Mr S Iswaran at the Launch of the Precision Engineering Workforce Skills Qualifications System

SPEECH BY MINISTER OF STATE FOR TRADE AND INDUSTRY, MR S ISWARANAT THE LAUNCH OF THE PRECISION ENGINEERING WORKFORCE SKILLS QUALIFICATIONS SYSTEM ON WEDNESDAY, 16 AUGUST 2006, 9.30AM AT RED DOT MUSEUM

Dr Moh Chong Tau, President and CEO of Makino Asia, Chairman of the Precision Engineering Industry Skills and Training Council and Honorary Secretary of SPETA

Members of the Precision Engineering Industry Skills and Training Council

Ladies and gentlemen

Introduction

I am pleased to be with you this morning for the launch of the Precision Engineering Workforce Skills Qualifications system (PE WSQ).

Despite the rise of China as a global manufacturing force, Singapore’s manufacturing sector has been able to hold its own.Manufacturing has accounted for a steady 25% share of our GDP over the past 15 years, and now provides jobs to over 20% of our workforce.While lower value-added activities have indeed moved away, Singapore has been climbing the value chain to higher value-added, more sophisticated activities.In fact, manufacturing growth has averaged 8.6% from 2002-2005, outstripping that of services, which grew at 5.2% in the same period.

The PE Industry

The Precision Engineering (PE) industry is the backbone of the manufacturing sector; it supports a large number of manufacturing industries such as Electronics, Chemicals, Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology, Aerospace, Oil & Gas and Automotive.The PE industry does not just manufacture end-products like semiconductor wire bonders or medical equipment.It also manufactures many intermediate components that go into products we use everyday, such as hard disk drives components, ink cartridges and precision gears for printers, light guides for handphones, and housings for automotive crash sensors. Singapore commands sizeable global market shares in some of these products. Today, our companies account for70% of the global market for semiconductor wire and ball-bonder units. Singapore is also home to at least 5 major semiconductor and industrial equipment manufacturers.

I believe Singapore’s PE industry will continue to find a niche for itself.And, it has strong growth potential.PE’s output is projected to expand to $28 billion, and value-add to double to about $10 billion, by 2018.

Much of the new growth in PE will be in plants adopting new technologies and producing higher value-added and better quality products, such as those in Medical Technology. For example, the single point diamond turning process, which has been used to fabricate optical mould inserts, is a new technology[1] that has produced higher quality products. The process involves the use of ultrasonic vibration on the cutter during the cutting process to produce steel tools with longer shelf life and good surface finishing.

At the same time, PE companies may be moving their lower end manufacturing operations overseas, to locations like China, Malaysia and Indonesia.Thus, for more Singaporeans to capitalise fully on opportunities in the PE industry and find good jobs there, they must have the latest skills. Our local talent must keep up to date with new technologies.Only then would they be able to seize these emerging job opportunities.This is where WDA and the Workforce Skills Qualifications system (or WSQ) come in.

Benefits of WSQ

Precision Engineering is the first manufacturing industry to benefit from WSQ.What is WSQ and why is it important?First, it provides a clearer in-road for mid-career workers to join the PE industry. Unlike the services sectors, the barriers to entry for jobs in the manufacturing industries are typically higher due to the specialised technical skills involved.More time, resources and capital are required to train workers for these industries.A structured training system like WSQ that is aligned to industry standards is therefore critical. The necessary competencies will be packaged into bite-sized training modules, so that any worker who is prepared to work hard and try, can attain national WSQ qualifications, and aspire for a career in the industry that WSQ has prepared him or her for.

Second, WSQ helps workers upgrade their skills to advance in their career or tackle new high technology work in the industry. As PE moves towards higher value-added activities, workers need to be up-skilled to undertake new tasks such as CNC[2] machining or advanced coating processes, often using advanced or semi-automated machinery. Sometimes, re-skilling to adapt to new job requirements can make the difference between having a job and not having a job.The Industry Skills & Training Council (ISTC) led by Dr Moh has devoted considerable time and effort to identify the skills set required to propel our PE WSQ forward.It can serve as a blueprint for PE companies to develop their workforce to support higher value-added activities.

Finally, WSQ will help professionalise the industry, by according workers formal skills qualifications recognized by the Government and the industry.I am encouraged that many companies in the precision engineering sector have come on board as early adopters of WSQ. They include Makino Asia, Sunningdale Tech, Cameron, Fu Yu, Hamilton Sundstrand, Phillips ETG, Nanotechnology, Seksun, and ASM. These companies are prepared to adopt the WSQ standards as the basis to recruit, assess and train their workforce.For a worker, a PE WSQ qualification now means more employment opportunities.For the companies, it means an additional avenue to recruit skilled workers.

To make training readily available to our workers, WDA has collaborated with strong training providers such as the Institute of Technical Education, Nanyang Polytechnic, Singapore Precision Engineering & Tooling Association (SPETA) and DMG[3] to deliver PE WSQ courses. WDA is also working to get other training providers on board to offer a wider variety of PE WSQ courses.

This does not mean that every worker must attend classes.The WSQ system also recognises prior learning and experience of our workers. Through the Assessment-Only-Pathway (AOP) scheme under WSQ, a skilled worker who can demonstrate the necessary competencies can obtain relevant certification by undertaking the assessment directly without having to attend the entire duration of training.

For example, Makino has 2 machine assemblers who have gone through the Assessment-Only-Pathway certification under the PE WSQ. Prior to WSQ, Makino’s Assembler Technician, Mr Mohd Noor did not have any formal certification despite having the relevant skills. He also found it hard to find time for further education. By going through the Assessment-Only-Pathway under the PE WSQ, his skills are now formally recognised, and he can build on it further.

Conclusion

The PE WSQ system reflects the collective commitment of industry, union and the Government to raise the skill levels and enhance the competitiveness of the PE workforce. I would like to thank Dr Moh for providing the leadership and guidance for this project, and all the companies and partners who have stepped forward to get it started.Together with WDA, you have helped more Singaporeans benefit from the growth prospects and job opportunities in our PE industry.Thank you.

[1] Another example of new technology being employed in the PE industry are the Advanced Robotic and High Precision Motion Technologies, which allows the combination of automation systems and human operation for processes such as welding, polishing, spraying and inspection.This process enhances the efficiency and flexibility of these manufacturing processes.

[2] Computer Numerated Control (CNC) machining is a process that utilizes CNC programming to do traditional machining operations such as turning, milling and grinding.

[3] Deckel Maho Gildemeister (DMG) Asia Pacific Pte Ltd is a member of the German-based Glidemeister Group.They provide industrial training for the industry, including in CNC machining.