Photo: Ascenz Chairman and CEO Chia Yoong Hui
The economy of Singapore has been through its challenges and no company is immune to the impact of slowing growth, increased regulatory pressures and disruptive technologies. But USQ Alumni Chia Yoong Hui is one Graduate who has exploited the challenging landscape to his advantage.
He and his cofounder Sia Teck Chong, and their families and team, joined other successful Singaporean SME's at the Enterprise 50 (E50) Awards, to take out #27th place for their company Ascenz, now in its 8th year of operations. With only 36 employees of which 25 are in Singapore, Ascenz are the most efficient company in their industry. Today Ascenz has operations in 15 countries with offices in 9 countries and partners in 6 countries, enabling them to deliver end-to-end service delivery across 5 continents.
Ascenz is the Asian leader in operational risk intelligence solutions for the maritime and offshore industries. The company delivers transparency using decision support systems for regulatory compliance, operational efficiency and risk management.
The shipping industry has long been under pressure for change. Since the 1980’s, most efficiency gains in the sector have been due to slow steaming and not technology shifts. While the industry built bigger ships, economies of scale are diminishing. Now competitive pressures are immense from overcapacity, and declining charter rates means the industry is stuck in a long decline.
Ascenz entrepreneurs, Chia Yoong Hui and Sia Teck Chong, were comrades in the Singapore navy. They saw an opportunity to transform shipping from a ‘cost minimization' business model or gambling business, into an asset management one. 80% of a ships' cost is the fuel and increasingly the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) is under pressure to address the industry's contribution to climate change. They saw opportunities for a solution that delivered operational risk management, operational efficiencies and compliance.
Ascenz was recognised for their strong entrepreneurial spirit as exemplified by overcoming the significant financial challenges in both the maritime and offshore oil and gas industries.
"The smarter path for shipping is the greater integration of ship operations with sensors and big data."
"We started in 2008 as a two-man show. With co-funding from MPA's Maritime Innovation and Technology Fund and support from our first client, Pacific International Lines, we created a system called Shipulse that collates data from sensors installed on board ships and transmits it back to shore. Shipulse allows ship-owners to remotely analyse a ship's speed and fuel efficiency in real-time, and then instruct the crew to adjust the ship's route or carry out energy efficiency measures to save fuel, reduce accidents and improve vessel performance. Having expanded to our team of more than 30, with a global footprint, we are now eyeing expansion in the European markets. Being recognised in the E50 Award is a great vote of confidence on the foundations we have achieved," Chia stated.
Photo: Gabriel Chia, Team Ascenz at E50
USQ ENTREPRENEUR chia yoong hui TAKES OUT E50 AWARDS