Speech by SMS Sim Ann at the Fujitec Singapore Corporation Ltd's 50th Anniversary Dinner

Sep 2, 2022

Good evening. I am happy to join you in celebrating Fujitec Singapore’s 50th anniversary. Let me thank Fujitec Singapore for your generous donation to the Singapore Children’s society. I hope that more companies will follow Fujitec’s lead and give back to society.

Lifts and escalators, or L&E for short, play an important role in our dense, high-rise built environment. They help us to get to our homes and workplaces in a safe and convenient manner. L&E companies like Fujitec have been responsible for ensuring that our lifts and escalators are installed correctly and continue to be well-maintained, despite the challenges brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic over the past two years. I would like to thank our L&E companies and workers for keeping our lifts and escalators safe to use.

Transformation of L&E industry

The demand for L&E services will continue to increase, as our buildings get taller, and our city continues to grow. At the same time, the L&E maintenance industry faces challenges in expanding its workforce to meet this increasing demand. This is partly due to our ageing workforce – currently, about 40% of local L&E technicians are aged 50 years and above. Some companies may also face challenges in attracting and retaining locals. Common concerns that L&E workers have shared with us include low basic wages and demanding working conditions.

BCA is working closely with the industry to overcome these challenges – by helping our workers to pursue rewarding careers in L&E maintenance with a Progressive Wage Model; by equipping them with the necessary competencies through training and certification courses; and by enabling them to be more productive through the use of technology, such as Remote Monitoring and Diagnostics solutions.

First, on the L&E Progressive Wage Model, or PWM for short. It is critical for the L&E industry to be able to attract, develop and retain skilled and competent workers. To this end, the PWM creates clear career progression pathways for local L&E maintenance workers and ensures that wages are commensurate with job responsibilities and competencies. I am glad to note that more than 40 L&E companies, including Fujitec, have adopted the L&E PWM. These companies maintain more than 90% of the lifts and escalators in Singapore. This has helped the L&E maintenance industry to increase the number of local technicians by about 150 between 2020 and 2021. Going forward, we intend to mandate the L&E PWM for all L&E companies. BCA will provide more details when ready.

Second, to provide L&E workers with a structured route to develop their competencies, BCA has worked with ITE to develop a series of training and certification courses. These courses aim to equip technicians with knowledge on L&E components and best practices. For example, L&E workers can now attend Certificate of Competency courses for lift specialists, lift senior specialists, and escalator specialists at ITE. I encourage L&E companies to upskill your workers by sending them to attend these courses. This will help you to reap the benefits of a more  skilled and productive workforce.

Finally, beyond ensuring an adequate supply of competent workers, the industry will also need to harness technology to transform the way we maintain our lifts. Remote Monitoring and Diagnostics solutions, or RM&D for short, use sensors to continuously monitor lift operations, and artificial intelligence to diagnose and predict lift faults. Lift maintenance workers who are competent in the use of RM&D have the potential to be more efficient and effective at their work. For example, RM&D can help reduce the amount of time that they need to diagnose and repair faults. RM&D trials carried out by JTC have yielded manpower productivity improvements of as much as 25%.

Furthermore, lift maintenance companies that adopt RM&D can provide a value-added service to building owners. For example, they will be able to carry out predictive maintenance to prevent lift faults and reduce the likelihood of breakdowns. This can improve lift safety and reliability, which gives these companies a competitive edge.

To encourage the lift industry to adopt RM&D solutions, BCA has recently launched a regulatory sandbox for lifts equipped with RM&D and published a Code of Practice for the design and performance of RM&D for lifts. Under the sandbox, lift companies will be able to maintain lifts at longer maintenance intervals, as compared to the current requirement of at least once every month. This will help to optimise the use of the diagnostic and predictive capabilities of RM&D, saving both time and cost. Lifts equipped with RM&D solutions that meet the requirements specified in the Code of Practice will be eligible for the sandbox. I encourage lift owners and companies to work with RM&D solution providers to explore the possibilities of RM&D and apply to BCA to participate in the sandbox.

To conclude, L&E companies, workers and the Government need to work together to harness technology and build the necessary competencies to transform the way we maintain our lifts and escalators. Fujitec has actively participated in these transformation efforts, and I would like to thank Fujitec for your support.

Together, we can build a more productive and future-ready L&E industry.

Thank you everyone, and have a good evening.