Speakers: 
- Mr Daniel Pintado, Business Analyst, JFE Engineering
- Dr Lim Sheau Hooi, Research and Development Scientist, Environmental and Water Technology Center of Innovation (EWTCOI), Ngee Ann Polytechnic 
- Mr Seow Teow Gay, Principal Engineer, National Environment Agency

On 13 March 2015, more than 160 industry professionals and NEA staff attended the Industry Sharing Session on Waste Management and Recycling Technologies, jointly organised by the Singapore Environment Institute (SEI) and the Environmental and Water Technology - Centre of Innovation (EWTCOI) of Ngee Ann Polytechnic, and supported by the Waste Management and Recycling Association of Singapore (WMRAS).

This programme was seeded out of a successful overseas programme organised by SEI to Japan held last year. The objectives of this sharing session were to update the local industry on the latest developments on waste management and resource recovery in Singapore as well as to highlight advanced waste management technology from Japan with potential local applications. Speakers from JFE Engineering Company, EWTCOI and NEA were invited to speak at the event.

In his welcome remarks, Mr Ong Eng Kian, Director of SEI, shared that the partnership of institutions working together and with the industries was lauded as good model by many foreign institutions. He was pleased to note that overseas industries with technical prowess had been working with local companies in regional ventures.   He pointed out that environmental institutions like SEI and EWTCOI could play a proactive role to spread knowledge and entrench good ideas in industries so that we achieve desired environmental outcomes. Hence, SEI was happy to be a part of this collaborative effort to advance knowledge sharing with EWTCOI.

The sharing commenced with Mr Daniel Pintado, JFE Business Analyst’s presentation on the evolution of waste management practices in Japan and the capabilities of  various waste-to-energy technologies in meeting Japan’s waste management needs. He explained the benefits of adopting High-Temperature Gasification and Direct Melting system for waste incineration given its significantly lower land footprint and that the by-products of gasification could be safely reused as construction base materials and for land reclamation purpose.

The session proceeded with Research and Development Scientist, Dr Lim Sheau Hooi’s presentation on Sustainable Material Technology where she shared her research on converting waste to other new, sustainable products, such as plastic to carbon nanotube and waste glass to lightweight foam. Her presentation concluded with EWTCOI seeking research collaborations on their potential projects with companies.

The final speaker, Mr Seow Teow Gay, Principal Engineer, talked about key waste management strategies which includes the development of NEA’s upcoming waste management infrastructure projects. He also shared the various projects under the Environment Technology Research Programme (ETRP) which supports NEA’s research interests in waste management. He concluded his presentation by calling for stakeholders to develop projects that were practical, scalable and replicable to address the waste challenge.

The Industry Sharing Session concluded with tokens of appreciation presented to the speakers by Mr Ong Eng Kian from SEI and Mr Sam Lam from EWTCOI. Mr Lam had represented Mrs Tam Li-Phin, Director (EWTCOI) as she was unable to join us at the event.