By Nicholas Greene
SAP has marked the 25th anniversary of its Asia-Pacific operations with the announcement that it will open a new SAP Innovation Center in Singapore by the end of 2014.
The new centre will focus on the areas of Smart Cities, Industry 4.0, Healthcare and Digital Consumers, and aims to drum up opportunities in the local economy by identifying untapped markets and building on customer needs to create new products.
SAP plans to co-innovate with customers, partners and local universities through research partnerships, and also provide local start-ups with access to technology and new markets to expand their reach.
“Asia Pacific is a fast-growing region. We are now entering the era of Internet of Things with the rapid growth of smart, connected devices and systems to meet the changing demands of today’s consumers. As we embrace a networked, technology-driven innovative economy, we will focus on accelerating industry growth in public services, healthcare, financial services and retail,” said Adaire Fox-Martin, president, SAP Asia Pacific Japan.
“Building on our 25-year presence in the region, we look forward to continued commitment and close collaboration with customers, partners, governments and universities throughout Asia Pacific, to drive innovation and skills development.”
The move has been welcomed by the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB).
Quek Swee Kuan, deputy managing director at EDB, said, “For 25 years, SAP has been a key partner to Singapore in its contribution to the ICT industry. By providing co-innovation opportunities, the new Innovation Centre will enable companies to pursue their desired digital transformation strategies from Singapore. This builds on SAP’s active talent development efforts to leverage the capabilities of Singaporean students and researchers, and marks a deepening of our partnership.”
