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Business Times
21 hours ago
- Business
- Business Times
AI and additive manufacturing – a game changer for Mencast Marine
[SINGAPORE] After more than four decades as Singapore's sole propeller designer, manufacturer and repairer, Mencast Marine took the ambitious step to inject artificial intelligence (AI) and additive manufacturing into its operations. This was a game changer for the company as it enabled faster production of its key product and required less manual labour. Since it started in 1981, Mencast has been designing and manufacturing propellers for the tugboat and fast-boat market. The propellers are about 1 to 3 metres in diameter, and are made by melting bronze alloy ingots into sand moulds in a process known as sand casting. The company also provides repair services for bigger propellers of up to 12 m in diameter, and gets orders for both production and repair from firms in Asean and even parts of Europe. The business, however, does come with challenges. 'We are very aware of the dependencies that we have in the supply chain,' Dr Chia Boon Tat, chief technology officer of Mencast Marine, told The Business Times. For example, the company is highly reliant on raw materials such as sand and bronze alloy ingots that are imported from places such as Malaysia and Europe. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up Another issue has been the lack of qualified workers, as the labour-intensive production processes are very dependent on engineers. 'It's very difficult to find new, young engineers who want to work in (this) type of environment,' said Dr Chia, adding that the company's ageing workforce and its reliance on foreign labour have been a concern as well. He also noticed that, in recent years, clients were looking for greener, more sustainable propellers – ones that contributed less to their carbon footprint through both the production process and in their operations. Tech brings about a sea change Given the challenges and changes in demand, the propeller manufacturer partnered Enterprise Singapore (EnterpriseSG) in 2023 to collaborate with the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*Star). This involved two main projects to introduce AI, additive manufacturing and robotic automation to its production flow. 'We believe that using these technologies will massively value-add and increase the productivity of (Mencast's) operations,' said Dr Chia. The majority of the production processes are carried out at the Precision Engineering Centre in A*Star's Singapore Institute of Manufacturing Technology. This centre is part of EnterpriseSG's Advanced Manufacturing Centre of Innovation. The first project has helped to accelerate and improve efficiency in Mencast's propeller design process. Previously, designing propellers was more reliant on experts. Though there are software tools in place, much practical experience is needed as well as manual calculations, together with rounds of trial and error. Thus, it would typically take a few weeks to create around 20 versions of a design. But, in the joint lab, AI-driven algorithms were implemented on top of Mencast's existing parametric modelling and computational fluid dynamics tools, which already allow designers to refine their propeller models and analyse their predicted movements. This has led to more than 10,000 design iterations being produced within a few days. This vastly increases the number of possibilities, pointed out Dr Chia. Within a shorter period of time, Mencast can obtain a higher number of potential designs that are better in terms of performance, and also more sustainable. The second project looked at producing propellers with additive manufacturing – or what many know as 3D printing. Each design generates a toolpath for a robot arm to follow. As the arm, armed with a welding torch or laser wire, moves along the toolpath, it builds up a propeller with bronze alloy layer by layer. While older models made from sand casting require around two weeks to a month to be completed, additive manufacturing has cut the time required for production by half. Not only are the 3D-printed propellers more efficient to produce, but they are also 10 to 20 per cent faster than the older versions. For clients, this means a reduced carbon footprint as well. Dr Chia is thus hoping for a 'quantum jump in productivity' by leaning on AI and additive manufacturing. The 'silicon economy' The partnership with EnterpriseSG and A*Star is part of Mencast's foray into what it deems the 'silicon economy'. This means integrating more robotics, software and AI into all facets of its operations, explained Dr Chia. It is a strategy that holds much potential. Mencast can streamline its supply chain by mainly focusing on one type of feedstock – bronze alloy wires that are used in additive manufacturing. The company was already using these for its repair services. 'As we move into the silicon era, we are actually recruiting a lot of the younger generation (as well). They like these types of jobs because it's higher technology,' noted Dr Chia. This is not to say the current processes have done away with the need for engineers. Much of the post-processing – such as grinding down the freshly printed propellers – and quality control still require input from engineers. Next, a lighthouse factory The company is looking for ways to automate the manufacturing process even further. As part of this, it is establishing a 'lighthouse factory' – a curated space in its compound that is able to facilitate large-scale production. Set to start production by the end of the year, it will employ Industry 4.0 technologies, including high-end additive manufacturing robots. Mencast has started sourcing from original equipment manufacturers overseas to acquire its own manufacturing robots, which could bring down the cost by around two-thirds. A robot in Mencast Marine's factory. PHOTO: MENCAST MARINE A few of these self-sourced robots have already been brought in, and are enabling manufacturing to scale up quickly, added Dr Chia. He aims to push the new 3D-printed propellers out in the second half of 2025, and also officially launch the lighthouse factory. Once the factory is up and running, the technology will pave the way for Mencast to transform its business model by decentralising manufacturing and enabling it to expand globally. The company hopes that, in the future, its tech capabilities can be transferred overseas so that its propellers can be manufactured in more countries. This would help it broaden its client base beyond South-east Asia and Europe. The use of AI and additive manufacturing also sets the scene for Mencast to venture into producing higher-end propellers for bigger ships, such as supply vessels and high-end military vessels. In addition, the company would be able to offer its repair services to other industries too – such as the aerospace sector. 'We are trying to turn this into a network effect, rather than (be) just a manufacturing company,' noted Dr Chia.
CNA
5 days ago
- Business
- CNA
Enterprise Singapore providing support for retailers with experiential concepts
More retailers are looking to experiential concepts to boost their sales and customer satisfaction. Enterprise Singapore has engaged over 20 firms in the past two years, supporting five of them on ideas, such as interactive dining and tech-powered stores. Enterprise SG has also launched the Retail Maverick Challenge with CapitaLand Investments, which will see local brands showcasing their creative solutions to elevate the consumer experience. Winning entries will get access to retail space in one of CapitaLand's malls for up to a year. They will also receive monetary support from Enterprise SG. Caitlin Ng reports.
Business Times
6 days ago
- Business
- Business Times
EnterpriseSG, CapitaLand Investment launch challenge to foster and identify innovative retail concepts in Singapore
[SINGAPORE] Enterprise Singapore (EnterpriseSG) and CapitaLand Investment (CLI) have launched a competition to encourage local retail brands to develop innovative store concepts. The inaugural initiative, called the Retail Maverick Challenge, aims to identify brands that can develop 'compelling solutions' capable of meeting and growing consumer demand for their target segment. The challenge is also looking for brands that can develop innovative and experiential concepts to engage consumers, or store concepts that have adopted technology to optimise space and manpower resources, in turn achieving cost and operational efficiencies. 'Through this initiative, EnterpriseSG and CLI seek to build a more innovative and immersive shopping environment for both retailers and consumers, and strengthen Singapore's position as a vibrant retail and lifestyle destination,' both organisations said on Wednesday (Jun 18). The challenge will select up to three winning concepts. Winners will then get the opportunity to occupy up to 4,000 square feet of retail space in one of CapitaLand's malls to pilot and showcase their innovative concepts. CLI will provide rental waivers for these designated retail spaces. A NEWSLETTER FOR YOU Friday, 8.30 am SGSME Get updates on Singapore's SME community, along with profiles, news and tips. Sign Up Sign Up They will also receive funding from EnterpriseSG to cover up to 50 per cent of supportable costs, capped at S$300,000. The grant will cover cost categories including but not limited to hardware, software and integration costs for innovative technologies; innovation or experiential-focused store fit-out elements and manpower; as well as public relations and marketing costs. In addition, winners will be publicised on CLI's marketing channels and can access collaboration opportunities with EnterpriseSG and CLI's network of industry partners and experts. Over the past few years, Singapore's retail sector has experienced 'uneven growth' amid shifting consumer preferences and competition from e-commerce, noted EnterpriseSG and CLI. Based on a survey conducted at the National Retail Federation Retail's Big Show Asia Pacific in 2024, local retailers are facing challenges such as building brand awareness and rising business costs. 'To tackle these challenges, local retailers must enhance brand management and elevate the in-store shopping experience to provide consumers with a more personalised and immersive omnichannel experience,' added both organisations. Jeannie Lim, EnterpriseSG's assistant managing director of services and growth enterprises, noted that more consumers are seeking fresh experiences and deeper connections with brands amid a fast-changing retail landscape. 'The Retail Maverick Challenge offers an opportunity to uncover innovative and promising retail concepts that meet such needs,' she said. Tan Mui Neo, CLI's managing director of retail management and commercial management (Singapore), said: 'Retail is fascinating because everyone has the experience of being a shopper, and we believe there are many great ideas out there that just need the right support to flourish.' Applications for the Retail Maverick Challenge close on Aug 4. Interested companies can learn more about the challenge here.
Business Times
22-05-2025
- Business
- Business Times
Downside risks could intensify for exporters once 90-day tariff truce expires: EnterpriseSG
[SINGAPORE] Singapore's key exports increased 3.3 per cent in Q1 2025 ended March, higher than the 2.4 per cent expansion in the previous quarter. Enterprise Singapore (EnterpriseSG) said on Thursday (May 22) that non-electronic domestic exports – which made up 79 per cent of non-oil domestic exports (NODX) – rose 1.8 per cent year on year in Q1 2025, reversing the 0.7 per cent contraction in the previous quarter. The increase was largely driven by strong gains in non-monetary gold – which rose by 86.5 per cent – and ship and boat structures, which surged by 637.4 per cent. Meanwhile, electronics domestic exports, which accounted for 21 per cent of total NODX, expanded 9.5 per cent, easing from the 14.2 per cent growth recorded in Q4 2024. Growth was led by personal computers and disk media products, which rose 69.8 per cent and 35.8 per cent, respectively. NODX to key markets saw robust improvement in the first quarter of 2025, with shipments to the US rising 19.2 per cent, Taiwan climbing 55.5 per cent, and Hong Kong increasing 24.7 per cent. In April, key exports exceeded expectations with a 12.4 per cent increase on front-loaded shipments amid US President Donald Trump's tariff truce. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up But for the full year, EnterpriseSG said, the external outlook has softened amid tariff and trade policy uncertainties, though global growth remains supportive. The International Monetary Fund projects the global economy to grow by 2.8 per cent, with key trade partners such as China, the US, EU-27 and Asean-5 showing growth. Meanwhile, the World Trade Organization expects a slight 0.2 per cent contraction in global merchandise trade volumes. Domestically, about 30 per cent of pharmaceuticals and transport engineering firms anticipate new export orders in the second quarter. Taking these factors into account, Enterprise SG maintains the NODX growth forecast for 2025 at between 1 and 3 per cent growth. The lower bound reflects a cautious outlook for the second half of the year due to evolving tariff risks. Despite the recent easing of US-China trade tensions, downside risks could intensify once the 90-day reciprocal tariff reprieve expires, the agency added, saying: 'These risks include weaker-than-expected demand from key partners and slower growth in major export products.' DBS senior economist Chua Han Teng noted that exporters are expected to capitalise on temporarily lowered tariffs during the 90-day reciprocal truce between the US and China, which began in mid-May. This is likely to result in front-loaded orders – a move likely to bolster Singapore's trade performance in the near term. However, he cautioned that this early boost could be followed by a 'payback period' in the second half of 2025, with trade and production growth slowing as a result. 'While the temporary de-escalation of US-China tensions is encouraging, global trade frictions remain elevated compared to pre-Trump 2.0 levels,' Chua added. He also pointed to lingering uncertainties over US tariff negotiations, including the potential imposition of new duties on semiconductors and pharmaceutical products – two key pillars of Singapore's export base. Meanwhile, Singapore's re-exports had increased by 8.3 per cent, following the 14.2 per cent expansion in the previous quarter. The growth in non-oil re-exports was mainly due to higher shipments of both electronics and non-electronics. Re-exports of electronic products rose by 14.4 per cent year on year in the first quarter of 2025, easing slightly from a growth of 16.4 per cent in the previous quarter. The increase was primarily driven by stronger re-exports of parts of personal computers, which surged by 263.4 per cent, integrated circuits, which rose by 7.8 per cent, and telecommunications equipment, which increased by 20.9 per cent. Non-electronic re-exports also registered growth, rising by 1.2 per cent in Q1 2025, though this marked a moderation from the 11.8 per cent expansion recorded in the fourth quarter of 2024. Key contributors to this growth included higher re-exports of copper, which surged by 396.4 per cent, non-electric engines and motors, up by 16.8 per cent, and specialised machinery, which increased by 12.8 per cent. Re-exports to Singapore's top 10 markets as a whole expanded in the first quarter of 2025. The strongest contributors to this growth were Taiwan, which surged 125.7 per cent; the US, which increased by 53.3 per cent; and Vietnam, which rose by 25.9 per cent. Trade performance Singapore's total merchandise trade expanded by 4.9 per cent year on year in the first quarter of 2025, moderating from the 6.8 per cent growth recorded in the previous quarter. Total exports rose by 3.6 per cent, compared to 5.1 per cent in Q4 2024. This was supported by a 6.7 per cent increase in non-oil exports, even as oil exports declined by 10 per cent. Total imports grew by 6.4 per cent, easing from the previous quarter's growth of 8.7 per cent. On a year-on-year basis, Singapore's total services trade increased by 3.8 per cent in Q1, moderating from a 7.4 per cent growth in Q4 2024. Services export and imports rose by 4 per cent and 3.7 per cent, respectively. The growth in services exports was driven mainly by higher receipts from financial services, which increased by 7.7 per cent; other business services were up 3.7 per cent; and transport services, which grew by 2.1 per cent.
Business Times
22-05-2025
- Business
- Business Times
Downside risks could intensify once 90-day tariff truce expires: EnterpriseSG
[SINGAPORE] Singapore's key exports increased 3.3 per cent in Q1 2025 ended March, higher than the 2.4 per cent expansion in the previous quarter. Enterprise Singapore (EnterpriseSG) said on Thursday (May 22) that non-electronic domestic exports - which made up 79 per cent of on-oil domestic exports (NODX) - rose 1.8 per cent year-on-year in Q1 2025, reversing the 0.7 per cent contraction seen in the previous quarter. The increase was largely driven by strong gains in non-monetary gold, which rose by 86.5 per cent and ship and boat structures which surged by 637.4 per cent. Meanwhile, electronics domestic exports, which accounted for 21 per cent of total NODX, expanded 9.5 per cent, easing from the 14.2 per cent growth recorded in Q4 2024. Growth was led by personal computers and disk media products, which rose 69.8 per cent and 35.8 per cent respectively. NODX to key markets saw robust improvement in the first quarter of 2025, with shipments to the US rising 19.2 per cent, Taiwan climbing 55.5 per cent, and Hong Kong increasing 24.7 per cent. In April, key exports exceeded expectations with a 12.4% increase on front-loaded shipments amid Trump's tariff truce. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up But for the full year, EnterpriseSG said the external outlook has softened amid tariff and trade policy uncertainties, though global growth remains supportive. The IMF projects the global economy to grow by 2.8 per cent, with key trade partners such as China, the US, the EU-27, and Asean-5 showing growth. Meanwhile, the World Trade Organisation (WTO) expects a slight 0.2 per cent contraction in global merchandise trade volumes. Domestically, around 30 per cent of pharmaceuticals and transport engineering firms anticipate new export orders in the second quarter. Taking these factors into account, Enterprise SG maintains the NODX growth forecast for 2025 at between 1 and 3 per cent growth. The lower bound reflects a cautious outlook for the second half of the year due to evolving tariff risks. Despite the recent easing of US-China trade tensions, downside risks could intensify once the 90-day reciprocal tariff reprieve expires, the agency added. 'These risks include weaker-than-expected demand from key partners and slower growth in major export products.' Meanwhile, Singapore's re-exports had increased by 8.3 per cent, following the 14.2 per cent expansion in the previous quarter. The growth in non-oil re-exports (NORX) was mainly due to higher shipments of both electronics and non-electronics. Re-exports of electronic products rose by 14.4 per cent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2025, easing slightly from a growth of 16.4 per cent in the previous quarter. The increase was primarily driven by stronger re-exports of parts of personal computers, which surged by 263.4 per cent, integrated circuits, which rose by 7.8 per cent, and telecommunications equipment, which increased by 20.9 per cent. Non-electronic re-exports also registered growth, rising by 1.2 per cent in Q1 2025, though this marked a moderation from the 11.8 per cent expansion recorded in the fourth quarter of 2024. Key contributors to this growth included higher re-exports of copper, which surged by 396.4 per cent, non-electric engines and motors, up by 16.8 per cent, and specialised machinery, which increased by 12.8 per cent. Re-exports to Singapore's top ten markets as a whole expanded in the first quarter of 2025. The strongest contributors to this growth were Taiwan, which saw a surge of 125.7 per cent, the US, which increased by 53.3 per cent, and Vietnam, which rose by 25.9 per cent. Trade performance Singapore's total merchandise trade expanded by 4.9 per cent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2025, moderating from the 6.8 per cent growth recorded in the previous quarter. Total exports rose by 3.6 per cent, compared to 5.1 per cent in Q4 2024. This was supported by a 6.7 per cent increase in non-oil exports, even as oil exports declined by 10 per cent. Total imports grew by 6.4 per cent, easing from the previous quarter's growth of 8.7 per cent. On a year-on-year basis, Singapore's total services trade increased by 3.8 per cent in Q1, moderating from a 7.4 per cent growth in Q4 2024. Services export and imports rose by 4 per cent and 3.7 per cent respectively. The growth in services exports was driven mainly by higher receipts from financial services, which increased by 7.7 per cent, other business services were up 3.7 per cent, and transport services, which grew by 2.1 per cent.
