What’s in a name, when it still carries Semen?

This must qualify for one of Unspun‘s shit-for-brains tag. The Government wants to give state cement maker Semen Gresik a higher international profile.

So one of the thirst things it wants to do to make this happen is to change its name. Fair enough. Semen doesn’t exactly travel well when it crosses linguistic borders, especially in the lingua franca of international trade, English.

So in the tradition of solving the wrong problems precisely the Government is planning to change Semen Gresik’s name to – wait for it – Semen Indonesia!

Happy Friday and enjoy the weekend coming up.

Semen Gresik Eyes New Name, Higher Profile | The Jakarta Globe

.State Enterprises Minister Dahlan Iskan said Semen Gresik, the country’s biggest cement maker, would change its name to Semen Indonesia in an effort to raise its international profile.

The change must be approved by shareholders, which could happen in October or November, the minister said on Tuesday. After the change is official, Dwi Soetjipto, the president director of Semen Gresik, will become chief executive of Semen Indonesia.

Dahlan said President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono had already signed off on the new name.

Semen Indonesia would group several cement makers, including Semen Padang, Semen Tonasa and Semen Rembang.

Dwi said the company was working to finalize the brand change, which he hoped would lift its international image and name recognition. All of the operational details that go along with the change should take about a year to complete, he added, without providing details.