SINGAPORE and TOKYO, March 26,
2013 /PRNewswire/ --
The Centre leverages on high
performance computing (HPC)-enabled R&D technologies based on
real-world data to enhance Singapore's urban sustainability
& create key innovations for industry development
1. Singapore's Agency for Science,
Technology and Research (A*STAR), and Fujitsu Limited (Fujitsu)
have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to explore the creation
of the first Centre of Excellence (CoE) for Computational Social
Science and Engineering in Singapore, to identify technological solutions
and opportunities for sustainable urban development in key areas
such as transportation management and energy efficiency with
HPC-enabled technologies based on real-world data.
2. The Memorandum of Understanding was signed today
at Fujitsu's Tokyo headquarters
between Dr Raj. Thampuran, Managing Director, A*STAR, and Mr
Kenji Ikegai, Corporate Senior
Executive Vice President and Representative Director, Fujitsu, in
the presence of Mr S. Iswaran, Singapore's Minister in Prime Minister's
Office, Second Minister for Home Affairs, and Second Minister for
Trade and Industry.
3. Facing similar challenges and demands on
infrastructure and energy usage, both Japan and Singapore need to develop long-term urban
sustainability solutions to ensure high standards of living, ample
work opportunities for the populace as well as quality economic
growth.
4. The CoE will utilise data from various agencies
in Singapore to derive an
understanding of complex dynamics within the city and exploit the
power of modelling and simulation to guide both critical decisions
and implementation of solutions. This, in turn, will create greater
efficiencies in resource usage and allocation as well as generate
vital growth opportunities in new areas. Some potential areas are
described below:
- Transportation Management: An efficient and sustainable
transportation system demands the ability to monitor and understand
the travel behaviour and dynamics of commuters, road users and
network systems. The insight can be leveraged to optimise transport
services, project future demand, identify tipping points and assess
system performance.
- Energy Management: This involves analysis of the dynamics of
energy supply and demand, such as using technology to track energy
consumption while reducing wastage, and optimal energy
management.
- Computational Social Systems: The development of computational
systems and methods for near-to-real-time processing of social
information such as the consumer behaviour and lifestyle of the
populace to enhance public, business, healthcare and educational
needs/services and communication for the sustainability for urban
living.
5. The Institute of High Performance Computing
(IHPC) will lead the collaborative effort within A*STAR by drawing
upon its capabilities in HPC-enabled analytics of real-world data
provided by various sources, as well as its knowledge of complex
systems and social behaviour. Fujitsu will leverage on its broad
field knowledge on big-data and supercomputing-enabled simulation
to pursue their joint research work within the CoE.
6. Both parties envisage that the collaboration
will effectively address issues faced by modern cities in planning
and implementing urban sustainability initiatives. The partnership
will also unlock further economic opportunities through engendering
key innovations for industry development and creating local
employment opportunities.
7. "This collaboration marks another milestone in
our long-term partnership with Fujitsu and we are excited that they
have taken this opportunity to expand their activities in
Singapore. The joint investment in
resources and sharing of know-how will focus on tackling deep and
complex problems facing metropolitan areas and facilitate the
development of new approaches in big data. It is highly anticipated
that insights and outcomes derived from the research
will drive further innovations and create prospects that may
be applied to other big cities," said Professor Alfred Huan, Executive Director, IHPC.
8. "By participating in building a smart city
through the use of high-performance computing and big data,
Fujitsu's goal is to develop new skills and practical experience,
create the next generation of solutions, and establish new business
models for global or ASEAN companies moving into Singapore," said Mr Masahiko Yamada,
President, Technical Computing Solutions Unit, Fujitsu Limited.
9. Other partners in this COE include institutions
and government agencies from both Singapore and Japan such as the National University of Singapore (NUS),
Singapore's National Research
Foundation (NRF) and Fujitsu Laboratories Limited, Fujitsu's
research and development organisation. The partners will convene
across a series of workshops, projected to start in April 2013, to identify the research themes to be
jointly studied by the CoE.
10. The CoE is expected to undertake projects by
the end of this year through a team of engineers and researchers
from Singapore and Japan.
About the Institute of High
Performance Computing (IHPC)
As a national research institute supported by A*STAR through its
Science and Engineering Research Council (SERC), the Institute of
High Performance Computing (IHPC) was established in April 1998 to provide leadership in high
performance computing as a strategic resource for scientific
inquiry and industry development. IHPC seeks to power discoveries
through advanced methodologies, techniques and new tools in
modelling, simulation and visualisation. Its core research areas
are in the realm of complex-coupled systems, mechanics and fluid
dynamics, large-scale systems, digital modelling, adaptive and
collaborative computing, data mining and analysis, computational
electronics and electromagnetics, computational materials science
and chemistry.
For more information about IHPC, please visit
http://www.ihpc.a-star.edu.sg.
About the Agency for Science,
Technology and Research (A*STAR)
The Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR) is the
lead agency for fostering world-class scientific research and
talent for a vibrant knowledge-based and innovation-driven
Singapore. A*STAR oversees 14
biomedical sciences and physical sciences and engineering research
institutes, and six consortia & centres, located in Biopolis
and Fusionopolis as well as their immediate vicinity.
A*STAR supports Singapore's key
economic clusters by providing intellectual, human and industrial
capital to its partners in industry. It also supports extramural
research in the universities, and with other local and
international partners.
For more information about A*STAR, please visit
http://www.a-star.edu.sg
About Fujitsu
Fujitsu is the leading Japanese information and communication
technology (ICT) company offering a full range of technology
products, solutions and services. Over 170,000 Fujitsu people
support customers in more than 100 countries. We use our experience
and the power of ICT to shape the future of society with our
customers. Fujitsu Limited (TSE:6702) reported consolidated
revenues of 4.5 trillion yen
(US$54 billion) for the fiscal year
ended March 31, 2012. For more
information, please see http://www.fujitsu.com.
For interviews and other media enquiries, please
contact:
Singapore
Stephanie TIU (Ms)
Corporate Communications, SERC Shared Services
Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR)
DID +65-6419-1422
Mobile: +65-9828-2141
Email: stephanie-tiu@scei.a-star.edu.sg
Japan
Fujitsu Limited
Public and Investor Relations Division
Inquiries:
https://www-s.fujitsu.com/global/news/contacts/inquiries/index.html
SOURCE Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR)
