High Tech Facility – National Investment Aspirations (HTF-NIA) Financial Assistance

1. As announced in the Budget 2021 speech by the Minister of Finance, Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) is establishing a RM1 billion High Tech Facility – National Investment Aspirations (HTF-NIA), as part of efforts to provide additional assistance for SMEs affected by COVID-19.

2. The facility is aimed at supporting high-tech and innovation-driven SMEs affected by COVID-19 to recover and revitalise the nation’s innovation capacity. 

3. This is critical to strengthen Malaysia’s competitive positioning in global value chains, preserve the supply chain ecosystem and safeguard high-skilled jobs.

China’s Incentives for Integrated Circuit, Software Enterprises

1. On August 4, 2020, China’s State Council released the Policies of Promoting High-quality Development of Integrated Circuit Industry and Software Industry.

2. The document lays out a wide range of policies to shore up the development of the integrated circuit (IC) and software industries, applying to all companies registered in China, regardless of nationality.

3. China has provided support policies for the two sectors since 2000, which are updated every decade – this is the second such update since their roll-out.

Updates on BOI (Thailand)’s Investment Promotion Packages

 1. The meeting of the Board of Investment of Thailand (the “BOI”) held on 4 November 2020 approved a large number of packages in order to promote more investment in various businesses. 

2. Updates regarding the BOI measures can be categorized into three (3) types as follows:

RCEP - world's largest Free Trade Agreement, Background, Scope & Chapters

 BACKGROUND
1. The RCEP negotiations was launched in November 2012 at the 21st ASEAN Summit in Phnom Penh, Cambodia but the negotiations only formally started in 2013.

2. Initially, RCEP was negotiated by 16 countries, consisting 10 ASEAN Member States (AMS) and ASEAN’s Free Trade Area (FTA) Partners or better known as AFPs. The AFPS are Australia, China, India, Japan, Korea as well as New Zealand.

3. Later in November 2019, during the ASEAN Summit, Prime Minister of India, Mr Narendra Modi announced that India cannot join RCEP in its current form.

4. In gist, the objective of RCEP is to streamline and amalgamate the ASEAN FTAs with its Dialogue Partners (ASEAN + 1 FTAs) into a single regional trade agreement that can contribute to strengthening regional value chain actives in the region as well make RCEP more user-friendly and simpler to use especially for the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs).

5. The ASEAN + 1 FTAs are:

ASEAN-China FTA

ASEAN-Australia New Zealand FTA

ASEAN-India FTA

ASEAN-Japan FTA

ASEAN-Korea FTA

Product Spotlight - 0.6 Millimeters Hot Rolled & Endless Strip Production (ESP)

1.  2018, an Arvedi ESP (Endless Strip Production) line installed in a plant belonging to the Chinese steel producer Rizhao Steel Group Co., Ltd (Rizhao) produced ultra-thin hot rolled strip with a thickness of just 0.6 millimeters for the very first time. 

2. Hot rolled strip as thin as this had never before been achieved anywhere in the world. 

3. This thin strip can cover more than 80 percent of regular commercial cold-rolled thicknesses. 

Challenges and Implementing Big Data

1. Manufacturers today seek to achieve true business intelligence through collecting, analyzing, and sharing data across all key functional domains. In this architecture, production systems are not only more efficient but can also respond in a timely manner to changing business needs, including signals from partners and customers.

Product Spotlight - Hot rolled steel vs cold rolled steel

Differences between Hot rolled steel vs cold rolled steel, advantages, disadvantages, characteristics, and usage.

Industry 4.0 real-world applications

 1. Embracing Industry 4.0, digital manufacturing and the interconnectivity that comes with it opens a myriad of benefits for companies, including greater agility, flexibility and operational performance.

2. we’ll be exploring the key technologies behind Industry 4.0, as well as real-world applications.

Product Spotlight - Anodizing Machined Parts for Electronics Manufacturers

1. The practice of anodizing — a form of electrolytic passivation that thickens the oxidized outer layer of a metal part — has existed for around a hundred years. 

2. Most widely used on aluminum, anodizing can also be applied to metals like magnesium, titanium and zinc, providing those materials with a hardened, corrosion-resistant coating.

3. Anodizing produces a number of positive effects and is therefore used for a variety of applications. 

4. However, it can be particularly useful in the electronics industry, where CNC machined aluminum parts are required to be long-lasting, aesthetically pleasing and safe for consumer use. You can see anodized aluminum on products by Apple and other market leaders.

Integrating EBOM/MBOM into PLM systems

1. A BOM can define products as they are designed.” Most people now acknowledge the role of another critical enterprise business system to manage product design, which is product lifecycle management or PLM software.

2. The concept of an engineering bill of material (EBOM) was introduced in PLM systems, since there is very rarely a single tool that fully defines the design intent of a product. This is most commonly due to the increasing number of products that require mechanical, electronics, and software engineering — also referred to as mechatronic products.

3. Each of these engineering disciplines have different design tools that are used. When this is the case, the PLM EBOM addresses individual design tool limitations by synchronizing the CAD design structures from multiple tools to items in a single product’s EBOM.

Implementing BOM into ERP System

1. Poor master data management is often a hindrance to using an ERP system well. Bills of Material, BOMs, are a key piece of that ERP master data. Let’s look at a BOM to understand how it can be used and managed in your ERP system.

2. A BOM is organized by levels and includes all the parts that are used to build your product. Level 0 is the final product sold to your customer. Level 1 might be one or more subassemblies used in level 0. There is no limit to the levels but generally you want as few as possible to keep things simple.

3. Within a BOM level are a list of part numbers and the quantity needed to make up the next level. 

4. Part descriptions, units of measure, procurement types, etc. are often thought of as parts of a BOM but they really are items in the part master file which is a different ERP master data item. 

5. Those values will affect how the BOM works in your ERP and they are very important.

Creating An Effective Bill of Materials (BOM)

1. A bill of materials (BOM) is a comprehensive list of parts, items, assemblies, and other materials required to create a product, as well as instructions required for gathering and using the required materials.

2. The bill of materials can be understood as the recipe and shopping list for creating a final product. The bill of materials explains what, how, and where to buy required materials, and includes instructions for how to assemble the product from the various parts ordered. 

3. All manufacturers building products, regardless of their industry, get started by creating a bill of materials (BOM).

4. Because the bill of materials pulls together all sorts of product information, it is common that several disciplines (design and engineering, document management, operations, manufacturing, purchasing, contract manufacturers, and more) will consume data contained within the BOM record to get the job done right. 

5. In fact, engineers and manufacturers rely so heavily on BOMs that their own special subsets called the engineering bill of materials and the manufacturing bill of materials.

6. The BOM guides positive results from business activities like parts sourcing, outsourcing, and manufacturing, so it is important to create a BOM that is well organized, correct, and up-to-date. 

7. And for companies that outsource manufacturing activities, it is especially important to create an accurate and revision-controlled bill of materials. Any time the BOM is handed off to a contract manufacturer (CM) or supplier, it should be correct and complete to avoid unnecessary production mistakes and product launch delays.

ABC (Value) & XYZ (Demand) Inventory Analysis

 1. ABC inventory analysis is a method used to classify a business’s stock items into three categories – A, B and C, based on their value to the business. 

2. A items are the most important in terms of the value they bring a company, whilst C items are the least valuable. 

3. ABC inventory analysis is important as it helps managers focus their time on their most valuable / important products and adapt their inventory control policies accordingly.

Sales Forecast Basics and ABC Inventory Classification

1. A sales forecast is a prediction of future sales revenue. Sales forecasts are usually based on historical data, industry trends, and the status of the current sales pipeline. Businesses use the sales forecast to estimate weekly, monthly, quarterly, and annual sales totals.

2. New businesses that don’t have much data about their own sales process may need to rely on industry averages or even educated guesses. On the other hand, more established companies can use their historical data to model future performance.

Inventory Demand Forecasting Techniques, Forecasting for Subassembly levels and Bills of materials

1. Inventory demand forecasting is the process of predicting customer demand for an inventory item over a defined period of time. 

2. Accurate inventory demand forecasting enables a company to hold the right amount of stock without over or under-stocking, for optimum inventory control. 

3. Historical data trends and market knowledge of how demand can fluctuate are often used to forecast inventory demand.

4. Forecasting inventory can be as basic or as complex as you make it. 

5. As a simple rule, the more sophisticated your inventory forecasting techniques, the more accurate your predictions will be. 

6. Accurate demand forecasts allow you to efficiently serve customers’ needs without investing capital in large amounts in stock, effectively helping you lower your overall operational costs. 

7. However, inventory forecasting can be challenging to undertake without the right guidance, so starting with basic forecasting techniques is advisable.

Utilizing ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) for Forecasting Fuctionality

1. There are many ways to forecast business trends and all of them fall under two extensive categories like qualitative & quantitative. Let’s discover more about these models:

Singapore Global Trader Programme (GTP)

 1. Launched in June 2001, the Global Trader Programme is a merger of the Approved Oil Trader (AOT) and the Approved International Trader (AIT) programmes which started in 1989 and 1990 respectively. 

2. The Approved Oil Trader (AOT) Programme aimed at capitalising on Singapore’s growing role as a refining centre in the region. 

3. Shortly thereafter, the Approved International Trader (AIT) Programme was launched to attract non-oil companies. 

4. Twenty years later, both the Programmes were merged into the GTP which now allows for an expanded product base for companies to trade in, including both energy as well as non-energy products and commodities.

Product Spotlights - New Technologies in Hydraulics

1. Innovative new technologies are laying the foundation for the latest hydraulic systems and applications designed for construction, agriculture, mining and power generation.

2. From smart user interfaces to load sensing valve technology to hybrid actuation systems for renewable energy applications, these solutions lead to productivity increases, energy savings and maximised operational efficiency. 

3. From smart user interfaces to load sensing valve technology to hybrid actuation systems for renewable energy applications, these solutions lead to productivity increases, energy savings and maximised operational efficiency. 

China Decoupling Tech Sector for FDI Participation

1. Building ‘new infrastructure’ (新型基础 or新基建 for short) has recently become a top development priority for China – and refers to infrastructure that is ‘digital, smart, and innovative’.

2. As part of its post-COVID-19 relief package, China is ramping up plans to construct new digital infrastructure across the country – including building 5G networks, artificial intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IoT), intercity high-speed rail, and setting up research and development institutions.

3. In doing so, a new wave of government support for private sector participation can be seen – through the issuance of special bonds, encouraging public-private partnerships, or extension of credit support.

4. These plans work in concert with China’s other industrial policies like Made in China 2025 and China Standards 2035 Plan – which together signal China’s ambitious long-term strategy of becoming the global leader in high-tech and innovative industries of the future.

5. New opportunities now exist for early investors looking to participate in these fast-growing technology industries and subsectors. In addition, large industry players have the chance to invest in projects that will propel the commercialization of emerging technology.

6. Foreign investors should continue to follow-up on the latest policy developments in their target area of investment, as more government policies will likely be released shortly to guide the development of each of these new technologies.

Steel prices Trend Analysis - April to September and Q4 2020 Prediction

APRIL SNAPSHOT

1. European strip mill product steel prices were largely unchanged, in late March/early April, despite the major impact of the coronavirus outbreak on the steel sector and the worldwide economy.

2. MEPS (MEPS International Ltd) notes a great deal of uncertainty. As major end-user industries, especially the auto sector, ground to a halt, purchasing activity slowed significantly.

3. European steelmakers are cutting output substantially in an attempt to balance supply with reduced demand. Currently, local mills are not using price as an instrument to encourage sales.

4. Negative pressure could come, as a result of cheap third country imports. A sharp reduction in offers from overseas is noted.

Authorized Economic Operator

1. AEO stands for Authorized Economic Operator. Different countries have different versions of this program. In the United States it's called the Customs Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (CTPAT). 

InCoTerms 2020

1. Incoterms are universally recognised rules. They guide buyers and sellers when formulating and fulfilling a contract for the shipment of goods. A careful study of INCOTERMS 2020 will repay the effort by enabling more favourable trade terms.

2. It allows the manufacturer and buyer to open the doors to more effective trade finance. Trade Finance helps importers and exporters with international commerce activities.

3. The definition of InCoTerms (International Commercial Terms) was first introduced in 1936 by the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC). Incoterms 2020 marks the first update since 2010 to keep pace with the continually evolving global trading landscape.

4. The latest version of the rules came into effect on 1st January 2020. It consisted of eleven separate Incoterms, with some specific revisions that are worth addressing.

5. Incoterms 2020 rules make security more prevalent by listing import and export requirements. Also, they help in distinguishing whether the buyer or seller is responsible for meeting each of those requirements.

6. The two main categories are Any Mode of Transportation and Sea & Inland Waterway

Transit Oriented Development Financing Strategy and Best Practices

1. Transit Oriented Development (TOD) is a way of developing, financing and delivering transport infrastructure projects. 

2. It has gained popularity – particularly in the Far East and parts of the United States – over the last 15 years. 

3. This popularity is set to soar as project owners and governments continue to search for novel ways of financing transport infrastructure developments.

Master Developer Approach - Implications of the greater flexibility in land use

The Government is introducing greater flexibility in land use so as to accommodate the diversifying space requirements of the innovation economy. It is introducing the Master Developer approach to develop districts based on land use and gross plot ratio.

TATLO: Transparency and Traceability for Logistics Optimization

1. Fragmentation of systems and lack of common documents in international trade cause significant inefficiencies and resultant loss of revenues.

2. Improving both B2B and business-to-government (B2G) information exchange through the supply chain could increase global trade volumes and GDP.

3. The obstacles to implementing such exchanges are not technological, but rather are caused by lack of standardization and incentives for information sharing.

4. For a broader roll-out of e-supply chains, global leaders in each supply chain step should work together on practices for sharing information and agree on joint standards.

5. While initial e-customs efforts are a step in the right direction, they need to accelerate, be more ambitious and include businesses to deliver maximum benefits.

6. The TATLO concept is not new, and many of the technologies exist for implementing it. However, a lack of standardization and sharing of norms is preventing the seamless flow of information and the use of protocols, both of which could turbocharge the process.

Master Developers - Traditional and Incorporating Green Infrastructure

 1. The past decade has seen residential Master Developers (MDs) playing an increasingly important role in the UK’s development market, helping to accelerate housing supply through the delivery of strategic housing led developments.

2. Those acting in the role of MDs are responsible from first conception and planning, all the way through to the implementation of these major projects, either through direct development or serviced land sales.

3. We find that there have been many factors that have contributed to a prevalence in this kind of large-scale strategic development in the past decade.

Logistic Provider Models (1PL - 7PL) and Transparency and Traceability for Logistics Optimization (TATLO)

 1. Supply Chain and Logistics terminology can seemingly not keep up with the rapid evolution of the industry. For years we have become accustomed to organisations adopting 3-or-4PL business models, but of late abbreviations such as 5, 6 and even 7PL beginning to become part of the logistics lexicon, but what exactly to do these terms mean?

Analytic Dashboard for Manufacturers

 1. Manufacturers are responsible for a variety of complex business requirements, including tight time-to-market schedules and improving the cost of quality. 

2. Manufacturing technology leaders now have the ability to transform the way the plant floor operates with analytics, dashboards and manufacturing intelligence that provide insight from the bottom up.

Low Code and Auto Machine Learning

1. Organizations that want to get started quickly with machine learning may be interested in investigating emerging low-code options for AI. 

2. While low-code techniques will never completely replace hand-coded systems, they can help accelerate smaller, less experienced data science teams, as well as help with prototyping for professional data scientists.

Analytics for Banking and Examples of Machine Learning

1. Banks’ futures depend on institutions’ ability to master three key things – customer experience, compliance, and storage.

2. strategic default models were a waste of time and money, not because they were inaccurate, but because the parties involved failed to anticipate how offering one customer an attractive loan restructure would influence other customers who hadn’t yet defaulted. The analytics didn’t fail. The implementation strategy did.

Consolidation Warehouses

 1. Utilizing consolidation warehouses can improve your supply chain’s performance while reducing costs.

2. This form of warehousing involves combining small shipments bound for a similar destination into a single truckload.

3. As a result, you can reduce transportation costs, ship more frequently, and, eventually, boost your profitability.

Shifting from Air to High Speed Rail Post Covid-19

A long-term shift in attitudes around climate change, travel, and work triggered by the Covid-19 pandemic could serve to significantly curb aviation growth in the next decade

Automation In Rubber Glove Industry to tackle Covid-19

1. MARGMA (Malaysian Rubber Glove Manufacturers Association)had projected demand of rubber gloves to reach ~300 billion pieces in 2020 with an annual growth of 12%, 

2. The current outbreak of novel Covid-19 has resulted in a 100% surge in demand globally in the first few months of 2020. 

2019 and Q1 2020 Stainless Steel Industry Trends

1. Global stainless steel purchasing activity is steady, at a level, generally, a little below that of one year ago. 

2. A pickup in order volumes was reported in January. This was boosted by stock replenishment. 

3. Many supply chain participants routinely minimise their inventory levels towards the calendar year-end, in order to improve their quarterly or annual accounts. Material must then be purchased at an accelerated rate at the beginning of the new period, to return stocks to a practical, working level.

4. Subsequently, with underlying demand, reportedly, rather weak, buying activity slowed, during late January and February. As a result, producers, in most of the world, were unable to achieve price rises, or even, in the case of flat products, maintain rollover values, this  March. 

Respirator Mask Industry Analysis

1. A respirator mask is a personal protective equipment that prevents the wearer from inhaling aerosols as well as vapors or gases that are health hazards. 

2. Unlike normal surgical mask that only protects against infectious droplets (e.g. droplets of saliva or other secretions), respirator mask can also protect the wearer from inhaling micro airborne infectious agents such as airborne virus (including coronavirus, SARS, H1N1, etc).

Africa’s First High Speed Line is on Track to Cover its Costs

1. Named Al Boraq after a magical winged creature of Islamic lore, it is the first train service of its kind in Africa, running along the Atlantic coast for 200 kilometres between the port of Tangier and the commercial hub of Casablanca.

2. The Al-Boraq high-speed rail service is a key project for Moroccan infrastructure.

3. It was launched in November 2018 between Rabat and Tangier and carried three million passengers in its first year of service, according to figures from the national railway office ONCF.

4. Al Boraq’s rail stock includes 12 trains. Each service or trip has two locomotives and eight cars with a capacity for 533 passengers.

Industry 4.0 Analytics Platform Approach, Benefits, Challenges, and Examples

1. Real-time and predictive engagement is becoming much more of a ‘must-have’, rather than a ‘nice to do’ as part of any manufacturer’s customer experience. 

2. Customers expect a more personalised service. But this makes a huge difference to the analytics platform and capabilities for manufacturers and their services journey.

Export consortia

 SME CONSORTIA
1. SMEs usually have difficulty in exporting to foreign markets: they may lack the necessary knowledge and financing, may not meet foreign regulatory requirements, or may produce products in quantities or quality that are not adequate for foreign buyers, among many other potential problem.

2. However, these problems can often be overcome through cooperation among SMEs. 

3. By combining their knowledge, financial resources and contacts within an export consortium, SMEs can significantly improve their export potential and reduce the costs and risks involved in penetrating foreign markets.

Human-Machine Interface (HMI)

1. A Human-Machine Interface (HMI) is a user interface or dashboard that connects a person to a machine, system, or device. 

2. While the term can technically be applied to any screen that allows a user to interact with a device, HMI is most commonly used in the context of an industrial process.

3. Although HMI is the most common term for this technology, it is sometimes referred to as Man-Machine Interface (MMI), Operator Interface Terminal (OIT), Local Operator Interface (LOI), or Operator Terminal (OT). 

4. HMI and Graphical User Interface (GUI) are similar but not synonymous: GUIs are often leveraged within HMIs for visualization capabilities.

5. An HMI is the centralized control unit for manufacturing lines, equipped with Data Recipes, event logging, video feed, and event triggering, so that one may access the system at any moment for any purpose. 

6. For a manufacturing line to be integrated with an HMI, it must first be working with a Programmable Logic Controller (PLC). It is the PLC that takes the information from the sensors, and transforms it to Boolean algebra, so the HMI can decipher and make decisions.

Thailand's Incentives for Eastern Economic Corridor

1. In late December 2019, Thailand’s Board of Investment (BOI), the government agency responsible for foreign investment promotion, issued new incentives to attract investments in the country’s Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC).

2. The EEC is a special development zone (SEZ) established in 2017 and straddles three eastern provinces of Thailand – Chonburi, Rayong, and Chachoengsao – spanning a total of 13,285 square kilometers. The government aims to complete the EEC by 2021 and turn it into a hub for technological manufacturing and services.

Gross Development Value (GDV)

1. Gross Development Value (GDV) is the forecast revenue or sale that is anticipated from the completed development scheme.

2. This calculation is effectively whether a development has, or will, turn a profit at completion. 

3. Profit on Gross Development Value is calculated by assessing the cost of development versus the sale of the completed properties to create a total profit value which is then calculated into percentage terms.

SCADA - Part 2- SCADA vs PLC vs DCS and Exploring PLC-SCADA Solutions

1. Currently there are two main stream types of control systems – PLC-SCADA and Distributed Control Systems (DCS).

2. DCSs were traditionally used to control large processes, while PLC systems were used to control machines. Since the introduction of PC Windows-based SCADA systems and Ethernet networks, the dividing lines between DCS and PLC-SCADA systems have become blurred.

SCADA - Part 1 - Supervisory control and data acquisition Introduction

 1. SCADA, or supervisory control and data acquisition, is a system comprised of hardware and software components used to monitor and control industrial processes.

2. With a SCADA system, manufacturers are able to collect and analyze real time production data, monitor and manage alarms, and program automatic control responses triggered by certain events or system parameters.

3. There are different types of SCADA systems that can be considered as SCADA architectures of four different generations:

- First Generation: Monolithic or Early SCADA systems
- Second Generation: Distributed SCADA systems
- Third Generation: Networked SCADA systems and
- Fourth Generation: Internet of things technology, SCADA systems

Rail and Air Co-operates to Provide Seamless Service

1. The Dutch carrier is taking more concrete steps towards a greener future with the announcement of a high-speed rail replacement service for one of its popular short-haul routes between Amsterdam Airport Schiphol (AMS) and Brussels (BRU).

2. KLM has teamed up with NS Dutch Railways and French-Belgian high-speed train operator Thalys to promote the service to connecting passengers who would otherwise take what Business Traveller dubbed Europe’s most expensive (on a per-mile basis) flight.

Types of Programmable Logic Controller (PLC)

 DEFINITION OF "PLC"
1. A Programmable Logic Controller, or PLC, is a ruggedized computer used for industrial automation. These controllers can automate a specific process, machine function, or even an entire production line.

Incorporating COBOTS in Workplaces - Part 2 - Risk Management

 1. The industry has identified four key approaches for collaborative robot-human interaction:

Safety-rated monitored stop

Hand-guiding

Speed and separation monitoring

Power and force limiting

2. Developers will need to determine which approach or combination of approaches best fits their application.

Incorporating COBOTS in Workplaces - Part 1 - Risk Assessment

1. Compact industrial robots are now available that can be cost-effectively integrated into even small production lines. 

2. Part of their appeal is that such robots can collaborate with a human operator to offload repetitive tasks that would otherwise tire the operator and lead to mistakes. 

3. The problem is that working in close proximity to a moving machine poses safety risks for humans.

4. The key to keeping collaborative robots (cobots) safe is to carefully consider the risks involved and configure the robot and its control system to mitigate potential hazards. 

Upward Trend in Demand for High-voltage Cables

1. The total primary energy consumption in the U.S. was recorded at 101.3 quadrillion Btu in 2018 and is expected to witness consistent growth over the years, owing to the surging penetration of data centers and large communication base stations across the region.

2. High-voltage cables allow power transmission at high voltages to meet business demand and with proper insulation and conductors, are also suitable for deployment underground and underwater.

3. The rapid rate of infrastructural development in emerging nations across Asia-Pacific is driving the need to set up robust electrical connectivity and transmission solutions, propelling high voltage (HV) cables deployment.

4. Global Market Insights, Inc., has projected that global HV cables market size will reach over USD 29 billion by 2025, driven by consistent demand from utility and industrial applications.