Jakarta, Indonesia, December 8, 2011 – National Instruments today announced the intention to open its first Indonesia office in Jakarta, reinforcing commitments to expand its footprint in Southeast Asia.

“National Instruments is very pleased to be in Indonesia, Southeast Asia’s largest and fastest growing economy. We are committed to establish our presence here as a partner in leading edge research and innovation,” said Victor Mieres, Vice-President of Sales & Marketing for Asia/Pacific.

Located in Sentral Senayan 2 in Jakarta, National Instruments Indonesia is the latest addition to the technology leader’s worldwide locations, which currently spans over 40 countries. With the Jakarta office, National Instruments will be able to bring world-leading automation and measurement technologies and provide technical expertise to Indonesia-based customers in the government and defence sectors, aerospace, mining, oil & gas, and manufacturing as well as the academia.

The Jakarta office opening comes on the heels of initiatives designed to strengthen National Instruments’ presence in Asia. In April this year, it had also opened a Vietnam office in Ho Chi Minh City.

National Instruments has also been increasing its support for regional academia and research institutions, leading technology roadshows, such as the Graphical Systems Design Summit 2011 which targeted scientists, engineers and educators across 11 cities in six countries in Southeast Asia.

“Indonesia is gaining momentum as a global economic leader. We want to be as close to our customers here as they leverage growth in these markets, while at the same time, be accessible to our long-term industry and academic partners,” said Chandran Nair, managing director of National Instruments Southeast Asia.

Setting up a National Instruments office in Indonesia will also enable closer ties with academic partners such as Universitas Indonesia and Institut Teknologi Bandung, and serve to cement active partnerships with non-profit and socio-civic organisations, such as the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), which is regionally headquartered in Jakarta. National Instruments has recently launched a flagship initiative called Science, Technology and Engineering Exchange Laboratory (STEEL) with UNESCO and Science Centre Singapore. The programme aims to build the competencies of education officials, technical and vocational teachers, and students in countries like Indonesia, Timor-Leste and Thailand through hands-on laboratory workshop and curriculum development training.

About National Instruments
National Instruments (www.ni.com) is transforming the way engineers and scientists design, prototype and deploy systems for measurement, automation and embedded applications. NI empowers customers with off-the-shelf software such as NI LabVIEW and modular cost-effective hardware, and sells to a broad base of more than 30,000 different companies worldwide, with its largest customer representing approximately 4 percent of revenue in 2010 and no one industry representing more than 15 percent of revenue. Headquartered in Austin, Texas, NI has approximately 6,100 employees and direct operations in more than 40 countries. For the past 12 years, FORTUNE magazine has named NI one of the 100 best companies to work for in America.

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National Instrument kicks off GSD Summit 2011 in Singapore

Over 1,000 engineers, scientists and educators to attend NI’s biggest regional event in the region

7 October 2011, Singapore – Graphical System Design Summit 2011, National Instruments premier conference for engineers, scientists, educators and industry partners, opened today in Singapore. Taking place in 11 cities across six countries, GSD Summit 2011 aims to ‘accelerate innovation’ across industries. After Singapore, the technology road show will run in Malaysia, Vietnam, Philippines, Thailand and Indonesia, through the end of December 2011.

GSD Summit 2011 features demonstrations highlighting innovative uses of the graphical system design platform, hands-on workshops for users of all levels of expertise, and the latest version of LabVIEW 2011.

“The GSD Summit is National Instrument’s largest event in Southeast Asia, and we are anticipating yet another excellent turnout this year,” said Chandran Nair, National Instruments Managing Director for ASEAN.  “Building capabilities is a core commitment for us. Our vision is to enable engineers and scientists not only to perform exceptionally well in their respective fields but to be innovators who contribute in a larger way to the growth of their organizations and to society at large,” he added.

National Instruments’ growth strategy across markets is centred on empowering users to build user defined measurement and control systems. This helps engineers create local intellectual property and increase the contribution of local engineers to their respective organisations.

In Singapore, GSD Summit 2011 showcased the cutting-edge research applications and product prototypes of NI’s industry, R&D and academic partners including ST Kinetics, Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD), Nanyang Technology University, National University of Singapore, Nanyang Polytechnic, Centronics, T2 Integrated Solutions, and WPG System.

Ray Almgren, NI Vice President of Marketing for Core Platforms, in his keynote address in Singapore underscored how graphical system design empowers innovation by inspiring future engineers: “The next generation of scientists and engineers is critical for addressing the world’s challenges. Today’s students must have education that brings them beyond mathematics and simulation, where they can do real engineering and innovate to solve real-world problems, and NI graphical system design is making that possible.”

More universities and institutes of higher learning in Southeast Asia are now looking to enhance their curriculum through integration of industry applications to mould their students into thinkers and innovators, and equip them with skills to solve the grand engineering challenges of tomorrow.

The demand for automated test and advanced control systems in Southeast Asia has also increased tremendously over the past few years owing to the rapid expansion of global technology giants that are setting up manufacturing, assembly, and test sites around the region.

GSD Summit 2011 Schedule

About National Instruments
National Instruments (www.ni.com) is transforming the way engineers and scientists design, prototype and deploy systems for measurement, automation and embedded applications. NI empowers customers with off-the-shelf software such as NI LabVIEW and modular cost-effective hardware, and sells to a broad base of more than 30,000 different companies worldwide, with its largest customer representing approximately 4 percent of revenue in 2010 and no one industry representing more than 15 percent of revenue. Headquartered in Austin, Texas, NI has approximately 6,100 employees and direct operations in more than 40 countries. For the past 12 years, FORTUNE magazine has named NI one of the 100 best companies to work for in America.

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National Instruments

Ms Jessie Lee
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Tel: +65 6226 5886
Email: jessie.lee@ni.com

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Consultant
Tel: +65 9721 0377
Email: josh.huin@ricecomms.com

Science Centre Singapore is working with the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) to help build science and technology competencies of teachers and students in Southeast Asia.

The project is jointly funded by UNESCO and Texas-based firm, National Instruments.
Click here to read the article on Channel News Asia.

UNESCO, National Instruments and Science Centre Singapore advance
Science, Technology and Engineering education in Southeast Asia

Singapore, September 07, 2011 – The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), National Instruments, and Science Centre Singapore today announced the launch of a flagship initiative called the Science, Technology and Engineering Exchange Laboratory (STEEL). The programme aims to build the competencies of education officials, technical and vocational teachers, and students in Southeast Asia countries through hands-on laboratory workshop and curriculum development training.

STEEL creates a platform for a dynamic exchange of information, ideas and experiences amongst the visiting lead trainers. It is jointly funded by UNESCO and National Instruments, and fully backed by the Science Centre Singapore in training expertise, venue, and overall workshop management.

“UNESCO’s vision for STEEL is to popularise science, technology, and engineering, and transfer knowledge to emergent communities. The UNESCO Regional Bureau of Science office located in Jakarta covers a region with more than 50 percent of the world population, with the highest population densities, and the highest development challenges. Increasing global challenges make it imperative for countries like Indonesia and many others in Southeast Asia to have a strong science and technology foundation that will drive sustainable human resource and industrial development,” says Dr Hubert Gijzen, Director of Regional Science Bureau for Asia and the Pacific, UNESCO.

Early this year, UNESCO and Science Centre Singapore have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for Science education enhancement programmes in support of capacity building across Asia-Pacific.

Commenting on the partnership, Associate Professor Lim Tit Meng, Chief Executive of the Science Centre Singapore, says: “Singapore has built a strong foundation in Science and Technology over the decades and is poised to lead the region in new technologies and advancements. We are eager to share our knowledge and expertise in biotechnology, engineering and information technology with the region.

“STEEL has a strong focus on infrastructure engineering and sustainable technologies. Some of the programmes we have established include visits to a power plant, renewable energy workshops and water quality monitoring programmes. Our aim is for delegates to be able to apply the knowledge they have gained in their communities,” he adds.

National Instruments has come on board in keeping with its commitment to inspire the next generation of innovators. “Through STEEL, we aspire to create a sustainable outreach programme where NI can play a key role in empowering Southeast Asian countries with new and innovative technologies that improve everyday life. We are looking forward to a successful pilot implementation of STEEL this year, and to continuing our commitment as partner of UNESCO and the Science Centre Singapore in organising this event every year,” says Chandran Nair, Managing Director of National Instruments for ASEAN.

Over 40 teachers and government education officials from Indonesia, Thailand, and Timor-Leste, as well as participating educators from Singapore are expected to attend the inaugural event.

At the workshops, the delegates will learn how to conduct outreach programmes, organise national events and develop relevant content for Science, technology and Engineering education in their communities. They will be introduced to NI’s state-of-the-art laboratory technologies including LabVIEW, and NI’s graphical programming software and data acquisition device, NI MyDAQ. They will also visit the Senoko Power Plant and a local school, Woodgrove Secondary School. Woodgrove was the recipient of the Watermark Award 2010 and the President’s Award for the Environment in 2011.

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Event Details

About UNESCO

UNESCO’s mission is to contribute to the “building of peace”, reducing poverty, promoting sustainable development and intercultural dialogue through education, the sciences, culture, communication and information. As a Regional Bureau for Science, the Jakarta office covers Asia and the Pacific Region, through its programmes in Freshwater, Oceans, Basic and Engineering Sciences, Earth Sciences, and Coastal zones and Small Islands. As a Cluster Office, it represents UNESCO in Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Timor Leste in all UNESCO fields of competence: Education, Culture, Social and Human Sciences, Communication and Information and Natural Sciences.

About the Science Centre Singapore

The Science Centre Singapore is a non-formal educational institution dedicated to the promotion of science and technology among students and members of the public. As a leading Science Centre in the region, the Science Centre Singapore has twelve exhibition galleries with more than 1,000 exhibits, and another 18,000 sq metres of outdoor space showcasing the Waterworks, Ecogarden and the Kinetic Garden exhibits. The Centre also houses the Omni-Theatre — Singapore’s only dome-shaped, 5-storey high theatre with a capacity of 248 seats. The Science Centre, with Omni-Theatre and Snow City, received more than 1.46 million visitors for FY2010/2011. For more information, please visit www.science.edu.sg

About National Instruments

National Instruments is transforming the way engineers and scientists design, prototype and deploy systems for measurement, automation and embedded applications. NI empowers customers with off-the-shelf software such as NI LabVIEW and modular cost-effective hardware, and sells to a broad base of more than 30,000 different companies worldwide, with no one customer representing more than 3 percent of revenue and no one industry representing more than 15 percent of revenue. Headquartered in Austin, Texas, NI has more than 5,200 employees and direct operations in more than 40 countries. For the past 12 years, FORTUNE magazine has named NI one of the 100 best companies to work for in America.

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Alex Davern, CFO, COO and Executive VP at National Instruments speaks on Squawk Box about National Instrument’s growth in Asia. Click here to watch the video on CNBC.com