2. TROPICAL CLIMATE OF MALAYSIA Climate: Tropical Average Temperature: 20°C - 30°C Malaysia has tropical weather but it is never too hot and it is humid Mostly tropical climate is experienced round the year However, the monsoon varies Rainy season PENINSULAR MALAYSIA (Average rainfall: 2500mm) west coast -from September to December east coast -from October to February SABAH AND SARAWAK (Average rainfall: 5800mm) -from November to February Because of that, plantation of rubber is suitable on the earth of Malaysia

3. RESEARCH ON RUBBER PLANTATION IN MALAYSIA

4. HISTORY

5. HISTORY The chronology

6. Pic 1.1 : The late Henry Wickham, the British administrator in India Pic 1.2 : The oldest rubber tree in Malaysia which was the first to be planted in Malaysia.

7. GROWTH

8. GROWTH The rubber tree, HeveabrasiliensisMuell. Arg is planted in Malaysia. Young rubber trees have a smooth brown-green bark. The constantly tapped portions of the stem may develop, with age, a latex-smeared cortex. A 30-year old cultivated rubber tree is about 30 m tall with an average branch-free bole of 3 m. The diameter at breast height (dbh) may reach about 30 cm. The stem tends to taper. After 30 years a decline in latex production makes further tapping of the trees uneconomic. The trees are then removed and replaced with new seedlings. In the past, felled rubber trees were either burnt on the spot or used as fuel for locomotive engines, brick burning or latex curing.

9. Pic 2.1 : Rubber tree seedling Pic 2.2 : A young rubber tree

10. RUBBER TAPPING

11. RUBBER TAPPING Tapping normally takes place early in the morning, when the internal pressure of the tree is highest. Trees are usually tapped alternate or third daily, although there are many variations in timing, length and number of cuts. Tapping of rubber trees starts in the fifth to seventh year after planting and then continues for 25 to 30 years. A special knife is used to incise the bark so as to wound the resin canals without damaging the cambium. A standard in Malaysia for alternate daily tapping is 25 cm (vertical) bark consumption per year. The latex tubes in the bark ascend in a spiral to the right. For this reason, tapping cuts usually ascend to the left to cut more tubes. The latex will coagulate in cup if kept for long. The latex has to be collected before coagulation. The collected latex is transferred into coagulation tanks for the preparation of dry rubber or transferred into air-tight containers with sieving for ammonization. Ammoniating is necessary to preserve the latex in colloidal state for long.

12. Pic 3.1: A tapper is harvesting latex of a grown-up rubber tree

13. Pic3.2 : Latex being collected from a tapped rubber tree

14. Pic 3.3 : Tool use in collecting the latex of a rubber tree

15. COMMUNITY

16. The research conducted at KampungBanggolLimau, LubukBuntar, Serdang, Kedah, Malaysia showed that most of the villagers make rubber tapping as their main source of life sustaining. A rubber tapper does his job depends on the weather. If it is raining continuosly, he would not go for tapping. Instead, he would do any other side-income jobs such as working at oil palm plantation. The money from the scrub selling will be divided on the ratio of 60:40 between the owner of the plantation and the tapper. COMMUNITY

17. Pic 5.1 : A tapper is carrying piles of scrub to be sold.

18. INDUSTRY

19. INDUSTRY Once the latex has been collected, it will be mixed with a diluted acid. The rubber/acid mixture is then rolled twice. The first rolling is to remove excess water. The second rolling is to texture the rubber. The rubber is dried and can then be sold or exported. Synthetic rubber production begins with the refining of oil, coal or other hydrocarbons. During the refining process, naphtha is produced. The naphtha is collected and can then be combined with natural gas to produce monomers such as styrene and isoprene, which are necessary for the production of synthetic rubber. The monomers are then generally subjected to either an emulsion polymerization process or a solution polymerization process. In both cases, the idea is to create chains of polymers which results in a latex or rubber substance. These substances can then be processed into useful rubber products using techniques such as vulcanization, which is used to produce rubber for tires. Rubber is used mostly in automotive, electric and electrical appliance and machinery.

20. RUBBER PRODUCT Latex gloves Mountings Beltings Hoses Seals Sheetings

21. MARDEC The owner of smallholding rubber tapping would be taking their latex to MARDEC Berhad which processes rubber into technically special form. MARDEC Berhad is actually a government agency, founded in 1969, concerning about improving the quality of the rubber produced by Malaysia’s smallholders and recognizing its marketing. It is now an integrated conglomerate with world-wide connections, engaged in Rubber and Polymer Processing, Trading and Manufacturing.

22. Pic 4.1 : The rubber is dried before being sold or exported

23. In a nut shell… Rubber has since been planted in a number of tropical countries as a plantation crop. The most important rubber producers today are in Southeast Asia. Today Malaysia plays an insignificant role in international markets.

24. PICTURE OF MEMBERS

25. PICTURE OF MEMBERS : CLASS 3IR

26. THE FASILITATOR Mdm. NorlilawatiMohd Noor

27. What say we? ArifRosli I think we must appreciate the rubber plantation in Malaysia that has given us economic benefits. Conducting this research makes me realize the significance contribution of rubber to the Malaysian economy. Nabilah Huda I think planting rubber is important because pure rubber is better than synthetic rubber. Malaysia has to do more R& D in this plant to maximize its potential and uses.