Byline: Bernie Cahiles-Magkilat

One Asia Development Corp., the property arm of Republic Biscuit Corp. (Rebisco) in charge of its large-scale and high-end developments, is investing as much as P300 million for the development of a ten-hectare IT park and commercial center in Binan, Laguna.

Manarang said the company aims to generate P400 million this year in sales this year or a flat growth from last year's figure due to the impact of the US economic slowdown.

The company's growth is largely driven by its commercial development projects.

Phase one of the three-phased development is a four-hectare lot with a development cost of P100 million. The company is expected to generate P450 million in sales from the first phase alone.

Already more than half of the 51 lots have been sold out as possible sites for business process outsourcing firms and other commercial development.

Manarang said that Asia Pacific Medical Plaza is the first locator and will start construction in the fourth quarter this year at a project cost of P30 to P40 million.

A condotel and a call center firm have also taken up space in the IT park.

The company is selling the lots at P14,000 to P17,000 per square meter.

The development has already attracted several commercial operators including restaurants and cafes in the area that is close to a market of more than 900,000 consumers in the industrial towns of Binan, San Pedro and Sta. Rosa.

The second phase of the project will start in the third quarter this year and is expected to be finished by the first quarter of 2009.

The third phase will start in the second quarter of 2009 for completion by the fourth quarter of the same year.

"One Asia Business Center is envisioned to be an IT park, with worldclass locators involved in the ITH business like call centers and medical transcription," Manarang said.

Once completed, the whole IT park will provide facilities foreign and domestic locators involved in information and communication technology and BPO firms such as call centers, medical transcription, multi-media, web design and internet services.

PEZA approved the project the One Asia Business Center as an IT park last year after the company in coordination with telecommunication providers established a high-speed fiber-optic telecommunication backbone and highspeed international gateway facility or wide-area network (WAN) or any high speed data telecommunication system.

One Asia was incorporated in July 2000 and is part of the Extraordinary Development Corp. of the Rebisco Group.

Of the group's units, One Asia is primarily mandated to undertake largescale, mixed-use and integrated land developments complementing the positioning of its affiliate companies that cater to middle upper income.

Rebisco is one of the pioneers in the biscuit industry and a leader in the fast moving consumer goods industry in the Philippines.

From a basic portfolio of biscuits such as the famous and pioneering Rebisco Cracker Sandwiches that generations of Filipinos have loved, Rebisco now carries a wide variety of snack food ranging from nuts and seeds, cakes, wafer sticks, chips, curls, candies and gums.

Rebisco is owned by businessman Jacinto Ng.