13 March 2006, Singapore – Seiko Instruments Singapore Pte. Ltd. (Abbreviation: SIS; President: Kazuo Inoue; Head office: 2, Marsiling Lane, Singapore), one of the key overseas subsidiaries of Seiko Instruments Inc. (Abbreviation: SII; President: Yukihiko Chayama; Head Office: 1-8 Nakase, Mihama-ku, Chiba City, Chiba Prefecture; Tel: +81-(0)43-211-1111), celebrates the 30th anniversary of its official foundation in 1976. Receiving the International Headquarters (IHQ) Award from Singapore’s Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew at its 30th anniversary celebration, SIS announces its commitment to further expand its business growth in and deepen its relationship with Singapore.
SII will also establish a new research and development center in Singapore to start collaborative research with national research institutions.
1. 30th Anniversary of SIS
Today, in commemoration of its 30th year in business in Singapore, SIS welcomes Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew and many other distinguished guests to its 30th anniversary celebration at the Ritz Carlton Singapore.
SIS was officially opened by the then Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew on 19 March 1976, as the first overseas production base of watch movements within the SII group and has enjoyed constant development as the major manufacturing center of the group. Currently half of all watch movements manufactured by the SII group are assembled in SIS. SIS also leverages its advanced techniques developed over the years in thermal printer manufacturing. The company is also reinforcing its function as a sales base of electronic components and scientific instruments for the ASEAN market.
2. IHQ Award from Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB)
In September 2005, SII headquarters operations for project management and production management related to the watch movement business were relocated from SII to SIS and SIS launched the first overseas headquarters operation within SII. With further relocation of R&D and financial operations related to this business being planned, SIS will be positioned as SII’s primary foothold in promoting global operations in concert with other offices in Asia.
Recognizing these efforts, the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB), a Singapore government agency, decided to confer the IHQ award to SIS in September 2005 with the official award presentation ceremony taking place today.
Commenting on Singapore’s partnership with SIS, Mr. Teo Ming Kian, Chairman of the Singapore Economic Development Board, said, “We are honored that SIS continues to place its trust in Singapore, growing and expanding its operations over the three decades. With the International Headquarters Award and the establishment of the R&D center, Singapore’s position as the hub of SIS’s operations in the precision engineering industry is further reinforced. We are confident that Singapore will continue to play an instrumental role in the future of SIS and look forward to even stronger partnership.”
3. Establishment of R&D Center in Singapore
SII will establish an R&D center in Singapore – the first corporate R&D center outside of Japan – in April 2006 mainly to drive collaborative research with national research institutes under the Singapore Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR).
The new R&D center has already entered into a three-year Master Research Collaboration Agreements with A*STAR’s Data Storage Institute (DSI), one of the world’s leading institutes in hard disk research, in the area of “Future Fundamental Technologies in Storage” and with the Institute of High Performance Computing (IHPC) in the area of “CAE-Driven Development Efficiency”. The center will also pursue joint development with the Singapore Institute of Manufacturing Technology in the areas of “Production Process Innovation” and with the Institute of Microelectronics in the area of “Next Generation Packaging and Sensor Technologies”. The scope of joint research will ultimately expand to include biotechnology support equipment research.
Through this international industry-government partnership, SII will pursue planning and promotion of next-generation development themes as well as improvement in efficiency and speed of development. It will turn the results obtained into development of new businesses and new products by utilizing SIS and other production plants in neighboring countries. In addition to promotion of such joint research, the company will further strengthen its capacity for technological development by fostering global R&D resources, recruiting local developers, and understanding global technology trends and needs.
The R&D center will start as a representative office in Biopolis with a goal of expansion to a facility with between 10 to 20 staff members in 2010.
By reinforcing business activities based in Singapore, SII and SIS aim to deploy their operations globally and deliver further benefits to the Asian region and the world.
[About SIS]
Corporate Name: Seiko Instruments Singapore Pte.Ltd.
Representative: Kazuo Inoue
Established: 12th September, 1973 (Official launch: 19th March, 1976)
Capital: S$ 32,288,000
Sales: US$ 120 million (FY2004)
Business Description: manufacturing of watch movements and printers; and sales of electronic components and scientific instruments
Location: 2, Marsiling Lane, Singapore
[About SII]
Corporate Name: Seiko Instruments Inc.
Representative: Yukihiko Chayama
Established: 7th September, 1937
Capital: JPY 4.75 billion
Sales: JPY 245.8 billion (FY 2004, consolidated)
Business Description: manufacturing and sales of watches, watch movements, HDD components, electronic components, information equipment, etc.
Location, 1-8 Nakase, Mihama-ku, Chiba City, Chiba Prefecture
[About SII Singapore Representative Office]
Name: Singapore Representative Office
Start of Operation: late April, 2006 (planned)
Business Description: promotion of joint research, investigation and planning of technology development
Location: Biopolis, Singapore
Contact Information
Joanne Seow (Ms)
The Right Spin Public Relations
Tel: +65 62707991
Mobile: +65 9338 9317
Email : joanne@therightspin.com.sg
Doris Yang (Ms)
The Right Spin Public Relations
Tel : +65 6270 2991
Mobile : +65 9367 5336
Email : stacy@therightspin.com.sg
Inoue (Mr.) and Arai (Ms.)
Corporate Communications Group
General Planning Division
Seiko Instruments Inc.
Tel: +81-(0)43-211-1185
Email : pr@sii.co.jp