Sembcorp & Singapore’s ASTAR Partners for Offshore, Marine and Clean Energy Research

Sembcorp Marine and Singapore’s Agency for Science, Technology and Research (ASTAR) have announced that they have agreed to cooperate comprehensively in areas of offshore, marine and clean energy research and development.

By signing a master research collaboration agreement (MRCA) the two parties aim to “shorten the development cycle and time-to-market of new offshore, marine and clean energy solutions achieved through their research efforts”.

The MRCA includes setting up joint laboratory at Sembcorp Marine’s Tuas Boulevard Yard. The ‘Joint Lab@TBY’, will facilitate a testbed for new digital design solutions and advanced manufacturing capabilities in relation to offshore wind and commercialization of these.

Digital design solutions to be explored include novel designs that support the development of offshore wind energy and risk mitigations in liquefied natural gas storage and transportation.

Joint Lab@TBY will support local advanced manufacturing capabilities in large format additive manufacturing technology, automated robotic welding for complex offshore structures, automated non-destructive testing and smart factory floor monitoring and control.

Sembcorp Marine president and chief executive Wong Weng Sun said the partnership with ASTAR will “greatly enrich” Sembcorp Marine’s efforts to develop cutting-edge, cost-competitive and greener engineering solutions.

He said: “Innovation is a core enabler at Sembcorp Marine and we’re constantly looking at new ways to boost our engineering capabilities, production capacity and efficiency.

"Given the rapid technological disruption and rising environmental consciousness in the global markets, we must continuously push the innovation envelope and deliver sustainable solutions that keep us relevant to our customers.

“Partnering with a top-class research organisations like ASTAR will help Sembcorp Marine achieve these vital objectives and stay ahead of the technology curve.”

He added: “In this conducive environment, we are confident the Joint Lab@TBY team can deliver effective digital design and advanced manufacturing solutions.”

Since 2013, Sembcorp Marine, ASTAR and various other stakeholders have been working together on research projects such as green shipping and workshop automation under individual agreements.

The MRCA allows Sembcorp Marine to team up with multiple ASTAR research entities under a common framework to help smooth the execution of future research collaborations, and attract participation from more organisations.

Wong said: “Sembcorp Marine views the MRCA not only as a natural progression of our long-standing working relationship with ASTAR, but also as an example of how the public and private sectors can work with each other towards highly rewarding research outcomes. We are honoured to have ASTAR on board our R&D journey.”

ASTAR chief executive Frederick Chew said: “ASTAR is committed to strengthen support for local enterprises such as Sembcorp Marine, one of the key players in Singapore’s offshore and marine ecosystem.

“Sembcorp Marine is a long-time partner, and our collaborations have led to positive outcomes for industry and the economy. This MRCA to co-innovate in digital design and advanced manufacturing takes our partnership to a new level.”