FAM and CENTS organised webinar to discuss the necessity of invention

Dr Peter Thong wishes the participants “Happy International Women’s Day”

There are strong reasons why certain individuals and organisations are pushed or pulled toward innovation. Certain transformations caused by innovations are phenomenal whereby the outcome can evolve into pillars of employment, empowerment and economic growth. With the aim to expose that concept to more than 100 participants, the Faculty of Accountancy and Management (FAM) and Centre for Entrepreneurial Sustainability (CENTS) jointly organised a webinar titled "Necessity is the mother of invention” on 8 March 2021 via Zoom.

“So many products and services are being made and offered in this world because necessity is the one that created all of these. In this webinar, I would like to show you the journey of different areas which you have not experienced before. I will also highlight the salient point so you can shape yourself for the future, especially after you graduate,” said Dr Peter Thong as he explained his presentation title.

Dr Peter Thong explaining the impact of Covid-19 on world GDP

Dr Peter Thong, who is one of the industry advisors for FAM said, “We can’t run away from Covid-19 but we can question ourselves on what can we do? Is there any opportunity that we can tap into? Is there a problem we can solve? These require creativity and we need to think out of the box and invent new things. We must not all the time think of only being in Malaysia, we must think of ourselves as international citizens. Only through this way, we can be part of the world and take part in the world economy and invent new things for the world population to use. This can empower us to create things not only for Malaysia but for other countries as well. We as international citizens must feel that we are part of two countries and we need to see how we can work together to serve the population.”

He also spoke about the Covid-19’s impact on world gross domestic product (GDP) in 2020, takeaway lessons to learn to recover from the Covid-19 impact, ASEAN countries and its unique selling point and its trade with China as well as the four industrial revolutions.

”Emotional skill is equally important to IQ and adversity quotient especially when one wants to invent something. Digitisation builds skill sets for the future, supports technology adoption by private sector and public sector, promotes lifelong learning and counteracts the brain drain while strengthening regional cross-border digital collaboration and improving the ecosystem for start-ups. 5G commercialisation will redefine the connectivity in Malaysia and create opportunity for invention,” added Dr Peter Thong.

Webinar moderator Dr Yeong Wai Mun (top row, far left) and Dr Peter Thong (top row, middle) with the participants

Dr Peter Thong is the first Malaysian to graduate in Industrial Engineering and Management at Aston University, England in July 1970. He chose the course as Singapore was embarking on an Industrialisation Programme during that time. In Malaysia, Dr Peter Thong pioneered the use of steel reinforcing fabric (BRC) for high rise structures and drainage projects. In Hong Kong, he introduced solid state frequency converters to service 84 aircrafts 24/7 in Kai Tak Airport and he was also engaged in a number of projects in the development of Chek Lap Kok Airport in Hong Kong. In addition, Dr Peter Thong initiated the manufacture of steel reinforcing fabric, metal cladding sheet insulated panel systems and wide span pre-engineered buildings in China. Currently, Dr Peter Thong is engaged in advanced technologies in emerging markets.