GE launches industrial Internet solutions and opens third global iCentre in KL

GE launches industrial Internet solutions and opens third global iCentre in KL

23 Oct 2014

Performance Management Delivery Unit Chief Executive Officer, Datuk Seri Idris Jala in Kuala Lumpur on Tuesday.GE Chairman and CEO Jeffrey R Immelt said Malaysia “is a very important place for GE and it has been a fantastic privilege for the company to invest in the country”

In a press release in conjunction with the launch, Visal Leng, General Manager, AsiaPac, GE Oil & Gas said “Kuala Lumpur was selected as a location for the iCenter as a demonstration of GE’s commitment to the growth of the region’s oil and gas sector. Basing the iCenter, and GE Oil & Gas’ overall operations within the capital city made the most sense in terms of market stability, regional access and connectivity, quality of talent, cost of living, and strong infrastructure.”

GE’s Kuala Lumpur office not only serves as the ASEAN corporate headquarters but is also its Asia Pacific headquarters for Oil & Gas (O&G).

Industrial internet, a term coined by GE, refers to the integration of complex physical machinery with networked sensors and software to ingest data from machines, analyze it often in real-time, and use it to adjust operations. Leveraging on big data from intelligent machines and predictive analytics, its ‘Predictivity’ platform assists industry players particularly in the oil and gas sector meet the region’s growing energy needs, while managing operational and capital efficiency.

The iCenter in KL, is strategically linked with GE’s two other global centres in Florence, Italy and Houston, Texas. These centres set up in different time zones ensure round-the-clock monitoring and diagnostics services for GE’s installed fleet of turbomachinery for customers worldwide.

The iCenter is set to enhance rotating equipment availability, reliability and performance through Predictivity™ solutions and is manned by local engineers in line with the company’s commitment to support the growth of Malaysian talents.

Malaysian Investment Development Authority (MIDA) Deputy Chief Executive OLfficer, Datuk Phang Ah Tong, who was present at the launch, said GE’s latest investments reflected the company’s confidence in doing business in Malaysia.

Phang said the investments were in line with Malaysia’s aspiration to strengthen the oil and gas industrial cluster, noting that the center would complement the O&G eco-system offering critical support services to the oil and gas companies.

MIDA expects the setting up of the iCentre to provide the impetus to attract other major O&G players to build their base in Malaysia, he said.

Also present at the event were CEO of GE ASEAN, Stu Dean and the U.S. Ambassador to Malaysia, Joseph Y. Yun.

Source: Bernama 21 Oct, StarBiz 23 Oct 2014 and MIDA