Sydney second airport: nearing reality after 40 years of obfuscation? Perhaps ... - CAPA

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Outline

• Sydney Airport will reach capacity by 2033, according to a joint study


• The Sydney Airport next election syndrome


• Opening RAAF Base Richmond to civilian operations is one part solution


• Geographically challenged Wilton would be an overflow airport at best


• Although an international airport at Wilton could provide some economic benefits


• Wilton could provide employment for 28,000 by 2060


• But Badgerys Creek ticks the boxes as Sydneys second airport


• Badgerys Creek was forecast to generate AUD24 billion in GDP


• Richmond can provide short term capacity relief to Sydney Airport


• A Richmond/Badgerys Creek combination could offer a useful consumer and economic outcome in 2014


• Half a century on, there is still “no easy answer”, nor a single solution

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The May-2013 study was the latest to highlight the inadequacies of Wilton as a suitable location for a second airport, pointing out that it would cost significantly more to build than the favoured Badgerys Creek option, would provide less economic benefit and is only ever likely to be an overflow airport to Sydney’s Kingsford Smith Airport.

The location of a second Sydney airport has been a political football for decades, failing to find the necessary bipartisan support. The latest study, which adds the previously unanticipated challenge of mining subsidence, should sound the death knell for Wilton. In addition the outcome of the study does however offer a potential low risk transition strategy using Richmond as a pressure release valve for the increasingly congested Sydney Airport while development of Badgerys Creek is progressed.

Deputy Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is the opening keynote speaker at CAPA’s Australia Pacific Aviation Summit to be held at Sydney’s Four Seasons Hotel, 7-9 August.


Heading the more than 100 speakers at this event are Etihad CEO James Hogan and Qantas CEO Alan Joyce.


The event will conclude with “The GREAT DEBATE – Sydney’s second airport (or not)?”, a panel session to be broadcast live on Sky TV News at 3PM on 9 August, hosted by Sky anchor David Speers and featuring Max Moore-Wilton, Paul Howes and media, business and airport representatives.

Click for more information on the Australia Pacific Aviation Summit

Sydney Airport will reach capacity by 2033, according to a joint study

Sydney’s existing and only international airport, Kingsford Smith Airport, is forecast to reach capacity by 2033, although the airport’s current owners argue that the facility has the capacity to cope until 2045. It is just possible that this estimate contains grains of self interest; it varies greatly from the conclusions of earlier independent studies. But it also makes obvious just how elusive an unequivocal assessment is. There is no absolute when it comes to measuring “available capacity”.

There are certainly ways in which the existing airport could deliver much more capacity; it is for example subjected to a complex formula imposed in the last century that artificially restricts aircraft movement numbers and applies a rigid nighttime curfew greatly limiting airline efficiencies. With sensitive marginal electorates neighbouring the near-city airport, political realities rear their heads as in many parts of the world.

The most authoritative report on Sydney’s airport needs was published in Mar-2012, a highly detailed and very expensive “Joint Study on aviation capacity in the Sydney region”. Jointly commissioned by the Australian and New South Wales governments, this noted “there is no straightforward measure of the practical capacity of an airport. Demand varies dramatically across peak and non-peak periods.”

The Joint Study however concluded that a supplementary airport in the Sydney basin is needed before the end of the next decade and the decision on a way forward should be made without delay.

The joint study found that by 2015 all peak slots at Sydney Airport will be allocated, by 2017 the long term aircraft noise distribution system will be able to operate only for limited periods, there will be inadequate aircraft stands by 2020, slots across all hours of the day will be allocated by 2027 and by 2033 demand across all operating hours will be unmet.

It concluded that, without a second airport to grow, the shortfall in aviation capacity in Sydney would lead to an annual AUD35 billion (USD34.1 billion) loss to the New South Wales economy. In 2012 the Gross State (of NSW) Product was AUD455 billion, or 31% of Australia’s total – so these are substantial figures.

The Sydney Airport next election syndrome

The history of planning for second Sydney Airport has many of the features of a comic farce, with frequent overtones of Monty Python. Politicians over the decades have lavishly squandered taxpayer funds on studies that briefly gained notoriety, before slipping back into the political morass – mostly to ensure that any decision could be postponed beyond the next election.

Deputy Prime Minister Albanese, also Minister for Infrastructure and Transport and whose aviation credentials are otherwise formidable, has the equally formidable disadvantage of occupying a marginal electorate in a noise-affected area near Sydney Airport.

In other circumstances this could be seen as encouraging the establishment of an alternative airport site. Instead, this and his government’s fears of losing marginal seats has merely resulted in constraining the use of the existing airport, building complexity and inefficiency into its operational use.

The existing noise cap of 80 aircraft movements per hour is well below the level of which the airport is capable; moreover, the calculation is made on a complex basis which effectively ensures that the 80 movement cap is rarely achieved.

Minister Albanese responded to the 2012 report’s unanimous recommendation to use the Badgerys Creek site by saying “yes, but I told them that we would not build Badgerys”. He did however explicitly recognise that if someone didn’t do something, the economic loss to NSW would be extreme. The next step was to commission a geotechnical analysis of a site at Wilton (“the next best” according to the Joint Report) to determine what effect the potential land subsidence of old coal mining works under the site could have on the development.

Minister Albanese noted that the potential consequence of not reaching a consensus on a development site risked putting up a “Sydney’s full” sign and economic activity moving to other Australian centres or to other countries such as Singapore, Thailand or New Zealand.

Meanwhile, the Liberal-led state government equally wants nothing to do with any airport decision in the short term, while election issues loom large.

Opening RAAF Base Richmond to civilian operations is one part solution

In addition to its other explorations, the Government will further consider and discuss with the Department of Defence the possibility of opening the Richmond RAAF base for limited civilian operations, potentially by 2017.

Like Badgerys Creek, the Richmond option has been talked about and discarded many times over the years. The small size of Richmond means it is not a suitable candidate to replace either of the greenfield options, but its single runway could provide interim capacity for up to five million passenger movements per year while a permanent second airport is built.

Richmond also has the advantage that it is situated nearer to some of the fastest growing suburbs in the city.

Wilton, Badgerys Creek and Richmond sites in the Sydney region

Note: The Western Sydney Employment Area shown is as defined by the NSW Metropolitan Plan for 2036. The recently released draft Metropolitan Strategy for Sydney proposes to expand this towards and including Badgerys Creek.


Source: Department of Infrastructure and Transport

Geographically challenged Wilton would be an overflow airport at best

Meanwhile, the Wilton site, located 85km southwest of the Sydney CBD, is even further from the main aviation markets in Sydney’s north and northwest. The distance from central Sydney means Wilton could only ever be an overflow airport for Sydney Airport, a concept of uncertain merit.

The May-2013 report concluded that the development of an airport at Wilton is possible, but was heavily caveated by engineering and environment concerns in addition to the much lower long term economic benefits it would deliver when compared to Badgerys Creek.

The study estimates construction of the airport would take 17 years to complete at a cost of at least AUD3.4 billion (USD3.3 billion) – AUD1 billion (USD974 million) more than the Badgerys Creek option, largely due to significant engineering hurdles at the Wilton site.

Substantial earthworks would be required to level the site, involving about 91 million cubic metres of cut and fill to level the site, about double the amount required at Badgerys Creek. Mine subsidence from previous coal extraction under the site poses “a major safety risk for any future development” and significantly reduces design flexibility. Significant engineering solutions will be required to ensure discharge of runoff and wastewater does not contaminate Sydney’s water supply and more than 60 species of flora and fauna in the study area are likely to be protected under the Environment Biodiversity and Conservation Protection Act 1999.

The geotechnical report on the site should be completed by the end of 2013 – just after the Federal election.

Although an international airport at Wilton could provide some economic benefits

Notwithstanding the “extremely difficult” and expensive environmental challenges of developing a full scale airport at the site, the 2013 study did find that a full international airport at Wilton could provide significant economic benefits including:

• AUD5 billion (USD4.9 billion) additional direct expenditure in 2035, increasing to AUD20 billion (USD19.5 billion) in 2060.


• AUD3.8 billion (USD3.7 billion) additional to NSW Gross State Product (GSP) by 2035, increasing approximately four-fold to AUD16.9 billion (USD16.5 billion) by 2060.


• AUD4.1 billion (USD4 billion) additional to Australia’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by 2035, increasing to AUD20.0 billion (USD19.5 billion) by 2060.

The airport could build demand for 17.1 million passenger movements by 2035 and 44.2 million by 2060, provided it offered a range of services comparable to Sydney Airport. The wider Wilton area has a population of about 455,000 which is expected to increase by 72% to 786,000 by 2036.

Distribution of forecast demand at Sydney  Airport and Wilton as a full international airport: 2035 and 2060

Source: Booz Company

Wilton could provide employment for 28,000 by 2060

Construction of the airport would create approximately 4,500 jobs while it would provide operational employment for about 15,400 jobs by 2035, increasing to 28,000 by 2060. Indirect employment for a further approximately 4,100 would be generated growing to 12,700 by 2060.

Aircraft noise at full capacity would affect approximately 1,500 people within the current population around Wilton of about 40,000, which is forecast to grow to 60,000 over the next 20 years.

Wilton has been included in a number of studies in the search for a suitable second airport for Sydney, including a draft environmental impact assessment in the mid-1980s along with Badgerys Creek. On all occasions Badgerys Creek was determined to be the preferred location.

But Badgerys Creek ticks the boxes as Sydney’s second airport

In reality the prospects of building an airport during this century at Wilton would have to be remote – and, as described above, of limited value.

Meanwhile, the Joint Study’s preferred airport site at Badgerys Creek is located near the growth areas of south west Sydney and the Western Sydney Employment Area and 47km from the Sydney CBD. The area is connected to the key transport corridor of the M7, the future outer orbital and the rail link to Leppington. The region has a population of 760,000 which is expected to grow to 1 million by 2036. As a result, forecast demand for Badgerys Creek is 14% to 22% higher than for Wilton in 2060.

The 1,700 hectare Badgerys Creek site was originally chosen by the former Labor Government in the 1990s which had bought and reserved the necessary land in the late 1980s and provided development funding. The then Transport Minister actually turned the first ceremonial sod on the site and some preliminary work commenced in 1993; an airport manager was even appointed. After another couple of attempts, at least one of which led to the responsible Transport Minister being replaced, a subsequent (Liberal) government eventually formally cancelled the project in 2002 when Sydney Airport was privatised, thus removing uncertainty and ensuring a higher price could be achieved for the sale.

The Badgerys Creek site remains in government ownership and has passed all the environmental requirements for airport development – although further extensive studies and consultation would be inevitable prior to any future development.

The current Federal Labor Government later abandoned subsequently-revived plans for Badgerys Creek in 2009 as urban development in the area risked upsetting western Sydney marginal electorate voters. It is for similar reason neither of the major federal government parties, nor the NSW state government supports construction at Badgerys Creek, despite apparently increasing wider community support for the option.

Planning restrictions around the site have however limited the extent of urban development, hence minimising the environmental impact the airport might have on the surrounding community, although these will still be greater than at Wilton, given Badgerys Creek’s closer proximity to densely populated areas.

Badgerys Creek was forecast to generate AUD24 billion in GDP

The 2012 Joint Study found that Badgerys Creek would generate AUD24.7 billion (USD24.1 billion) in direct expenditure by 2060, nearly AUD5 billion (USD4.9 billion) higher than Wilton over the same period.

An airport at Badgerys Creek is also forecast to generate greater economic benefits, contributing AUD20.3 billion (USD19.8 billion) to NSW’s Gross State Product (GSP) by 2060, 20.4% more than Wilton; it would also deliver AUD23.9 billion (USD23.3 billion) in GDP to the national economy over that period, nearly 20% more than Wilton. As Badgerys Creek will cater for more passengers, it would also offer 49% more jobs than Wilton over the period to 2060.

But, the study concluded, Sydney Airport’s close proximity to the CBD, at just 8km from the centre, and its ease of access means that neither Wilton nor Badgerys Creek would be able to cater for the entire expected unmet demand.

Richmond can provide short term capacity relief to Sydney Airport

As various studies have also found, RAAF Base Richmond could help to reduce the pressure on Sydney Airport in the short term with relatively little capital investment, although it cannot be developed into a long term option as Sydney’s second airport. It has the great advantage that it could be prepared for commercial services by as soon as 2017, with the construction of a terminal and other necessary ground infrastructure.

Moreover the RAAF’s future at Richmond is under review by the Department of Defence and the recent study considers it a “plausible scenario” for the RAAF to relocate all flying squadrons from Richmond coinciding with the retirement of the C-130J Hercules aircraft, expected in the mid to late 2020s. Richmond’s role as an airbase has diminished over the years as many military operations previously based there have been moved to other airfields. The C-130J Hercules is now the only operational flying squadron at Richmond, though this will be joined by a squadron of 10 C-27J Spartan tactical lift aircraft from 2015, temporarily at least.

On the downside, Richmond’s single 2,134 metre runway is limited to narrowbody aircraft up to Boeing 737 and A320 size, generating total capacity of about five million passenger movements per year and would reach that limit by the mid 2030s.

Adding a north-south cross runway able to support all aircraft sizes could increase passenger movements to 20 million per year, in which case the airport would reach capacity in the late 2040s and contribute between AUD4 billion (USD3.9 billion) and AUD6 billion (USD5.9 billion) in GDP by that time (according to the report).

Richmond’s compact 280 hectare airfield, wedged between the towns of Richmond and Windsor, will not allow for a parallel international runway configuration. Richmond could, however, have a longer term future as a third jet airport for Sydney in its current single runway configuration providing ancillary capacity after a larger second airport is constructed.

Such an intermediate role would make Richmond unattractive to airlines already based at Sydney Airport due to the cost of duplicating services and infrastructure – but it would be useful to potential new entrants, a factor that helps explain the largely passive role that the main Australian airlines are playing in the discussion.

In addition there is the realpolitik risk that Richmond could also reduce the initial demand for and viability of a greenfield airport, risking further delays in construction of a permanent second airport solution, as politicians of all stripes took the easy option.

A Richmond/Badgerys Creek combination could offer a useful consumer and economic outcome in 2014

So Richmond is neither an alternative to Sydney Airport, nor a potential replacement for Badgerys Creek. Richmond does however offer a realistic added aviation option as a point-to-point, low cost airline-friendly airport. The reality of airline operations has typically often been absent from this debate in the past, but despite its low profile part thus far, Richmond could deliver a seriously valuable service to the northwest region of Sydney.

So the ball is now firmly in the politicians’ court. The prospect of more reports to deflect bubbling demand is no longer a political option. The overwhelming preference from business, the tourism industry and increasingly the broader community has now swung around in favour of Badgerys Creek as a second airport site.

Wilton meanwhile was always going to be a mere political option and never a seriously viable one, given its distance from the main market, high construction costs and lower economic benefit – not to mention very questionable aviation value, as a distant secondary airport. With the hugely challenging issue of mining subsidence added to the equation, literally further undermining the appeal of the site as a major airport, Wilton should clearly be formally discarded as an option.

Given the long and winding history of this saga, it is undoubtedly unrealistic to expect any decision before the end of 2013. But, with a federal election safely then behind them, 2014 offers real hope that state and federal politicians can at last embrace a bipartisan approach by committing to advance Badgerys Creek as Sydney’s second airport – supported, initially at least, by narrowbody operations at Richmond.

Despite business and union groups in May-2013 forming an unprecedented alliance to convince the federal and state governments to commit to Badgerys Creek, the federal (Liberal) opposition reaffirmed that it has no plans to build an airport at Badgerys Creek and is instead waiting to see Sydney Airport’s master plan which is due on 02-Dec-2013 (again, after the Federal election). A now-delicately balanced election outcome realistically validates reluctance on each side of the political spectrum. But no such excuse will remain in 2014.

Some poignancy is added to the story as Melbourne Airport, curfew-free and with plenty of suitable land, decided in late 2012 to add a third runway, both to provide for future expansion and, cheekily, to woo some of Sydney’s would-be customers away.

Half a century on, there is still “no easy answer”, nor a single solution

The half century story of Sydney’s non-second airport is a sad indictment on lack of political leadership in the national interest. Yet the blame cannot be heaped on one political party or another; all are equally culpable. Yet they are hardly alone in the developed world when it comes to running scared of airport development.

It has to be relevant too that most of the other incumbent industry stakeholders, sometimes banging the table with feathers, really have little interest in a change in the status quo. The prospect of needing to duplicate operations over two airports is one aspect; adding airport capacity that may stimulate new competition is another.

There is also the complexity of operating two airports in tandem; only a few major cities can practically support more than one large jet airport – and connecting surface transport infrastructure would be a crucial ingredient in a successful combination.

Other solutions, partial or otherwise do exist. For one thing, Sydney Airport is currently forced to operate well below its operational capability. The constraints of a fiercely imposed curfew and the randomness of the movements cap undoubtedly reduce Sydney’s real potential. But no political party seems ready to grasp that nettle, despite the obvious economic benefits to the community that would instantly be released.

So, as the 2012 Joint Study concludes:


“There is no single solution and no easy answer.


“The need to act is clear. The costs of not acting are substantial.


“There is a need to take action without delay to identify and secure a site for a supplementary airport as part of the long term solution. The range of potential airport sites within reach of Sydney has diminished as urban development has spread. If action is not taken quickly, the chance to secure the future of aviation for the Sydney region may be lost altogether.”

The signs are now looking bright for some genuine movement in 2014. It’s still not too late – but nearly.

Related reports:

• Melbourne asks for a third airport while Sydney still struggles for a second


• Sydney’s second airport still an endangered species as taskforce reviews options and costs

Sydney second airport: nearing reality after 40 years of obfuscation? Perhaps ... - CAPA

Our street food is thriving, despite Singapore snub

Country Cooking

By Micky Fenix
Philippine Daily Inquirer

CHICKEN inasal and lechon at a stand

At the World Street Food Congress held on the first week of June, a friend griped that there wasn’t any Filipino street food mentioned, nor were there any on exhibit.

Of course, Singapore was there, being the host country with its most well-known blogger and TV host KF Seetoh as main organizer, and street food being a part of Singaporean culinary life.

Our near neighbor, Indonesia, was cited and other countries far from the Philippines as well.

Filipino food was mentioned though by Saveur editor in chief James Osland in a private interview with Inquirer Lifestyle’s Alya Honasan. He was familiar with turo-turo cooking from his Filipino friends in the Bay Area, and prefers what he calls “grandma cooking.”

My disappointed friend and I started to enumerate the street food we had seen and eaten all these years.

 

‘Dirty’ ice cream

We started off with those outside of schools that the nuns warned us against. The green mango vendor came to mind, and the perfect way he pared those pieces so that the skin looked like flower petals, and the purple red bagoong alamang, both alarming and attractive, that he wiped on each mango cheek.

Ditto the ice cream cart and the trio of favorite flavors—mangga, ube, keso—the “dirty” ice cream as the nuns called the product that was expertly placed on cones or on pan de limon with what looked like a palette knife instead of a scoop.

Much later it was fishballs. We remember how Doreen G. Fernandez wrote about how colegiala described skewering the balls as “make tusok-tusok” and hearing them now in my head, saying it in their high-pitched nasal way à la Kris.

At the Quiapo market area, kitchen staff cooked pancit in huge vats that, once done, were displayed on nearby carts. Small chairs were provided to the customers.

‘Empanada’ in Ilocos

We moved on to the provinces.

BARBECUE at Talisay in Cebu

In Pagudpud, Ilocos Norte, the empanada vendor must have been glad that our bus conked out right where she was. We were equally glad it did, because we watched an empanada demo right there, including the eating. Her cart was to be pulled away later by the tricycle that also held all the ingredients.

She had balut as well for the drinkers in the area.

Vigan in Ilocos Sur was where I had my first taste of empanada, as I waited impatiently for the afternoon when the vendors would come in and occupy the plaza.

My favorite, though, was on a little street near my hotel, a lone vendor who made what is still, for me, the best empanada.

Alas, today, the plaza is no longer the venue for those afternoon delights which are already in permanent structures elsewhere, where turnovers are available all day and all night.

Behind Nepo Mart in Angeles, stalls selling everything fried, attracting mostly students who want to stretch their allowance.

Chicken spare parts like chicharon of intestines and pork chicharon were the most popular fare. We older ones were thrilled to challenge our health with the cholesterol build-up.

‘Proven’ chicken bits

That was how I remembered one street food in Lipa, Batangas. The sign said “proven”, but the image looked something like fried chicken skin.

The vendors said “proven” was a part of the intestine. It was only recently that I looked it up. The online dictionary said the chicken part is proventiculus, “the division of the stomach in birds that secretes digestive enzymes and passes food from the crop to the gizzard.”

Apparently that part is thrown away when the chicken is dressed in the processing plant. It has assumed the name “proben” in some areas because we have the propensity to get our “b’s” and “v’s” mixed up. (At our airport, a digital sign read, “Von Boyage.”)

In Santa Cruz, Marinduque, everything barbecued or fried was available at night near the plaza. One of the carts was a marvel—an all-stainless steel, modified tricycle with a glass-enclosed display area and a kerosene lamp to keep the products warm and well-lighted.

Relocated vendors

In Tacloban, Leyte, we couldn’t wait for evening when the carts of sinugba (grilled) pork and chicken filled the air with swirling smoke and barbecue aroma. One restaurant we ate in didn’t mind that we bought supplemental dish from outside and even gave us dipping sauces to go with our meal.

The last time we looked for those carts, we were told to go near the pier where the vendors are now.

JARO, Iloilo, stalls during the fiesta

There is a move to get street vendors away from the streets and move them to specific areas. It has been done in Vigan and Leyte and in Cebu where the Larsian sugba stalls have also been relocated.

Safety and hygiene are the issues cited, and this move is commendable.

In Singapore, they did the same thing but built big gymnasium-like structures with light and water facilities as well.

In Batac, the empanada vendors are housed in one area. Should it still be called street food then, when it is as organized as that?

That question can well be answered in the next World Street Food Congress.

Filipino street food should be represented next time. We have so much variety; we even have quaint names for some of the food (adidas, kwek kwek, betamax). These should be talked about, written about and exhibited.

E-mail the author at pinoyfood04@yahoo.com

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Our street food is thriving, despite Singapore snub

VoucherGone: Customers upset with daily deals site VoucherWow over missing ...

July 31, 2013 by Terence LEE    

Update #1: VoucherWow has responded. Read the article or see unedited response at the bottom.

Update #2: Article is changed to reflect more accurately who the co-founders are.

VoucherGone

Singapore daily deals site VoucherWow has come under fire from consumers lately for undelivered items.

An online search has found over 30 identifiable complaints made against the site since 2012 on Facebook, mostly over displaced orders and unresponsive customer service. Allegations that complaints were deleted from their Facebook Page have also been made, along with gripes about receiving fake items and defective products.

That’s not all. The unhappiness has spread to the blogs and forums, and the comments on these blog posts are filled with horror stories.

Dexter Chan, a sales support executive, wrote that he ordered a voucher for a portable USB air humidifier that expired on 9 November 2012.  He did not receive the item after a month.

When he contacted a staff member for a refund, he was told that his request was being processed. But he never heard from them again. As a last resort, he left a comment on their Facebook Page, only to have it deleted.

When I contacted Dexter, he told me that he still has not received the item, nine months after the expiry date.

“I decide to stop pursuing them for the money and the goods because the amount is less than $10 and it’s not that worth it pursuing,” he said.

Another unhappy customer is Rohaizad Abdul Wahid, a technical operations manager.

He ordered a night light from VoucherWow and was told to collect the item by 1 July 2013. With his three-year-old daughter in tow, he traveled to the stipulated location to collect it, only to be told on arrival that there has been a “shipment delay”.

A staff told him that they did send out an email informing affected customers about the hiccup. He insisted that he only received the email after he visited the location.

“It’s pretty devious to claim you sent a notification email out when you clearly did not do so and then to try and pull a fast one by sending it out after the customer turns up,” he said.

Having given up, Rohaizad decided to ask for a refund. They refused him, saying that the best they can do is credit to his account.

“I am not unreasonable so I did say I will accept a store credit if I can claim for an item on the spot. No reply from them after that,” he said.

He plans to make a police report if nothing is done by the end of the month.

Alex Bono, COO at 42 Ventures, a company with ties to VoucherWow, has attributed these missteps to “operational issues” that are occurring because the company is growing in terms of traffic and sales, which leads to operations sometimes falling behind.

“VoucherWow has always been meeting all its payments and delivering for customers. We’re proud of being one of the group buying companies that has survived in Singapore,” he told me via email.

Recently, the company has begun focusing on products rather than services, which meant the development of capabilities like redemption centers, on-time delivery and so on.

Alex has promised continuous changes and that the company will “keep pushing” to improve its service.

Missing orders uncommon for e-commerce sites

While online complaints against e-commerce sites are common, it’s rare that a company has attracted such disproportionately negative attention.

Even for Zalora, a huge fashion e-commerce site that has handled one million orders in 18 months, online complaints mostly centered on customer service, wrong items delivered, or missing items in a basket.

But hardly the disappearance of entire orders.

Other e-commerce business owners have told me that displaced items are a small part of the customers’ gripes.

Reuben Lee, who ran Household.sg, an online grocer in Singapore, told me his customers hardly ever complained about items failing to turn up.

“Delayed, yes, but never undelivered,” he said, putting delayed shipments at under five percent of total orders. “In Household we ran our own delivery vans, so we’ve never encountered cases of items not being delivered.”

At Reuben’s current startup ShopAbout, he has carefully picked a courier partner that he believes can perform at scale and possesses experience dealing with e-commerce. Proper relationships have been built to ensure problems can be swiftly dealt with, and standard procedures are in place when things go wrong.

“There’s a paper trace for everything. In the worst case scenario, because there’s paperwork, the courier partner also offers their own insurance up to a certain dollar amount. So even if the item really gets lost in transition, there will be a monetary compensation from the courier partner,” he said.

For one major online retailer, which declined to be named, missing items happen in less than one percent of total orders.

In fact, most displaced orders are rooted out on the first pass, and the company would go out and purchase them to fill the basket before they were sent out to ensure that the customer’s needs are looked after.

And in the event of a discrepancy, the company would offer refunds or an exchange for other products of similar value prior to the delivery.

“We are working hard to bring that number down even further and it is one of the key KPI’s our warehouse team is measured by,” said the founder.

Zalora too has a refund policy in place, offering free returns for up to 30-days after delivery.

While online retailers typically handle their own fulfilments, group buying sites often let their partner merchants handle that aspect of the sales cycle.

Therefore, a failed delivery could have many potential causes, from the inability of a business to handle an overwhelming volume of orders, a weak order tracking system, a group buying site’s delay in payments to merchants, who then arbitrarily decide not to fulfil customer orders, and so on.

Customers hung out to dry

In Singapore, consumers can file a complaint against a merchant at CASE, a non-profit consumer rights organization.

However, CASE has no legal authority, and can only mediate disputes if both sides are willing.

There’s another problem: the mediation process  involves annual membership fees and a per-case admin fee of SGD 10. Without fees, CASE can still draft a complaint letter on a consumer’s behalf to the retailer, but it will not assist in the follow up.

A check with CASE has showed that no complaints were filed against the company.

Going to the Small Claims Tribunal is a legal option, but it is costly and lengthy and would deter most daily deals customers since the items they purchased are unlikely to be expensive in the first place.

This leaves shoppers on their own with no viable recourse, and may deter them from shopping online. While consumers can be more careful in researching where they buy from, e-commerce firms will have to work doubly hard to prove that they’re dependable.

VoucherWow was started in 2010 by Atilla Torgay at the pinnacle of Asia’s daily deals craze. Atilla also runs Brandsfever, a flash sales site.

Since then, the performance of group buying sites has been less than stellar, with shutdowns, botched lawsuits, and customer complaints plaguing the industry.

Outlet.com.sg, a defunct daily deals site, also attracted its fair share of controversy. Angry customers for that business have set up a Facebook group to compare notes, attracting over 700 likes.

However, Singapore market leaders Groupon and Deal.com.sg seem to be doing well. Last year, Groupon Singapore launch a retail store in sprawling mall Suntec City. Deals.com.sg is also on an upward trend, doubling in revenue in Malaysia while registering double-digit growth in Singapore.

The company is making about USD 50M a year from daily deals, with the Singapore site making USD 3M a month and the Malaysian site USD 1.3M. It has also expanded into the food delivery business.

VoucherWow’s full response (unedited):

Actually the issues you point are operational issues in the most of cases and that is why we need to time to find out exactly about it.

Just note  that Voucherwow is together with beeconomic one of the first groupbuying, and I will keep being, however with more humble approach. Also Voucherwow resources are not as huge as may be groupon, however the people working here is committed and loyal to the company. We treat the personnel as human beings.

Usually those issues you named are facing when the company grows. You can see Voucherwow has been growing in the last months and now we are 341 alexa, even ahead of reebonz. Our traffic is growing. Then means more sales and pick up with the operations sometimes falls behind. Unfortunately, yes, some times Voucherwow fail to keep happy to the customer due to many reasons. The approach is always to listen and to solve the origin of the problem, not the issues. However is something that we try to fix for the long run. After more than three years in the market Voucherwow has been always meeting all their payments, delivering customers, and being proud of being one of the groupbuying companies that has survived in Singapore. Not many can tell that. Here we are also proud of employing Singaporeans, even if many times we face issues of personnel shortage. The talent battle in Singapore is very aggressive and getting good hires takes often time.

Last comment also, the approach of Voucherwow turned more into products therefore other capabilities were required to adapt to it (redemption center, delivery on time, etc…) and it has taken some time to adapt, and yet continuous changes to have better delivery.

Our dream is to feature the best products to our customers, with  the best price and deliver the goods on time. No doubt Voucherwow will keep pushing to make all this happen.

Find out more about SGE’s research arm: SGE Insights, providing customized in-depth research reports to help you navigate the business of technology in Asia.

About The Author

Terence LEE – Editor

Terence writes mainly about technology trends and startups in Asia. He believes in crafting smart content: Not just a regurgitation of text, but well thought-out pieces that serve the reader using a combination of data, design, narratives, analysis, and visual impact. His articles have been published on Venturebeat, Yahoo!, Straits Times, Today, and The Online Citizen. He also co-founded NewNation.sg, a satirical news site covering Singapore affairs. Engage him on LinkedIn and Twitter.

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VoucherGone: Customers upset with daily deals site VoucherWow over missing ...

Dusit plans Singapore golf resort

An artist’s impression of the new Dusit Thani hotel

Dusit International has signed a new deal that will see it enter the Singapore hotel market for the first time.

The Thai hotelier has penned a new joint venture agreement with Laguna Hospitality that will lead to the development of a Dusit Thani golf resort in the city state.

Located within the grounds of the existing 36-hole Laguna National Golf Country Club, located close to Changi International Airport, the new upscale Dusit Thani property will include approximately 200 rooms, four food beverage outlets, meeting and event space and recreational facilities including swimming pools, gym and a spa.

With access to the Laguna golf club, the new property is expected to attract a mix of guests from the corporate, MICE and leisure markets, as well as existing members of the Laguna National.

The new property is expected to open at the end of 2015.

Dusit plans Singapore golf resort

REIT Listings Heat Up Singapore IPO Market

By P.R. Venkat

Companies are again rushing to list real estate and other assets on Singapore’s stock exchange, with billions of dollars in recent and planned deals putting the city-state on track for its best-ever year for initial public offerings.

They are listing in the form of trusts, which investors find attractive because they pay high returns and assured dividends. The new push follows a market selloff in May and June that hammered trusts’ share prices and led two companies to delay offerings.

In the past two weeks, two real-estate investment trusts raised a total of US$900 million in Singapore IPOs. Another US$4 billion of trust deals are in the pipeline as companies ranging from department-store operators to wind-power providers look to capitalize on the market’s recovery.

Last week, Singapore-listed property developer Overseas Union Enterprises, controlled by Indonesia’s Riady family, listed hotel and shopping-mall assets in a REIT after raising US$476 million in an IPO. And Singapore Press Holdings Pte. Ltd. , the city-state’s largest publishing company, listed a REIT of its shopping malls after raising US$438 million. Demand for both offerings, from institutional and retail investors, easily exceeded the supply of shares.

Other companies are following suit. Among them, Lotte Department Store, South Korea’s largest department-store operator by revenue, plans to list some of its shopping-mall assets in Singapore in a deal that could raise US$1 billion, people with knowledge of the deal said last week.

Lotte on Wednesday confirmed its IPO plan but said it hadn’t decided on the timing.

MBK Partners, an Asia-focused private-equity firm that controls Taiwan’s largest cable-television operator, China Network Systems, will also seek to raise around US$1 billion by listing the operator as a business trust, people with knowledge of the deal said last week.

MBK declined to comment Wednesday.

Singapore-listed property developer Soilbuild Construction Group Ltd., meanwhile, has started taking orders from institutional investors for a US$505 million IPO of industrial properties, people with knowledge of the deal said. The company filed an IPO prospectus with Singapore’s central bank on Tuesday.

The success of last week’s listings—shares in both traded above their IPO price on Wednesday—indicates that many investors still see REITs as attractive despite concerns about U.S. monetary stimulus potentially being scaled back and about higher interest rates, which were largely behind the selloff in May and June.

REITs were the biggest losers on the Singapore market during that period, falling 15% from May 20 through July 4 and underperforming the benchmark Straits Times Index, Citibank said in a report.

But despite higher yields on Singapore government bonds, the gap between them and yields on Singapore-listed REITs remains “quite comfortable and attractive,” said Eric Khaw, Singapore-based associate fund manager for Henderson Global Investors, which has more than US$100 billion under management.

“We are not that concerned about short-term interest rates moving up in the short to medium term,” Khaw said.

Henderson was a cornerstone investor in Mapletree Greater China Commercial Trust, which raised US$1.3 billion in an IPO of China real-estate assets in March. Cornerstone investors generally commit to holding a significant stake for a set period.

Singapore has become an Asian hub for trust listings, due largely to government rules that require trusts to pay out 90% of revenue in dividends. Singapore-listed REITs have yields of 6%-7%.

The city-state ranks first in Asia this year in trust IPOs with a total volume of US$3.4 billion, nearly half the region’s total, according to data provider Dealogic.

That dominance in trust listings, which has accounted for 90% of the city-state’s total IPO volume this year, has pushed Singapore to first in overall IPO volume in Southeast Asia for the year—and third in Asia behind only Tokyo and Hong Kong, according to Dealogic.

If all the deals in the pipeline get done, Singapore is likely to surpass its previous record for IPO volume of US$7.2 billion in 2011.

“There is ample liquidity in the region and property is a good way to play on the growth in Asian economies,” said Angelo Scasserra, head of real-estate banking for Southeast Asia at Credit Suisse, an adviser on both the Overseas Union and Singapore Press Holdings offerings.

Scasserra said both offerings saw significant demand from private-banking clients.

“Unlike an institutional investor, a private-banking client doesn’t have to manage redemptions from fund investors and they don’t have to outperform indices, so they can be long-term holders of real-estate securities,” he said.

Isabella Steger in Hong Kong contributed to this post.

REIT Listings Heat Up Singapore IPO Market

Dream Eid getaway deals

Boasting history and culture dating back hundreds of years, Turkey is a tourist’s paradise. The Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia, Goreme Fairy Chimneys, Library of Celsus, Mount Nemrut, Mount Olympus, Patara Beach – all have a history, or in other words, a story to tell.

Dream Eid getaway deals

Trace collects your kick, push, coasting metrics, shares them on social media

Meet Trace – A Device That Makes Action Sports Measurable, Sharable and Comparable

Runners and bikers have all sorts of tools and gadgets that monitor their activities and progress. But the same is not true for Action Sports like Surfing, Skateboarding, Skiing and Snowboarding. Today, ActiveReplay is launching Trace, a new and on of a kind device that makes action sports measurable, sharable and comparable, via a Kickstarter campaign. Trace is the first piece of technology that can correctly and automatically identify performance and tricks as they are being performed by skaters, skiers, snowboarders and surfers. Action Sports athletes will finally be able to look back on their day, see how many tricks they landed or waves they caught, and be able to share all of this information with their family and friends. ActiveReplay’s goal is to raise $150,000 to begin production of Trace.

Trace is a small, rugged, and durable device with 9-axis inertial sensors, advanced multi-Hz GPS, and Bluetooth 4.0,that measures a huge amount of events and tricks athletes perform in skiing, snowboarding, surfing and skating. The athlete can then compare and share those metrics with leaderboards and their networks via social media. Trace consists of two parts: the data collection pod and the mount. Attaching and activating Trace is easy: The mount is attached to any hard surface like a board or helmet. Trace slides in the mount. The athlete pushes a button and begins their sport.

When an athlete completes a session, Trace will connect with their smartphone and send the data to ActiveReplay servers for processing. Within seconds, the athlete will be able to see all of their data, beautifully laid out and easy to read on their phone. Athletes will be able to share their session sheets on Facebook and Twitter, and compare their performance on the leader board.

“Trace is really easy to use: just turn it on and go. We’ll take care of the rest. And the metrics you can gain from it are truly amazing. No more bragging to friends about an amazing wave or new trick without having a way to prove that it happened. We keep track of speed, time, distance, and calories. When you pull tricks like 360s our algorithms will measure your airtime, jump height, and rotation,” said ActiveReplay CEO Dr. Anatole Lokshin. “We are introducing Trace based on the popularity of our flagship product, AlpineReplay, which has become the largest social network of skiers and snowboarders in the world. Since its launch, AlpineReplay has skiers in 43 countries and more than 1,400 resorts worldwide. AlpineReplay athletes logged 460,000 ski days, 5.1 billion feet of vertical and 2.5 million jumps this past season. We’re now expanding this concept to other action sports. We are confident that Trace will transform action sports with stats never before seen for amateur and professional athletes.”

For skaters, Trace will identify tricks, track speed, map out lines and more. If the trick was landed poorly or the board didn’t rotate all the way around, Trace will track that, too. Trace already has established an initial set of identifiable tricks like ollies, nollies, kickflips, 360 flips, impossibles and more.

“This trick set will only get bigger,” added Dr. Lokshin. “As skaters start to use it, we’ll be able to identify more and more tricks.”

For surfers, Trace will identify break, waves caught, speed, airs, turns and more. From the moment the surfer paddles out, Trace is collecting data. Every time a surfer catches a wave, Trace calculates max speed, average speed and length of wave in both time and distance. If a surfer boosts an air, Trace measures how high they got, how long they were in the air and distance traveled.

For skiers and snowboarders, Trace identifies resort location, lifts and trails, as well as speed, vertical, air and more. Trace takes AlpineReplay to the next level. All data will now have sub-second level of accuracy. In addition to max speed, vertical distance, distance traveled, calories, number of jumps and airtime, Trace will also be able to identify tricks like 360s, backflips and more.

ActiveReplay’s management team includes Dr. Lokshin, who in addition to his duties as CEO, also leads the ActiveReplay Math Team which focuses on algorithm development. He also supervises hardware development and production. Dr. Lokshin formerly served as VP and CTO of Magellan Navigation, where he led teams which pioneered and commercialized consumer GPS, created first digital mapping, 3D mapping, released the first PND, and shipped millions of units of hardware to consumers. Before working at Magellan, Dr. Lokshin was part of the technical staff at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory where he worked on robotic arms for the space station and the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI) project. He holds an MS in Physics from Polytechnic University St. Petersburg, Russia. He also holds a Ph.D. and EE USC.

David Lokshin is Active Replay’s VP of Products, managing the engineering workflow and web and mobile products. After earning his A.B. with honors in Applied Mathematics from Harvard University, he traded FX options for Barclays in Singapore where he was responsible for the Philippine Peso and Malaysian Ringgit options books. Lokshin has been writing code and leading product for ActiveReplay since inception, building the products he wanted as a kid, surfing, skating, and snowboarding in California.

Trace collects your kick, push, coasting metrics, shares them on social media

Dream Eid getaway deals from UAE

Boasting history and culture dating back hundreds of years, Turkey is a tourist’s paradise. The Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia, Goreme Fairy Chimneys, Library of Celsus, Mount Nemrut, Mount Olympus, Patara Beach – all have a history, or in other words, a story to tell.

Dream Eid getaway deals from UAE

Wall Street Perks Up as Growth Accelerates

Markets ended a volatile session nearly flat on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve gave no hint that a reduction in the pace of its bond-buying program is imminent. But the index finished July up 5 percent to mark its best month since January.

The Fed’s stimulus is seen by many as central to the stock market’s gain of nearly 19 percent so far this year.

By the end of trading, the Standard Poor’s 500-stock index was down less than 1 percent, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 0.1 percent and the Nasdaq added 0.27 percent.

Gross domestic product unexpectedly accelerated in the second quarter at a 1.7 percent annual rate, and private employers added 200,000 jobs in July, topping economists’ expectations. The ADP jobs data laid a firmer foundation for the year that could bring the Fed closer to cutting back its stimulus.

“It looks like this market wants to go higher,” said Catherine Avery, president of Catherine Avery Investment Management in New Canaan, Conn. “The G.D.P. number that came out this morning was a big surprise.”

In early trading, Facebook’s stock rose above its initial public offering price of $38 for the first time since its market debut, a milestone in the company’s effort to wipe away Wall Street’s skepticism about its business. But at the market close, the shares were off about 2.2 percent, at $36.80.

Shares in the industrial gas producer Air Products and Chemicals gained 2.9 percent, to $108.64, after the activist investor William A. Ackman said his Pershing Square Capital Management had acquired a 9.8 percent stake.

Shares in Symantec, the maker of Norton antivirus software, rose 9.6percent a day after it posted better-than-expected quarterly results as customers used more of its security products after a series of hacking attacks.

With quarterly results in from 60 percent of the S. P. 500 companies, 67.4 percent have exceeded earnings expectations — in line with the average results over the last four quarters. About 55 percent of companies have topped revenue expectations, more than the 48 percent average of the past four earnings seasons but below the historical average, according to Thomson Reuters data.

In Europe, strong euro zone unemployment figures gave a modest lift to stock markets on Wednesday morning.

Eurostat figures showed the number of unemployed across the 17 nations that use the euro fell for the first time since April 2011, providing further hope that the region’s economy could soon start showing signs of recovery.

Britain’s FTSE 100 closed up 0.76 percent and the CAC 40 in France gained 0.15 percent, while Germany’s DAX was little changed.

Earlier in Asia, Japan’s Nikkei 225 index tumbled about 1.5 percent. The Tokyo benchmark closed down 3.3 percent on Monday and then recovered about halfway on Tuesday.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 0.3 percent, to 21,883.66 points, while South Korea’s Kospi dropped about 0.2 percent, to 1,914.03.

Benchmarks in mainland China rose while those in Singapore, the Philippines, Thailand and Taiwan fell.

Wall Street Perks Up as Growth Accelerates

David Teo and Family Have Made Singapore"s Super Group Into a Food and ...

By Jennifer Schultz Wells

David Teo became an accidental coffee pioneer in Singapore in the late 1980s. His wife Te Lay Hoon’s clothing store had failed, and she was at loose ends. Teo had a business of his own supplying plates for printing presses but got the idea that busy Singaporeans might want an easier and faster way to get their caffeine kick. Soon Te and two of her siblings were set up in a 2,000-square-foot instant-coffee packaging operation.

Instant coffee was then mostly sold in jars, and consumers needed their own creamer and sugar. Teo’s inspiration was to package the three ingredients into 20-gram sachets and brand it 3in1 Coffee. That wasn’t enough, however. Sales were slow, and he was prepared to write off the $55,000 venture.

Instead, he tinkered with the coffee’s ingredient mix to better appeal to the Singaporean palate. “I tested it, gave it to my wife, my friends, everyone,” he says. He also spent heavily on a big marketing push. In the second year sales in Singapore reached nearly $3 million, and the bigger picture came into focus: Asia’s coffee market was experiencing double-digit growth, and his coffee-mix formula could be adapted to fit different tastes. While Singaporeans prefer a thick, aromatic coffee, the mix could be made sweeter for Thais, for example, or milkier for Chinese. Convinced it would work, Teo began to export. “After the sachets became a hit in Singapore, my dad immediately moved into Malaysia, Thailand and Myanmar,” says Teo’s son, Darren, the corporate strategy manager for the family company, Super Group. “That’s why in all of these markets we have the first-mover advantage.”

Today Super is the second-biggest seller of instant coffee in Singapore and the number one seller in Myanmar, which is the company’s second-largest market (see below) . It also ranks near the top in several other Southeast Asian markets, though Swiss food-and-beverage giant Nestlé–which began selling Nescafé 3in1 sachets in the 1990s–is the region’s leading brand by far.

This year, for the first time, it joins FORBES ASIA’s honor roll of Asia-Pacific’s best 200 companies  with under $1 billion in annual sales.

Convenient coffee won’t sell itself. Teo spends a high 10% of revenue on advertising and promotion. One payoff: Super moved up to No. 40 on the 2013 ranking of Singapore’s most-recognized brands worldwide, according to Brand Finance, a U.K. consultancy.

It’s a long circle from the family coconut-candy factory, where as a youth David Teo, oldest of nine, worked in Johor Bahru, just to Singapore’s north. He was 18 when his father died, leaving him in charge of a business that wasn’t making any money.

He closed the factory and opened a noodle restaurant before a friend of Dad’s helped him set up a business printing price-tag stickers. He kept evolving, and in 1981 a chance connection got him a shot with Fuji of Japan, and the result, Fuji Offset Printing Plates Manufacturing, became a leading regional supplier. Teo remains its executive chairman, and his one-quarter ownership is worth $2.1 million.

Coffee, meantime, begat a portfolio of more than 300 instant beverage and food products. Super’s fastest-growing segment is now the food ingredients unit, which sells in bulk to food and beverage producers and last year, just five years since it started, racked up nearly a third of Super’s $425 million sales.

Revenue has almost doubled since 2008 and should reach $478 million this year, according to an average of estimates collected by Bloomberg Bloomberg Finance. Net income soared 32% last year, to $65 million. The company has earned “ten-bagger” status, with the value of its stock increasing a good tenfold over the past four years. Super now owns and operates 15 plants throughout Asia, employs 2,800 workers worldwide and does business in 52 countries.

Super’s move into the food supply business had its roots in a lesson in controlling costs that Teo learned when a supplier for Super’s 3in1 cereal pushed up its price. In 1993 he invested in a production line for cereal flakes and before long was building his own plants to produce coffee-mix ingredients–including soluble coffee powder and nondairy creamer–so he could manage quality and supply.

Those plants initially were only for Super’s own products. After Darren joined Super in 2007 as an economics grad of the National University of Singapore, he won his father over with an idea: Why not supply other companies? The launch came shortly before the 2008 milk scandal in China–at least six babies died after drinking infant formula tainted with an industrial compound–and big food-and-beverage companies started to shy away from China-made ingredients.

“A lot of big brands saw what happened to [Chinese dairy products company] Sanlu, which collapsed overnight,” says Darren, 30. “They didn’t mind paying a slight premium for reliability and safety.”

Demand for its ingredients, including a bottled nondairy creamer that David developed and marketed to milk-tea makers in Taiwan and China, quickly outstripped supply, and it took time for Super to ramp up capacity.

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Singaporeans Are The Fastest In The World To Become Millionaires

Neerja Jetley
Contributor

David Teo and Family Have Made Singapore"s Super Group Into a Food and ...

CS starts visit to Singapore

Hong Kong (HKSAR) – The Chief Secretary for Administration, Mrs Carrie Lam, began her visit to Singapore today (July 31). She met with government officials to understand more about the population policy of Singapore, attended a lunch gathering with people from Hong Kong and visited the Institute of Technical Education and the Old Parliament House.

In the morning, Mrs Lam visited the National Museum of Singapore, which is a cultural and architectural landmark in Singapore, to learn about its collection and cultural programmes.

At noon, Mrs Lam attended a lunch gathering with Hong Kong people living and working in Singapore. She briefed them on the latest developments in Hong Kong and encouraged them to contribute to a closer relationship between Hong Kong and Singapore.

In the afternoon, Mrs Lam met with the Permanent Secretary of the National Population and Talent Division of the Prime Minister’s Office, Mr Niam Chiang Meng.

The National Population and Talent Division drives the co-ordination and implementation of various population policies in Singapore. Mrs Lam then visited the Institute of Technical Education, which is the principal provider of career and technical education as well as the key developer of national occupational skills certification and standards in Singapore.

“With the ageing population and shrinking workforce in Hong Kong, it is important to plan in advance so as to better prepare ourselves for the challenges ahead, including finding ways to better utilise existing manpower resources through productivity enhancement. Career and vocational training is one of the ways to help enhance the productivity of our workforce,” Mrs Lam said.

Mrs Lam also visited the Old Parliament House, also known as the Arts House.

The 200-year-old building was Singapore’s first Parliament House and was revitalised and transformed into an arts venue in 2004.

Mrs Lam then visited the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in Singapore and the office of the Hong Kong Tourism Board in Singapore to see their operation.

Mrs Lam will continue her visit to Singapore tomorrow (August 1), meeting senior officials and visiting public housing and a cruise centre.

Source: HKSAR Government

Published on: 2013-07-31

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CS starts visit to Singapore

Singapore Retains Position As Top International Meeting Country And City In ... - eTravelBlackboard

Singapore has retained its position as the leading meeting city and country in the world, according to the Union of International Associations (UIA) 2012 Global Rankings.

Named Top International Meeting Country for the second year running and Top International Meeting City for the sixth consecutive year, Singapore has once again reinforced its value proposition as a top choice international meeting destination.

Singapore’s international appeal, strategic location and access to key Asian markets provide a strong impetus for organisers to move or locate their events in Singapore.

The UIA ranking is the latest in a list of accolades that include being named Asia’s Top Convention City for the 11th consecutive year, by the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA).  Having hosted a record of 150 ICCA1 events in 2012, Singapore emerged as the only Asian city in the Top Ten Convention Cities in the world alongside other cities including Vienna, Paris, Berlin, Madrid, Barcelona and London.

Kenneth Lim, Regional Director Oceania of the Singapore Tourism Board, commented: “We are elated to retain our position as the leading meeting city and country in the world. Building on Singapore’s strength as an international meetings destination, we also want to encourage Australian business visitors to take the opportunity to explore the many leisure experiences Singapore has to offer. Mouth-watering dining options, world-class retail offerings, non-stop entertainment and unique experiences can all be enjoyed once the official business side is done.”

In addition to the 18 World Congresses held in Singapore in 2012, some events were held for the first time in Asia such as the 4^th International Congress of Zookeepers 2012, the International Conference on Next Generation Technologies for Bioenergy and Biomass Utilisation 2012, 33^rd Annual International Association of Technological University Libraries 2012 and the World Congress on Controversies in Obstetrics, Gynaecology and Infertility 2012.

In 2012, 952 of the meetings hosted in Singapore – almost ten per cent of UIA’s database – met the stipulated qualifying criteria.  This includes meetings that are organised or sponsored by international organisations or of significant international character.

Amidst the diverse business events held in the city-state, the inaugural UIA Associations Round Table will also take place in Singapore in October this year, as part of TravelRave 2013 – an established travel trade festival in Asia in its fourth year that draws attendees from across the travel and tourism industry with a line up of eight quality events.

Taking place for the first time in Asia, this milestone event is expected to build wider and stronger networks in the association community.

Jacques de Mévius, Secretary General of UIA, commented, “The Union of International Associations is happy to be bringing its Associations Round Table to Asia which will take place in cooperation with the Singapore Tourism Board and its partners and with the participation of internationally respected speakers.”  He added, “Drawing on its years of experience with its Associations Round Table in Europe, the UIA is looking forward to sharing this opportunity for training and networking with all international associations based in Asian countries or with an interest in Asia.”

 

Singapore Retains Position As Top International Meeting Country And City In ... - eTravelBlackboard

External affairs ministry mulls business heads in foreign service cadre for ...

BANGALORE: In a move to strengthen economic diplomacy across the globe, the ministry of external affairs (MEA) is looking to depute experts from various trade and industry bodies into the Indian Foreign Service cadre for short periods.

Speaking at an event organized by local industry body Federation of Karnataka Chambers of Commerce Industry (FKCCI) on Tuesday, external affairs minister Salman Khurshid said, “We are looking at innovative methods to depute people in to the foreign service. Hopefully, we would have more people coming from industry join us for a few years, spend one or two postings abroad and then return to their permanent jobs.”

He said the MEA was undergoing change because of new expectations from the Indian diplomat.

Pinak Ranjan Chakraborty, secretary, public diplomacy, said the MEA was looking to use the expertise of people from industry for trade and economic issues. “They will be part of our economic diplomacy,” said Chakraborty.

However, there are issues to be sorted out. “How much do we pay them, what level should we peg them at, because bureaucracy is a hierarchy,” said Chakraborty.

The Indian MEA is said to have one of the smallest cadres, smaller than even in countries such as Singapore and Chile. In 2008, the Union cabinet had given its nod to double the MEA cadre base to 1,200 by 2018. At present it is between 700 and 800, with the ministry having taken in 35 young people who cleared their UPSC exams this year.

The external affairs minister, who was on a two-day visit to Bangalore, engaged in some public diplomacy, meeting with CEOs, trade bodies, representatives of civil society, and law students. The concept of public diplomacy was launched by the MEA in 2006, the idea being to take foreign policy outside the environs of a closed group.

“Our Constitution gives external affairs to the central government and states don’t have a role to play. But we think states do have a role and public diplomacy is part of the process to build stakeholders within states and broaden the catchment area of our foreign policy,” said Chakraborty.

Khurshid said the MEA couldn’t have made “a more effective intervention of outreach than here (in Bangalore) because of the significance of opinion makers and people who are right at the front line of what India means to the world today.”

Salman Khurshid on H-1B visa

“We are no pushovers. We have to be accommodative of the concerns of other economies. We can’t look at the USA as though only what we want should be done and not necessarily accommodate what USA wants to be done. When I spoke to Secretary (John) Kerry and told him that we were concerned about the issue of H-1B visas, he told me we wasn’t aware that the situation was as critical as it sounded when we put it across to him. But he did tell me that he was prepared to go and speak to the Senate and House of Representatives for us, and added that we have to give him something as well. They have concerns about IPR (intellectual property rights), concerns about compulsory licensing, and concerns about the time we were taking on the 123 (civil nuclear) agreement and its commercialization.”

External affairs ministry mulls business heads in foreign service cadre for ...

Singapore Tourism Board Appoints Sharon Lam as Area Director Oceania - e

 

 

 

 

 

The Singapore Tourism Board is pleased to welcome Sharon Lam as its new Area Director Oceania, replacing Sandra Leong who returned to Singapore when her term ended in April. 

Based in the Sydney regional office, Sharon will drive the strategic direction and promotion of Singapore as a great leisure and business destination across both Australia and New Zealand.   Her responsibilities include trade relations, MICE, business development, strategic partnerships and management of her local, on-the-ground team and agencies including the newly appointed PR Agency, Adhesive PR. 

In addition, Sharon will continue to explore ways to maintain top-of-mind awareness for Singapore and creatively communicate the ongoing marketing campaign – ‘Get lost and find the real Singapore’ – which challenges Aussies to abandon preconceptions of the city and uncover unexpected and bespoke experiences across areas such as dining, nightlife, local culture and heritage, pampering, shopping and world-class events and attractions.

Sharon Lam, Area Director Oceania of Singapore Tourism Board said, “With Singapore’s position right on our doorstop, many Australians think they ‘know’ Singapore, however most of the time these preconceptions are either out of date or inaccurate.   I look forward to working with our trade partners and agencies to help make Australians more aware about the ever-changing Singapore scene, and to encourage more to ‘get lost’ and discover for themselves the myriad of experiences we have on offer.”

Sharon joined the Singapore Tourism Board in 2007, holding a variety of roles including business development within the Exhibitions and Conferences division, and working with international MICE players to enhance the business events landscape across lifestyle industries.  She scored a coup bringing the World Architecture Festival from Europe to Singapore in 2012 and anchoring the World Retail Congress Asia Pacific in Singapore in 2013.  Prior to that, she worked in the Events and Entertainment division to attract world-class arts events such as the introduction of Art Stage Singapore in 2011.

Part of Sharon’s new responsibilities was being on the Evaluation Panel recently for a PR Agency exercise where the business was awarded to independent consumer PR Agency Adhesive PR, following a competitive pitch process that included 13 Australian PR Agencies.  The Agency will be responsible for Public Relations Services across Australia and New Zealand including idea generation, strategic counsel, social media strategy, media relations, crisis communications and event management.

Sharon said: “With our city constantly evolving and offering new experiences for visitors, we wanted to partner with a creative and innovative agency who could devise unique ways and ideas to get people to see the real Singapore they’re missing out on. 

“Adhesive PR’s creative and strategic thinking was paramount and their full-service approach meant we could work with them from conception through to implementation.”

Singapore Tourism Board Appoints Sharon Lam as Area Director Oceania - e

Customer survey results - Singapore

Customer survey results – Singapore

Jul 31, 2013 (Menafn – M2 PRESSWIRE via COMTEX) –More than 80 per cent of customers are satisfied with the visa service they received in Singapore, our global customer survey has found.

Each month we review your feedback to see where we can improve our service and publish the results quarterly.

Results for the second quarter of this year show the Singapore team exceeded our 80 per cent threshold for customer satisfaction, with an overall satisfaction rate of 98 per cent.

How we measure up

To help us improve our service and communicate better with our customers we also review our performance each month against our customer service standards.

In April – June 2013 we:

* exceeded our completion time for processing non-settlement visas of 90% within 15 working days*;

* met our completion time for processing settlement visas of 95% within 12 weeks*;

* significantly exceeded our customer response target of 20 working days, responding to customer enquiries within 5 days on average;

* exceeded our complaints response target of 20 working days by responding within 8 days on average.

* A more detailed breakdown of our monthly processing times is on the processing times page.

We also conducted a presentation in collaboration with the British Council for a pre-departure briefing in Singapore.

More information about our customer survey results and overall satisfaction rate can be found in a PDF on the right side of this page.

Improvements to the way we communicate to you

Your feedback has already helped us improve both our visa service and the way we communicate to you:

* We offer an optional 3 to 4 day priority visa service for faster processing;

* We offer a premium lounge service ;

* We provide a prime time appointment service (peak season only) if you are unable to visit our visa application centre during regular opening hours;

* We have introduced an appointment system and ensured that you are seen within your designated appointment slot when you attend the VAC. This has reduced the waiting time and process of submitting your application.

* We offer a range of services including; a courier facility, photocopying, photograph service and an SMS service which updates you on the progress of your visa application.

* Our SMS service will send automated messages, to both your mobile phone and email address, at various stages of the visa application process.

* We update you on any delays or issues which may affect processing of your visa application via our website;

* We send you an email update when your application has been decided indicating when you are likely to receive your passport back or when it will be ready for collection;

* When you email us, we confirm receipt immediately and let you know the timeframe for our response;

* We now have improved Singapore Country page on our website with more visible links to guidance and information on supporting documents.

Customer feedback and complaints

Customer feedback is important to us as it helps us identify areas for further improvement.

We aim to respond to complaints about our service within 20 working days. Dissatisfaction with your visa decision will not be treated as a complaint. If you are dissatisfied with the outcome of your visa application please read ‘ If you have been refused a visa in Singapore ‘ to see what options are available to you.

During the second quarter, the Manila visa hub received 4 complaints about our visa service:

* We received a complaint about a delay in processing, but when investigated it was found the application was processed within our 15 working day target. We offer a priority visa service for eligible applicants who require faster processing.

* We received a complaint about conflicting information on our website in respect of a requirement for a specific visa category. On investigation the customer was referencing information in a different visa category and was confused. We are looking at the way we present our online information to make content and navigation more straightforward for our customers.

* We received a complaint about a refusal and refusal notice that incorrectly stated the applicant’s nationality. We apologised to the customer about the error on the refusal notice although this did not change the outcome of the application decision as insufficient evidence had been provided to support the application.

* We also received a complaint about VFS Global, our commercial partner, being unable to provide advice to a customer about their visa application. VFS Global operates our visa application centres on our behalf in the Philippines, Taiwan, South Korea, Japan, Singapore and Malaysia. They are not able to provide immigration advice and do not make decisions on visa applications. All decisions on visa applications are made by UK Visas and Immigration staff at the British Embassy in Manila.

While we acknowledge that some customers are unhappy with the outcome of their visa application, our survey results show 98 per cent of customers feel they were treated fairly and 98 per cent understood the reasons for our decision. We take decision quality very seriously and continue to review all aspects of our decision making process to ensure quality, consistency and fairness at all times.

Take the global customer satisfaction survey to tell us your views, or contact us with any general feedback, compliments or complaints about the service you have received.

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Customer survey results - Singapore