GE partners SP Group, Spring and Platform E on Industrial IoT, startups

SINGAPORE grid operator SP Group has teamed up with American multinational conglomerate General Electric (GE) to develop capabilities in Industrial Internet of Things (Industrial IoT) and intelligent applications, in a bid to enhance the reliability and efficiency of the power network in Singapore.

Engineering and digital specialists from both companies will create tools that use data analytics and artificial intelligence that can enhance asset performance and reduce unplanned downtime in network operations, New York-listed GE said.

Cost savings can also be reaped from predictive maintenance thanks to access to global domain knowledge and expertise.

SP group CEO Wong Kim Yin said Singapore will be the first to benefit from enhanced efficiency through the use of digital replicas of its assets, also known as digital twin.

GE also opened on Wednesday an Asia Digital Operations Center in Singapore, its first such facility in Asia, to support its global IT (information technology) services and operations.

The centre is part of a larger strategy by the company to transform how IT is delivered across the group and helps provide round-the-clock IT resources and support for GE, said the firm.

It will house about 60 employees initially, with the potential to expand software jobs three-fold over the next five years.

GE also signed partnership agreements with Spring Singapore to develop an incubation programme for technology startups, and with Singapore Institute of Management's entrepreneurship centre Platform E to establish a co-working space to incubate Industrial Internet startups in Singapore and the region.

"The Industrial Internet represents a multibillion-dollar opportunity for industry," said GE chairman and CEO Jeff Immelt. "We look forward to working with our partners in Singapore to build a digital ecosystem and support entrepreneurship in the country."