Full Annual Report 2006 - Singapore Technologies Engineering

THE WINNING SPIRIT ST Engineering AR 2006 12
Letter to Shareholders
We won several significant contracts in 2006. Among them
were the US$635m Airbus contract for total aviation support
to Skybus, Airlines, a new carrier a new in carrier the US; in the two US; roll-on two roll-off roll-on vessels rolloff
be vessels used by to be Airbus used to by transport Airbus to large transport aircraft large components, aircraft
to
including components, sections including for their sections new A380 for their aircraft; new A380 and two aircraft; and
two shipbuilding contracts contracts from from the US the Navy US Navy amounting amounting to over to over
US$360m, namely the Egyptian Navy fast missile craft project
and a missile range instrumentation ship. The latter project is
significant as it marks the first time we have won a contract
from the US Navy since we acquired VT Halter Marine in 2002.
Our Electronics sector’s foothold in the Chinese rail market
now totals nearly $50m, including three projects in Guangzhou.
It was also strengthened with the development of an integrated
traffic command centre system, the first-of-its-kind aimed at
efficiently managing major rail lines in Beijing. This makes us
the first Singapore company to win a major Beijing Olympics
related contract.
Many of the contracts for the Group came from existing
customers. A repeat customer is a happy customer. For an
organisation driven by performance and results, there is no
better validation and recognition than having customers come
back time after time.
Enhancing Capabilities
The Singapore Army commissioned into service an enhanced
version of our Bionix armoured vehicle, BXII, in 2006. This
latest Bionix boosts SAF’s 3rd Generation networked capability.
Featuring innovations from the Electronics and Land Systems
sectors, the BXII is integrated with the rest of the fighting
forces through a battlefield management system and networkcentric
wireless communications systems. In support of
the digitised army programme, this provides an integrated
situation awareness capability, collaborative planning tools and
knowledge-based command and control (C2). This enables
ground commanders to make responsive decisions and exercise
highly effective C2 operations in a fast-moving battlefield – a
prime example of how the Group delivers value to customers
through innovation.
The need for continuous capability improvement is a given,
particularly in an ever-evolving and competitive global market.
This is supported by a corporate culture which encourages
innovation in integrating technologies and collaboration
with like-minded partners to add new solutions to meet our
customers’ needs.
Some of these Group-wide capabilities and technologies were
showcased at Asian Aerospace 2006. Many of these are
dual-purpose or applicable to both the defence and commercial
businesses, including a slew of homeland security solutions.
With our components companies in Scandinavia and the
UK merged into one, our Aerospace sector has enlarged
its product and services offerings in Europe, and added
Scandinavian Airlines as a major customer. Together with
the existing components repair capabilities, we now have
expanded global coverage, as well as enhanced breadth and
depth of our capabilities.
Living Up to Corporate Citizenry
As the Group expands, so does our Corporate Social
Responsibility (CSR). Every country and every business has
its own matrix of CSR hot buttons, ranging from the way we
do business and preserve the environment to conservation/
recycling practices, staff welfare and community programmes.
Good corporate governance is especially vital as the Group
globalises. Transparent practices need to be applied with
cultural and local sensitivity. ST Engineering constantly raises
the bar in best practices, implementing a whistle-blowing
process during the year.