Mr S Iswaran at the opening ceremony of Rockwell Automation's Global Headquarters and Manufacturing Facility

SPEECH BY MR S ISWARAN,MINISTER OF STATE FOR TRADE AND INDUSTRY, AT THE OPENING CEREMONY OF ROCKWELL AUTOMATION'S GLOBAL HEADQUARTERS AND MANUFACTURING FACILITY, 6 OCTOBER 2006, 11.00 AM AT CORPORATION PLACE

Mr Dave Johnson, Vice President and General Manager, RockwellAutomationAsiaPacificBusinessCenter

Distinguished guests,

Ladies and gentlemen,

I am pleased to be here today at the official opening of Rockwell Automation’s Global Headquarters and Manufacturing facility, and I would like to extend a warm welcome to the management and staff of Rockwell Automation to Singapore.I am glad that Singapore will be an integral part of your exciting plans for the future.

The Singapore economy has done well so far this year.For the first half of 2006, our GDP grew by 9.4%.For the full year, we expect the growth to be between 6.5% and 7.5%.This growth is made possible through the continued strong commitment of our valued investors and partners like Rockwell Automation.

Rockwell Automation sets up entire value chain of activities in Singapore

With its 400-man Global HQ and Manufacturing facility for Programmable Logic Controllers here, Rockwell Automation is undertaking activities with global responsibilities across the entire value chain, from manufacturing and engineering to R&D and headquarters activities.

Today, Rockwell Automation is the largest independent industrial automation company in the world, and its strategic investment here is a significant boost to Singapore’s standing as a leading Controls and Automation hub in the Asia-Pacific.

Rockwell Automation has decided to site its full value chain of activities here because of Singapore’s unique value propositions. Firstly, our strategic location provides a springboard for Rockwell Automation to expand its operations into the high-growth Asia-Pacific region.Within a seven-hour flight radius from Singapore, companies can reach a market of more than 2.8 billion people in the Asia-Pacific, making us an excellent headquarters location. Rockwell Automation’s decision to undertake HQ activities such as management, marketing, supply chain management and shared services here, clearly attest to the value in our location.

Secondly, we have a world-class manufacturing sector in Singapore.By locating global manufacturing activities for Programmable Logic Controllers here, Rockwell Automation will be able to effectively leverage on the strengths of our manufacturing sector which include a vibrant supplier base and advanced manufacturing know-how.In turn, this investment will help Singapore become even more attractive as a manufacturing location.In 2004, our Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong announced the government’s aim to double manufacturing output in 15 years.This represents a leap from $150 billion in 2003 to $300 billion in 2018.Singapore is committed to continue developing and growing our manufacturing sector.This is also our commitment to companies like Rockwell Automation.

With the set up of a 100-man R&D centre here, Rockwell Automation in Singapore will also be a leading location for software R&D for Programmable Logic Controllers.Innovative products and solutions developed in Singapore are also expected to be manufactured and managed globally from here.In addition, Rockwell could collaborate with our universities or A*STAR research institutes on R&D projects in future. Possible areas of collaboration include working with SIMTech on RFID and Institute of Materials Research & Engineering (IMRE) on nano-materials. With our robust, secure and conducive environment for intellectual property creation and management, Rockwell Automation can manage its intellectual property from Singapore with confidence.

Conclusion

These are exciting developments and we are very glad to be Rockwell Automation’s strategic partner for growth.This is the beginning of a long and mutually beneficial relationship between Singapore and Rockwell Automation.Singapore will continue to give our strong support to build this partnership with Rockwell Automation in the years ahead. Finally, I would like to extend a warm welcome again to all staff of Rockwell Automation. I wish you much success and growth in the coming years.

Thank you.