TECH EXPERTS

As a project lead at EWTCOI, Gerard Tee has worked on multiple industry projects and has experience in the design and development of various kinds of water systems, such as water mineralisation system; air-conditioning condensate to water purification system; as well as closed-loop laundry wastewater recycling system, closed-loop stepwise food process water treatment and reuse system, and closed-loop food wastewater & solid recovery system. Prior to joining EWTCOI, Gerard was a project lead at Hyflux. His past projects include Polymeric Membrane R&D and Production Scale Fabrications, Membrane Bioreactor (MBR) Skid Design and Fabrication, Treatment of Industrial Wastewater Using MBR Pilot Plant Design, Commissioning and Performance Test at Singapore, China, Malaysia sites, and Movable Containerise System of Ground Water Treatment System Development at Indonesia site.  Gerard has a Master’s of Science in Chemical Engineering from the National University of Singapore.

Ho Sin Chuan has 30 years of experience in Engineering, Operation, Quality, Reliability, Management Systems and Customer Quality, including more than 20 years of corporate management and leadership experience. In Seagate, he managed Process Engineering, Quality and Reliability departments, and has successfully launched and transferred products in various plants in Asia. He led cross functional teams in process engineering, quality, reliability, operations, supply chain, project/crisis management, as well as cross site inter-factory audits. He has led numerous cross site processes, automation and operations optimisation projects. He had successfully set up manufacturing operations in China, as well as a comprehensive product reliability and component qualification laboratory. He provided strategies to govern the operation of factories in Malaysia, Thailand and China. In SFS Electrical Division, he managed Corporate Quality in the manufacturing of precision engineering parts, metal and plastic and its surface treatment, as well as System Quality and EH&S Management. Sin Chuan deployed Lean Six Sigma and other problem solving methodologies to resolve and improve products and processes in the areas of automation, motor and mechanical parts assembly, actuator assembly, flex and PCB assembly, and server assembly. He also managed and participated both as sub system champion and internal auditor in various Quality System Certification throughout his career in Quality and Engineering.

Foo Jin Khoon is a manufacturing operations professional with more than 20 years of experience in the field of chemicals, renewable energy, electronics and automation. He is currently a freelance technical and engineering consultant. He is experienced in scaling up from lab or pilot scale chemical processes to establish full industry manufacturing facilities, including activities such as reviewing the products' requirements and applications, feasibility study for new machines or line processes, process studies, development of the plant conceptual design and layout, engineering, procurement and construction, designing full plant automation solutions as well as HSE and risk assessment.

With a PhD in Thermal and Fluids Engineering from Nanyang Technological University, Dr Jin has been working in the local environment and water industry for more than 10 years before joining EWTCOI. Currently he leads a team to provide consultancy services for local SMEs in the area of energy efficiency and water treatment technologies. They work with industrial collaborators on development, feasibility study and evaluation of new energy-efficient technologies for building air-conditioning and other industrial applications. He is also a registered Singapore Certified Energy Manager (SCEM) since 2015. Previously as technology and engineering manager in the environmental and water industry, he has the experience not only in the development and deployment of new technologies but also in providing innovative solutions to actual engineering projects. With broad and in-depth knowledge in various industrial processes and systems, he has been the technical leader for many industrial projects such as used oil recycling projects and membrane bio-reactor wastewater treatment projects covering from new process development, pilot plant design and test, to large scale EPC plant design review and testing and commissioning, and improvement and support of EPC plant operations.

Dr Sowrirajalu Bhuvana is Senior Manager for Technology at EWTCOI. She specialises in new material based membrane development, membrane based processes for various applications such as water treatment, waste volume reduction, solvent recovery, air filtration, etc. She also possesses expertise in bio-nanocomposites and nanomaterial based product development. She has helped many companies to develop and apply membranes for specific applications. Dr Bhuvana holds a PhD in Applied Chemistry and has authored more than 20 refereed articles and patents.

Dr Ong Mei Horng is currently Adjunct Professor for the Food Science, Technology Department at NUS, and supporting the IPI Innovation Advisors Programme as a freelance consultant/mentor for Food & Beverage MNC, start-ups and SMEs. She has over 28 years of FMCG industry experience and know-how, having worked in food and beverage companies like Nestlé, Mars, Cadbury, F&N and Vitasoy, in Europe, Oceania and Asia. Dr Ong is also a certified Smart Industry Readiness Index (SIRI) assessor for digital and advanced manufacturing. Prior to this, she was the Director in the FMCG Cluster at Advanced Remanufacturing and Technology Centre and led in the development and implementation of A*STAR's R&D strategies. She developed the FMCG membership consortium ecosystem with local and global companies to facilitate public-private partnerships in Advanced Manufacturing and Engineering. She was also the principal investigator responsible for designing and curating the world's first Next Generation Hyper-Personalisation Line for Future of Manufacturing (FoM) to offer Industry 4.0, digital, automated and intelligent systems for the food sector. She was Chief Scientific Officer of F&N Ltd, where she focused on R&D and Manufacturing strategies by building R&D/Technical Teams, delivering innovative and sustainable products/services and developing advanced processing, affordable, quality, health and technology platforms. As a recognition for her contribution for food research and industries, Dr Ong was elected as a council member for Singapore Institute of Food Science and Technology 42nd Council in June 2018. She was an active member of the Singapore Standard Development.

A/Prof Jack Wong has over 20 years of experience in regulatory, quality, clinical trial and pharmacovigilance in Asia, for medical devices, pharmaceuticals, nutritional, consumer healthcare and biological products. He has received awards on improving processes, including reducing 20% of time required for a product launch, and grooming people to contribute to their fullest ability. A/Prof Wong plays a leading role among all the regional regulatory professionals in the Asian Harmonisation Working Party (AHWP). He has developed the first Asia Regulatory Affairs Certificate course, which has been held since 2007 with over 2800 students from the industry, government and universities. A/Prof Wong is the founder of ARPA, which was established in 2010 with over 3600 members to date. He also wrote the first Asian regulatory book, ”Handbook of Medical Device Regulatory Affairs in Asia: Second Edition”. A/Prof Wong has a Six Sigma Black Belt certified by International Association For Six Sigma Certification (IASSC); the license as a Qualified Auditor of ISO 13485, Japanese Regulations for Medical Devices; and qualifications as an ISO 9000 Lead Auditor by British Standards Institution (BSI).

Jeremy Sun heads an award-winning strategic design and research consultancy. Together with his team, he has been empowering clients' business through innovative strategies and product/service solutions. He has also been on both ends of design awards, as jury and as an award-winning team lead, with international accolades. Jeremy has been leading Design Thinking, ethnography research and innovation programmes for Fortune 500 companies and Singapore government agencies, guiding the stakeholders to reframe challenges, create compelling visions and propositions, and craft innovations that resonate with their target audiences. Since 2001, Jeremy has been active in design education and promotion through lecturing in various design institutions and international design camps, training and mentoring the new generation of designers and innovators. He has also lent his experience and insight to help sculpt Singapore's master plans in the creative industry.

With over 30 years of experience in the luxury cosmetics, skincare and personal care industry in Europe and Asia, Domenico Balassi possesses a deep understanding of the industry on a local and global scale. He is now part of a team of consultants, located in Singapore and Milan, that provides companies with support to expand their businesses between Asia and Europe through different segments, such as advising on product regulatory and registration, designing the right strategy and finding the best opportunities. Domenico offers a single point of contact for manufacturers and brand owners in Singapore to help facilitate their product registration in the European Union.