08 Oct 2018
With the theme ‘Leading Transformation and Innovation’, the symposium held on 4 October 2018 saw members of the Defence Technology Community (DTC) exchange perspectives and ideas on organisation transformation and digitalisation.
In his keynote address, Minister of Defence Dr Ng Eng Hen highlighted the importance of riding the new wave of technological breakthroughs and emphasised the need to capitalise on datafication and digitisation. He said: “We have to continue to keep up this momentum to harness the wealth of data to improve efficiency and effectiveness at all levels.”
The symposium was also an opportunity to recognise individuals, teams and units for their contributions to service excellence, productivity and innovation.
For its innovative approach to managing ammunition stockpiles, a team from DSTA and the Army received the MINDEF Innovative Project Award, one of the highest honours presented to projects that are impactful, scalable, user-centric and bold. Departing from the conventional approach of procuring finished ammunition, the team proposed to procure ammunition components separately and assemble them only when required. This would increase the ammunition’s shelf-life and reduce wastage. Smart technologies such as robotics and sensors would also be introduced to automate the assembly process, reducing human error and increasing productivity.
Head (Systems Management) Kent Lai (first on left) received the award for the ‘Sustainable Approach to Ammunition Stockpile Management’ project with his Army counterpart.
“As system managers, we are constantly seeking ways to integrate new technologies into current systems and processes so that they can be made smarter and more efficient. The new approach would also be more sustainable to address our unique manpower constraints,” shared Project Manager (Systems Management) Leow Jing Zhi, who was part of the team.
Two DSTA teams also received the MINDEF Savings and Value Enhancement (SAVE) Award, and two others the Certificate of Merit for their excellent Economy Drive initiatives.
One of the MINDEF SAVE Award winners was the team behind the ‘Aggregation of RSN and Police Coast Guard Requirements’ project. Working closely with the RSN and the Singapore Civil Defence Force Police Coast Guard, the DSTA team developed an integrated maritime surveillance capability for better situational awareness, reaping cost savings of up to $6.4 million.
Members of the public had the opportunity to learn more about these award-winning projects in the accompanying exhibition, which also featured other Smart Defence initiatives.
In addition to the 47 award-winning innovations, 20 individuals also received recognition for demonstrating service excellence.
Among them was Procurement Manager Jazreel Zhou. She said: “I am thankful for the support of my colleagues and the teams that I work with. Receiving the award inspires me to continue doing my best in providing good service in procurement for the SAF.”
