Building Geospatial Competencies for Singapore’s Future

Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office and Second Minister for Finance and Education Ms Indranee Rajah today launched Singapore Geospatial Week, a five day series of events that celebrate and promote the importance and growth of geospatial technology, applications and data in Singapore.

2. Singapore Geospatial Week is presented by GeoWorks, Singapore’s sole geospatial industry centre managed and operated by the Singapore Land Authority (SLA), on its first anniversary. During the week, 10 leading companies will be organising geospatial-centric events, reaching out to over 1,000 geospatial professionals and enthusiasts from Singapore and the region. This is the first time in Asia that geospatial technology and information will be the main focus for an entire week. The series of events aim to enhance the adoption of geospatial technology, to open up opportunities for business to grow and citizens to benefit in a Smart Nation.

3. SLA Chief Executive Mr Tan Boon Khai, said “Driven by the pace of technological advancements, connectivity and the demand for instantaneous information, geospatial data is rapidly gaining recognition as a key enabler for smart cities’ development in ASEAN and around the world. There is a need for us to stay ahead and be future-ready by accelerating awareness and development of geospatial technologies. Singapore Geospatial Week aims to broaden that reach, with GeoWorks becoming the nexus of activity that can help grow the geospatial industry and build a more vibrant community in Singapore.”

4. Since its launch in July 2018, GeoWorks has hosted over 280 events. In addition, GeoWorks currently hosts 27 geospatial scale-ups (GeoTechs), with the additional support of 21 geospatial organisations (GeoPartners) that provide expertise, network access and business opportunities to the geospatial industry.

5. “Being part of the GeoWorks geospatial community has opened up opportunities for the team at MOGUL.sg. GeoWorks and SLA have allowed us to accelerate the product development of our MOGUL.sg service and given us many opportunities to generate leads and grow our business,” said Gerald Sim, co-founder of GeoTech MOGUL.sg, a geospatial-centric PropTech company.

6. GeoTech food safety start-up WhatsHalal’s co-founder Azman Ivan Tan added, “We are pleased to be part of the GeoWorks community. It has allowed us to focus on our service development and rollout, and given us opportunities to grow our business. Since joining GeoWorks, our operations have since expanded from Singapore into Indonesia and Australia.”

7. Moving forward, GeoWorks will continue to act as a conduit for geospatial companies looking to expand their reach across private and public sectors. It will also work closely with other agencies to provide geospatial technical expertise to support their own local and regional projects.

SLA Partners Foursquare for OneMap Integration

8. During the GeoWorks anniversary celebration, SLA announced its partnership with Foursquare, a technology company that uses location intelligence to drive informed business decisions. Through this partnership, OneMap users will now be able to find food & beverage stores, supermarkets, cafes and other lifestyle locations in addition to OneMap’s existing information of key locations such as government buildings, properties, schools, childcare centres and services including ATMs. This partnership will bring about a richer set of location information to better service Singapore businesses and citizens.

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“We’re thrilled that SLA has chosen our leading global Points of Interest (POI) dataset to augment its OneMap product in Singapore. We pride ourselves on being the leading partner for innovative companies around the world that want to do more with location, particularly those looking for an independent and trusted partner. By adding our POI data and search features to the OneMap product, we’re bringing a new and exciting way for users to explore Singapore and creating awareness around the growth and importance of location services in Singapore and across the region. We are proud to be a part of the GeoWorks programme and look forward to expanding location awareness and partnerships through their network,” said Mr Tyler Simmons, Managing Director for Foursquare Asia-Pacific.

Upgrading OneMap from 2D to 3D

10. SLA is upgrading OneMap from the current open-source platform to 3D, to develop what may soon be Asia’s first, open-source 3D nationwide map. OneMap 3D will enable users to orientate themselves in a 3D representation of the real world, empowering them to navigate around identifiable landmarks, walkways and even void deck spaces.

12. OneMap 3D will first be launched to developers by the end of 2020. This first phase will be centered around selected town centres and key city sectors, with future expansion set to be rolled out in phases. OneMap 3D will subsequently be accessible to the public on PC browsers and mobile devices.

13. OneMap 3D will be continuously enhanced to reflect future technological needs and developer requirements. SLA will also be engaging the OneMap community and GeoWorks GeoTech developers on the tools and features required to support their solutions and case uses.

14. The real estate sector is identified as the first potential user of the 3D platform and SLA is working with GeoWorks GeoTech MOGUL.Sg on the implementation of OneMap 3D into their real-estate portal. Developers can visit www.geoworks.sg to register their interest in OneMap 3D.