MRT in Singapore - The First Dig....

MRT in Singapore – The First Dig….

Do you know the place where the first hole was dug to start the MRT project? Answer: It is at a site in Shan Road (off Balestier Road).. I know because I was there with the Outside Broadcast team to cover the ground-breaking ceremony on 22 October 1983. It flagged off Singapore's largest single largest construction project with a capital outlay of $5,000million.
The event was opened by a Member of Parliament.. And there was a Shinto ceremony followed by some wine drinking, a lion dance and more celebrations. Apparently the company doing this construction midway between the Toa Payoh and Novena Station, believed in the blessings that such ceremony would bring. Singapore's Mass Rapid Transit system has now more 7o stations running through densely-populated housing estates of the island. A world-class system it is still expanding its services to other parts of Singapore.......

The MacRitchie Reservoir

The MacRitchie Reservoir has a special place in the hearts of those working on Caldecott Hill. Especially me. In my forty over years there Reservoir is still a pleasant retreat from the hectic pace of show business and broadcasting. Surrounded by lush greenery the 12-hectare park around the reservoir contains areas of primary rain forest and wildlife. Many staff of the company jog , exercise or take brisk walks weekly in the shaded tracks and use the exercise stations. Of and on I see some including myself do a bit of kayaking.( It costs $15 per hour to rent a kayak) From middle of the water whilst canoeing you can catch a scenic view of the top of the Radio Building and Satellite dishes on Caldecott Hill.
It is said there are three dragons living on the hills of Singapore. One of these resides on top of Caldecott Hill which is endowed with metal, wood and earth elements. It has chosen this place for its good feng shui and also plenty supply of water and from time to time will descend on the Reservoir to have his fill.
Mediacorp thrives on the Hill. It progresses from a government entity to what it is today. Knowing the value of this catchment area to the company and as a responsible corporate citizen Mr Lucas Chow signed an MOU with PUB and the National Parks to promote activities to conserve to enhance the enjoyment of the beautiful environment of the MacRitchie Reservoir.

a bit of history
MacRitchie Reservoir, located off Lornie Road and completed in the late 1860s, was the first water supply system implemented in Singapore. The Impounding Reservoir, as it was then called, came about through the donation of S$13,000 by philanthropist Tan Kim Seng in 1857. The reservoir was renamed Thomson Road Reservoir in 1907 and its name was changed again to MacRitchie Reservoir in 1922 after James MacRitchie, who was the Municipal Engineer of Singapore from 1883 to 1895.

The Telecentre

The Telecentre at 1 Hillcrest Road
The Telecentre in the 70s was the training school for the
Telecoms Department (known as the Telecommunications Authority of Singapore,TAS
the Singapore Telephone Board, STB and Radio and Television of Singapore RTS).
It was set up with assistance of the ITU. I remembered the training
centre well because I was there for about five years training RTS engineering staff for the roll-out of colour television. I enjoyed working there. One reason was that it was also the location of Telerec- the recreation wing of TAS and STB. Where else do you get a work place
with a swimming pool, table-tennis,badminton and tennis courts? Staff and trainees
always looked forward to the end of day where they could cool off in the swimming pools etc. And we had wonderful people there like Ng Siow Fan, Low Sin Leng, John Tan, Lim Shoiw Shiaw ,John Tan and Ching Koo Leng. We had two experts from the BBC Alan Bermingham and John Kirkus who came with their families- the most warm and friendly people I ever met on earth! And not forgetting other ITU experts from all over the world training the Line Plant, Switching and Transmission staff.
The Broadcast Wing as it was called ran about twenty courses
ranging from Lighting Techniques for TV to 8080 microprocessor programming. Besides
RTS staff, trainees came from other companies like the MOE,EDB and NPB. RTB Brunei
regularly sent their staff here as well.
The picture above showed the old building . In the 80s a twin building was built and the centre was known as the Singtel Academy. RTS moved out later ...and Singtel as well after they sold the place to MCL a property developer. The buildings were demolished and made way for more than 150 terrace houses selling for about 850 per sq.ft.
Now the training of MediaCorp staff and other external trainees on media is undertaken by the Singapore Media Academy a subsidiary of MediaCorp.
"Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day. Teach a man to fish and he will eat for the rest of his life." -Chinese Proverb

The above pictures are by courtesy of Singtel and John Tan

Wish Singapore a Happy Birthday

Every year 9th August brings back good memories...memories of the National Day Parade..which I supported for more than 30 years since the 60s ..as a private soldier of the PDF marching pass the President, a TV sound operator fixing microphones on the Padang to chairing the NDP Technical Committee. Every year this time gives me a sense of joy and achievement...and every year on 9th August my heart is with the many in front and behind the TV cameras. Here is wishing them and the Chairman a successful and Happy National Day!

For more info:

http://www.ndp.org.sg/

Dont forget to watch this video "The Unsung Heroes" at http://www.ndp.org.sg/unsungheroes.php

Long Service Awards 2009

On 23 July the CEO Mr Lucas Chow presented long-service awards to about 240 staff of MediaCorp. These staff had worked between 5- 40 years. Most are surprised
the company still dish out this award in view of the financial crisis. Staff I spoke to
to indicated… their families are very happy that MediaCorp recognises loyalty and
dedication. I received the 40-year award last year. I fully understand
how they feel. According to research long-service awards remain one of the
benefits of staff in an organisation which treasures human capital.
I had the opportunities to talk to three recipients all whom I know over the years. Ang Wah Lai, Asaad Sameer and Yeo Kim Pow . I asked them two questions

Can you let me know why stay so long in the company and what are your two memorable events in the company?. Here are their interesting replies.

Wah Lai: "Over the years there are many memorable events.Too many to remember all, but I would like mention these two.During an interview with the then Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew for the 25th Anniversary of the British Commonwealth I recommended that I record him with a handheld boom to make him stand out from the rest of the Head of states as all of them had a table microphone. May Lin was the Producer and she was not sure that PM can buy the idea. To everyones surprise he just say “That’s different”. The recording came out well and the next thing that surprise us was that he had a photo taken with us.The other I would like to mention is a trip to Oman where we went in a Military Helicopter to the Yemani border to take a look at the war zone from the Omani side.
As to how I stay so long. Our organization is an interesting place to work in as long as we put aside office politicking.In many areas the bosses themselves are also caught up in it. We must inculcate into our staff that such behavior will not be condoned. The organization can then excel as all energies are spend on excellence.I think that this is the principle that brought me this far."

Asaad Sameer: "The single most important reason for my long stay with this company is the people I work with. Throughout my career, I have had the privilege of working with very wonderful people from colleagues, peers, subordinates and bosses. There was never a time when I dreaded going to work or entertained the thought of looking for another job elsewhere. I have fond memories of past colleagues in Engineering like Joseph Ng, Koh Hock Seng, Jimmy De Silva, Lee Yew Kwan, Wong Yew Wah, Ong Kim Bok, Tan Cheng Kee, Leong Ngai Weng, Chang Long Kiat, Lee Soo Wah and Ujagar Singh; to name a few. The 2 Engineering Directors I worked under then, Sebastian Tan and Lam Lychow treated me just like a friend!
My posting to Radio to head the Engineering Division there in 1993 was very memorable. There were many accomplishments during my 14 years there, notable among them were the digitalization of Radio’s operations, launch of DAB and setting-up of a fully automated & unmanned digital MCR. Another proud accomplishment was when I set-up the Technology Business Development Unit in 2001 with the objective of generating new revenue streams from the Internet platform and other technology-related services. This has paved the way for the introduction of many more commercial applications and services on New Media platforms in MediaCorp. "

Kim Pow: "There is no one identifiable factor to explain why I stay so long in MediaCorp. I even wonder whether it is possible to give a satisfactory compact answer as there are both push and pull factors involved along the way and these changes constantly. But if I have to give a short answer, it would be that MediaCorp has managed to meet both my minimal material and intellectual needs throughout the last 30 years except on a few occasions (one of which was when I decided to take study leave to get a Masters in Australia in early 1990). The salary can only be described as decent if one chooses to live a modest lifestyle. At times, the work environment and people issues reaches “toxic” level and work demands can only met at the expense of long term physical and mental wellbeing. However, with the cooperation and support of colleagues/bosses, the frequently under-appreciated understanding of family members and the feeling of satisfaction and achievement from the successful completion of yet another important assignment, one makes quick magical recovery in body, mind and soul from these episodes, hopefully with little long-term ill-effects. I guess when the works are always urgent and constantly need immediate attention, the passage of time went unnoticed and it is rather difficult to account for the years that had gone by. For me, one great attraction is that the work challenges are always intellectually stimulating. Although, I have not changed the company I serve, I have had the opportunity to do a variety of assignments both within the Engineering division ….. spanning the whole breadth of the field of Broadcast Engineering from RF transmission, teletext (analog data broadcasting), building development projects, news computerization, TV signal digitilisation (both baseband and transmission), DVB service planning and lastly introduction of IT-based systems and file-based work-flows, and outside of Engineering as the technical lead of our ill-fated Chinese Satellite Channel (5 years of exposure to a foreign TV environment) and Chinese88 internal portal (2 years of mastering an entirely new field) enterprises. I am thankful for being given so many mind-expanding and experiential opportunities to be involved at a deep level with all the major technological developments that took place in the broadcasting industry.

Perhaps, at the subconscious level, the reason of staying so long is that I joined the broadcasting industry just it entered its most glorious phase. However, sadly, as foretold by doom prophets, left, right and center, the inexorable decline of the broadcasting industry as we knows looks inevitable and imminent. I can therefore tell the world, that I have ascended and declined with a great industry, witnessed its glorious periods and harnessed its many myriad brilliant technical breakthroughs and interacted with the best engineering brains and practitioners. Come to think of it, it is a great way to spend one’s professional life."

Recipients who wish to say something about this occasion please email to me.

Remember the WTO event in Singapore

Remember the WTO event in Singapore

One of the most memorable days of my career at Caldecott Hill is in Dec 1996. The company the then TCS gave support to the WTO event at the Suntec City where the conferences were held and a big show "ONE" at Sentosa.

The World Trade Organisation(WTO) Ministerial Conference hosted by Singapore drew about 4,000 delegates from more than 120 countries. This prestigious international event held from 9-13 December 1996 paved the way to greater economic co-operation and understanding among the participating nations. As host nation, Singapore rose to the occasion and achieved tremendous in the staging of this major event.

Besides the big effort put in by the crews of radio and Television , the mega show at Sentosa also stretched our resources to the limit. The show "ONE" captures the guiding spirit of the WTO one world of many nations, one mission of working together, one show of diverse cultures. This heartwarming and moving show is produced by Kenneth Liang and his team of Lim Puay Kim and Steven Ong. From the company the big event was co-ordinated by Niam Chiang Meng with capable engineers Loh Siu Yin and John Tan . The Outside Broadcast Crew included Seah Hong Gim,Ong Kim Bok, Yew Tian Hock etc. The CEO was Lee Cheok Yew.

I was pleased with the outcome of the technical support for the whole event. I enjoyed "ONE" as well. My favourite was Sarah Brightman singing Music of the Night.

You can view a video of her at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gy6u9TDePwY

Info above also contributed by John Tan. Email me if you have more to say and memories of the event.

the first kiss

Do you remember the first kiss on local Chinese drama??

Chinese drama productions in the company started when it rolled over to a statutory board –the Singapore Broadcasting Corporation. The first was Seletar Robbery broadcast in July 1982 followed by the Army Series. Both were popular with the locals. But one of the common complaints at that time was that the dramas were ‘clean’ and not so realistic. Unlike the shows on US television and Hongkong. For example there was no kissing scenes. The producers were concerned that SBC's government regulator might not like it. And so this feedback was noted and with more Hongkong producers recruited..what the heck if there was no kissing Singapore's local drama would never compete with Hollywood and Hongkong! Eventually the first kissing came about in one of the series on channel 8. (Can anyone reading answer this .. who were the actor/actress in the first kissing scene of our local drama and the title of the drama series? The first correct answer will receive a prize from the blog administrator. You can email or use the comments link)
The newspapers went to town when the first kiss by our local artists was telecast on channel 8 in the 80s.

And for info the first kiss in US was recorded in 1896 on motion picture in a film by Thomas Edison. It was between John C. Rice and actress May Irwin (please watch http://www.toptenz.net/top-10-famous-kisses.php)
And the first inter-racial kiss on US television was in the Star Trek series episode “Plato’s Stepchildren” first aired in Nov 1968.....

Please email information on your favouriste kisses on foreign and local television, maybe from your personal experience as well . email: tay.philip@gmail.com