Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) has partnered with a big tech company to fuel innovation and transform the future of education with its cloud-enabled Smart Campus. With a digital-first strategy and the adoption of technologies, NTU Singapore is set to accelerate innovation and thrive amid the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond.
As of January 2022, NTU has successfully converted over 2,600 fixed phone numbers to the company’s phone system. With the cloud-based phone system, calls become richer and more collaborative, as NTU employees can make and receive calls on their business number from all their internet-enabled devices, while using the same tool they use to chat and host video meetings. In addition to cost savings for the University, employees remain productive, as they can also seamlessly transfer their calls across multiple devices, including laptops, PCs, tablets and mobile phones.
The cloud-based phone system that was adopted in 2019 enabled hybrid learning and remote work. At the height of the pandemic in the first quarter of 2020, the transformation to the new system enabled the University to successfully shift within one week from more than 1,000 in-person lessons weekly to online learning for 30,000 students.
Innovation has always been core to the University’s DNA. This digital transformation in partnership with the tech company marks a significant milestone in our commitment to embracing a culture of innovation, promote maximum efficiency, foster sustainability and improve the lives of our students and employees through empowered learning and living experiences
– Tan Aik Na, Senior Vice President for Administration, NTU Singapore
Technology plays a key role in powering the 200-hectare campus, which includes a living lab of digital experiments – from running an autonomous electric bus to testing drones for Singapore’s airspace. This forms part of NTU Singapore’s 2025 vision in equipping its Smart Campus with cloud-first technology and agile infrastructure. As the University adapted to respond, recover and reimagine its future during the pandemic, NTU Singapore partnered with the tech company to create and sustain an environment that fosters flexibility and innovation on and off-campus.
Aligned with NTU Singapore’s 2025 vision to harness the power of digital technology to enhance learning, teaching and research, IT managers also leveraged integrated tools within the platform to create an asset tracking system for IT asset reviews and pre-emptive checks to be conducted more efficiently. The university is now able to allocate resources toward higher-value tasks and innovation, accelerating the institution’s broader mission to be future-ready, agile and resilient.
The university plans to roll out its new cloud-based student management system, amongst other ongoing initiatives to leverage technologies like chatbots and Artificial Intelligence (AI). With a successful user-empowered change management program and cloud enablement roadmap in place, the digitally connected university is well-equipped to realise its 2025 vision, leading the way in fueling innovation while shaping the future of education.
As reported by OpenGov Asia, An established technology enterprise will be working with the Energy Research Institute at NTU Singapore (ERI@N) to address industry demands for advanced technologies that can help to save energy and cost, improve the efficiency, flexibility and resilience of power grids and reduce Singapore’s carbon footprint.
These digital solutions include new smart grid physical systems, a smart energy router for power grid support, a smart home energy management platform as well as a Data Fusion Software Platform that combines AI and Big Data for use in smart home applications and power grids. The two parties have inked a four-year agreement to seal the partnership, which is in line with the company’s global strategy to invest and provide new value to its business partners in the emerging industry megatrends: Optoelectronics, Cloud Computing, 5G and AIoT, EV Charging and Smart Grid technologies.
