Elevating collaborative relation with Antah Schindler

Stefano Montresor (14^th from left) with Prof Chuah and representatives from UTAR and Antah Schindler

UTAR officially inked a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Antah Schindler Sdn Bhd, a leading global elevator manufacturer, at Sungai Long Campus on 15 January 2019.

Signing on behalf of the parties were UTAR President Ir Prof Academician Dato’ Dr Chuah Hean Teik and Antah Schindler Sdn Bhd Managing Director Stefano Montresor. The signing was witnessed by UTAR Vice President for R&D and Commercialisation Prof Ts Dr Faidz bin Abd Rahman and Antah Schindler Sdn Bhd Human Resource Director Serena Tan.

During the MoU signing

Prof Chuah and Stefano Montresor (second from right) exchanging the MoU under the witness of Prof Faidz (far left) and Serena Tan (far right)

In his remarks, Prof Chuah expressed his appreciation to Antah Schindler Sdn Bhd for their kind assistance and willingness to work with UTAR LKC FES in providing more collaborative opportunities such as internship, recruitment of students and R&D. “I hope that our faculty will work closely with the industry, at least bringing industrial projects to our students so that they could step into the real world rather than just being exposed to academic exercise,” said Prof Chuah, adding that the company’s knowledge and expertise, as a major industry player, would certainly be very beneficial to UTAR students.

Stefano Montresor, on the other hand, thanked UTAR for the warm welcome. After a brief introduction about his company, he pointed out the needs of confronting the rapidly-evolving environment and he stressed on the importance of the MoU as a great opportunity to tap into some of the brightest young minds as well as to develop their talents and potential. Echoing the values of UTAR which were highlighted in the corporate video, he said that the innovation and creativity were very important to get ahead of the competitors. He also looks forward to a very fruitful partnership with UTAR.

Saravana providing a deeper insight into the development of industry evolution

Moreover, Programme Head Digital Business of Antah Schindler Sdn Bhd Saravana Kumar Paramasivam gave a presentation about the Schindler new technology—Schindler Ahead during the ceremony. He first talked about the dynamics and evolution of industries and then explained the significant impact of technology on various industries. “We are living in a world where the industry keeps changing at a very rapid pace. One of the key drivers of change is technology. It has disrupted the industry in the traditional way of doing business, such as taxi, advertising and printing, music and hospitality industry,” he said, adding that it was essential to keep up-to-date with technology in order to stay ahead of others.

He also presented a chart showing the tremendous amount of money spent on Internet of Things (IoT) by vertical worldwide in 2015 and 2020. According to him, the company has dubbed the term of IoT as the “Internet of Elevators and Escalator” (IoEE), and the first product associated with the IoEE was a smart urban mobility platform called—“Schindler Ahead”. He provided an overall picture of how the entire operation of the IoT system works and explained how this advanced technology could solve some challenges that come with rapid urbanisation and bring people a greater convenience.

Also present at the signing ceremony were Antah Schindler Sdn Bhd Head of Technical Training Ir Lee Wei Jye, Learning and Development Manager Suellen Teh, Existing Installation (EI) Director Alvin To, Human Resources Business Partner Ann Chong and Assistant Manager Muhamad Fairuz Zainal Abidin. Representing UTAR were Lee Kong Chian Faculty of Engineering and Science (LKC FES) Dean Prof Ir Dr Goi Bok Min, LKC FES Student Development and Industrial Training Deputy Dean Ir Dr Lim Jee Hock, Division of Community and International Networking Director Assoc Prof Dr Lai Soon Onn, heads and lecturers.

The event ended on a high note with souvenir exchange ceremony, followed by a photography session.

Stefano Montresor presenting a token of appreciation to Prof Chuah (left)