It is a tech race among condo developers this year.

Smart technologies, such as facial recognition devices for access to gyms or mobile apps to book facilities or even control appliances are now must-have features in new condominiums.

Future residents at Clement Canopy, launched on Saturday, will use a mobile app that integrates smart technology for their home and common areas in the estate.

Other developments such as Qingjian Realty’s iNz Residence executive condominium in Choa Chu Kang and Fantasia Investment’s 6 Derbyshire also promise smart-living technologies for residents.

Smart home concepts are not new.

Qingjian Realty’s Visionaire, launched last year, was one of the first few projects to feature smart-home technologies.

Mr Li Jun, executive director of Qingjian Realty, said the features have been well-received, with about 80 per cent of buyers opting for smart homes.

He said: “At an industry level, we are quite heartened that developers have subsequently introduced smart home packages.

“This will ultimately benefit the buyers, as the industry evolves to better serve their needs.”

Such innovations should be integrated with smarter communities and digital payments, said Mr Andrew Tan, director of business development and sales at Smart Gateway, who is behind 6 Derbyshire’s app.

The app, named LifeUp, allows residents to book facilities and make payments for maintenance fees, as well as control appliances within the home.

The freehold development at Novena also has car plate recognition systems and facial recognition devices for residents to access facilities like the gym.

Mr Tan said that his firm has been approached by other condominiums.

“LifeUp connects residents, MCST (the condo’s managing body) and managing agents in an entire ecosystem, creating unprecedented cost savings and productivity gains to the business,” he added.

Smart technology has not been limited to private homes.

In 2015, the first “smart” Build-to-Order project was launched in Punggol and would be ready by 2020. These Housing Board flats will come with extra power and data points to support the smart systems.

Last April, the Yuhua neighbourhood in Jurong East became the first HDB estate to roll out smart home packages to over 3,000 households.

The technologies include a utilities management system which helps households monitor energy and water usage through a mobile app and an elderly monitoring system that consists of motion sensors and alerting capabilities.

Mr Desmond Sim, CBRE’s head of Research, Singapore and South East Asia, thinks that developers have recognised that they have to provide smart features to remain competitive.

He said: “For homebuyers, (such features) won’t be a compelling reason to buy, but it’s a good-to-have. The price and location of a development is still the biggest factor.”

Qingjian’s Mr Li said: “In three to four years, Singapore would be a smart nation… Home owners would naturally expect to go home, at the end of the day, to a smart home.”

linheng@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on Feb 28, 2017.
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SINGAPORE – A swarm of bees was killed by a Punggol resident who allegedly found them residing in a shower head in his bathroom last Sunday (Feb 26).

Photos of the bees were posted on Twitter by user @yokey017 – who claimed to be the resident’s friend – and have since gone viral, garnering close to 3,000 retweets.

The bees were exterminated using the pesticide Baygon, according to @yokey017.

When contacted by The Straits Times on Monday, @yokey017 said his friend did not want to be interviewed, but confirmed that the incident had occurred in the latter’s Punggol home.

This follows an incident last week at Ang Mo Kio Garden West, where a woman in her 30s was stung badly by a swarm of bees.

She was later taken to Tan Tock Seng Hospital and the National Parks Board (NParks) cleared the swarm within the day.

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Swarm thing: Bees form growing hive on tree

Source: Stomp, Lianhe Wanbao, The New Paper

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Bee sightings have also been reported in the Sengkang and Punggol areas in the past.

In August last year, big swarms of bees invaded at least five HDB blocks in Punggol. Exterminators were called in and it took nearly two hours to kill them.

Over a thousand bees also reportedly swarmed into two blocks of flats in nearby Sengkang in June 2015.

To report sightings of bee hives, the public can contact the National Parks Board’s (NParks) helpline at 1800-471-7300.

Here is what to do if you are attacked by bees:

– Cover your face and run as fast and as far away as you can;

– Run against the wind, as the resistance makes it harder for bees, which do not fly very fast, to keep up;

– Run until you get to shelter, as most bees are disoriented by lights and changes in temperature;

– Do not swat at the bees, flail your arms or jump into water, as the bees will wait for you to surface.

This article was first published on Feb 27, 2017.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.

With just one road leading in and out of the venue and no public transport infrastructure in sight, the Changi Exhibition Centre (CEC) is not your typical concert venue.

But Mr Ross Knudson, co-founder of LAMC Productions, which organised last Saturday’s Guns N’ Roses concert here, fiercely defended his choice of venue, which was used previously for just one other concert – Metallica in 2013.

“It is absolutely superior as a concert venue. There is so much more going for it. It is a flat cement surface. There is a huge lobby area to sell drinks and merchandise. It leads beautifully to an outdoor space with a picturesque beautiful location and a nice breeze,” he told The New Paper yesterday.

Many of the 50,000 concert-goers thought otherwise.

Read also: Company behind RFID wristbands used at Guns N’ Roses concert faced challenges with organisers

Some had issues getting to and from the venue due to the congestion on Aviation Park Road, the only road that leads to the CEC.

Others were upset about the credits they had to buy in advance for the food and beverages, and which they could not use because the food and drinks ran out.

LAMC said it will refund the unused credits.

The problem with the concert – LAMC’s biggest show to date – was the lack of staffing and expertise in running large-scale events, Mr Knudson conceded.

“It overwhelmed us. We needed a general in the venue, and we needed another general outside – basically military operation-style – to do it,” he said.

Adding that there was miscommunication with third party vendors, he said: “I don’t want to blame anybody. We want to take full responsibility, keep figuring it out and make (the venue) better for the next time we use it.”

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Guns N’ Roses shine in Singapore

Source:

The Straits Times

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Event organisers told TNP that the venue was the concert’s Achilles’ heel.

Infinitus Productions director Jeffrey Foo said: “Venues like the CEC are not meant for a concert or festival because it will start and end at a certain time. A flush of participants or people leaving at the same time creates a choke point.”

The Esplanade Co’s Ravi Sivalingam said it works closely with Home Team agencies to manage crowds for large-scale events, such as the Marina Bay Singapore Countdown.

The head of hospitality and services said: “(Measures) include increasing security patrols and maintaining greater visibility of our security personnel so that members of the public can approach them for assistance, where necessary.”

Mr Knudson said the boo-boos will not stop him from holding future events at the venue.

He will consult experts on how to make the CEC work as a concert venue.

“I love the venue, and I am determined to make it work. It is the only large-scale event venue here and it really is the most viable.

“As for the National Stadium, we have no plans to use it. It is beautiful, but it is built for football,” he said.

Read also: No Appetite for Dysfunction: Expect Guns N’ Roses gig credit refund options by Wednesday

FORGIVING

Mr Foo asked for the naysayers to be more forgiving towards LAMC.

“It is important to try to understand the event producers’ point of view. Of course, they don’t want a great event to be tarnished by people getting stuck.

“That was what happened to some of our events in the past. It was not a good feeling,” he said.

Mr Knudson apologised for not meeting the expectations of concert-goers, but said he is staying positive.

“We are going to keep trying. We got knocked down on Saturday, but we are getting up.”

Read also: LAMC Productions gets flak for ‘nightmare’ organisation of Guns N’ Roses concert

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Guns N’ Roses’ private plane arrives in Singapore

Source:

Facebook / LAMC Productions

Stomp

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This article was first published on February 26, 2016.
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When operationally ready National Serviceman Corporal Tan Zhi Wei, 23, fought last Thursday’s blaze at Tuas View Circuit, the road had cracked from the heat and the oil and sludge that covered it was bubbling.

The firefighters’ canvas hoses were burnt and the metal nozzle melted.

Only his fire-rated boots kept his feet safe.

Cpl Tan, a full-time chef at a cafe, was driving to Tuas View Fire Station for his in-camp training when he saw columns of thick black smoke from afar.

When he reached ECO Special Waste Management, whose premises were ablaze, he was stunned by what he saw.

He said: “I was shocked but there was no time to think.”

The Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) sent 200 personnel and 38 emergency vehicles, including three unmanned firefighting machines, to battle the blaze.

For some of the firefighters, who were activated at about 6.15am, it was just two hours before the end of their 24-hour shift.

A team of about 16 responders were the first to arrive at the scene five minutes later.

Full-time National Serviceman Sergeant Syazrul Hakim Zulkifli, 23, was one of them.

He said the heat could be felt from inside the fire engine.

The sky was still dark and visibility was made worse due to the thick smoke, and the wind was blowing it towards them.

Under the command of Rota Commander Captain Shawn Tan (see report below), the team tried to contain the fire until reinforcements arrived.

Sgt Syazrul said: “From afar we could see the smoke and smell the chemicals. We could also hear the explosions and feel the heat.”

He said oil seeped into the drainage and the fire suddenly spread beneath them.

CLOSE CALL

Some parts of their gear were burnt and even their hoses were damaged. They then received orders to retreat.

He said: “Some of the equipment that we used was left inside the fire. So we had to move the vehicles and set up the hoses again.”

Both Cpl Tan and Sgt Syazrul said this was the biggest blaze they had faced so far.

They took four hours to extinguish it.

One firefighter was taken to Ng Teng Fong General Hospital with heat exhaustion and has since been discharged.

There were no other casualties.

Tuas View Fire Station was opened in 2014.

In a Facebook post on Thursday night, Home Affairs Minister K. Shanmugam praised the SCDF for the way they tackled the blaze.

Shanmugam: Firefighter Tan is a true professional

She was the first female responder at the Tuas View Circuit fire last Thursday.

Rota Commander Captain Shawn Tan, 28, led the first team of firefighters from Tuas View Fire Station to battle the inferno.

Cpt Tan, who is married with no children, is also the only woman working at the station.

She has been with the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) for almost two years and said this was one of the biggest fires she had fought.

She said: “The adrenaline is there to cover the jitters.

“Our training is very important to ensure everything is second nature to us.

“By the time we handed over to the next shift, we were all quite tired.”

Minister for Home Affairs and Law, Mr K. Shanmugam, visited the firefighters at the scene that night.

He praised the SCDF on his Facebook page and highlighted the efforts of Cpt Tan.

He posted: “She was on duty yesterday, spent all of today firefighting and will be on duty again tomorrow.

“When I asked her how she felt, she said it was a meaningful job! True professional.”

Cpt Tan was previously an army regular for six years.

She also dives and is now a rescue diver and divemaster.

Her father was sceptical about her joining the SCDF at first.

She said: “I told him I have a higher calling elsewhere. At that point in time he was very ill, so I told him you have to trust me on this. When I went for my training, he passed away.”

hmang@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on Feb 28, 2017.
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Was Jonathan Chow Hua Guang attempting a stunt for a Snapchat video before falling to his death from a linkway between Orchard Central and Orchard Gateway?

A 15-second CCTV video of the incident circulated online shows Jonathan jumping over the railing last Friday, while a girl at the scene is seen holding up her right hand and then appearing to panic as she looks over the railing.

The girl – who gave her name only as Ruth – turned up at the wake last night and spoke about the circumstances leading to the incident, said Jonathan’s friends.

Student Annetta Tian, 17, told The Straits Times that Ruth recounted how Jonathan had suggested that both of them should jump over the barrier at the linkway. They were then to take Snapchat videos of each other doing so.

“Ruth said both thought it was perfectly safe because the ledge next to the linkway looked like a concrete structure,” said Ms Tian.

She said Ruth also refuted earlier eyewitness accounts, which described Jonathan as “vaulting”over the 1.2m railing of the fourth-storey linkway to retrieve a phone that had fallen on what appeared to be a ledge.

The ledge was actually a decorative plasterboard casing, which was not meant to bear loads. It collapsed when Jonathan landed on it. He fell to the ground, and later died in hospital.

Read also: Friends pay tribute online to teen who died after falling 4 floors at Orchard Central

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Man falls 4 stories at Orchard Gateway after trying to retrieve phone

Source:

AsiaOne

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Another friend, who wanted to be known only as Mr Haiqal, 20, said Jonathan and Ruth met through social media and had gone out several times before the incident.

Family and friends of Jonathan paid tribute to him yesterday at a wake in Punggol Central.

“He was a friendly guy, sociable and approachable…,” said his father, Matthew Chow.

Jonathan’s friend Nur Adlina, 16, described him as “someone who lived life with no regrets”.

They got to know each other four years ago, when they attended neighbouring secondary schools here.

“I was being bullied and he was trying to help me out,” she said about Jonathan, who left to study in Australia two years ago.

Mr Chow declined to say if the family had spoken to Ruth. But he added that while Jonathan had been skateboarding since around age 12, he was not an active participant of parkour – a sport involving climbing and jumping over obstacles – as far as the family was aware.

But Mr Chow asked if more could be done to prevent such incidents. Yesterday he visited the linkway at the mall with his older son. They also spoke to Orchard Central staff.

“The (decorative structure) was wide enough to look like a passage way, and there was no warning sign to tell people that it should not be walked on. We don’t want other families to go through what we went through,” he added.

Far East Organisation said on Saturday that it is reviewing with its building consultants if any other safety measures, in addition to the glass barrier, are required.

The link bridge in question is currently closed to the public.

Read also: Video of teen who fell from mall’s link bridge leaked online

This article was first published on February 28, 2016.
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