Polines community service team consisting of Dra. Sugiarti, MSi., Ulfah Hidayati, SE, Msi, Akt. and Drs. Suryanto, MPd. some time ago carried out the Export Product Development Program for the fostered MSMEs. With the aim of increasing the competence of MSMEs that produce bamboo handicrafts to be marketed abroad (exports).
Jambukulon Village, Ceper Subdistrict, Klaten Regency, geographically located between the cities of Surakarta and Yogyakarta, became the target of assistance from Polines. Along the highway there are shops for bamboo handicrafts, ranging from home decorations to household necessities such as furniture, even these products are also exported abroad.
The selected partner objects from this activity are ABIA ART's Bamboo Crafts Business and GLOBAL ART's Bamboo Crafts Business. Both businesses are located in Klaten Regency with a distance of approximately half a kilometer.
The leader of the Polines community service team, Dra. Sugiarti, MSi said, prior to assisting MSMEs, he had conducted a survey related to the problems or obstacles faced. "Especially the readiness of SMEs in the production of export quality bamboo handicrafts," he said.
Both partners face the same problem, namely the management aspect of business management has not been carried out properly, bookkeeping is limited to records. In the production aspect, the equipment owned is limited so that the work that should be done using machines is still done manually. There are still other technical problems regarding the production process, from handling raw materials to finishing and exporting,” explained Sugiarti.
Based on the agreement with partners, solutions will be found for the problems faced, namely in the first year technical problems will be addressed, in the second year management and finishing processes will be addressed to strengthen exports, while in the third year market or marketing strengthening. During these three years, the application of production technology will be carried out according to needs.
The first year activities that are currently being carried out, in the form of providing assistance with bamboo cutting machines, bamboo slicing machines, a set of computers to make bamboo gazebo designs have been handed over. Designs for storage and drying of raw materials have been made and training activities have also been provided. "This activity that has been carried out is very helpful in the production process so that the quantity and quality of the product increases," said one bamboo craftsman.