EDMONTON, Alberta, May 31 (Bernama-GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- DrugBank, the world's most complete and up-to-date pharmaceutical knowledge database, expands coverage to better serve global customers. Seven new additional regions have been added to its product offering including Austria, Colombia, Indonesia, Italy, Malaysia, Thailand, and Turkey. On top of DrugBank’s existing coverage, customers can access new drug datasets for drug products and drug indications, specific to each new region.
“With these new additions, our pharmaceutical knowledge base becomes even more accessible and comprehensive,” explains Mike Wilson, CEO of DrugBank. “It allows new customers around the world better access to our product offerings, and helps existing customers grow into new markets”.
For clinical software customers, such as those in the electronic medical records (EMR) industry, they can use their local region as an entry point to the rest of DrugBank’s structured clinical information.
Those who operate in multiple regions can access clinical information through any combination of regions with one single API. More customers around the world can now search and store up-to-date medications faster and with more accuracy.
Moreover, the expanded coverage lets customers who provide advanced clinical decision support to use DrugBank’s detailed datasets for data analysis and insight generation. DrugBank solves a critical first step, for such users, as it normalizes multi-region medication data by mapping them to common identifiers, and keeps these mappings updated periodically.
PHARMACEUTICAL KNOWLEDGE DATABASE DRUGBANK EXPANDS COVERAGE TO MALAYSIA
Monday, 31 May 2021
PHARMACEUTICAL KNOWLEDGE DATABASE DRUGBANK EXPANDS COVERAGE TO MALAYSIA
KPS SHAREHOLDERS APPROVE ALL RESOLUTIONS PROPOSED BY THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS AT THE 44TH ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING & THE FOLLOWING EXTRAORDINARY GENERAL MEETING
• Annual General Meeting Approves Final Dividend Proposal for Financial Year Ended 31 December 2020
• Extraordinary General Meeting Greenlights Resolution Leading to the Deferment of the Second Year Profit Guarantee by ToyoplasSHAH ALAM, Malaysia, May 27 (Bernama) -- Kumpulan Perangsang Selangor Berhad’s (“KPS” or “the Company” or “the Group”) (KPS, Bursa: 5843; Bloomberg: KUPS:MK; Reuters: KPSB.KL) shareholders approved all resolutions on the agenda at the 44th Annual General Meeting (“AGM”). Subsequently, at the Extraordinary General Meeting (“EGM”), the shareholders also approved the proposed deferment of the second-year profit guarantee by Toyoplas Manufacturing (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd (“Toyoplas”).
As part of safety measures given COVID-19 pandemic, and in line with the Guidance Note on the conduct of general meeting issued by the Securities Commission Malaysia on 5 March 2021, the AGM and EGM were conducted entirely through live streaming, broadcast from KPS’ Corporate Office. KPS had prior planned to allow shareholders to vote electronically and transmit questions or remarks to the Board of Directors on the Remote Participation and Voting (RPV) platform.
At the AGM, KPS shareholders approved a final single-tier dividend of RM13.4 million or 2.5 sen per share for the financial year ended (“FYE”) 2020. The dividend payout represents 39.3% of the Group’s corresponding normalised PATAMI of RM34.1 million, well above what is guided by its recently adopted dividend policy, which is at least 30% of the normalised PATAMI. The final annual dividend will be payable on 24 June 2021, entitled to shareholders of record at the close of business on 31 May 2021.
In his presentation on the business review, Ahmad Fariz Hassan, the Managing Director/Group Chief Executive Officer, said that 2020 was shaped by the ongoing challenges in navigating and rising above business challenges arising from the pandemic. Despite the unprecedented challenges, KPS once again demonstrated its capacity for strategic agility, value creation and operational efficiency, having delivered better-than-expected results that confirmed the effectiveness of the Group’s strategy.
The Group surpassed its RM1 billion revenue mark for fiscal 2020, growing commendably by 24.2% to RM1.1 billion, compared with RM866.8 million recorded in the corresponding period in 2019. Manufacturing contributed 83.1%, growing by 37.4% to RM894.6 million. The revenue contribution was followed by trading and licensing, each contributed 11.5% and 3.6%, growing by 5.7% to RM124.1 million and 8.0% to RM39.2 million, respectively. Infrastructure slagged, contributed 0.9% or RM9.1 million. Property investment contributed lower this period, contributing to the remaining RM9.5 million or 0.9% to the Group’s revenue.
Higher input costs at the manufacturing subsidiary level, lower interest income, and higher forex loss and impairment on an asset held for disposal resulted in lower operating profits by 33.1% to RM51.0 million.
The impact of operating profit to the bottom line was buffered by lower finance costs of RM30.4 million and higher share of profits from associates of RM36.6 million. As a result, PBTZ increased moderately by 4.1% to RM57.3 million. The Group posted RM34.1 million Profit Attributable to the Owners of the Parent, 26.9% higher than RM26.9 million registered in the corresponding period last year.
At the EGM, shareholders approved the only resolution on the agenda proposing the variation to the share sale agreement (“SSA”) of Toyoplas Manufacturing (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd (“Toyoplas”) dated 17 May 2019 between its Vendors and Guarantors, and KPS’ wholly-owned subsidiary Perangsang Dinamik Sdn Bhd (“PDSB”). The variations of the relevant provisions in the SSA include, among others, the deferment of the second-year profit guarantee of not less than RM42.3 million from FYE 2020 to FYE 2021. Other variations are subject to the conditions of the Variation Agreement entered into on 25 February 2021 between PDSB, the Vendor and the Guarantors.
The Vendor and the Guarantors had on 14 January 2021 requested for a deferral of the Second Year Profit Guarantee from FYE 2020 to FYE 2021 due to unprecedented challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic in the year 2020 that affected the business operations and financial performance of Toyoplas. The impact of the pandemic on Toyoplas’ financial performance had resulted in an aggregate shortfall to the Second Year Profit Guarantee of RM31.3 million.
KPS’ Managing Director/Group Chief Executive Officer, Ahmad Fariz Hassan, said:
“The steady revenue growth we registered in fiscal 2020 was the result of our agility in navigating the operational challenges such as disruption in supply chains and customer demand.Notwithstanding these challenges, our continuous efforts in ensuring the continuity of our operations strengthened our resilience. We assessed and responded quickly to these disruptions, ensuring the adaptability of our production. I am pleased to note that our manufacturing subsidiaries remained the main and steady contributor to the Group’s revenue even in a volatile operating environment.
Returning capital to shareholders in the form of 2.5 sen final dividend per ordinary share for FYE 2020 despite the current challenging economic landscape shows our financial commitment to the shareholders for their continued confidence and support. This is also a reflection of the Group’s healthy financial position and our confidence in creating value for our shareholders and the Company’s financial future. With the dividend payment, our excess capital remains at a level that will afford us the financial flexibility to grow our business and ensure a healthy balance sheet.
Concerning the deferment of the second-year profit guarantee by Toyoplas, the profit guarantee was determined based on business-as-usual assumptions at the point of the acquisition in 2019. Like many companies globally, in 2020, Toyoplas faced unforeseeable and unprecedented challenges at the onslaught of the COVID-19 pandemic, disrupting its business operations, market demand and supply chain, stifling its financial performance as a result. We believe that the variation provides a fair opportunity for Toyoplas to achieve the second-year profit guarantee in FYE 2021 with the expected alleviated business conditions in 2021 resulting from the anticipated revival of the global economy.”
GROUP PROSPECT
The staggered availability of the COVID-19 vaccine is expected to support the progress of the global economic revival, with many industries already adjusting to the new normal and planning for business recovery.
Having managed its business continuity and business resilience in 2020, KPS is expected in 2021 to focus on recovery, strategising on how it can grow on new possibilities to ensure that the Group continues to strengthen its prospect and, as a result, its earnings visibility. To drive this, its long-term strategic goals and value creation plans aim at further improvement in operational efficiency, penetration into new market segments and expansion of product mix and services across the subsidiaries.
“The lingering impact of the pandemic in the medium-term warrants prudence in manoeuvring our business as we advance, our resilience in critical areas such as demand and supply chain, the safety of the workforce and digital enablement has enabled us to navigate the arising complexity with more agility. Notwithstanding the above, we have persisted in consolidating our business strategy for our core business and look to the future with a relentless commitment to securing sustainable growth. Going forward, we are prepared to take advantage of the Group’s underlying fundamentals for potential success as we head into the new business reality”, Ahmad Fariz commented on the Group’s prospect for 2021 at the conclusion of the 44th AGM.
About Kumpulan Perangsang Selangor Berhad (www.kps.com.my)
Incorporated on 11 August 1975, Kumpulan Perangsang Selangor Berhad (“KPS” or “the Company” or “the Group”) is a public limited liability company listed on the Main Market of Bursa Malaysia Securities Berhad under the Industrial Products & Services Sector. KPS has core investments in the Manufacturing sector, as well as businesses in the Trading, Licensing, and Infrastructure sectors. While strengthening our business to optimise returns, KPS is committed to providing significant contributions towards sustainable development in the areas of economic, environmental, and social for the benefits of all stakeholders.
SOURCE: Kumpulan Perangsang Selangor Berhad
http://mrem.bernama.com/viewsm.php?idm=40121
Friday, 28 May 2021
TOSHIBA LAUNCHES PHOTOVOLTAIC-OUTPUT PHOTOCOUPLER FOR ISOLATED SSR FUNCTIONS
KUALA LUMPUR, May 28 (Bernama) -- Toshiba Electronic Devices & Storage Corporation (Toshiba) has launched ‘TLP3910’, a photovoltaic-output photocoupler (photovoltaic coupler) housed in a thin SO6L package.
It is suitable for driving the gates of high-voltage power MOSFETs used as isolated solid state relay (SSR) functions.
In a statement, Toshiba said the volume production shipments have started.
An SSR is a kind of semiconductor relays that has a photo triac, a photo transistor or photo thyristor as its output device, suitable for applications for performing ON/OFF control of large currents.
A photovoltaic coupler is a photorelay with its optical devices but without the MOSFET used to perform switching functions.
In configuring an isolated SSR, high-voltage, large-current switching, which photorelays handle with difficulty, can be implemented easily by combining a photovoltaic coupler and a MOSFET.
Driving a high-voltage power MOSFET with a gate voltage of 10V or higher, requires connecting two of Toshiba’s current product, the TLP3906, in series, as it has a low open voltage.
In contrast, the new TLP3910 has a minimum open voltage of 14V, double that of TLP3906, and only one is required to drive the gate of a high-voltage power MOSFET, contributing to part-count reduction.
-- BERNAMA
MONDE NISSIN COMPLETES IPO SHARES OFFERING PERIOD
KUALA LUMPUR, May 28 (Bernama) -- Monde Nissin Corporation (Monde Nissin) has completed the offering period for its proposed initial public offering (IPO) of 3,600,000,000 Common Shares (the Offering) at a price of Php13.50 per share, with an overallotment option of a further 540,000,000 Common Shares granted by the Selling Shareholder. (Php100 = RM8.643)
The Offering received overwhelming interest from global institutional investors and long-only funds, as well as strong demand from Philippines-based investors, resulting in an international and domestic book building process that was multiple times oversubscribed.
Based on a statement, the IPO is the largest ever on the Philippines Stock Exchange (PSE) and the largest food and beverage IPO in Southeast Asia.
It raises Php48.6 billion for Monde Nissin, excluding underwriting commissions and other offering expenses payable by the Company.
The new international and domestic investors join the previously announced 11 renowned, global long-term cornerstone investors in making up Monde Nissin’s initial shareholder base.
“The extraordinary level of interest that we received from a broad range of international and domestic investors is a testament to the world-class company that we have built and the significant growth opportunities that lie ahead,” said Monde Nissin Chief Executive Officer, Henry Soesanto.
Monde Nissin expects to commence trading on the PSE under the ticker symbol ‘MONDE’ on June 1.
As previously announced, the Company intends to use the net proceeds from the primary offer to fund capital expenditures, redeem the Arran Convertible Note and repay loans to commercial banks.
More details at www.mondenissin.com
-- BERNAMA
TACONIC BIOSCIENCES RELEASES TRUIMPORT™ IMPORTATION SOLUTION
KUALA LUMPUR, May 28 (Bernama) -- Taconic Biosciences has announced a significant enhancement to the Taconic-Cyagen Model Generation Alliance, allowing seamless importation of new genetically engineered models originating in China under the TruIMPORT™ umbrella.
Originally launched in 2018, the Taconic-Cyagen Model Generation Alliance (the Alliance) for academic and non-profit researchers leverages the talents of two industry-leading companies to create a solution uniquely tailored for non-profit research institutions.
Based on a statement, Taconic Biosciences has over 65 years of rodent model experience and Cyagen Biosciences is a China-based leader in model generation efficiency and a competitive cost structure.
Since its inception, the Alliance has become a recognised leader in providing model generation services to academics and non-profit researchers.
TruIMPORT™ represents an important evolution in this service offering. It allows animal models from China to be imported into United States and European animal facilities while complying with existing vivarium requirements.
Providing a set of choices, TruIMPORT™ allows customers to access efficient model generation with several pricing options depending on desired delivery timeline, health standard, and cohort size.
Taconic vice president of scientific services, Dr John Couse said: “By creating multiple options under the TruIMPORT™ umbrella, customers can now import rodent models from China without quarantine regardless of the requirements of their vivarium.”
The TruIMPORT™ portfolio consists of three importation options - RapidRELAY™, RapidCHECK™ and RapidEXPANSION™.
-- BERNAMA
KANFER, TAIZHOU MAKE A SPLASH, SIGNING SHIPBUILDING CONTRACT
KUALA LUMPUR, May 28 (Bernama) -- Kanfer Shipping AS (Kanfer), the Norway-based shipping company, has signed a shipbuilding contract with China-based Taizhou Wuzhou Shipbuilding Industry Co Ltd (Taizhou).
It is for the construction of its first two small-scale LNG bunker and distribution ships with 6,000 cbm tank capacity each.
According to a statement, Kanfer had signed an LOI with Taizhou in January earlier this year.
The vessels are scheduled for delivery by second half 2023, with the option to build additional vessels.
“Taizhou has deep experience in building small-scale LNG carriers and Kanfer’s technological partner, CGR Arctic Marine AS, has worked closely for years with the yard,” said Founder and CEO Stig Hagen of Kanfer Shipping.
“This relationship and their competitiveness have made Taizhou an ideal choice for construction of Kanfer’s 6,000 cbm capacity small-scale vessels.”
CGR’s concept design for these two LNG bunker and distribution ships including their specialised cargo and gas process plants, addresses the immediate industry need for more cost-efficient and environmentally friendly LNG bunkering.
Key features include mono-tank design, with simple arrangement and minimal boil-off; pure gas electric power production combined with hybrid battery technology and lowest possible environmental footprint.
It also has extreme manoeuvrability with Azipull thrusters and bow thruster combined with joystick operation as well as 500 cbm MDO cargo tank.
All the technical features allow for both capex and opex savings. These savings result in lower day-rates for customers while at the same time offering excellent functionality and clear environmental benefits.
More details at http://kanfershipping.com/home/
-- BERNAMA
3-DAY INTERNATIONAL BIG DATA EXPO ENDS IN GUIYANG, CHINA
KUALA LUMPUR, May 28 (Bernama) -- The 2021 China International Big Data Industry Expo, the country's leading big data expo, recently kicked off in Guiyang, capital city of southwest China's Guizhou Province.
Based on a statement, the expo which was founded has become an international and professional platform for the development of big data as well as an industrial bellwether.
The three-day event, ending today, is jointly held by the local government as well as the country's top economic planner, industrial and information watchdogs.
With support from China's commerce ministry, the expo features domestic, global, industrial and business perspectives.
Themed ‘Embrace digital intelligence, Deliver new development’, the event includes conferences, exhibitions, new product launches, contests and other activities.
This year's expo is conducted both online and offline, seeking open cooperation and joint development of different stakeholders.
The online expo offers services like online communication, online exhibition, business negotiation, online forum and guest promotion, presenting a variety of exhibition functions.
The activities of the expo includes exhibitions to display new technologies, products, schemes and applications in big data as well as meetings and exchanges, talent introductions, night talks, salons and dialogues.
Guiyang City and Gui'an New District, as the core areas of the national big data (Guizhou) integrated pilot zone, have always been pioneers in big data development, posting leapfrogging progresses in industrial growth.
-- BERNAMA
Thursday, 27 May 2021
GMAC LAUNCHES OFFICIAL GMAT™ EXAM CHINESE MICROSITE
New website aims to better serve prospective students from the region pursuing a graduate business degree
RESTON, Va., May 27 (Bernama-GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Graduate Management Admission Council™ (GMAC™), the leading global association of business schools and administrator of the Graduate Management Admission Test™ (GMAT™), today announced the launch of the official GMATTM exam Chinese website, GMAT.com.cn. As the most widely used exam for graduate business school admissions and accepted by more than 7,000 graduate business programs worldwide, GMAT has been a leading assessment tool among the vast pool of talents in the greater China region for more than six decades.
Recognizing the growing interest in graduate management education (GME), GMAC established the microsite for prospective students from the region to access accurate, comprehensive, and authoritative information about the GMAT and GME in their native language more readily and comfortably. Through the localized and targeted content, the GMAT Chinese website, along with GMAT’s official WeChat account that went live earlier this year, provide the critical digital platforms to create and strengthen the connection between Chinese-speaking talents and the world's leading business schools in the region and beyond, and filling an information gap in the market.
“China has over the years grown into the second largest region for GMAT, after only the United States,” said Sangeet Chowfla, president and CEO of GMAC. “As vaccines become more widely available and hope for economic recovery begins to take root, we expect to see more mobility and look forward to more Chinese students starting and returning to their journey of graduate business education in their own country or abroad, benefiting from the new Chinese-language platforms we are offering today.”
According to GMAC’s 2021 mba.com Prospective Students Survey Report published in March, the level of concern about the impact of COVID-19 has been declining over time. Specifically, the proportion of Chinese respondents reporting that they are extremely or very concerned has dropped from 71 percent in July 2020 to 48 percent in November last year. The report also found that the Chinese respondents planning to pursue an MBA outside their country are not changing their original plans despite the pandemic, with 89 percent planning to pursue their MBA in the United States and 55 percent in the United Kingdom, making these two countries their top destinations of consideration.
“The interest in and desire of Chinese business talents to pursue graduate management studies have not declined but only been put on hold,” said Yuan Ding, vice president and dean of CEIBS and a board director of GMAC. “The official GMAT Chinese website will help connect Chinese business talents all over the world with global business schools and leave no talents undiscovered.”
More than seven million candidates on their business master's or MBA journey visited mba.com ― GMAC’s flagship graduate education resource and information portal ― to explore business school options, prepare and register for exams, and get advice on the admissions process. GMAC is committed to supporting the goals of Chinese prospective students who wish to prepare and register for the GMAT exam.
About GMAC™
The Graduate Management Admission Council™ (GMAC™) is a mission-driven association of leading graduate business schools worldwide. Founded in 1953, GMAC creates solutions and experiences that enable business schools and candidates to better discover, evaluate, and connect with each other.
GMAC™ provides world-class research, industry conferences, recruiting tools, and assessments for the graduate management education industry, as well as tools, resources, events, and services that help guide candidates through their higher education journey. Owned and administered by GMAC, the Graduate Management Admission Test™ (GMAT™) exam is the most widely used graduate business school assessment. GMAC™ also owns and administers the NMAT by GMAC™ (NMAT™) exam and the Executive Assessment (EA). BusinessBecause and The MBA Tour are subsidiaries of GMAC™, a global organization with offices in China, India, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
To learn more about our work, please visit www.gmac.com
Media Contact:
Teresa Hsu
Sr. Manager, Media Relations
202-390-4180 (mobile)
thsu@gmac.com
SOURCE : Graduate Management Admission Council
TELEDYNE IMAGING'S NEW 2K, 4K LINE SCAN CAMERAS PERFORM EXCEPTIONALLY
KUALA LUMPUR, May 27 (Bernama) -- Teledyne Imaging, a Teledyne Technologies company and global leader in machine vision, has launched the Linea™ Lite family of line scan cameras built for a wide range of machine vision applications.
The new Linea Lite cameras feature a 45 per cent smaller footprint than the original Linea. Based on a new proprietary CMOS image sensor from Teledyne Imaging, it expands on the success of the original series of low-cost, high-value Linea line scan cameras.
Designed to suit many applications, the Linea Lite offers customers a choice between high full well mode or high responsivity mode, via easy to configure gain settings, according to a statement.
The cameras are available in 2k and 4k resolutions, in monochrome and bilinear colour. Linea Lite has all the essential line scan features, including multiple regions of interest, programmable coefficient sets, precision time protocol (PTP), and TurboDrive™.
With GigE interface and power over Ethernet (PoE), Linea Lite is an excellent fit for applications such as secondary battery inspection, optical sorting, printed materials inspection, packaging inspection, and many more.
Linea Lite Product Manager, Mike Grodzki said: “We are thrilled to launch the new Linea Lite series of line scan cameras. This new family combines everything we’ve learned about machine vision over the years into a powerful and low-cost package.”
For more information, visit www.teledyneimaging.com
-- BERNAMA
Anaqua acquires Actio IP, offers integrated tech-enabled foreign filing solutions
KUALA LUMPUR, May 25 -- Anaqua, the leading innovation and intellectual property (IP) management technology provider, has acquired tech-enabled IP services company Actio IP from Acapo AS.
The transaction further strengthens Anaqua’s strategic line of IP management solutions, offering corporations and law firms an intuitive, transparent, and efficient experience in managing the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) National Phase and European Patent (EP) Validation filing processes.
Anaqua will continue to enhance Actio IP’s tech-enabled foreign filing services platform, ACTIO Portal, while significantly investing in the integration of the services with Anaqua’s IP management software and payment services.
Actio IP, which also offers IP renewals, will add incremental volume to Anaqua’s existing payments business, according to a statement.
“Both companies share a deep commitment to leveraging technology to optimise the IP workflow process,” said President of Anaqua Services, who will lead the new business unit, Christine Jennings.
“We believe this combination will enhance the customer experience by pairing our existing payments business with another high-quality service that can be seamlessly-integrated with our software platforms and other offerings.”
All Actio IP employees will join Anaqua as part of the acquisition, as the business expands its current operations in Bergen, Norway under the management of Actio IP executives Spencer Vold-Burgess and Anders Osa-Svanberg, who will both report to Jennings.
Latham & Watkins LLP and Wikborg Rein Advokatfirma AS served as legal counsel to Anaqua.
-- BERNAMA
Tuesday, 25 May 2021
FISERV SELECTED BY PAYMYTUITION TO ENABLE LOCAL PAYMENT METHODS FOR OVERSEAS SERVICES
KUALA LUMPUR, May 25 (Bernama) -- PayMyTuition is supporting a strategic expansion in China with the selection of Fiserv to facilitate tuition payments for Chinese students attending colleges and universities overseas.
Fiserv, a global leader in payments and financial technology, will enable PayMyTuition to accept payments using locally preferred methods and then settle the payment with the recipient institution in another currency.
The leading provider of technology-driven global payment processing solutions for tuition payments, PayMyTuition integrates directly into educational institutions’ student information and accounts payable (AP) systems.
As a result, students pay for their tuition without additional fees, while colleges and universities save time, human resources, and money, according to a statement.
Local digital payment methods such as Alipay, WeChat Pay and China UnionPay ExpressPay are preferred payment methods for students and consumers based in China.
The solution provided by Fiserv enables these familiar payment methods for consumers and students, with settlement in another currency to the service provider based outside of China, including Australian dollars, Canadian dollars, Singapore dollars and US dollars.
“We are proud to support PayMyTuition’s expansion in the market and their goal to simplify the payment of students’ tuition and fees,” said General Manager of Fiserv in Greater China, Sarah Wu.
“Whether providing services or online shopping to Chinese consumers, it is always preferred to offer familiar payment methods, streamlining the payments experience and reducing shopping cart abandonment.”
Fiserv pioneered domestic e-commerce acquiring to support multinational companies based worldwide who need to offer a familiar payment solution to Chinese consumers whilst receiving settlement in Yuan or another chosen currency.
-- BERNAMA
VOXELDANCE NAMES ROBERT YUSIN CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER
KUALA LUMPUR, May 25 (Bernama) -- Voxeldance, a leading provider of digital manufacturing software for additive 3D printing, has appointed Robert Yusin as Chief Operating Officer.
Yusin will lead operations and collaborate with the executive team to drive global growth.
He brings more than 25 years of global experience in manufacturing applications, security, network, storage, and cloud in software and hardware.
He was formerly one of three founders at Oqton. He also served as Director of Sales/business development at Autodesk where he pioneered the Asia market for the Autodesk Consumer Group division.
Yusin has built and managed companies and functions from zero to over US$300 million in revenue. (US$1 = RM4.140)
“Voxeldance offers software solutions that will integrate with the end-to-end digital factory for customers and partners,” he said in a statement.
“The leadership team has built a great company as evidenced by the portfolio of large enterprise customers and partners; I look forward to contributing to the team.”
According to Voxeldance Chief Executive Officer, Zhang Chaoxin, Yusin’s experience with start-ups with successful exits and domain expertise in manufacturing will help Voxeldance expand operations to support the next phase of growth.
-- BERNAMA
VOXELDANCE NAMES ROBERT YUSIN CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER
KUALA LUMPUR, May 25 (Bernama) -- Voxeldance, a leading provider of digital manufacturing software for additive 3D printing, has appointed Robert Yusin as Chief Operating Officer.
Yusin will lead operations and collaborate with the executive team to drive global growth.
He brings more than 25 years of global experience in manufacturing applications, security, network, storage, and cloud in software and hardware.
He was formerly one of three founders at Oqton. He also served as Director of Sales/business development at Autodesk where he pioneered the Asia market for the Autodesk Consumer Group division.
Yusin has built and managed companies and functions from zero to over US$300 million in revenue. (US$1 = RM4.140)
“Voxeldance offers software solutions that will integrate with the end-to-end digital factory for customers and partners,” he said in a statement.
“The leadership team has built a great company as evidenced by the portfolio of large enterprise customers and partners; I look forward to contributing to the team.”
According to Voxeldance Chief Executive Officer, Zhang Chaoxin, Yusin’s experience with start-ups with successful exits and domain expertise in manufacturing will help Voxeldance expand operations to support the next phase of growth.
-- BERNAMA
Monday, 24 May 2021
TOKYO'S TORANOMON-AZABUDAI, TORANOMON HILLS AREA PROJECTS PRE-CERTIFIED UNDER LEED ND, WELL
KUALA LUMPUR, May 24 (Bernama) -- Mori Building Co Ltd, Japan’s leading urban landscape developer has announced that major redevelopments currently being undertaken by the company in Tokyo have been pre-certified under the prestigious LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) and WELL (WELL Building Standard) rating systems.
The rating systems respectively certify environmentally-friendly and efficient green buildings and people’s wellbeing, according to a statement.
The Toranomon-Azabudai Project and Toranomon Hills Area Project both received top Platinum-level LEED ND (Neighborhood Development, v.4) pre-certifications. The Toranomon-Azabudai and Toranomon Hills Area projects are respectively the first and second projects in Tokyo to be pre-certified Platinum in the ND category.
LEED, managed by the US Green Building Council (USGBC), is the most widely used green-building rating system, evaluating and certifying buildings and cities worldwide for environmental performance in terms of water and energy efficiency, indoor environments and sustainable materials.
The A District of the Toranomon-Azabudai Project and the A-1 District of Toranomon Hills Station Tower (tentative name) received WELL (Core,v.2 Pilot) pre-certifications; the former is the world’s largest pre-certified property and the latter, Japan’s second largest pre-certified property.
Mahesh Ramanujam, president and chief executive officer of USGBC and also Green Business Certification Inc, which provides third-party credentialing and verification under the LEED, WELL and GRESB systems, said: “Mori Building’s sustainability efforts and its LEED Platinum achievement are fine examples of how organisations can transform their communities by lowering carbon emissions, creating healthier environments and work towards a zero-carbon future.”
Mori Building, based on its philosophy of ‘Create cities, nurture cities’, is committed to realising a sustainable global society through the harmonious co-existence of cities and nature, low-carbon cities and truly enhanced health.
More details at www.mori.co.jp/en.
-- BERNAMA
Saturday, 22 May 2021
GLAMHIVE’S DIGITAL SPRING STYLE AND BEAUTY SUMMIT GOES DIGITAL ON MAY 22
Foursquare buys geospatial analytics, visualisations platform Unfolded
KUALA LUMPUR, May 21 -- The leading independent location technology company, Foursquare has announced its acquisition of Unfolded, a next generation platform for geospatial analytics.
With the addition of Unfolded’s capabilities to the Foursquare technology stack, enterprises and brands can soon come to Foursquare to not only access its industry leading location data, but work with that data in an integrated platform for merging, enriching, analysing, and visualising spatial data.
“Welcoming Unfolded to the team makes the Foursquare platform more powerful, robust, and accessible to our clients and partners,” said Foursquare President and Chief Executive Officer, Gary Little in a statement.
“This acquisition accelerates us toward our ambitious goal of bringing Foursquare Everywhere, and enabling businesses to unlock the true potential of location and geospatial data and technology.”
Unfolded offers open source geospatial libraries and a flexible suite of advanced tooling including its signature product, Unfolded Studio, a self-serve platform that allows users to transform their geospatial data into insightful maps within minutes.
This acquisition propels Foursquare’s evolution into the singular source companies turn to, for high quality, easy-to-use location data and the technology they need to make sense of it.
Customers can seamlessly access and apply spatial features to a variety of first-party and third-party data sets to solve critical business challenges - from site selection and competitor conquesting to transaction improving customer loyalty and much more.
The Raine Group served as financial adviser and Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP acted as legal adviser to Foursquare.
-- BERNAMA
Friday, 21 May 2021
UMW HOLDINGS HELD VIRTUAL 39TH ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING; INTRODUCED NEW STRATEGIC FRAMEWORK TO CONTINUE DELIVERING LONG-TERM VALUE
- Achieved Group-wide cost reduction of RM134 million in 2020.
- Introduced a strategic framework in January 2021 to explore opportunities in the mobility space and its adjacencies.
KUALA LUMPUR, May 20 (Bernama) -- The 39th Annual General Meeting (“AGM”) of UMW Holdings Berhad was held virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic. At the AGM today, the Group reflected on its key achievements in 2020 and communicated its plans for 2021 and beyond, through its new strategic framework which will further strengthen the Group and continue to deliver long-term value to its stakeholders.
UMW Holdings Berhad President and Group CEO, Dato’ Ahmad Fuaad Kenali said, “In 2020, we have proven that the Group was able to recover and deliver solid results despite the challenging operating environment caused by the pandemic. The Group continues to strengthen in the domestic automotive industry, with a market share of 52.8% in 2020, the highest in its history. On the other hand, our cost optimisation efforts resulted in a Group-wide cost reduction of RM134 million in 2020 and we will continue to drive further cost-saving initiatives through continuous business process improvements. Overall, the Group’s performance for FY2020 exceeded our expectations which was driven mainly by the sales tax waiver given under the government’s stimulus package.”
In the Automotive segment, both UMW Toyota Motor (“UMWT”) and Perodua exceeded their revised sales targets for 2020 despite the disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. For 2021, UMWT targets to sell 62,000 units, 4.5% higher than the 59,320 units sold last year. On the other hand, Perodua is projecting 240,000 units this year, 9% higher than the 220,163 units delivered in 2020. New model launches, extension of sales tax exemption until 30 June 2021 and the low interest rate environment are expected to continue to drive demand and sales.
The Equipment segment continues to diversify its overall product offering with the inclusion of Kohler industrial generators that serve numerous market segments in 2020. In addition, it was also appointed as the preferred distributor for collaborative robot (Cobot) by Denmark’s leading robot maker, Universal Robots A/S thereby expanding its offering in automation and robotics. As part of the segment’s digitalisation efforts, e-CARA app, an all-in-one application for forklift solutions and services was launched. Moving forward, the Industrial Equipment sub-segment will push ahead with the development of flexible rental arrangements and focus on automation and digitalisation. Meanwhile, the Heavy Equipment sub-segment will work closely with its principals to secure new businesses in Malaysia and its overseas operations. The improving economic activities are also expected to increase demand for equipment.
The Manufacturing & Engineering segment saw the completion of Kayaba plant expansion and modernisation in 2020, which provides for an additional 20% capacity and features IR4.0 capabilities. Meanwhile, UMW Aerospace had commenced production of fan cases for Trent 7000 engines used in Airbus A330neo aircrafts and made its maiden delivery in October 2020.
The segment is expected to benefit from the improving sales of its auto components products in line with the expanded capacity gained from its new plant expansion. The Lubricants sub-segment will be expanding further into the commercial and industrial lubricants space in anticipation of increased demand especially from the ASEAN region. Despite the slowdown in the aviation sector, UMW Aerospace is still expected to receive firm orders from Rolls-Royce and will be looking forward to a recovery as the aviation industry recovers.
The Group also remains focused in unlocking and realising the value of its long-held landbank in Serendah. Developed as UMW High Value Manufacturing Park, it is both a managed and gated & guarded industrial park. The development offers investors customised factory spaces for high technology sectors such as aerospace, automotive, fast-moving consumer goods and other industrial and commercial sectors. Also, certain UMW operations in Shah Alam will be relocated to Serendah by the end of next year.
Dato’ Fuaad further added, “In January this year, we have introduced the CREST@2021 strategic framework. This initiative will drive our aspirations to seize the opportunities available in the mobility space and its adjacencies throughout the Group’s various businesses. I am excited about our prospects with CREST@2021 as the new strategic framework for the UMW Group to drive sustainable future growth of the Group.”
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