OPENING ADDRESS BY GUEST-OF-HONOR MR. LIM CHUAN POH, CHAIRMAN A*STAR FOR THE AEROSPACE TECHNOLOGY LEADERSHIP FORUM HELD ON 1 ST FEB 2010, 9AM AT SWISSHOTEL THE STAMFORD, LEVEL 4 OLIVIA BALLROOM Introduction Distinguished Guests, Friends and colleagues, Ladies and Gentlemen A very good morning to all of you Let me first extend a warm welcome to all the delegates to this A*STAR s inaugural. Aerospace Technology Leadership Forum. I am happy to see many of A*STAR s industry partners here today and to our overseas friends, let me welcome you to Singapore. I am sure all of you are also eagerly anticipating the opening of the Singapore Airshow tomorrow. This Aerospace Technology Leadership Forum, organized in conjunction with the Singapore Airshow, aims to bring together thought leaders from the aerospace industry to share their perspectives and vision on how corporate and public R&D can and will shape the future of the aviation industry. 1
I thank all of you for your participation, especially the very distinguished line up of speakers. Forming Partnerships in Aerospace R&D Despite the worst financial crisis in 70 years, the world appeared to have weathered this crisis better than what most can hope for although there are uncertainties ahead. Singapore has technically come out of recession and growth this year is projected to be between 3-5%. More importantly, many Singaporeans have been able to keep their jobs in spite of the tough economic conditions. The aerospace industry, likewise, is set to grow again. The US represents the biggest aerospace market today, with total estimated sales of US$ 214 Billion in 2009. On the other hand, Asia-Pacific is quickly becoming the largest market for new orders, absorbing 36% of the backlog of large commercial aircraft 1, as China and India develop and increase their demand for aerospace products and services. The growth of the aerospace sector, like the other energy intensive sectors, will have to be cognizant of the impact this may have on our environment. As you are probably aware, the International Air Transport Association, or IATA, had members agree to cut net emissions by 50% from 2005 levels by 2050. 1 Source: RNCOS report (2010) Aerospace Industry Forecast to 2013 2
Airlines intend to approach this by improving their carbon efficiency by an average of 1.5% per year up to 2020. Given these proposed cuts, the industry would have to adopt new green technologies, such as lighter aircraft or biofuels, or risk raising the cost of flying and pricing out many potential customers. Technological advances through R&D holds the key to meeting these requirements in order to safeguard the future of the aerospace sector in a responsible way. Thus, as environmental concerns impose greater specifications and requirements on the airline industry, more companies are turning to open innovation to meet the challenges. By leveraging on a network of R&D alliances with universities and research labs globally, companies have access to a broader pool of multi-disciplinary ideas and expertise. External collaborations with R&D partners will also help to defray the high cost of R&D, cherry-pick the best ideas to develop, thereby accelerating innovation to application. 3
Role of A*STAR as a partner In this regard, Singapore provides a strong value proposition for R&D partnership. Located at the hub of Asia, Singapore provides an attractive location for R&D activities with the ready availability of diverse R&D talent, a strong intellectual property regime, a conducive business environment, and a vibrant research landscape. The Singapore government is also committed to investing in R&D, to seed capabilities in the public and private sector, and is prepared to work with the companies to help them grow their aerospace activities here. A*STAR supports the national effort in transforming the aerospace industry in Singapore from MRO to extend to other high value-added activities such as manufacturing and design. As your partner, companies can tap on our resources, such as the infrastructure and technical expertise of our research institutes, to accelerate innovation. At this point in time, I would like to encourage members of the Forum here today to visit the A*STAR exhibition booth at the Airshow this week, to explore some of the technologies developed in A*STAR that may fit your business needs. 4
SERC Aerospace Program Central to our R&D engagement with the aerospace industry is the SERC Aerospace Program. This is A*STAR s platform to forge strong public-private partnerships in R&D with the aerospace industry. The SERC Aerospace Program has played a key role in attracting & securing R&D investment from industry giants in Singapore and help local aerospacerelated SMEs upgrade themselves technologically. Some 10 R&D projects have been initiated over the 1 st and 2 nd cycle of the program, ranging from applications of innovative coatings, to the development of new aircraft inspection techniques. Now in its 3 rd cycle of funding, the program also sees the addition of 6 new projects to be initiated in 2010. Since the launch of the program in January 2007, the consortium has grown from the initial 4 founding members to 14 members, of which 5 are local SMEs. I am pleased to announce the addition of 4 new members to the Aerospace Consortium: Bombardier as a Tier 1 member, Bodycote and Rosler as Tier 2 members, and 1 local SME Addvalue. I look forward to their future support and contributions to the consortium. 5
Closing Remarks With that, I wish everyone a productive session at this Forum, and the upcoming week at the Airshow. Thank You. 6