ST Engineering partners SUTD to train 1,000 staff in design thinking

SINGAPORE Technologies Engineering (ST Engineering) has inked a memorandum of understanding with the Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) to co-develop courses and programmes on human-centric design and innovation.

The fully-sponsored design-thinking courses and technical specialist training programmes will equip up to 1,000 ST Engineering staff with design-thinking skills to "approach problem-solving through a user's lens", the mainboard-listed group said in a media statement on Monday night.

This will enable the employees to develop new perspectives and creativity to come up with solutions that better address customers' needs, ST Engineering added.

One key area of cooperation is the co-development of new design methodologies for ST Engineering's maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) operations. These methodologies will form the basis of a three-day MRO-centric design-thinking course, which will have applications in areas such as aerospace MRO, to reduce workflow and process complexities that are increasing as a result of automation.

In addition, there will be a tailored, two-year part-time "ModularMasters" (MM) programme where senior technical and engineering employees can subscribe to SUTD's bite-sized, skills-based modules.

Staff who complete this MM programme may advance to SUTD's Master of Innovation by Design degree programme, where subject credits earned from the MM programme can be used to offset the credits required for the degree programme.

ST Engineering said these programmes are designed to give employees more flexibility and opportunities in learning even as they take on full-time work.

The latest tie-up builds on ST Engineering's past collaborations with SUTD, which has seen some 400 employees benefit from its design innovation training over the last two years.

Shares in ST Engineering closed at S$4.03 on Monday, down 0.7 per cent or three Singapore cents, before the announcement.