The Productivity Council (PC) for the Process Construction and Maintenance (PCM) Sector was formed in February 2015 through the collaborative effort and support of plant owners, major process construction and maintenance partners, and government agencies, SCIC and ASPRI, to improve productivity in the energy and petrochemical industry. The 2024 Productivity Improvement Forum (PIF-2024), held on 8th November, has concluded, and we would like to thank all participants for making this event successful. It was attended by more than 150 professionals from chemical plant owners, PCM partners, and representatives from the government agencies. This unique platform of multi-stakeholders gathers biannually to recognize significant milestones in productivity improvement progress accomplished by the PC for the PCM partners supporting the Energy and Chemicals sector. The PIF-2024 featured insightful presentations from keynote speakers, member companies, working groups, invited talks, and productivity certification award recognitions. The event was graced by Mr. Lim Wey-Len, Executive Vice President, Singapore Economic Development Board, as the guest of honor and as keynote speaker.
At the PIF-2024, the Center of Excellence (COE) for the PCM sector was launched together by ASPRI and SCIC through a Memorandum of Understanding ("MOU"). The MOU was jointly signed by ASPRI President Mr. Danny Chua and SCIC Chairman Mr. Henri Nejade in the presence of Mr. Lim Wey-Len (EDB) and Mr. Taufik Ahmed Faroock (EnterpriseSG). With this transition, the Process Construction and Maintenance Management Committee Steering Committee (PCMMC SC) and Productivity Council (PC) would be transformed into the Centre of Excellence Board (COE-Board) and COE Management Committee (COE-MC), respectively, with the joint leadership of SCIC and ASPRI, supported by the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB) and Enterprise Singapore (EnterpriseSG). The COE is envisaged to be an engine for growth and promote continuous productivity improvement for the sector and a receptacle for all the proven best practices and technology with the mission to promote the adoption across the industry.
First in the world, the Productivity Certification Framework by the PC was conceptualized and contextualized for adoption by the E&C industry to improve Singapore’s long-term competitiveness whilst taking into account Singapore’s unique constraints. The PCF was launched at PIF-2019 by SMS Koh Poh Koon as the industry’s yardstick for measuring and managing productivity, and subsequently at PIF-2022, the PC certified the four large Tier-1 PCM partners. At the PIF-2024, the PC Certified fifteen (15) Tier-2 PCM partners and recognized their efforts in taking the lead in demonstrating the importance of inculcating a mindset shift in becoming more productivity-centric. These leaders from the fifteen companies have proven that through enhanced levels of mechanization and productivity improvement practices adoption, they are able to achieve significant productivity savings that have helped to improve their bottom lines and competitiveness.
The PIF-2024 also witnessed the launch of 72 Workplace Training Centers (WTCs) in partnership with ITE for the conduct of 22 deep-skilling and multi-skilling training courses for the Enhanced R1 Framework, set to be officially implemented on January 1, 2026. The synergistic partnership between the PC and ITE was launched through an MOU between ITE and SCIC at the PIF-2022 to operationalize the MOM enhanced R1 framework. This will support workforce transformation in enhancing workers’ capability and build a pipeline of local talents to ensure the industry’s continued competitiveness.
The partnership with ITE, ASPRI-IPI, and PCM Companies providing training will help to deep-skill and multi-skill the workforce through 11 skillsets, especially developed for the PCM sector, contributing to a significant milestone in the industry transformation journey to retain highly skilled workers so as to achieve improved workforce productivity and competitiveness.
Furthermore, the PIF-2024 witnessed the use case of 500+ mechanized tools adopted by the PCM companies via Craft Transformation Roadmap (CTRs) launched at PIF-2022 by the PC with EnterpriseSG, which included the identification of relevant tools to help reduce the manpower reliance. The provision of the Productivity Safe Restart Scheme for chemical plant owners and PCM partners has also accelerated the adoption of mechanized tools and equipment, which are the key enablers in the journey towards driving greater productivity improvements.
As we continue to attract investments into Singapore and encourage Plant owners to expand their foot print, there is strong need for Singapore project organizations to be efficient and effective in project implementation. The capital projects workgroup organized the opportunities into three broad areas of focus – Front End Loading, Modularisation Execution strategy and Control & Labour Productivity, especially on civil works which will pave the way towards implementing productivity-driven strategies in projects.
The forum covered invited talks by external speakers on topics such as; Mega projects management, Predictive maintenance, Responsible care for PCM partners and Digitalization for Field management. The PIF-2024 had vendor exhibitions to facilitate a knowledge transfer of the state-of-the-art technologies in promoting productivity, and to ensure that you are set up for success journey of digital adoption. In conclusion, the PIF-2024 organizing committee would like to extend our gratitude to EDB, ENTERPRISESG, MOM, SCIC, ASPRI, Plant owners, PCM partners and government agencies for their unwavering support and commitment to get us to where we are today. The COE, PCF, and our training initiatives are strategic pillars that will guide us through these transformative times. By working together, we can ensure that Singapore’s Energy and Chemicals sector, as well as the PCM partners continues to lead with resilience and innovation.
