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SensorFlow Raises US$2.7 Million to Create Smart Hotels Across Southeast Asia

SensorFlow Raises US$2.7 Million to Create Smart Hotels Across Southeast Asia

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SensorFlow, a Singapore-based, smart energy management startup, announced recently that it has secured a further US$2.7 million of Series A funding to accelerate its regional growth and achieve its mission to make Asian hotels smart and energy efficient.

The company’s performance enhancing solutions deliver up to 30 percent in energy savings and up to 40 percent reduction in maintenance costs. The funds raised will boost SensorFlow’s rapidly expanding operations enabling the company to meet the needs of a growing customer base of major hotel chains in Singapore, Indonesia and Hong Kong. It will also help drive the company’s entry into new markets including Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia and the Philippines which will bring the company closer to its goal of 800,000 smart hotel rooms by 2022.

The new funding is led by private investor Pierre Lorinet followed by Playfair Capital, Cocoon Capital, Entrepreneur First, 2be.lu Investments, Aurum Land and Insitu Asia Holdings. This brings the total funds raised till date to US$3.5 million. Last year’s initial seed funding was led by Cocoon Capital and followed by SG Innovate and SparkLabs under the Entrepreneur First accelerator programme.

Co-founder and CEO of SensorFlow, Saikrishnan Ranganathan, said, “With this investment we are in an even stronger position for market expansion to help more hotels within the region reach their sustainability goals. We look forward to building partnerships, pursuing opportunities with synergistic companies and working with local sustainability schemes across the region to further champion energy efficiency and make smart green hotels a standard practice in the industry. We also have our eyes set on entering Sri Lanka, India, United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia within the next two years.”

Over the past year, SensorFlow started deploying property-wide solutions for The Uncharted Co’s 5footway.inn in Singapore and completed trials in three Alila Hotels & Resorts properties in Bali, driving a 30 percent reduction in energy costs. The company also tripled its staff and made key executive appointments in operations, engineering and sales. The team is currently in the midst of securing contracts with hotels and property developers in Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand.

The SensorFlow solution solves three key challenges that earlier prevented hoteliers from implementing effective, integrated energy management solutions. The first is the large upfront costs for hardware followed by the inconvenience of a long installation period. The last key challenge has been the lack of integration options with existing systems.

“With energy consumption accounting for more than 60 percent of utility costs, hoteliers constantly seek to improve their energy efficiency. However, they often grapple with the challenge of incurring high costs and disruptions when implementing new energy solutions. This is why we created an innovative, retrofit solution that is easily installed in a matter of minutes and which seamlessly integrates into existing infrastructure. We use wireless sensors to collect real-time data and artificial intelligence (AI) to automate decision-making. This is offered in a zero-upfront cost subscription model – catering to hotels that are unable or unwilling to tap into larger capital expenditure budgets,” added Ranganathan.

According to the International Energy Agency, Southeast Asia’s energy demand is expected to grow by nearly 60 percent by 2040. With the building sector accounting for approximately 25 percent of Asia’s overall energy consumption, there is great potential for solutions that can create more sustainable energy consumption.

M+S announces Singapore’s First Integrated Live-Work-Play App for Marina One and DUO

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The Marina One development

M+S Pte Ltd announced recently its upcoming digital app, MySphere, a unified mobile platform for its Marina One and DUO developments, offering an integrated smart live- work-play management system that seamlessly combines smart controls, community management and lifestyle offerings.

The app will be Singapore’s first to be driven by its own ecosystem of assets and partners across two separate integrated developments, including over 1,600 luxury residences, 5.4 million square feet of office space and a mix of retail and F&B offerings, the Andaz Singapore hotel and urban amenities.

MySphere aims to provide purposeful and convenient access to the full suite of comprehensive offerings at M+S’s landmark developments for a holistic live-work-play experience, all from a single interface.

MySphere will also be the first app in Singapore to offer office workers mobile turnstile access at office lobbies. Encrypted technology by HID ensures enterprise-grade security with commercial-grade firewalls. A quick tap of one’s device on the turnstiles at Marina One Offices and DUO Tower authenticates the user’s avatar, allowing office workers entry into the premises and automated lift assignment.

Residents and office occupants will enjoy privileged access to state-of-the-art amenities shared between both developments. These include auditorium facilities; event spaces; and hotel rooms, function rooms and ballrooms at DUO’s Andaz Singapore hotel.

In addition, the app will deliver the first seamless, completely automated visitor management system at both developments. Other features include e-booking of residential facilities, handyman services, mobile alerts for emergency evacuation and fault reporting.

MySphere will also feature bespoke concierge services and new, innovative service models. Residents, office workers and visitors can use the app to call for a taxi; make restaurant reservations; loan an umbrella, wheelchair or mobile charger and even request for a VIP escort. They will enjoy added conveniences and perks from M+S’s partnerships with other strategic lifestyle partners, including mobile commerce platform PageAdvisor and transport services like oBike and Telepod.

On the retail front, the app will offer privileges including special retail promotions and an M+S loyalty rewards programme.

Ms. Kemmy Tan, CEO of M+S Pte Ltd, shared, “We recognise the powerful opportunity to harness mobile technology to enhance the experience for those who live, work and visit Marina One and DUO. The app is uniquely tailored to meet the needs of our tech-savvy occupants who lead increasingly busy lives. In MySphere, we will be enabling the community at Marina One to tap into the amenities and services found at Marina One as well as those at DUO; and likewise for the community at DUO, they will also be able to enjoy the same cross-integration benefits.

“‘MySphere’ aptly reflects M+S’s own sphere of influence provided by its tenants and assets, complemented by its network of lifestyle partners to access the all-encompassing live-work-play essentials and perks spanning both developments. The app will transform how residents, tenants and guests interact with the developments. This smart mobile platform is testament to our efforts to define new standards of live, work and play; meeting the digital demands of today’s generation.”

M+S appointed Habitap, a homegrown start-up for smart living technology by Philip Tang & Sons, to develop MySphere.

Franklin Tang, Chief Executive Officer of Philip Tang & Sons, added, “We are proud to partner M+S to pioneer Singapore’s first smart cross-integrated development app. M+S’s “My Sphere” app is a great example of how our mobile app development platform can help create better living, greater convenience and efficiencies for the diverse audiences of commercial, residential and retail spaces. MySphere offers a series of firsts for the local property space, and we are excited to be at the forefront of this technology as we gear up with Singapore’s Smart Nation drive.”

The MySphere app will be available for download on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store in Q4 2017.

CommScope’s High Speed Migration Platform Prepares Data Centre Managers for Increased Bandwidth

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CommScope’s High Speed Migration portfolio works for duplex and parallel applications. Image courtesy of CommScope.

As the world embarks on a potential fourth Industrial Revolution, it is the 30 to 50 billion connected devices that will spur the unprecedented growth in bandwidth. The next few years are critical to building the networks that will meet the demand.

In anticipation of this need, CommScope, which offers communications network infrastructure solutions, is introducing its High Speed Migration platform that assists data centre managers with building faster, more agile, high-density migration plans.

“With our High Speed Migration solutions, we’re able to help data centre managers accelerate the growth of their DC capacity and the speed of their digital transformation initiatives,” said John Schmidt, vice president of Global Data Centre Solutions at CommScope. “We are quickly moving from 10Gb/s and 40Gb/s to 100Gb/s, 400Gb/s and beyond. The more data consumers and network users need, the more services they expect, the more critical speed becomes. This is a global phenomenon and one of the top challenges that data centre managers will face.”

CommScope’s High Speed Migration portfolio works for duplex and parallel applications and allows customers to decide on the best approach to architecture. It also supports higher speeds and emerging applications without having to rip and replace. More than that, the platform allows CommScope to act as a trusted partner with our highly trained team of network architects who understand a customer’s business needs and provides insight to future data centre ecosystems and technology trends.

The following innovative solutions are part of the first phase of the High Speed Migration platform and support current and future high-speed applications:

  • MPO connectivity options: 24-fibre connections that ensure lowest first cost duplex deployments with a single connection, 12-fibre to support the seamless expansion of legacy 12-fibre infrastructures, and 8-fibre support QSFP technologies, providing for customers utilising this parallel optic configuration.
  • Fibre optic panels: Ultra- and high- density panels that simplify management of duplex and parallel ports for dynamic migration and flexibility.
  • Ultra-Low Loss (ULL) performance: Ultra-low loss pre-terminated components enable longer link spans with more connectivity options and guaranteed support for attenuation-sensitive applications.
  • LazrSPEED® WideBand OM5: Part of the flagship CommScope SYSTIMAX® portfolio most recently designated OM5 by the ISO/IEC. It enhances the ability of short-wavelength division multiplexing to provide at least four-fold increases in usable bandwidth while maintaining backward compatibility with legacy multimode fibre.
  • imVision®: The automated infrastructure management system (AIM) that gives oversight and control to SYSTIMAX physical network connectivity solutions.

As part of CommScope’s entire High Speed Migration strategy, solutions include all fibre types (multimode and single mode), intelligence and customised connectors for all data centres.

CommScope’s high-speed migration services provide a bridge between current and future demand. Image courtesy of CommScope.

Delivering connectivity resources at scale has become a competitive differentiator, per Jennifer Cooke, research director in IDC’s Datacentre Trends and Strategies group. Digital transformation initiatives are built on making data-driven decisions, and the ever-increasing need for speed will challenge network and data providers soon.

“Preparing to meet this challenge requires not only investment, but a strategy and vision to transition when and where resources are needed,” said Cooke. “CommScope’s high-speed migration services meet a critical need in the market by providing a bridge between current and future demand and supporting a strategic vision for data centre and network transformation.

Landmark Green Alliance Announced Between Singapore And Macau Companies

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Singgapore’s CPG Facilities Management (CPG FM) and Green Koncepts announced a landmark green alliance today with Macau’s eNovation Technologies to introduce innovative intelligent cloud energy management solutions and services to help companies from different industries in Macau drive greater energy efficiency and sustainability. The alliance agreement was formally signed during the Macau International Environmental Co-operation Forum and Exhibition’s (MIECF) official signing ceremony today.

Through this strategic alliance, the three companies will work closely together to deliver a comprehensive suite of solutions to drive the green agenda in Macau.

CPG FM, no stranger to Macau as it assisted the local government in applying for its first BCA Green Mark in 2014 for its Olympic Sports Complex, will offer cost-effective and quality facilities management consultancy and services to help companies abroad achieve Singapore’s Green Mark Certification and other Green Accreditation standards. Green Koncepts will offer Energetix, its new Intelligent Cloud Energy Management solution, to help businesses centrally monitor and manage their electrical, water and gas usage on a single platform from any web-enabled device, anytime, anywhere. Energetix is currently adopted for use by both blue-chip and SME customers as well as some agencies participating in Singapore’s Jurong Lake District (JLD) Smart Nation Pilots & Trials. Energetix seeks to equip businesses with powerful visualisation, advanced energy analytics and intelligent controls to help them make smarter decisions for energy saving opportunities and achieve their sustainability targets. eNovation Technologies will provide its market knowledge and be the local reseller and implementation partner in Macau.

The Alliance aims to empower Macau’s property developers and owners, facilities managers, government agencies and urban planners with real time energy intelligence to help them achieve optimum energy performance and meet their sustainability goals. One of the goals of the Alliance is to enable buildings in Macau to cut their energy consumption by 10% to 30%, in accordance with Singapore’s BCA Green Mark Certification standards.

“In order to generate the most cost-effective solutions, we will integrate our service offerings with green accreditations and real time building performance monitoring technologies which will largely facilitate the development of smart townships for the longer term benefit of the community. This alliance is opportune for us to オンライン カジノ combine and deliver our service offerings holistically. We also hope to see this alliance enhance our capabilities in contributing to the development of smart cities and enlarge our competitive edge in Macau.” said Mr. Seng Joo How, Managing Director of CPG Facilities Management.

“’Be Green’ has been one of the hottest topics in Macau in the recent years. Many of the enterprises and government departments have been investing in green solutions and technologies, such as energy efficiency, water saving, IAQ improvement and green buildings are booming here. We believe that this alliance will provide a good option of the Green solution and service to our customers,” said Mr. Sam Liu, CEO of eNovation.

“This alliance marks Green Koncepts’ first foray into Macau and the region. We are excited to be collaborating with CPG Facilities Management and eNovation to offer Energetix in this fast growing market. By leveraging the power of cloud and big data analytics, we are able to deliver real time energy intelligence to help businesses optimise their energy consumption and reduce costs,” said Mr. Stephen Kang, Vice President, Sales & Channels, Green Koncepts.

The three companies will be jointly showcasing their innovative technology and services at MIECF, The Venetian Macao from 26-28 March 2015, Booth J52-10.