Green, bio, plastic electronics and security output to soar

Ong Boon Kiat, Business Times 4 Dec 09;

(SINGAPORE) Green electronics, bio-electronics, plastic electronics and security should triple in terms of their collective contribution to Singapore's electronics output to 30 per cent over the next 10 years, Economic Development Board deputy managing director Tan Choon Shian said yesterday.

Riding on existing strengths, EDB has identified the four growth areas to 'pre-position' Singapore, Mr Tan said at a briefing.

He also had good news to electronics job seekers, saying companies here have recently indicated that they are looking to hire workers in anticipation of the upswing.

On the four new prongs of growth, Mr Tan said: 'We are optimistic because the mega trends are driving these growth areas. At this moment I do not see any big risk factors'.

EDB expects the four areas to contribute 30 per cent of Singapore's electronics output by 2020, up from about 10 per cent now, he said.

Singapore's electronics sector produced about $68 billion of goods last year, providing employment close to 92,000 workers. According to EDB's latest figures, the sector's output grew 17.7 per cent year-on-year in October. Year-to-date, the electronics sector has contracted 15.2 per cent compared with the same period in 2008.

Examples of green electronics products are energy-efficient computers and solar panels. Bio-electronics products include devices such as artificial hearts and infectious disease identification chips. Plastic electronics are products with circuits created out of ink through printing, such as flexible memory devices and printed solar cells. Security products includes video surveillance systems and biometric devices.

Mr Tan said that there is a growing appetite for clean energy and innovative healthcare solutions, while demand for plastic electronics should soar once products are available at the 'right price points'. And security-related electronics products will be in demand because 'security will always remain a very important aspect of our lives'.

'On the technology front, maybe some things will take a bit longer to commercialise, but on the other hand it may be faster. So we have to build up the capabilities to be ready when the opportunities come,' he said.

And when these opportunities blossom, an electronics industry such as that in Singapore, which has a good track record of being able to design and produce goods quickly, will be well placed to take advantage of them.

On immediate prospects, Mr Tan said that the consensus is the 'worst is over' for the electronics sector here. And he expects hiring to pick up. 'In our conversations with companies in the electronics industry in the past two, three months, we are hearing companies say they are going to hire people because they are preparing for the upturn,' he said.

'And if the upturn continues, as we hope it will, then there will be more hiring on all fronts, in all parts of the electronics industry.'