SINGAPORE: The Building and Construction Authority (BCA) has said that it will introduce a new framework to ensure buildings are easy and safe to maintain. It is also working to tighten the facade maintenance regime “to ensure that facades and exterior features are well-maintained, regularly inspected and remain properly secured”.

During a media interview, BCA’s outgoing chief executive officer Dr John Keung said that the authority started working on a design-for-maintainability framework about two years ago and he hopes to have it rolled out by end-2017.

As to why, Dr Keung said that building maintenance is both a safety and productivity issue that “takes up a lot of manpower”.

“We are consulting the industry before we roll out the guideline to get the architects and engineers to see what we can do upfront – to design buildings in such a way that it is easy to maintain,” he said. “Maintainability is the next big thing.”

Some of the measures the framework will look into include how buildings can provide easier access for cleaning, as well as the types of building materials and paints that require less maintenance.

Last year, BCA rolled out its “Design for Maintainability” checklist, a voluntary set of guidelines to help designers incorporate maintainability considerations in their designs.

“OUR BUILDINGS ARE GETTING OLDER”

Dr Keung said that Singapore’s high-rise, high-density environment makes facade maintenance even more important: “In the past when our buildings were still young, we had less of such problems. But going forward, as our buildings are getting older, you need to do a lot more to make sure that the facades are properly maintained.”

He gave an example of New York City’s facade maintenance regime, which he called “rigorous”.

“The reason is simple. Because their buildings can be 50, 100, 150 years old, things do fall off,” Dr Keung said.

BCA added that the BCA Academy is developing courses on facade inspection, which will be launched later this year.

LIFT AND ESCALATOR MAINTENANCE

In February, a committee to look at attracting and developing more lift and escalator technicians was set up. Last year, new lift and escalator safety regulations were also introduced.

However, beyond regulatory and manpower efforts to enhance lift reliability and safety, the industry should turn to technology to improve these efforts, according to Dr Keung.

To improve lift inspection efforts, he said that several Government agencies – such as the Housing and Development Board (HDB) and JTC Corporation – have been looking for examples from Japan, where several companies use a remote system to track the performance of lifts offsite.

Japan has to do so, because the country’s labour cost is “very high”, said Dr Keung. “So that drives them to reduce the need for workers (for lift maintenance and inspection work).

“We do not have the same situation here, (but) going forward we cannot run away from a very tight labour market. So the way forward is to use as much technology as possible to help us do all these work instead of adding more workers.”

BCA ACADEMY EXPANDS RESEARCH FACILITIES

From Jun 1, Dr Keung will step down as the BCA’s chief executive officer after more a decade in office. He will become the dean of BCA Academy.

In his new role, the 64-year-old will oversee the development of two new buildings over at the academy as part of plans to expand its research facilities. They will be used to house new laboratories, classrooms, and research and development facilities.

A seven-storey, medium-rise building will be built using Mass Engineered Timber, while a twenty-storey high-rise building will be built using Prefabricated Prefinished Volumetric Construction technology.

Dr Keung said that BCA is currently calling for a tender on the buildings’ designs and hopes to have them ready in the next two to three years.

The medium-rise building will be a “zero energy” building, meaning that it will aim to generate as much energy as it consumes, while the high-rise building will be a “super-low energy” building.

Currently, such buildings are up to 30 per cent more energy-efficient than similar buildings, Dr Keung said.

“We want to walk our talk. We cannot be asking the industry to do it and we don’t do it ourselves,” Dr Keung said, referring to getting the industry to pursue more sustainable and productive construction techniques.

Dr Keung added that the academy is looking at increasing the student intake and the number of programmes offered. He also hopes to increase the number of tie-ups between students at the academy and the researchers.

He highlighted two institutes under BCA where he hopes more of such collaborations can occur: The Built Environment Research and Innovation Institute (BERII) and the Built Environment Technology Centre (BETC).

BERII currently focuses on research areas such as green building solutions and construction productivity, while BETC looks at issues such as developing underground spaces and protecting Singapore’s coastline.

SINGAPORE: Compared to just ten years ago, our hectic pace of life in Singapore is changing how and what we eat. On the one hand, working professionals like myself want something quick, with little or no queues, and easy to eat for lunch; often we dabao.

On the other hand, when we sit down with family and friends, we want food that is nutritious and high quality, partially because we want to savour the moment of friendship and family time, and probably because we think eating good food will enhance the quality of our interaction with each other.

At the same, as we become more affluent, our taste buds also evolve to appreciate finer cuisine.

Whatever the reason, a key question is – can your food keep up with your changing expectations? And do you even know what you want?

A FRUIT JUICE STORY

One trend we’ve picked up is more Singaporeans consuming fruit juices, in lieu of soft drinks, with increasing awareness of the health benefits and nutritional value of the liquids they consume.

Some are even shunning fruit concentrates to purchase those made from real pulp or probiotic fruit juices that have digestive benefits – especially consumers who are lactose intolerant.

The challenge for food manufacturers is how to keep pace with consumer preferences to give you what you want, before you realise you want something. Fortunately, at Shiro Corporation, we received support from SPRING Singapore – through the Capability Development Grant and Automation Support Package – for the research and development (R&D) of probiotic fruit juice to work out a safe and nutritious formula and were able to bring this to market quickly.

Shiro also worked with students from tertiary institutions in its development. They helped select suitable fruits for fermentation and identify which probiotic strains to use, as well as figured out how to make food taste better and improve their shelf life. They also offered new ideas and fresh insights that improve processes.

It is amazing what work behind the scenes is required just to put this bottle of probiotic fruit juice on supermarket shelves.

Financial support is always helpful, particularly for SMEs looking to embark on new ventures, but we have found that collaboration between industry and institutions is an important growth strategy.

HUGE ADVANCES IN FOOD MANUFACTURING

Of course, automation is key in food manufacturing, a sector that has to be manpower-lean. Many of our processes along the value chain are automated. For instance, with an automatic stir-frying machine, we only need one person to produce a 150kg batch of stir-fried black pepper chicken. This process in the past used to require the efforts of three people.

Ready-to-eat food has also seen something of a comeback, as busy families with dual-income parents pick up meals that can be reheated easily.

And this is a sector in Singapore that is thriving. Shiro has developed a whole range of read-to-eat products, across a total of 11 different dishes ranging from black pepper chicken, herbal chicken soup and even the famous Kay Lee dark char siew. 

Consumers only need to thaw the product, place the vacuum bag into the boiling water for about 20 to 30 minutes, and the dishes are ready to eat. It’s just like having a chef at home.

When I tell my friends about how research centres are helping to bring about innovation in food manufacturing, many express surprise. The impression that academic institutions work solely on high-tech projects to create modern machinery like advanced weapon systems or driverless cars is strong.

Yet we are also working closely with NUS to develop tropical fruit wine. Through alcoholic fermentation, we are able to extend the shelf life of tropical fruits and increase the value of the products, now that these are infused with alcohol. The yeast we use also help to enhance the flavours in the wine, especially the floral and fruity notes.

I think all this surprise over how advanced the food manufacturing sector, is frankly quite puzzling to me, as a Singaporean.

For a country steeped in culinary traditions, where we take our food seriously, why shouldn’t we put our best minds to work in food manufacturing? Don’t we want to make makan great again?

FOOD PROCESSING TECHNOLOGY AS SHARED RESOURCE

As a society, we talk a lot about the sharing economy, but in food manufacturing, that talk has become reality. A high-pressure processing (HPP) tolling facility is being built in Jurong and will be unveiled in Q4 of 2017. This process helps extend the shelf life of products like juices, pastes, ready-to-eat meals and ready-to-cook items without using heat, therefore preserving the nutritional value and quality of food products.

The average cost of a 300 litre HPP machine is about S$2.5 million. On its own, I doubt any food manufacturing company will be able to afford such an advanced and expensive piece of equipment. But as a shared resource, the sector is given a huge boost.

Food companies can also tap on the Food Innovation Resource Centre (FIRC), launched in 2007 by Singapore Polytechnic and SPRING Singapore, to develop new and innovative products quickly in response to emerging global food consumption trends. At the FIRC, test-bedding and pilot programmes are the norm.

The FIRC has dedicated pilot plants, application laboratories, and a test kitchen among other facilities which are helmed by a core team of full-time, experienced professionals. They provide food manufacturers with much needed technical expertise in product and process development including packaging, shelf life evaluation and market testing.

A lot has been done over the past few years to boost technology adoption and capability development in the food manufacturing sector.

But my sense is that education to help SMEs in this sector understand and value new advances in technology and show them how to further boost their product offerings can be useful.

For instance, when Jurong Frog Farm learnt about the potential demand for hashima, they turned their operations around to focus on producing this Asian elixir, to much success.

Imagine what else our SMEs in food manufacturing are capable of, if they had help to redevelop and market their products? Perhaps families can have ready-to-eat fried carrot cake for breakfast, or working professionals in the CBD can grab a packet of piping hot chicken rice in a box for a quick lunch.

With continued innovation in food manufacturing, I am confident that our food manufacturing sector will also be able to capture new markets and better compete in the global arena.

We have so much to give when it comes to food, Singapore.

Dr Christine Lee is Director at Shiro Corporation Pte Ltd and Kay Lee Pte Ltd.

This is the second commentary in Channel NewsAsia’s series exploring how businesses in Singapore are transforming the way they operate to adopt new technologies and upskill their workforce.

Read the first commentary in the series on how hotels are adopting robots here. 

SINGAPORE: More than 90,000 Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) national servicemen and their families living in northwest Singapore can now look forward to a new SAFRA clubhouse within Choa Chu Kang Park.

It will be SAFRA’s seventh clubhouse in Singapore.

Billed as a “Fitness Oasis” by SAFRA, it houses a “comprehensive suite” of fitness, recreation and dining facilities to meet “the varied lifestyle needs of national servicemen and their families”. This includes a sheltered swimming pool with a view of the park, a “skypark running circuit” within the club and a nature-themed playground aimed at inculcating an appreciation of nature in children.

The new clubhouse was announced by SAFRA President and Second Minister for Defence Ong Ye Kung at a national service appreciation ceremony at the Keat Hong Community Club on Sunday (May 28).

“The provision of SAFRA clubhouses has been meaningful to national servicemen, and we want to improve our efforts in this area,” said Mr Ong. “The northwest of Singapore is rapidly building up – including Choa Chu Kang and also a new town at Tengah – and we would like to expand SAFRA facilities for national servicemen and their families living in this part of Singapore.”

Mr Ong added that the new SAFRA club will also be seamlessly integrated with Choa Chu Kang Park’s facilities and programmes to make the park a more attractive meeting point for Singaporeans. The National Parks Board (NParks) will also be enhancing the current Park Connector Network in Choa Chu Kang to improve accessibility from the stadium to the park and the new club.

The clubhouse will be open to national servicemen training in nearby SAF camps at Kranji, Lim Chu Kang, Sungei Gedong and Tengah for recreation and unit cohesion activities organised by SAFRA.

Sunday’s appreciation ceremony was part of activities commemorating 50 years of National Service (NS50) in Singapore. It saw 80 father-and-son pairs receive recognition packages, which include S$100 worth of vouchers for use at selected retail and food and beverage outlets.

SAFRA will be introducing a string of other NS50 initiatives throughout the year. They include 50 events, 500 special deals together with partnering merchants – such as Watsons, Caltex and Robinsons – and 50,000 giveaways of movie and dining treats. SAFRA aims to engage more than 500,000 national servicemen and their families through these efforts. 

The date of the clubhouse’s completion has yet to be announced.