SINGAPORE - A $54 million research centre aimed at tackling urban crowds and port management was launched on Wednesday morning.
The Urban Computing and Engineering Centre of Excellence is jointly set up by the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*Star), the Singapore Management University and Fujitsu and model and simulate urban congestion in Singapore.
Applications and software developed from this research will provide consumers with real-time information on how to make the most efficient way to a crowded venue, for instance.
It will also examine how Singapore's maritime ports can operate more efficiently by predicting the volume of shipments due for arrival and how best to reduce waiting time for ships.
Singapore's developed infrastructure and its small size, which leads to increased urban congestion, thus make it an ideal "testbed" for such research, said A*Star's executive director Tan Geok Leng .
