Keppel Corporation Limited (Keppel) and the National University of Singapore (NUS) have jointly appointed eminent Norwegian marine structures expert Professor Torgeir Moan to the first Keppel Chair as a visiting professor.
Renowned in the offshore and marine industry, Professor Moan has extensive network amongst oil majors, regulators, classification societies, drilling contractors and shipyards around the world.
He has recently set up a Centre of Excellence in Ships & Ocean Structures (CESOS) in the Norwegian University of Science & Technology (NTNU). The Centre has won a NOK130 million fund from the Research Council of Norway to conduct fundamental research over 10 years.
Keppel, NUS and CESOS will form a strategic alliance for joint R&D in
to offshore structure technologies.
Offshore Technology Development Pte Ltd (OTD), a subsidiary of Keppel Offshore & Marine (Keppel O&M) will spearhead Keppel’s effort. Established in 1993, OTD has developed 13 proprietary rig products and designs that have been widely accepted by the offshore industry participants.
The appointment of Professor Moan came two months after Keppel donated S$1.5 million to NUS for the creation of the Keppel Professorship as the first initiative in developing Singapore into a Centre of Excellence for Ocean, Offshore and Marine Technology.
To this end, NUS will set up a Centre for Offshore and Maritime Engineering in the Department of Civil Engineering as a focal point for joint participation by the industry, institutions and regulators in research and development. One of the finest universities in Asia-Pacific, NUS has an enrolment of 22,000 undergraduate and 8,600 graduate students.
Acting as a catalyst for innovation and creativity, Professor Moan will provide new impetus to R&D into the ocean, offshore and marine structures and systems and advise NUS in developing a multi-disciplinary knowledge enterprise. He will also initiate research projects in collaboration with NUS and Keppel, besides conducting courses, promoting staff and student exchanges.
Choo Chiau Beng, Chairman and CEO of Keppel O&M, said, “Keppel wants to move to the next level in developing its intellectual property to remain competitive in the offshore and marine industry.
“With his strong research credentials, Professor Moan will set the pace and tone for the Keppel Chair in stimulating local initiatives in integrating global research knowledge with entrepreneurship and excellence in offshore and marine production technology.
“Besides advising Keppel O&M on its joint research programme with NUS, he will also facilitate our networking with the Norwegian and European R&D communities.”
Said Professor Ng Wun Jern, Dean of Faculty of Engineering, NUS, “The Keppel Chair in NUS gives us a platform for discussions and research into offshore and maritime issues affecting the Asia Pacific region. Currently, such issues are being carried out in the United States, Europe and Australia. We aim to change this.