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Meinhardt partners with International Enterprise Singapore to expand into Africa and Middle East

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Despite headwinds in the global economy, internationalisation will continue to drive the growth of companies in the engineering consultancy sector as infrastructure demand remains strong globally.

Meinhardt Group, a global engineering, planning and management firm, is working closely with International Enterprise Singapore, the government agency partnering Singapore companies in going global, on its expansion strategy to Africa and the Middle East.

This includes the company’s recent acquisition of African engineering consultancy to gain in-roads into East Africa.  [Read more…] about Meinhardt partners with International Enterprise Singapore to expand into Africa and Middle East

SAP logistics boss says ‘robotics and automation are the future’

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trenitalia

The head of logistics at software giant SAP says the future of the digital supply chain is robotics and automation. 

SAP is one of the world’s largest software companies in any sector, with more than 300,000 clients in around 190 countries, and its logistics division has customers such as luxury automaker Porsche, and large transport operations such as Trenitalia.

In an interview with em360tech.com, Hans Thalbauer, SVP of extended supply chain and IoT at SAP, says industries are becoming smarter because of these technologies.

However, Thalbauer adds that robotics and automation needs to be effectively integrated into the overall business processes, otherwise they won’t work.  [Read more…] about SAP logistics boss says ‘robotics and automation are the future’

There will be data: Exclusive interview with Honeywell UOP cloud boss

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The oil and gas industry is the lifeblood and oxygen of the modern world. It produces the stuff that powers the power stations, providing the energy on which we all depend if we live in a country with even a moderate infrastructure. 

Much as we’d all like to live on fresh air, and run our iMachines on the light that shines in through our windows, the harsh reality is that the dirty and dangerous business of fossil fuels is still the biggest generator of energy in the world today.

No developed or developing economy on Earth can do without oil and gas, and no oil and gas plant can do without systems to prevent downtime. Every second of unscheduled downtime can cost the oil and gas company millions of dollars. Not only that, the secondary effects on all the businesses connected to the oil and gas company’s supply lines – which basically permeate the whole of society – could be devastating to a nation’s economy and wellbeing if those seconds turn into minutes, hours or days.  [Read more…] about There will be data: Exclusive interview with Honeywell UOP cloud boss

‘Hong Kong’s angry youth can find hope in innovation and entrepreneurship’

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By Edward Tse, Gao Feng Advisory

It is no understatement to say that, over the past several years, Hong Kong’s youth have displayed increasing frustration.

What’s behind this? There is probably no single reason, but rather a variety of political, social and economic factors.

Hong Kong’s young people today live in a city that is very different from the one their parents grew up in. Hong Kong in the 1970s and 1980s was tough, but the city was growing and there were plenty of opportunities for young people. There was potential for upward mobility and young people working hard could build a better life for themselves.  [Read more…] about ‘Hong Kong’s angry youth can find hope in innovation and entrepreneurship’

The future of work: Generation Z against the Machine

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Stephen Parker, CEO of digital engagement specialist Parker Software, explains how businesses can use technology to enhance jobs rather than replace them

There is a persistent myth that the rise of automation, robotics and software is a recipe for disaster. Many people worry that technological innovation will lead to the demise of human jobs, otherwise known as structural unemployment.

These claims are dangerous for “generation Z”, creating an uneasy atmosphere of automation anxiety and paranoia over job security.

Many of us have heard about the idea of automation anxiety, which is the fear that robotics and software will one day come to replace humans in the workforce.  [Read more…] about The future of work: Generation Z against the Machine

Accenture makes business life easier with automation

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Interview with Manish Sharma, senior managing director and group operating officer, Accenture Operations. This article is republished from the original source, em360tech.com

If business was easy, everyone would be doing it. Running a business is a complex and sometimes difficult thing to do.

The more experience one has, the more they can make it look easy. But no matter how experienced you are, and how much you can “routinise” your workload by yourself, a robot and software could probably do those things better.

That might sound disheartening for some, but for others, it provides an opportunity to become more productive, and in ways that are more creative and rewarding.

Here, we speak to Manish Sharma, senior managing director and group operating officer, Accenture Operations, about how the company itself uses automation to streamline its processes. 
[Read more…] about Accenture makes business life easier with automation

Can foreign tech companies win in China?

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tech in asia
Picture by Andre Gunawan, Tech in Asia

China-based investment expert Edward Tse, CEO of Gao Feng, considers the fortunes of outside tech companies entering China

Clearly, China’s regulatory regime regarding the internet, in particular social media, is far more restrictive than that of the US and many other western countries in general.

The “Great Firewall” has proven itself repeatedly to be a thorn in the side of foreign companies, and not all have been able to overcome this hurdle.

Most have tried, but with varying degrees of success.  [Read more…] about Can foreign tech companies win in China?

Suzuki and Toyota to collaborate on advanced driver systems and autonomous vehicle technologies

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Environment, safety, and information technology fields to also feature prominently in the new business partnership

Suzuki and Toyota have agreed to collaborate on advanced driver systems and autonomous vehicle technologies, although the details were not discussed. 

The companies say they have started exploring ideas that are directed towards a business partnership.

In a statement, Toyota and Suzuki say they recognise the environment surrounding the automotive industry has been changing “drastically and rapidly in an unprecedented fashion”.  [Read more…] about Suzuki and Toyota to collaborate on advanced driver systems and autonomous vehicle technologies

Manufacturing: Smarter than the average factory

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What’s all this talk about “smart factories”? It’s just a bunch of machines being connected to the internet, right? What’s the big deal? What’s the big idea?

True, it’s all about connectivity. But that is, in fact, a very big deal – lots of very big deals, lots of very small deals, just lots and lots of deals, which, when combined, is indeed a huge, historic shift in industrial production, encapsulated by some in terms such as “Industry 4.0” or “Industrial Internet”.

Having been articulated, arguably, by the Germans, talk about “the fourth industrial revolution” or “Industrie 4.0” has permeated virtually all conversations about the future of manufacturing.  [Read more…] about Manufacturing: Smarter than the average factory

Robotic process automation and artificial intelligence will ‘drastically transform modern workplace’, says IQPC

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Special offer for Robotics and Automation News readers: Use discount code VIP_RANEWS to get 20 per cent off

Forget the hype, robotic process automation and artificial intelligence are both a reality, says event organiser

Robotic process automation and artificial intelligence will drastically transform the modern workplace, according to IQPC, the organiser of the Robotic Process Automation and Artificial Intelligence Summit.

Will you embrace this technological change to make cost reductions, improve performance and enhance real-time decision making? When you think about it, this all adds up to massive competitive advantage, says IQPC.  [Read more…] about Robotic process automation and artificial intelligence will ‘drastically transform modern workplace’, says IQPC