Speech by Min(EST) Tan See Leng at the Official Launch of the Schaeffler-NTU Corporate Lab

Mr Uwe Wagner, Chief Technology Officer of Schaeffler AG,

Professor Lam Khin Yong, Vice President (Industry) of NTU,

Distinguished guests

Ladies and gentlemen

Introduction

1.             Good morning. I am honoured to join you this morning for the official launch of the Schaeffler-NTU Corporate Lab, marking the next chapter of Schaeffler and NTU’s partnership.                                                                                             

2.             Since its first presence in Singapore in 1980, Schaeffler has grown to over 150 employees. I am glad to learn that it anchored its Asia-Pacific headquarters here more than a decade ago. In 2017, Schaeffler also established the Schaeffler Hub for Advanced Research or SHARE, one of five such hubs globally, and the first outside Europe, to accelerate innovation in future mobility, robotics, and Industry 4.0.

Advancing Singapore’s Manufacturing Goals with Robotics

3.             Over the past eight years and counting, supported by over S$70 million in joint funding across three phases, Schaeffler is leveraging NTU’s research strengths to progressively advance its technologies.

4.             The Schaeffler-NTU collaboration is a good example of public-private partnerships that we seek to encourage through our Research, Innovation and Enterprise, or RIE efforts, to leverage research to drive Singapore’s innovation-led economy.

5.             I am encouraged to learn that the collaboration has expanded from mobility technologies into a broader suite of capabilities – collaborative robotics, autonomous mobile robots, and Industrial Internet of Things (IoT). From lab research to the development of prototypes applied in real-world industrial and healthcare applications.

a.          One example is the Dual Extendable, or DEX, an award-winning robot with exceptional agility. DEX helps factories operate more efficiently by moving materials, monitoring equipment, and assisting workers with planning.

DEX has also served as a testbed for studying how robots can work safely and naturally alongside people in industrial environments. This work laid the foundation for more advanced humanoid robotics research, including the development of LINH, an intelligent collaborative humanoid robot prototype.

6.             Phase Three will take this further, deepening research collaborations in robotics and artificial intelligence. With an expanded mechatronics hub in its 900 square metre facility, researchers and students will work on robots in industrial and healthcare applications such as robots that can work safely alongside humans, automated mobile robots for factories and logistics, and assistive robots for daily tasks.

7.             In 2023, Singapore ranked second globally in robot density, with 770 robots per 10,000 employees[1]. This clearly reflects the increasing need for robotics to augment workforce productivity across industries. The Schaeffler-NTU collaboration aligns with Singapore’s goals to develop differentiated robotics capabilities, complementing the efforts of our advanced manufacturing companies by enhancing automation, improving precision, and productivity.

Deepened Partnerships with Global Relevance and Catalysing Singapore’s Robotics Talent Ecosystem

8.             The fruits of Schaeffler’s collaborations with NTU are finding their way into Schaeffler’s international operations, from next-generation manufacturing in Vietnam to humanoid robotics projects in China and Germany.

9. Phase Three builds on this foundation, expanding the lab’s reach internationally with regional innovation players such as the Korea Electronics Technology Institute, Rainbow Robotics, and CMES AI Robotics, strengthening Singapore’s position as a node for robotics innovation.

10.          The lab will also strengthen Singapore’s talent pipeline in this field. About 100 students and researchers have gained hands-on experience in cutting-edge projects, and many have gone on to apply their expertise in high-tech industries.

11. I am very encouraged by this development and I look forward to more young Singaporeans thriving in advanced technology fields, while reinforcing Singapore’s global innovation networks.

Conclusion

12. To sum, Schaeffler-NTU’s collaboration embodies that research is not an end in itself, but a means to drive innovation, develop people and enhance global networks for Singapore.

13. Congratulations again to Schaeffler and NTU on this milestone, and I wish you continued success.

14. Thank you.

[1] According to the International Federation of Robotics