Deputy Prime Minister of Singapore Mr TEO Chee Hean visits UCD
29 Mar 2018
UCD was delighted to welcome Deputy Prime Minister of Singapore, Mr TEO Chee Hean to campus on Thursday March 28th. Hosted by UCD's Vice-President for Global Engagement Professor Dolores O'Riordan and Vice-President for Research, Innovation and Impact Professor Orla Feely, Mr Chee Hean also met with the Chief Scientific Adviser to the Government of Ireland and CEO of Science Foundation Ireland Professor Mark Ferguson.
During the visit, hosted in UCD's O'Brien Centre for Science, Mr Chee Han and his colleagues visited the Insight Centre for Data Analytics, met researchers from the recently funded I-Form Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre, and met members of UCD's cybercrime unit. Both of the research centres are SFI-funded and demonstrate UCD's place as leaders in data analytics and manufacturing research.
Professor Brian Caulfield, UCD's Dean of Physiotherapy and Director of the Insight Centre for Analytics, is a leading researcher in the field of connected health. Professor Caulfield showcased the current research by Insight Centre for Data Analytics into health and human performance and outlined how data can be used to influence and manage performance.
Cheryl Baker, Director of UCD's Centre for Cybersecurity & Cybercrime Investigation, provided an overview of the Centre's work with the Irish government, Irish and U.K. banks, and international law enforcement, and highlighted the role that the Centre has played in building the capacity and capability of these groups to effectively address cyber threats.
Professor of Precision Manufacturing Fengzhou Fang, I-Form Principal Investigator, presented an update on I-Form, the new SFI-funded research centre for 3D printing and advanced manufacturing. Prof. Fang highlighted the significance of manufacturing to the Irish and Singapore economies: for Ireland, 23% of GDP is in manufacturing; for Singapore, it’s 20 percent. He also outlined how I-Form’s research into additive manufacturing, data analytics, and augmented reality will transform Irish manufacturing in coming years.
Speaking about the visit, Professor Dolores O’Riordan said, ‘It was a great honour to welcome Mr Chee Hean to UCD. Professor Feely, Professor Ferguson and I had a good conversation with the Deputy Prime Minister about the Small Advanced Economies Initiative, and he met with some leading researchers in the fields of connected health, cybersecurity and manufacturing.
Having someone like Mr Chee Hean visit UCD really showcases how globally connected the University is, and allows us to strengthen existing ties we have with Singapore, as well as forge new partnerships into the future. There are almost 700 current UCD students who have either studied, or are currently studying, at a Singaporean institution, several of which are UCD partners. Our researchers have co-authored publications with academics in 12 Singapore institutes, and UCD's Quinn School of Business runs several successful overseas programmes in Singapore.'