansion into the hospitality space. He solved the three biggest problems faced by workers offshore: catering, housekeeping, and medical assistance. Once again, empathy drives Azman’s business as he says, “When I supply good food or accommodation, I have to think about whether the recipients will enjoy it.” The team has over 70 years of combined experience in hospitality, and they emphasise greatly on hygiene and food safety by having a fully dedicated Health, Safety, and Environment and Quality Team that monitors on board compliance to HSE Quality and Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) standards. Weekly menus are created by the Platform Chef who must take into consideration the many nationalities present offshore on the rig. The meals are meticulously prepared each week with special treats on Sundays and more elaborate buffets on festive days like Hari Raya or Christmas. The hospitality extends to the living quarters as well where Azman insists that housekeeping be “On par with a 5-star hotel.” This means that bed linen is cleaned and changed frequently and small meaningful touches like air fresheners are part and parcel of their SOP.
Catering to caretakers
Life offshore is not easy and Bayam takes its commitment to service seriously. To ensure qualified personnel on board oil rigs, Bayam runs a Hospitality Training Centre in Kemaman where staff are instructed on the conditions in offshore kitchens and orientation and training for workflows in offshore galleys. Rounding out their hospitality service is its integrated medical services through its subsidiary Bayamedic Services Sdn Bhd. This offering includes medical emergency consultation and care as well as a medical evacuation (Medevac) plan for both offshore and onshore emergencies. Medical personnel are required to attend courses at the Bayam Medical Training Centre in Kota Bharu. The subsidiary is led by Professor Dr. Nasir Mohamad (Specialist Emergency and Trauma) and is supported by medical specialists with experience in Medevac escort and consultation. The service provides 24-hour assistance with their own ambulance on standby at each embarkation point such as KB, KT, Kemaman, KK, Labuan & Miri.
Bayam has signed a memorandum of agreement with Universiti Sains Medical Centre, University of Malaya Medical Centre, Pusat Perubatan Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, International Islamic University Malaysia Medical Centre and Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin Medical Centre with their medical faculties who lend a hand in the critical operation of Medevacs. They have also signed agreements with four other hospitals in the area. Today, Bayam provides Catering and Housekeeping Services to the upstream oil and gas companies namely ExxonMobil, Petronas Carigali, Sapura, Repsol, EQ Petroleum, EPOMS and PetroVietnam Drilling Company in 17 offshore locations in Malaysia. It also provides Emergency Evacuation & Medical Assistance and Occupational Health Services to Repsol, Mubadala, Japan Drilling, Schlumberger, Halliburton, Petrofac, Hess, EPOMS, IPC, Vestigo and Wood Group Engineering and helibase coordination for outbound and inbound offshore crews to Carigali-Hess. During the recent Covid-19 crisis, Bayam was also instrumental in developing SOPs for the oil and gas industry with its vast knowledge of health and safety gained from years of keeping the highest quality standards.
A new calling arises
Having pioneered off-site hospitality services and achieving numerous awards like the Chairman’s Safety Award by ExxonMobil, and the 1.5 million Safe Manhours award from Carigali Hess, Bayam is looking towards its next venture. Close to Azman’s heart is providing halal certification services, particularly to China. Seen as a national service, Azman wants to spread the Malaysian Halal Standards to the “Middle Kingdom” as it’s known in the Chinese mother tongue. Preceding the drive into China, they had already penetrated the halal business in Japan. This was accomplished with the guidance of MATRADE and the Japan External Trade Corporation (JETRO). Through Bayam’s consulting and business advisory firm, JP International Sdn Bhd (JPI), Azman is acting as a conduit between the Halal Development Corporation (HDC) and China.
JPI is in the process of educating the Chinese market about the concept of halal by collaborating with Halal Training Institute to provide HDC certified training courses taught in Chinese. “Halal to me is not about religion,” says Azman. “In China, the word ‘halal’ means clean. The Chinese character for halal is also clean. When a non-Muslim sees the halal character, they will understand that it represents something that is ‘clean’.” With this idea, Azman sees the halal business as an opportunity to provide people with access to safe and clean food. While certification and education are on-going, the business will also involve logistics as a halal service provider. Azman’s passion for the country shows even in his children as his son is currently studying in China.
Empathy forges forward
The guiding principle of empathy led to a company that set the standard for offshore hospitality and now passion is bringing the group further. Azman’s passion to promote halal standards in China is merely a first step. His ambitions are larger and span across the globe. Azman’s vision is for JPI to cooperate closely with HDC to make the Malaysia Halal standard as the de facto standard or the gold standard in the world. Once again, Azman is looking to solve a simple problem using a simple solution: provide a cleaner and safer option for food with a universally recognised halal guideline that’s accessible to all. Bayam’s story can be summed up with this quote by Azman, “The basic business of this company remains, to this day, in this value or idea: We always want to provide the solutions or ideas on how to improve things, how to improve services.” This time, it will be on the world stage.
