Fujitsu opens S$15m Green Data Centre in Singapore

By Rachel Kelly, Channel NewsAsia
13 January 2009

SINGAPORE: The Japanese electronics company Fujitsu has invested S$15 million into its third data centre in Singapore.

The centre will provide energy efficient data services throughout ASEAN.

The facility, in Changi in eastern Singapore, currently spans over 7,400 square feet. But it has the potential to expand to some 18,000 square feet by the end of the year.

Fujitsu will be using energy efficient initiatives such as temperature control and ambient lighting to save energy and cut energy costs by 10 to 30 per cent.

The data centre is expected to create around 150 jobs this year. - CNA/vm

Protecting nature's beauty

BY Liana Tang
10 September 2007
Straits Times

GETTING wet and dirty, sometimes knee-deep in mud, may not sound like a great day out for most. But for undergraduate Loh Kok Sheng, it is just what he needs to unwind - conducting a guided walk on Sentosa's shore.

The third-year life sciences student at the National University of Singapore also regularly explores the muddy crevices of shores like Changi beach and Chek Jawa, sometimes in pre-dawn darkness, to photograph the wildlife he encounters. He then shares his photographs and experiences through his blog: http://wondercreation/blogspot.com .

The 23-year-old discovered this newfound passion on a visit to Sentosa last year. 'When I was first introduced to the Sentosa shoreline, I was amazed at how marine life was thriving on a tourist island.' He cites colourful creatures such as giant anemones and stealthy crabs among many intriguing finds.

A project he is currently working on is charting the recovery of wildlife on Chek Jawa following
damage to the marine environment caused by heavy rainfall earlier this year.

Mr Loh reports his findings on a blog: http://cjproject.blogspot.com where he notes that despite having to adhere to unearthly timings and strict schedules 'chasing' the low tides to survey the wildlife, his friends who volunteer to help in his field surveys thoroughly enjoy themselves, discovering something new each time.

Why his many blogs? He simply hopes to raise awareness among youth about Singapore's natural heritage.

He is among an increasing number of young people and groups who conduct workshops and guided walks in various nature spots in Singapore.

Mr Ron Yeo, 32, founded one such group. Suitably named Naked Hermit Crabs (NHC), the group's 30 volunteers provide guided shore walks for the public, doling out historical tidbits and facts while pointing out ecological highlights.

Of the 20 youth volunteers in NHC, Mr Yeo believes that engaging young people in such volunteer roles is key to the future of conservation.

'It is refreshing to work with young people as they always bring in new ideas that help improve the way we conduct our walks and other conservation efforts,' he said.

In agreement is Mr N. Sivasothi, an instructor at the Department of Biological Sciences at the National University of Singapore (NUS). He believes that the efforts of such individuals and groups, along with education in schools, provides comprehensive opportunities for creating awareness among youth about environment and conservation.

'Young people who are inspired by the volunteers they meet tend to take up committed leadership roles in the conservation community,' said the former research officer at the Raffles Museum of
Biodiversity Research.

'This is one way that we maintain a dynamic, motivated community that works towards making positive impacts on conservation in Singapore.'

The writer, 23, graduated with honours in biology from NUS

Play your part

HERE are some useful resources close to home:

Keep up-to-date with news about nature spots at www.wildsingapore.com
Seek out information on Singapore's natural history at Habitatnews http://habitatnews.nus.edu.sg
Find out how you can help the Blue Water Volunteers at http://bluewatervolunteers.org
Volunteer to be a part of shaping Singapore's garden city by visiting
www.nparks.gov.sg/involve.asp
Find out more about visits and workshops on Semakau Landfill with the Raffles Museum of
Biodiversity Research at http://rmbr.nus.edu.sg

Taking the green message to business

29 Aug 07 (Business Times)

IT'S been said so often as to seem almost a platitude: 'Go green
because it's good for your business'.

And certainly there are many high-profile examples of corporations
taking measures to make their businesses more environment- friendly.
But by and large, the impact of the green message on the corporate
world remains depressingly negligible.

We need to ask why, and what can be done about it.

Many are passionate young people who have moved beyond traditional
media to the interactive world of the Internet. For them, the Web's
social networking sites and strategies are the perfect way to
disseminate information, identify and encourage green initiatives, and
generally educate tens of millions of their young peers in an
intensively interactive environment.

The educating is more effective because the lessons are shared,
dissected, criticised and recreated by consensus.

It is education that is absorbed, not imposed. Some call it Web 2.0;
the name doesn't matter, the experience does.

And that is a lesson that their senior counterparts in business and
government could take to heart.

Not in the area of green products and activities; leave that to the
experts.

It takes scientists to create more effective and eco-friendly fuels
and efficient hybrid cars, engineers to reduce the power and emission
needs of a manufacturing process.

It needs an experienced business team to convert eco-friendly
innovations into commercially feasible products. And it takes
visionary government officials to project a country's needs decades
into the future, and create a public transportation system that is
effective, and people as well as environment- friendly.

But that's already happening.

So why do the mass of business folk, who stand to benefit from
eco-friendly innovations and infrastructure, continue to drag their heels?

Simply, the message hasn't got through.

And so long as this vast majority remains uncommitted, the industrial
fog will stay, both literally and figuratively.

Clearly, education is key. But education imposed in the traditional
way has proved to be ineffective.

Which is why it's worth paying attention to the new-media world of our
youth, where information is dynamically shared and absorbed. It could
be the strategy that turns the tide.

Marina Barrage will house world's largest water pumps

By Foo Siew Shyan, Channel NewsAsia
29 August 2007

SINGAPORE : Singapore's flood control measures will go one step further after the Marina Barrage becomes operational by the end of this year.

Works are currently underway to install drainage pumps next to the reservoir.

These pumps are the world's largest and are specially brought in from the Netherlands. Their job is to drain out excess water during flooding.

Each pump weighs 28 tonnes, or about the weight of 400 men.

And when operational, it will be able to drain, in one minute, an amount of water that can fill up an Olympic-sized swimming pool.

When completed, water from the southern and central parts of Singapore such as Ang Mo Kio and Thomson will flow into the Marina Reservoir, which has a catchment area one-sixth the size of the island.

When there is heavy rain and high tide, the pumps will be set in motion, draining water from the reservoir into the sea.

But if the tide is low during heavy rain, flood gates will open to release the water into the sea.

This will help ensure that water levels in the Marina Reservoir, which is set to be a freshwater lake, is kept constant.

It also means that low-lying areas like Chinatown and Little India will be spared from flooding.

Yap Kheng Guan, Director, 3P Network, PUB, said: "So look at this system - the gates and the pumps - as (a) means in which you can manage this water level. The water level will not become so high that it will threaten some of the low-lying areas in Singapore".

Water agency PUB expects to activate two of the pumps for an average of 4 to 5 times a year during high tide or monsoon seasons. - CNA/ch

SPH eco-friendly from production to print

By Arti Mulchand, Straits Times
28 Aug 07

WHEN it comes to going green, Singapore Press Holdings (SPH) shows how
serious it is by walking the talk.

Up to 95 per cent of the company's newspapers are printed on recycled
newsprint. Everything from print outs to ink cartridges are recycled,
the company said in its green report card, released yesterday. That is
up from just 20 per cent in the 1990s.

By year-end, new energy-efficient air-conditioning chillers at Media
Centre in Genting Lane, plus a more efficient chiller unit at the Toa
Payoh North News Centre, will bring about $500,000 in energy savings
each year. Regularly changing the filters in News Centre's cooling
systems also helps reduce carbon dioxide emissions.

SPH has also been a keen supporter of conservation in Singapore, and
to further spread the message, it will host close to 1,000 staff and
business partners at the local premiere of eco-documentary Arctic Tale
tomorrow.

Before the screening, SPH Foundation will present a cheque for
$120,000 to Wildlife Conservation Singapore which will help support,
for example, the breeding of proboscis monkeys at the SPH Foundation
Conservation Centre.

Since 2004, SPH and SPH Foundation have contributed over $1 million to
conservation efforts in Singapore.

“农作树”造纸法节省能源

27 August 2007 (Lianhe Zaobao)
written by 林佩碧

　　保护环境，已到了刻不容缓的时候。

　　本报每逢星期一和四，通过《绿色行动》专栏定期提供环保消息和贴士，让大家在日常生活中减少浪费，把环保意识落实为行动，当作生活方式。

　　这个专栏欢迎读者参与，提供题材，一起为环保尽力。读者可把资料电邮到zblocal@sph.com.sg或传真到63198121。

　　一提起造纸业，人们自然会联想起大量砍伐树木、烧芭、损耗能源，以及漂白纸张等对环境造成严重污染的种种情形。

　　一份研究显示，全球有17％纸张原料来自砍伐山林、37％来自开发后重新种植的树木，只有29％来自有人管理的园林，例如再植树木或种植农作树（farmed trees），而后者更被视为目前最环保的造纸法。

　　专门生产复印纸的Double A公司，过去20年来在泰国北部山区采取的正是农作树造纸法。

　　公司高级执行副总裁迪拉威（Thirawit Leetavorn）日前接受本报电访时解释，所谓农作树造纸法，即在无需砍伐树木的情况下，把农作树的树苗交给农民，让他们在自家农地空出来的地方栽种，待三至五年后树木长成合适高度，公司便根据市场价格向农民回购。

　　为了确保纸张原料的素质，该公司采用的是源自澳洲昆士兰州、却经过专家开发和改良的尤加利树品种（Eucalyptus）。新品种不仅拥有高产量和高质量的纤维，也适合在泰国土壤和气候环境中生长。

　　公司安排了约40名工作人员驻守山区，与农民一起生活，一方面为他们灌输有关种植尤加利树的知识，另一方面方便他们监督和控制产量。

Green Denmark Award launched to encourage students to fight climate change

By Teresa Tang, Channel NewsAsia
18 August 2007

SINGAPORE: It is a competition about robots but it has an environmental twist.

A new award, called the Green Denmark Award, has been included in this year's National Junior Robotics Competition.

The new component was launched recently by the Danish Ambassador to Singapore, Klavs A Holm.

"The most important political question for many years to come will be how to fight global warming. Denmark has huge experience in fighting global warming and energy consumption. What we want to do with this competition is to alert the youth and make them find out how they can contribute to fighting global warming," said the ambassador.

Participants in the competition are required to write a paper on green solutions practised in Denmark that can be transplanted to Singapore.

Besides the essay, students need to come up with robots that must complete various tasks in an obstacle course.

Bill Lim Tao Xuan, a participant from Rulang Primary School, said: "It (the competition) is good. We can share all of our ideas so that we can (minimise) global warming or climate change."

"Because we are global citizens, we are also fighting climate change.....a process which everybody has to go through, the Earth has to go through, so we have to slow down the process," said participant Qi Xuan, from Yishun Town Secondary School.

37 teams from 13 schools are participating in the competition this year.

Winners will be announced early next month. They stand to win trophies and prizes from Lego and the Danish Embassy. - CNA/ir

Vanishing Bees May Get By with a Little Help from the Army

By Matt Sullivan
Popular Mechanics
September 2007 issue

Since last fall, the strange phenomenon known as Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) has killed off a quarter of America's honeybee population, and threatened 25 percent of our food supply. (A wide variety of crops rely on pollination.) This past spring, a nationwide effort by top DNA scientists determined that CCD is probably caused by a number of factors, including multiple bee-killing viruses. But identifying specific viruses with DNA sequencing is a slow, painstaking process.

That's where Charles Wick (then the leader of the chemical and biological detection team at the Army's Aberdeen Proving Grounds in Maryland) came in, volunteering a microwave-size invention to help the cause. Originally used to screen drinking water for pathogens, Wick's 50-pound Integrated Virus Detection System (IVDS) hits a sample with an electric charge, then counts and sizes the particles making up the sample to identify viruses. By measuring to the nanometer, the IVDS can pin down a disease in 10 minutes.

As a trial run, CCD surveyors sent Wick samples from suffering beehives, which he liquefied in a blender, filtered using a cheesecloth, and ran through the IVDS. "They'd been working on this for six or seven months," Wick says, "so we brought in a new technology and immediately detected the pathogens they were looking for."

The surveyors were astonished: Within minutes, the IVDS had found multiple suspicious viruses, kick-starting the chase for the cause of the collapsed colonies. Wick's invention is now part of the ongoing CCD effort, and a commercial version of the device has just been released.

China keen to learn from Singapore's experience in water technologies

By May Wong, Channel NewsAsia
10 July 2007

China's Commerce Minister Bo Xilai said China is keen to learn more from Singapore on how to tackle the problem of water shortage.

He was speaking to reporters on Tuesday after touring the NEWater Visitor Centre in Tanah Merah.

The Chinese minister was given a detailed briefing on the original source of NEWater and what it means to Singapore.

Mr Bo, who was accompanied by Minister of State for National Development, Grace Fu, was taken through the various processes of producing NEWater.

And what better way to understand NEWater than to get a taste of it.

Mr Bo said: "It's good, I think. I think the taste of NEWater is very normal."

He described Singapore as an innovative country and said he knows how critical drinking water is to many cities in China.

Mr Bo said: "We are willing to learn from Singapore's experience in advanced water technologies. Singapore has been very successful in this area. Now, many people are discussing about the problem of oil shortage. But 10 years later, people will be discussing about the shortage of water.

"So clean water is important to many countries, especially China, which has a huge population. We are in need of clean water. So we're very willing to discuss and tap on your experience."

During his one-hour visit, the Chinese minister asked questions about the process, including the cost and how much NEWater is used for drinking here.

Mr Bo said he was deeply impressed with how Singapore has managed to tackle its water shortage problem.

He added that Singapore's experience and knowledge in water technology can be shared with many mayors in China. - CNA/ch

New Design, Easy Access, Pioneering Tools for Gombe 'Geoblog' Users

June 18, 2007 — By the Jane Goodall Institute

ARLINGTON, VA. — The Jane Goodall Institute's (JGI) Gombe Chimpanzee Blog, launched in 2006, has delighted web users with regular reports and photographs of Gombe's famous chimpanzees, set against a lush digital representation of Gombe National Park in Tanzania - a unique blend of scientific field reporting, high-resolution satellite imagery and cutting edge web technology via JGI and Google Earth.

Now a redesigned Gombe Chimpanzee Blog has more surprises in store for users, including a unified viewing experience incorporating Google Maps, an innovative new tool allowing users to leave "geotagged" comments, and new feeds and formats.

Most exciting, the blog also features an open source content management system, Earthwatcher,TM that will be made available to other conservation organizations and officially launched in July 2007.

The blog's new layout incorporates Google Maps, making it possible to browse and read the blog entries without having to download or run Google Earth. But it also has enhanced Google Earth Content so users who prefer that interface can more seamlessly read, browse and interact with the blog and its other readers.

New geo-referenced commenting tools allow users to post comments or ask questions geographically - right in the Google Earth or Google Maps environment.

It has integrated new feed formats including Atom RSS, GeoRSS and an improved KML feed, so users can keep up to date with the blog in a variety of readers and formats.

JGI launched the Gombe Chimpanzee Blog in January 2006 with daily updates from field researcher Emily Wroblewski, who is studying paternity among the chimpanzees. Her entries give us a glimpse of the delights and rigors of chimpanzee field research and an ongoing view of the research program begun by Jane Goodall in 1960. Emily is trying to determine if paternal relatives treat each other in special ways, favoring each other, for example, through grooming or sharing of meat.

The Gombe blog serves thousands of visitors through the Institute's website, www.janegoodall.org, and through Google Earth's Global Awareness Layer. There are more than 200 million Google Earth users.

Look for more information about the innovative Earthwatchr application in July 2007, when it is set for pubic beta release. This "conservation geoblogging" software seeks to address the needs of conservation organizations, eco-travellers and earth bloggers looking to use geoblogging to make a difference in the world. It is.

Several organizations have already expressed interest in applying this technology to their work.

"It will be the first integrated system that will allow people to "geoblog" from the road or field without specialized knowledge or tools beyond a laptop," says JGI's Bryce Tugwell, who designed the first geoblog and this latest version as well.

Check out the blog: www.janegoodall.org

About JGI :

Founded in 1977, the Jane Goodall Institute continues Dr. Goodall's pioneering research into chimpanzee behavior - research that transformed scientific perceptions of the relationship between humans and animals. Today, the Institute is widely recognized for establishing innovative community-centered conservation and development programs (TACARE) in Africa and the Roots & Shoots education program, which has groups in more than 95 countries. For more information, visit: www.janegoodall.org

Contact Info:

Nona Gandelman
Tel : 703-682-9220
E-mail : ngandelman@janegoodall.org

Website : the Jane Goodall Institute

Google Aims to Go Carbon-Neutral by End 2007

US: June 20, 2007
Story by Timothy Gardner
REUTERS NEWS SERVICE
Source

NEW YORK - Google Inc. aims to cut or offset all of its greenhouse emissions by the end of the year, the Web search leader said on Tuesday .

Google is one of a number of companies, including News Corp., that are attempting to cut all of their emissions of gases scientists link to global warming.
To boost energy efficiency, Google is investing in renewable energy like solar, and will purchase carbon offsets for emissions it cannot reduce directly, the company said on its Web site.

"On their own, carbon offsets are not capable of creating the kinds of fundamental changes to our energy infrastructure that will be necessary to stabilize global greenhouse gas emissions to safe levels," Google said on its Web site. "But we believe that offsets can offer real, measurable, and additional emissions reductions that allow us to take full responsibility for our footprint today."

European companies invest in carbon offsets through the Kyoto Protocol's Clean Development Mechanism. The United States did not ratify Kyoto, but some US companies have begun to offset emissions on a voluntary, unregulated basis.

The company said it would invest in projects like capturing methane, a greenhouse gas with about 20 times the warming potential of carbon dioxide, from animal waste at Mexican and Brazilian farms.

"Our funding makes it possible for anaerobic digesters to be installed, which capture and flare the biogas produced while simultaneously improving local air quality and reducing land and water contamination," Google said.

Nonprofit emissions advisors The Climate Group said they will partner with Google to support its offset plans.

"This is just a start," Google Chairman and Chief Executive Eric Schmidt said in a release issued by The Climate Group. "We are actively looking for more opportunities to help tackle climate change."

Google last week launched a program with semiconductor maker Intel Corp. to introduce more energy-efficient personal computers and server systems.

News Corp. pledged in May to become carbon-neutral by 2010.

Canon Tops List of Climate-Friendly Companies

US: June 20, 2007
Story by Deborah Zabarenko, Environment Correspondent
REUTERS NEWS SERVICE
Source

WASHINGTON - Canon Electronics Inc., athletic gear leader Nike Inc. and food and consumer goods giant Unilever Plc topped a list rating climate-friendly companies released on Tuesday.

There was a cluster at the bottom of the list of 56 companies. Six tied for last, with a score of zero on a 100-point scale -- Jones Apparel Group Inc., CBS Corp., Burger King Holdings Inc., Darden Restaurants Inc., Wendy's International Inc. and Amazon.com.
Even for those at the top, there was room for improvement on the Climate Counts scorecard, put together by a nonprofit group organized by the New England-based environmental entity Clean Air-Cool Planet and Stonyfield Farm, a US organic yogurt maker that placed sixth on the list, with 63.

"It's not enough to recycle paper and change lightbulbs," said Gary Hirshberg, Stonyfield Farm's chief and chair of Climate Counts. "We need to significantly reduce our carbon footprint ... Nobody deserves, or for that matter is getting, an A."

Stonyfield offsets 100 percent of its carbon emissions from manufacturing, Hirshberg said, but it needs to do more with renewable energy to cut the greenhouse gases that spur global warming.

The survey ranked the 56 companies chosen for their popular household use among mainstream consumers in North America and Britain, and for leading their respective sectors, from electronics to fast food.


CLIMATE-CONSCIOUS ELECTRONICS

Companies in the electronics/computer sector did well in addressing climate change compared with media and Internet companies, the survey found, with six of the 12 studied scoring above 50.

Besides Canon, these were International Business Machines Corp., Toshiba Corp., Motorola Inc., Hewlett-Packard Co. and Sony Corp. Dell Inc., Hitachi Ltd., Siemens, Samsung Corp. and Nokia were all in double digits and Apple Inc. scored only 2.

Food services as a sector was worst in terms of climate change impact, with none of the six scoring above 50 and three with a zero rating. Starbucks Corp. ranked highest in this group, with 46, followed by McDonald's Corp., at 22. Yum Brands Inc. -- which includes Kentucky Fried Chicken and Taco Bell -- scored a 1.

The rankings were based on 22 criteria that roughly broke down into four categories: how well a company had reviewed its global warming impact, how much it had reduced that impact, how much it supported public policies that encourage this reduction and whether the company made this information available. The amount of carbon reduction was weighted most heavily, worth a possible 56 out of 100 points.

Hirshberg and others on a telephone news conference announcing the scorecard stressed that this was seen as a "snapshot" of companies' progress. But it was also supposed to work for consumers who want to make an environmentally sound choice.

To do so, they can check the group's Web site, climatecounts.org for individual company rankings and the complete scorecard.

NTU researchers use canvas strips to fortify buildings against quakes

By Ng Baoying, Channel NewsAsia
14 June 2007

SINGAPORE : Just two extra seconds could make a difference between life and death, especially during an earthquake.

Researchers at the Nanyang Technological University have come up with an invention that can buy that time - by strengthening the way walls are erected in buildings.

When the earth shakes, buildings collapse, especially if they are poorly constructed.

And that is where these engineers believe they can make a difference.

The best part about their invention is that it doesn't require any high-tech equipment.

All that's needed are a few strips of canvas and glue.

Associate Professor Ting Seng Kiong, who is also director of LIEN Institute for the Environment at Nanyang Technological University, explained: "We put the canvas on the edges, and in a cross.

"During an earthquake, the building will shake and sway. When it sways in one direction, one of the crosses will act in tension, and pull it towards the other direction. It's a simple design. What we did is use canvas and glue, and stick it onto the brick wall."

Researchers find that the wall reinforced with canvas and glue can withstand twice as much shaking compared to other walls.

That translates to more time to escape as well as less danger of injuries from falling bricks in the event of an earthquake.

And the added cost? It's just an additional 10 percent to current building costs.

This fits in with LIEN Institute's philosophy of creating sustainable research without extravagant prices.

"What's important is that it has to be a case appropriate to the community where we are going to apply it to, in terms of materials available and cost," said Pan Tso-Chien, Dean of College of Engineering at Nanyang Technological University.

The institute is already working with two aid groups in Indonesia to reinforce homes and schools using canvas and glue.

They also plan to collaborate with local groups to send their students overseas to help erect more buildings using this method. - CNA /ls

Organic waste treatment plant needs better trash sorting

By Jeana Wong, Channel NewsAsia
12 June 2007 1941 hrs

SINGAPORE: Singapore's first organic waste treatment plant is set to be up and running by the end of this year.

The plant - the first and largest of its kind in Asia - will turn food waste into power.

But the plant owner, IUT Global, says thus far its power generation capacity has not been the most efficient.

That is because it has been having trouble collecting the right kind of food waste.

Singapore-based IUT Global had hoped that it would make some headway with getting its food waste suppliers to sort out their trash properly since it broke ground at its facility in Tuas nearly two years ago by building an organic waste treatment plant.

"The big challenge is to actually collect what we want. Having a number of people, and even malls like Century Square signing up was not a problem because many of these people want to be seen to be green.

"We've quite a number of hotels as well, including the big hotels like Raffles (Hotel) and Shangri-La. But the current system has food waste all mixed in," says Edwin Khew, CEO, IUT Global.

IUT Global says it needs to collect the purest food or organic waste in order to be effective and profitable.

And it remains hopeful that its S$60 million plant can deliver the promise of transforming a quarter of Singapore's food waste into electricity and compost materials.

"We've just started doing the testing and commissioning. Food waste will be coming in and we'll be ramping up, and this will take time. So we're hopeful that we can get the full 300 tonnes to move forward. But more hopeful that we can get the 300 tonnes that we want and not 300 tonnes that's mixed in with other things," says Mr Khew.

Singapore throws away some 1,500 tonnes of food waste on a daily basis.

That makes up nearly one-tenth of Singapore's trash, which last year amounted to more than five million tonnes.

If successful, IUT Global's new plant will be able to turn food waste into enough electricity for itself and over 10,000 other industrial facilities. - CNA/yy

Students design products to help environment and disabled people

By Julia Ng, Channel NewsAsia
11 June 2007

SINGAPORE: More students are being drawn to find commercially-viable solutions to help the community.

A mechanical innovation in five weeks, complete with a business plan to make sure it sells - that was the challenge to 600 Mechanical Engineering students at the Nanyang Technological University's (NTU) Engineering Innovation and Design Competition.

The competition, now into its eighth year, is seeing students turn into technopreneurs.

For one group, water-conservation is a Turnon - the name of their proposed company which invented 'Flowminator'.

It automatically stops water from over-flowing in a bath tub.

Ernest Pang, second year mechanical engineering student, NTU, said: "We're looking to manufacture the product in China in a city called NingBoGe. We've contacted a firm in China, and the cost of production has worked out to be $7. We're looking to sell it [at a] retail price of around $35 in Japan.

"Japan has a rich tradition of having bathtubs in the household. In Japan, the tourism and resort industry is also booming, so we're expecting more hotels and resorts to be springing up.

"We're looking into the possibility of collaborating with hotels and resorts to actually use our product."

Asst Professor David Lee Butler, School of Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering, Singapore Institute of Manufacting Tech, said: "This goes back to 1999 when we decided to give our students a chance to become technopreneurs.

"So we set up the scheme with a business plan... [to] come up with an idea, and [commercialise] it. So really, to give them a hand, to give it a try."

Another environment-friendly solution - a mechanical system which circulates cool air in cars parked under the sun.

Safety is also an area of interest.

A Follow-Me-Not device will force you to put a brake on the accelerator, once it senses that you are tailgating.

It is one-up on a current Japanese innovation which only beeps but does not slow you down when you are too close to the car in front.

Students hope the Land Transport Authority can make the device a mandatory installation in every vehicle.

Among the winning designs in the category of Safety is the Rotational Window, which can clean outer window panes safely.

Assistive Technologies is seeing simple mechanical innovations meet design to improve the lives of the elderly and disabled.

One example is a wheelchair to make it easier for them to use the toilet.

Or a simple fixture to help elevate them to reach for things stored on higher shelves.

"Now it's in the eighth year and we've had 5,000 students on the scheme. This year the quality is quite good, I'm quite happy. Some amazing ideas such as the fish scaling device and the shuttlecock launcher," said Mr Butler.

There is no limit to innovation and creativity.

An automated shuttlecock launcher, which can adjust the launching angle of shuttlecocks, came in tops in terms of design.

Currently there are no mechanical shuttlecock launchers in the market.

But this launcher can not only be produced at a low cost, but also help beginners execute different strokes.

Another practical design is a retractable bamboo system that improves safety when drying laundry. It also comes with a plastic cover to keep out the rain.

The above are just a few examples of the 52 innovations that may just find their way into our homes and lives, once these young technopreneurs find the right investors. - CNA/yy

Singapore's warm weather helps in treatment of waste-water

By Wong Mun Wai, Channel NewsAsia
05 June 2007

SINGAPORE: Singapore is making the most of its tropical location, to bring down cost and improve efficiency, in the treatment of waste-water.

Experts say a warm temperature can help to speed up a particular type of processing, which does not use air.

And this in turn, produces more electricity that can be used in treatment plants.

The Public Utilities Board (PUB) is happy with the results of its lab tests.

It is treating waste-water, the anaerobic way, which means without using air or oxygen.

And in high temperature - the process has added benefits. The result - the waste-water ferments faster.

The fermentation produces a mixture of methane and carbon dioxide, called biogas, and the process does not consume energy.

"There's no air required so I don't incur any energy. So from that digestion process, you create biogas. From that biogas, you use it to produce power," said Harry Seah, Director, Technology & Water Quality, PUB.

And that power can be turned into electricity... which can be used to run the treatment plant.

Currently, these treatment plants get a quarter of their energy by using sludge as a fuel.

But when the anaerobic treatment method is rolled out, the PUB hopes it can meet half of the plants' energy needs.

But the roll out of the method is likely to be years away.

The laboratory tests have yet to reach pilot testing and a large scale test plant.

The PUB, though, sees the investment as worthwhile and says it is one of the long-term areas of treatment it is looking at for waste-water.

And other tropical countries can tap into the process too.

As for Singapore - the PUB predicts that as the demand for NEWater or recycled drinking water rises, the water-treatment plants will be able to produce NEWater at a lower cost. - CNA/yy

Students turn used oil into soap

06 June 2007 (TODAY)

SINGAPORE : What others throw away as waste, students Toh Yida and Varinder Singh see as opportunity.

After two years of research, the Temasek Polytechnic chemical engineering students have finally decoded the secret of turning used cooking oil into a simple and indispensable product: Soap.

The idea came to their lecturer U Tin Lin when he saw a hawker throwing used cooking oil away. "I thought we would find a better use for it," said Mr U.

When he asked the students if they were interested to develop the idea as a research project, Mr Toh, who has always been interested in protecting the environment, did not hesitate to say yes.

"It's not a new thing, making soap from oil," the third-year student said. "But it's usually made from fresh oil. Making it from used oil helps to reduce waste, because it would otherwise be thrown away."

The idea was also environmentally-friendly — just 250 grams of cooking oil is needed to make one kilogram of soap.

"It's very cost effective," said Mr Toh. "One litre of soap costs the school $1.80, while it takes less than 50 cents for us to make one litre. We can save the school an estimated $20,000 a year, and I really hope we can commercialise this."

Armed with an ample supply of used cooking oil from the school canteen vendors, the students cracked their heads on how to purify the dirty oil based on existing methods.

They came out with their own method after much tinkering around, before processing the purified material into soap.

Six months ago, they tested out the finished product by distributing it to the school canteen vendors to use for cleaning, but the work didn't stop there.

"They thought it was comparable to what they were using," said Mr Toh. "But they didn't like the smell, because initially it didn't smell very good."

The pair went back to the lab, and eventually produced an improved version with fruit scents like peach. After leaving the polytechnic, they plan to go on refining the product.

"We definitely want to improve the texture because at the moment it's a little harsh on the skin," said Mr Toh. "And if we can develop something for washing hands, why not?"

While there are plans to patent the process, the students and the school are taking it one step at a time. "We hope to be able to supply our school with soap first, and eventually, start supplying to other schools," said Mr U, who is from Myanmar. "To be able to do that, we will have to scale up what we have here, and I think that is possible eventually." - TODAY/na

Ice-cool idea wins SEC-Senoko Power Green Innovation Award

BY Hoe Yeen Nie, Channel NewsAsia
29 March 2007 2028 hrs

SINGAPORE: Generating heat from an ice machine is the idea that bagged local company Omega Thermal its SEC-Senoko Power Green Innovation Award at this year's Singapore Green Summit.

Coffeeshop owner Seah How Chai has been serving hot drinks for the past 30 years.

And for the past two years, the water used for brewing tea is heated by his ice machine.

This is due to a heat recovery system that allows the waste heat generated by the machine to be piped into a water tank.

Less energy is then needed to boil the water as it is already heated.

With the system, waste heat is also removed efficiently from the ice machine so the ice stays colder for a longer period of time.

As a result, Mr Seah saves S$300 to S$400 on bills each month. But the benefits are not just monetary.

Instead of hot stuffy air, the condenser now releases cool air, making it possible for customers to sit comfortably in the coffeeshop.

Omega Thermal, which developed the system, said it was originally developed for use on air-conditioners.

Philip Lee, Manager, Omega Thermal, said: "It was revolutionary when Mr Seah suggested attaching it to an ice-maker. The idea just took off at the back of our heads - 'Why not? Let's give it a try!'."

And it was this idea that helped the SME win the SEC-Senoko Power Green Innovation Award.

But things were not easy at the beginning.

Mr Lee said: "The chief obstacle was not so much the physical aspect. It was more of a mental acceptance, psychological acceptance from people who find this a radical departure from their normal way of using electricity to heat up water.

"You can make the best product in the world but if there's no market demand for it, you'll still be back to square one".

Each system costs about S$2,000 and takes two hours to install.

So far, serviced apartments and condominiums form the bulk of Omega Thermal's clientele, but it is confident the technology will also take off among smaller businesses like Mr Seah's.