TH PROPERTIES Sdn Bhd yesterday signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Villa Muhandis Internationale Sdn Bhd (VMI) to incorporate Italian designs and influences in future phases of its Bandar Enstek township project.

TH Properties chief executive officer Zaharuddin Saidon said the MOU also covered the promotion and undertaking of research and development in houses and real-estate design at Bandar Enstek and the promotion of information exchange for common business interest and opportunities between the two companies.

"An integral component of the MOU will be the setting up of a design business centre by VMI and the proposed establishment of the Malaysian Italian Design Institute at Bandar Enstek," he told reporters after the signing ceremony in Kuala Lumpur yesterday.

Zaharuddin said the design business centre will be a platform to help develop and commercialise Malaysian designs for local and international markets and also promotes collaborations with other housing research centres, especially universities.

"Initial discussions have already been made with the Housing Research Centre of Universiti Putra Malaysia and Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia," he said, adding that one of the main areas of research is on the Industrialised Building System which will help enhance quality and safety at construction sites and reduce construction costs.

VMI is involved in the business of industrial design in collaboration with international institutions worldwide.

TH Properties, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Lembaga Tabung Haji, is developing Bandar Enstek, a RM9.2 billion integrated township in Nilai, Negeri Sembilan. - Bernama