(Photo credit: World Cities Summit)
The Energy Solutions Development Center, to be based in Singapore, aims to roll out sustainable solutions for the wider market.
By creating, saving, storing and managing energy, Panasonic aims to develop total energy solutions under its first Energy Solutions Development Center, to be set up in Singapore. To cost about S$10.2 million over the next two years, the R&D facility was announced at this week's World Cities Summit in Singapore.
The city-state has been identified as an ideal launch pad for the Japanese company to commercially "develop smart and sustainable solutions for a wider market beyond Japan", said Yorihisa Shiokawa, Managing Director of Panasonic Asia Pacific (photo on right).
"The Center is an important strategic move for Panasonic in line with our new business focus of becoming a more solutions- and systems business-oriented company with a wider global business outlook focusing on green innovation," he added.
For the city-state, the Centre is another score in Singapore's "Living Lab" strategy which aims to attract companies to co-create, demonstrate and commercialise urban solutions in partnership with local government agencies.
The facility will initially be supported by 22 R&D engineers. Domain knowledge will be imparted by a trio of energy solutions R&D engineers from Japan, to focus on three key areas: Proposal, designing and integration of energy systems; developing intellectual property strategy to facilitate commercialisation; and technical support on test-bed projects conducted in collaboration with partners.
The latter will be extended to its residential project, the Punggol Eco Town project, which since last August has been test-bedding green urban solutions for residents, from rooftop solar panels to power lifts and lighting to air-conditioners linked to smart meters installed under the Energy Market Authority (EMA)'s pilot Intelligent Energy System (IES) initiative. The Housing & Development Board (HDB) and Economic Development Board (EDB) are also project partners.