The academic-industry collaboration agreement was formalised with the signatures of Professor Dr Hiew Pang Leang, UOW Malaysia, and Mr Lam Chun Yee, Director of Manufacturing, Signature International Berhad. The signing was witnessed by Mr Shanker Sathivellu, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Administration) of UOW Malaysia, and Mr Lau KS, Group CEO of Signature International Berhad.

UOW Malaysia and Signature International Berhad: Shaping a Future Milestone Together.

By UOW Malaysia 

A significant stride in industry-academia collaboration was marked on 30 April 2025, Wednesday, as UOW Malaysia and Signature International Berhad officially sealed their partnership with a formal agreement signing ceremony. The event, held at Signature International Berhad’s headquarters in Kota Damansara, signifies a shared commitment towards advancing manufacturing capabilities and empowering future industry professionals.

UOW Malaysia representative, led by the esteemed Professor Dr Hiew Pang Leang, Vice- Chancellor of the University of Wollongong Malaysia (UOW Malaysia) arrived at 10:00am and was warmly greeted by the Signature International Berhad team, with Mr Lam Chun Yee, Director of Manufacturing, at the forefront.

The ceremony commenced with an insightful welcome address by Mr Lam. He provided a comprehensive overview of Signature International Berhad, highlighting the company’s dedication to innovation and its proactive approach towards enhancing its manufacturing processes through strategic alliances with academic institutions like UOW Malaysia. Mr Lam also elaborated on the background and objectives of this collaborative project, underscoring its importance to Signature’s future growth.Following Mr Lam’s address, Professor Dr Hiew delivered a compelling keynote speech. He introduced UOW Malaysia and expressed sincere gratitude to Signature International Berhad for their generous RM10,000 industrial grant. Professor Dr Hiew emphasised the strong alignment of this collaboration with UOW Malaysia’s Sustainability Living Lab initiative, reinforcing the university’s dedication to fostering environmentally conscious practices and nurturing industry-ready graduates. He further acknowledged the crucial role of practical industrial exposure in students’ development and expressed appreciation to Signature for offering valuable internship placements to UOW Malaysia students.

This exciting collaboration centres on a project aimed at facilitating Signature International Berhad’s shift towards smarter manufacturing. Leveraging UOW Malaysia’s expertise, the project will address specific technical hurdles, such as translating Human-Machine Interface (HMI) and wiring diagrams. It will also include comprehensive performance evaluations across critical production stages, namely Nesting, Edge Banding, CNC, and Sorting. Moreover, the collaboration will focus on devising effective strategies to optimise overall system performance, encompassing module operations, HMI interfaces, Input/Output (I/O) addressing, and Programmable Logic Controller (PLC) command implementation.

The successful signing ceremony concluded with a productive networking lunch, offering representatives from both organisations the opportunity to further discuss the collaboration’s long-term potential. This was followed by an engaging guided tour of Signature International Berhad’s showroom, providing the UOW Malaysia delegation with a firsthand look at the company’s cutting-edge innovations in smart living solutions.

The signing of this agreement marks a significant milestone, underscoring the power of synergy between industry and academia. It reflects UOW Malaysia’s unwavering commitment to providing its students with invaluable real-world industrial engagement, fostering innovation, and championing sustainability-driven projects. This partnership with Signature International Berhad promises to be a fruitful endeavour, benefiting both organisations and contributing to the advancement of the manufacturing sector in Malaysia.