Kajima to open $100m innovation centre in Singapore
Japan’s Kajima Corporation began for its very first abroad innovation centre at Singapore’s Changi Business Park yesterday.
The $100 million Kajima Global Center will also serve as its Asia-Pacific headquarters, said a joint declaration from Kajima – among Japan’s oldest and biggest building and construction companies – and JTC Corporation.
The 13,088 sq m center will contribute brand-new building innovations and research and development abilities to Singapore’s construction sector, they said.
Its building and construction will likewise be the first known application of a comprehensive suite of robotics solutions by Kajima outside Japan.
Kajima will combine all 400 personnel across its organisation functions – building and construction, engineering, development, research and style – under one roofing at the hub.
Kajima Technical Research Institute Singapore (KaTris) will research and establish and test-bed building and construction, sustainable and wellness technologies. The building itself will showcase robotics, digitalisation and automation by including data-driven environmental protection and energy-saving services.
KaTris will increase the variety of local research personnel, while Kajima Global Hub will develop better tasks, draw in Singaporean staff and lower the ecological impact of brand-new developments.
Kajima president Yoshikazu Oshimi stated at the ground-breaking event: “By promoting open innovations with renowned institutions in the area, both public and personal, we aim to build our strong foundation, not only to deliver the best services and services to our clients, but also to plant seeds and breed new companies for future generations.”
The Kajima initiative follows it signed a memorandum of comprehending with JTC last year to share expertise and collaborate on R&D.
Minister of State for Trade and Industry Low Yen Ling stated at the occasion: “This newest advancement enhances Singapore’s value and strength as a trusted and well-connected international R&D hub.”
She stated the pandemic has given Singapore’s construction sector a strong impetus to accelerate adoption of digital technology and automation, enhance productivity and lower the need for lower-skilled employees.
Kajima and JTC will release several joint initiatives.
REINFORCING DEVELOPMENT
By promoting open developments with renowned organizations in the area, both public and personal, we strive to construct our strong foundation, not just to deliver the very best services and solutions to our customers, but also to plant seeds and nurture new organisations for future generations.
KAJIMA PRESIDENT YOSHIKAZU OSHIMI
They will develop a concrete-finishing robotic with Nanyang Technological University (NTU) and a regional small and medium-sized business, Mega Plus Technology, to automate the building and construction process.
The robot ought to be able to lower workforce and labour expense by 50 per cent, on top of improving quality and security, by early next year.
NTU start-up Transforma Robotics will deploy its painting and inspection robotics that were jointly established with JTC to work along with Kajima’s building and construction robots.
JTC chief executive Ng Lang stated; “JTC forms strategic collaborations with market partners, such as Kajima, and scholastic institutes to address a broad spectrum of challenges faced by the sector.”
He stated by combining its engineering capabilities with positive industry competence, JTC intends to speed up and add to the building sector’s digitalisation.
Kajima has been working closely with the National University of Singapore on “well and green” building style concepts while partnering the Singapore University of Technology and Design on adapting sophisticated innovations such as drones for the building and construction industry.
The company is likewise sponsoring the Lee Kuan Yew Global Organisation Plan Competition handled by Singapore Management University, and participated in the Open Development Platform of the Infocomm Media Development Authority.
Correction note: An earlier variation of this story said that the center is 3,088 sq m. It needs to be 13,088 sq m. We are sorry for the error.