Mr Lee Yi Shyan giving the opening speech for MTA2015.
The event opened with speeches from Jeremy Fong, Chairman of the Singapore Precision Engineering and Technology Association (SPETA), Linda Wee, Chief Executive of Singapore Exhibition Services, and the Guest of Honour, Lee Yi Shan, Senior Minister of State for Trade & Industry and National Development.
With regard to the exhibition, Mr Fong made mention of the Singapore pavilions led by SPETA and said that visitors should go visit these and check out the various complete turn-key solutions ranging from R&D design to manufacturing and engineering.
Also, concerning the Precision Engineering (PE) industry, he believes it will continue to grow and thrive in the fast, ever-evolving and challenging business global landscape. In line with the PE industry developments and progressions, he announced that SPETA has changed its name accordingly, to stand for Singapore Precision Engineering and Technology Association, rather than ‘Tooling’ as it was before.
Ms Wee addressed the imminent formation of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) and stated that manufacturing opportunities are likely to accelerate, especially among companies looking to expand their manufacturing base.
To keep updated with the latest industry trends and technological innovations, she believes the MTA, with its local and regional manufacturing companies from machine tool makers, to distributors, contract manufacturers and OEMS, is a good source of information as well as a platform for networking and sourcing.
On behalf of the government, Mr Lee mentioned the government’s commitment to develop Singapore into an advanced manufacturing hub, and has already “set aside substantial resources to help companies’ undertake R&D and adopt new technologies”.
An example of an original piece compared with a 3D printed one.
He related this to their efforts in Additive Manufacturing (AM), or more commonly known as 3D printing. Besides building up upstream R&D and downstream commercialisation capabilities, they have also supported the relevant talents in growth opportunities of the AM industry, such as the Singapore Centre for 3D Printing (SC3DP) by Nanyang Technological University, A*Star’s new Additive Manufacturing Centre, and Nanyang Polytechnic’s Additive Manufacturing Innovation Centre (AMIC). Also recognised are the robotics and digital manufacturing technologies, which are gaining popularity in the industry today, he added, and that the government is committed to supporting public-private partnerships in these areas.
To conclude his speech and open the MTA2015, he said: “Staying at the forefront of technologies is crucial to the competitiveness of our manufacturing industry”, and reaffirmed that the government would continue to provide a nurturing environment and supporting infrastructure for firms to succeed in their quests for upgrading and moving up the value chain.
