Thunderbolt turns 10

Source: Intel. Infographic reviewing Thunderbolt milestones. 

2021 marks the Thunderbolt connector's 10th anniversary. In 2011, computer connections were more confusing. There were USB ports for data; Ethernet ports for connectivity; plus DisplayPort, HDMI and VGA ports for video.

Intel then created Thunderbolt to consolidate all input/output needs with one connector. At its launch, Thunderbolt could transfer a full-length, high-definition movie in less than 30 seconds and back up a full year of continuous MP3 music playback in just over 10 minutes.

Today, the technology is called Thunderbolt 4, with 4x as much overall bandwidth at the port compared to the original Thunderbolt. It can support two 4K displays, while charging a notebook at the same time. The connector form factor is now Type C to allow for thinner-and-lighter notebooks and single-cable docking.

Thunderbolt is now required on Intel Evo and vPro laptops, and will soon be supported on Chrome devices.

“Thunderbolt’s simplicity, reliability, and performance are important whether you are working or learning at home, or you are creating content or you are a gamer. You can do all of those things with a single Thunderbolt connection,” said Jason Ziller, GM, Client Connectivity Division at Intel.

Any product using the Thunderbolt name or logo has passed a certification test that includes electrical and functional testing. More than 1,000 computers and 1,000 accessories have been Thunderbolt-certified to date.

“Intel looks forward to continuing to work with the industry on innovation and adoption of Thunderbolt,” said Ziller.

“We expect Thunderbolt will keep up with monitors as we look to 8K and 16K, external SSDs that are nearly doubling in speed every year, and much more.”

SSD stands for solid state drive, a type of storage.

MANN+HUMMEL opens intelligent air solutions Asia Pacific HQ in Singapore

MANN+HUMMEL Group, a global filtration specialist, today opened its Asia Pacific headquarters for intelligent air solutions (IAS) in Singapore.

Source: MANN+HUMMEL. The ribbon-cutting ceremony. From left: Charles Vaillant, Group VP Technology, MANN+HUMMEL, Ken Cao, Group VP and CEO, Asia Pacific, MANN+HUMMEL, Emese Weissenbacher, Chief Financial Officer, MANN+HUMMEL, Beh Kian Teck – Assistant MD, Singapore Economic Development Board, Thomas Fischer – Chairman of the Supervisory Board, MANN+HUMMEL, Hakan Eckberg – Group VP, Life Sciences and Environment, MANN+HUMMEL, and Jason Tang – VP, Intelligent Air Solutions, MANN+HUMMEL.

The headquarters will spearhead the growth of indoor air quality solutions that combine MANN+HUMMEL’s expertise in air filtration with digital technologies. Besides regional market responsibilities, the IAS Asia Pacific HQ in Singapore is also responsible for global research and development, product charters, brand management and strategic partnerships.

Thomas Fischer, Chairman of the Supervisory Board at MANN+HUMMEL, said, “The megatrends of Asia’s growth, intensifying urbanisation, environmental sustainability, and rapid digitalisation of the physical world, are important for all of us. MANN+HUMMEL believes in leveraging our core expertise of filtration and separation while embracing new digital technologies. We will work very closely with our partners and customers in Singapore and Asia, to actively address these challenges and opportunities.”

Singapore’s strategic location in Asia Pacific, and the government’s move towards a smart and sustainable nation, makes it a clear key hub for MANN+HUMMEL. Together with its year-old Global IoT (Internet-of-Things) Lab, also located in Singapore, MANN+HUMMEL is set to serve a market for clean air solutions in Asia Pacific estimated at more than S$4 billion.

Beh Kian Teik, Assistant MD, Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB), said that the company has had a 21-year partnership with EDB. “MANN+HUMMEL has been a long standing partner and valued contributor in the industrial and environment sector in Singapore. The opening of its Asia Pacific headquarters for intelligent air solutions is aligned with Singapore’s push to embrace the digital economy and green buildings. We look forward to the creation of solutions to enable smarter, healthier buildings for Singapore, as well as the region and beyond,” he said.

Beh also noted that a healthier and happier workforce with cleaner air and a healthier building; this can lead to improved productivity while optimising business operations for companies. "Addressing indoor air quality is a key component of the Building and Construction Authority’s (BCA) Green Mark assessment. In fact, BCA most recently published a study that green buildings are not only environmentally friendly, but are also ‘healthier’ for their occupants.

"The intelligence in MANN+HUMMEL’s solutions also dovetail with Singapore’s Smart Nation push. Building and facility managers will be able to use smart control systems to monitor and manage the indoor air quality within buildings, alongside other typical vectors such as energy and water. We expect them to be able to do so remotely, efficiently or even through unmanned devices enabled by artificial intelligence," he added.

MANN+HUMMEL’s OurAir business aims to help owners, facility managers and end-users of commercial buildings and offices know, improve and manage better indoor air quality. The OurAir family includes smart heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) air filters and air purification systems, air quality monitors and indoor air quality management platforms. MANN+HUMMEL has implemented living lab projects with major multinational companies across China, Asia and Europe, and is working closely with them on the monitoring and optimisation of indoor air quality.

Jason Tang, MANN+HUMMEL VP, Intelligent Air Solutions, said, “There are many factors that affect indoor air quality in buildings and offices. MANN+HUMMEL provides solutions for real-time monitoring of indoor and outdoor air quality, and digital platforms to analyse, predict and manage the optimisation end-to-end. This is anchored by our deep expertise in filtration to achieve clean air more effectively and efficiently. We help our customers in the evolution of standards towards healthy buildings, and make smarter choices to enjoy better air.”

MANN+HUMMEL also signed a global partnership with the World Green Building Council (WorldGBC) to jointly promote its initiative Better Places for People, becoming the first partner of the initiative to focus on better indoor air quality for buildings and offices. The WorldGBC is the global non-profit organisation driving the agenda for green buildings. Through Better Places for People, the WorldGBC aims to increase market awareness of better indoor environments to support the well-being and productivity of people.

Terri Wills, CEO, World Green Building Council said, “Better Places for People is a project that is truly global in scale, influencing businesses around the world to build green by demonstrating their positive impact on people’s health and wellbeing.”

Wills noted that the initiative is driven by findings from the World Health Organization (WHO), whose air quality model has confirmed that 92% of the world’s population live in places where air quality levels exceed WHO limits. "Air pollution is rising in many of the world’s poorest cities. In some cities in Asia, air pollution levels have exceeded 20 times the WHO guidelines. Asia has 25 of the world’s 30 'most polluted cities' in terms of particulate matter (PM) 2.5 measurement. Air pollution is the most pressing environmental health crisis in the world," she said.

Indoor air pollution can also be serious, Wills said, quoting US Environmental Protection Agency research which has found that there are two to five times more pollutants found inside of buildings than outside. "Problems with biologicals such as mould and pollen from poor quality construction, volatile organic compounds from building materials and carbon dioxide from the lack of ventilation contribute to poor health outcomes.

"Studies have shown that better indoor air quality results in 101% increase in cognitive scores for workers in a green and well-ventilated environment; and workers report better sleep quality and positive impact on their personal productivity in a space that considers these factors."

Qlik app identifies Hong Kong as most expensive city in APAC

Screen capture from the app.

Qlik has created a web-based app for consumers to allow them to compare the cost of living across eight key cities in the Asia Pacific (APAC) region. Built on Qlik Sense, the Qlik APAC Cost of Living app focuses on living costs in Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur, Mumbai, Seoul, Shanghai, Singapore, Sydney and Tokyo.

The app uses embedded visual analytics to present a cross-section of goods such as property, transport, education, entertainment, utilities, food, restaurants and clothing, in addition to allowing users to view the data by 'budget', 'mid-range' or 'expensive' cost ranges across any category.

Source: Qlik infographic. While Kuala Lumpur, Mumbai and Shanghai score below the APAC average on almost every item in the comparison basket, the other cities scored above the regional average in various categories. 

Deeper insights

With heat maps, the app can instantly illustrate how the prices of individual items in various countries differ from the APAC average.

“With the constant fluctuations in Asian economies and changing consumer price indices (CPI), getting to grips with the cost of maintaining a certain standard of living before you move somewhere can be difficult,” said Phillip Beniac, Regional Vice President, Asia Pacific for Qlik.

“The Qlik APAC Cost of Living app takes the pain out of the process by using visual analytics to compare the average cost of living in various cities. Easy to assimilate visual representations enable expatriates, as well as local residents, to compare selected APAC cities side by side, and drill into the data to find out how their city of choice stacks up against the rest.”

Beniac added that the app enables storytelling. "You can click deeper into the active data. It is not a static Powerpoint," he said. "This is about discovery, this is about insight."

Tokyo most expensive, Hong Kong, and Sydney close behind

Using heat maps, the Qlik APAC Cost of Living app instantly illustrates how the prices of individual items in various countries differ from the APAC average, with red highlighting the costliest and blue denoting the least expensive. A ‘Highs and Lows’ page enables users to track prices of particular items – from alcohol and entertainment to clothing and household essentials – across Asia Pacific.

Japan’s most populated city, Tokyo, takes the overall title as the most expensive city, with costs 39% higher than the APAC average. However, delving deeper into the data reveals that all is not how it may seem. For example, looking only at the ‘Expensive’ category of items shows that Hong Kong usurps Tokyo as the most expensive city to live the high life. At the other end of the spectrum, exploring ‘Budget’ costs shows Sydney elevated in the rankings to second behind only Tokyo.

“APAC is well regarded as an attractive location for expats and also sees a great deal of mobility from within the region, with potential to accelerate due to recent initiatives such as the Asian Economic Community formed in December 2015,” commented Professor Wong Poh Kam, National University of Singapore (NUS) Business School.

“Part of this attractiveness of the region is the perceived low cost of living in various countries. However, cost of living standards can often be misunderstood unless people have access to a good level of detailed information that informs them what it will cost to live their particular lifestyle. For example, not everyone wants or needs to own a car, which can be a particularly expensive proposition in some APAC cities, especially Singapore and Tokyo, where the public transport network is already extensive.”

Some of the most interesting insights include:

Although Shanghai’s cost of living data places it 11% lower than the APAC average, it is the most expensive city to stay in shape, with a monthly gym membership costing US$157 and a session with a personal trainer costing US$393. In contrast, although Seoul has a similar overall cost of living to Shanghai coming in at 10% lower than average, a monthly gym membership will set you back just US$30, while a personal trainer session costs only US$72.

While Sydney is known for being a gourmet paradise, it is also the priciest place in APAC to eat out in hotel restaurants, with a meal for two costing up to US$247. That is about twice what it costs in Shanghai (US$133) or Tokyo (US$116), while Seoul is the cheapest choice (US$53), followed by Mumbai (US$61) and Hong Kong US$70).

In terms of finding a place to live, Kuala Lumpur is most attractive option for people who like to live in the city centre, with property costing US$331 per sq ft to buy and US$1.11 per sq ft to rent. Hong Kong tops the city centre list at US$2,002 per sq ft to buy and US$6.52 per sq ft to rent. On the other hand, if renting in the inner suburbs, then Mumbai (US$0.24 per sq ft), Kuala Lumpur (US$0.41 per sq ft) and Sydney (US$0.9 per sq ft) are the most attractive.

The app also casts light on some enormous cost disparities. For example, the cost of sending one student to an international school in Shanghai (US$45,229) is the equivalent of sending 22 to an international school in Mumbai (US$2,016).

“In the same way that organisations now routinely use business intelligence, individuals are seeking ways to use everyday data to analyse and derive insights into what’s going on in their lives. The Qlik Cost of Living app is a great example of how you don’t have to be a data scientist to get useful insights from data, by using visual analytics,” added Beniac.

CK Tan, Senior Manager, Product Marketing, Asia Pacific, Qlik, said that the mobile-ready app would be of interest to people planning to relocate across countries, or those who want to travel.

The app will be updated at least annually and is likely to see more cities added as well as more categories. While the apps it has created are free, Qlik does not rule out monetisation in the future.

Interested?

The Qlik APAC Cost of Living app, built on Qlik Sense, is based on data collected from varied sources including desktop research as well as surveys of regional retail chains and hotels. Download the app

Explore other Qlik apps - one of the latest is on the UEFA Euro 2016 football championships

posted from Bloggeroid

Malaysian Institute of Accountants publishes book on MPERS standard

To assist members in the implementation of the Malaysian Private Entities Reporting Standard (MPERS) Framework in Malaysia, the Malaysian Institute of Accountants (MIA) has unveiled a book on MPERS, Illustrative MPERS Financial Statements, with Commentaries.

The book has been prepared by the Institute to guide members in their transition to the MPERS Framework. The book covers all 35 sections of MPERS, including the transitioning requirements.

MIA President Dato’ Mohammad Faiz Azmi said that private entities can no longer apply the Private Entity Reporting Standards (PERS) framework. These entities have to now make a choice of either migrating to the full blown Malaysian Financial Reporting Standards (MFRS) Framework or the MPERS framework, which is tailormade for them.

“The accounting requirements and treatments in MPERS are substantially different from those in the previous PERS Framework used by private entities in some areas,” he said.

“There are also some complex and highly technical areas, such as accounting for business combinations, consolidation, financial instruments and agriculture that require sufficient knowledge not just in accounting per se, but also in finance and economics.”

MPERS is an adaptation of the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) for Small and Medium-Sized Entities issued by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) in 2009. By adopting the MPERS Framework, private entities in Malaysia would be able to bring their financial reporting to be in tandem with the current global financial reporting. The MPERS Framework is effective for financial statements beginning on or after 1 January 2016.

KPMG sees holes in global corporate responsibility reports

Carbon reporting from the world's largest companies lacks consistency, making it almost impossible for stakeholders to compare one company's performance easily and accurately with another's, according to the 2015 edition of the KPMG Survey of Corporate Responsibility Reporting*.

Professionals at KPMG member firms reviewed the carbon information published by the world's largest 250 companies in annual financial and corporate responsibility reports. They found that although four out of five of the companies discuss carbon in these reports, the type and quality of information published varies dramatically. For example, only half the G250 (53%) state carbon reduction targets in their company reports and, of these, two thirds provide no rationale to explain why those targets were selected.

The type of emissions reported also varies considerably, KPMG said. While a majority of reporting companies report on emissions from their own operations (84%) and from purchased power (79%), only half report on emissions in their supply chains. Even fewer, less than one in ten (7%), includes information on emissions resulting from the use and disposal of their products and services.

Around half (51%) of the companies that do discuss carbon in their company reports refer readers to further detailed information in alternative sources such as the CDP database** for investors. The other half does not.

Wim Bartels, a partner with KPMG in the Netherlands and KPMG's Global Head of Sustainability Reporting & Assurance, is the lead author of KPMG's survey. He said: "All stakeholders should be able to access good quality, comparable information on a company's carbon performance quickly and easily from the company's annual financial or corporate responsibility reports. That is simply not the case today.

"There is a clear need for improvement and global reporting guidelines on carbon could help to address this problem. It should not be left to companies alone to figure this out; industry bodies, regulators, standard setters, investors and others all have a role to play."

KPMG's study follows a recent proposal to the G20 by the Financial Stability Board for a task force to develop consistent climate-related disclosures for companies to help lenders, insurers, investors and other stakeholders to understand material risks¹. The Climate Standards Disclosure Board (CDSB) has also introduced a voluntary framework aimed at helping companies include investor-relevant climate information in mainstream financial reporting².

The KPMG study includes guidelines on data, targets and communication that KPMG member firms believe companies should follow when publishing carbon information in annual financial and corporate responsibility reports.

KPMG's researchers devised a scoring methodology based on these guidelines which they used to assess the quality of reporting from each of the 250 largest companies. Key findings include:

• One in five large companies in high carbon sectors such as mining, construction and chemicals does not report on carbon in its annual financial or corporate responsibility reports
• European companies have a higher quality of reporting than companies elsewhere in the world
• Companies in the transport & leisure sector produce the highest quality reporting by sector, and oil & gas companies the lowest
• Only half the companies that report on carbon in their annual financial or corporate responsibility reports explain how cutting carbon benefits their business

The KPMG Survey of Corporate Responsibility Reporting includes a view of global trends in corporate responsibility (CR) reporting based on analyses of reports from 4,500 companies across 45 countries. It shows that the rate of CR reporting is now higher in Asia Pacific than it is in Europe or the Americas. Nearly eight in 10 (79%) companies in Asia Pacific report on CR.

The highest rates of CR reporting are now found in emerging economies such as India, Indonesia, Malaysia and South Africa. These high rates are often driven by regulation, either from governments or stock exchanges.

The research also shows that it is now standard business practice to include CR information in the annual financial report – more than half (56%) of the 4,500 companies studied do this.

Interested?

Download the report

*The KPMG Survey of Corporate Responsibility Reporting is now in its 9th edition and was first published in 1993. Research is carried out by professionals in KPMG member firms and is based on publicly available information published by companies in their corporate responsibility reports, annual financial reports and websites.

In the 2015 edition, the sample of the world's 250 largest companies is based on the 2014 Fortune 500 listing³. Global trends in CR reporting are based on a study of reporting from the top 100 companies by revenue in each of the 45 countries.

**The CDP database is the largest collection globally of self-reported climate change, water and forest-risk data.
1 Source: http://www.financialstabilityboard.org/wp-content/uploads/Disclosure-task-force-on-climate-related-risks.pdf Retrieved 17 November 2015
2 http://www.cdsb.net/what-we-do/reporting-frameworks/climate-change Retrieved 19 November 2015
3 http://fortune.com/global500/2014/

TCEB celebrates milestones for Thailand MICE Venue Standard

The Thailand MICE Venue Standard from the Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau (TCEB) has been awarded to 42 venues across the country to date, says the TCEB at the Thailand MICE Venue Standard Certification Ceremony last month. 

The standard is part of an aggressive development plan to drive Thailand's MICE industry for rapid growth. Highlighting Thailand's leadership position in the region, TCEB stressed the importance of leveraging capabilities of MICE operators, and notes that standardisation can guide investments, operations, management, and marketing support. 

Chiruit Isarangkun Na Ayuthaya, Vice President, Administration and Strategic Support, TCEB, said: "To be able to compete in the international marketplace, quality products and services are considered key factors in propelling market development efforts, especially when regional integration with the ASEAN Economic Community will take effect. The MICE industry will expand significantly, both in terms of visitor numbers and revenue, and will serve as an effective economic driver of growth for Thailand and ASEAN."

TCEB successfully initiated the MICE Venue Standard in 2013, a first in Thailand and ASEAN at the time. The standard has since been adopted by ASEAN member countries as a framework to develop the ASEAN MICE Venue Standard (AMVS).

Since its inception, TCEB has encouraged Thai operators to follow the Standard's guidelines and improve services to meet its requirements. Over the past two years, TCEB has supported the initiative and evaluated MICE venues in six targeted cities, Bangkok, Pattaya, Phuket, Chiang Mai, Khon Kaen, and Had Yai. More than 80 operators have applied for the programme.

The 42 certified MICE operators, comprise three convention centres, 34 hotels and resorts, five public and private organisations. Among these were Queen Sirikit National Convention Center, Bangkok Convention Centre at Central World, Miracle Grand Convention Hotel, the 60th anniversary of His Majesty the King's Accession to the Throne International Convention Center, and the SCB Training Center Pattaya. 

The IMPACT Exhibition and Convention Center (ECC), Muang Thong Thani made a separate announcement that it had received the Thailand MICE Venue Standard for eight of its meeting rooms: the Royal Jubilee ballroom, Grand Diamond ballroom and Phoenix rooms 1 to 6.

The Thailand MICE Venue Standard accolade will help guarantee the quality of Thai meeting rooms. As internationally-recognised venues, all of the 42 operators will be part of the MICE Venue Approved List. In 2015, TCEB expects 120 MICE entrepreneurs to certify under the TMVS, especially in Thailand's five key MICE Cities, as well as cities with high potential including Hua Hin, Ratchaburi, Kanchanaburi, and Nakhon Ratchasima.

The certification process will cover three main components including physical, technological and service aspects, with different scoring conventions for convention centres, hotels and resorts, and public and private sector organisations. The evaluation is also in line with the criteria requirements of the Thailand MICE Venue Standard – Category: Meeting Room Certification Handbook, developed by the Thai Hotels Association, Thailand Incentive and Convention Association (TICA), Thai Exhibition Association (TEA), The Association of Thai Travel Agents, Association of Domestic Travel, and Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, Mahidol University.

Looking ahead, TCEB will work closely with Mahidol University to further develop a five-year strategic roadmap for 2015 to 2019 for the Thailand MICE Venue Standard, while developing capabilities of certified operators in various areas including venue management courses in collaboration with TEA and TICA, as well as educating other operators about how to get certified.

To support the success of the Thailand MICE Venue Standard, TCEB will continue to drive the ASEAN MICE Venue Standard to achieve wider adoption region-wide.

"We hope that the Thailand MICE Venue Standard Certification Ceremony, held for the first time in 2015, will encourage our operators to further improve their capabilities, as well as create confidence among Thai and international MICE organisers to host their events in Thailand. Once the ASEAN Standard is widely adopted, our Thai entrepreneurs will be ready and equipped with business edge needed to succeed," Chiruit concluded.