Asia Magazine #12

asiaContents

6 “THE BEST AND WORST THING ABOUT JAPAN IS THE POPULATION”

asiaOffice 2 Letter from head of office 3 office representatives

asiaReport 4 LEGACY OF THE BEJING OLYMPICS 6 “THE BEST AND WORST THING ABOUT JAPAN IS THE POPULATION” 8 TOKYO CONVENIENCE 9 A LEADING GLOBAL BIOTECHNOLOGY INDUSTRY 10 BORDERLINE BIZ. 12 BRIDGING CULTURES 14 HUAWEI TAKES THE LEAD FOR 4G 15 PAY WITH TV MOBILE 16 SHIPPING - AN INDUSTRY ON THE MOVE 18 GETTING WUFFED IN CHINA 19 the sixth extinction 20 the northenmost tiger is on the hunt 22 EFFIciENCY AND PERFECTION 22 one-way ticket to shanghai

Photo: Anton Kolbe

asiaLetter

The magazine you are reading right now is the result of this

island in an exciting part of the world in times of change. I will

fantastic semester in Taiwan. Chalmers students from all over

never regret I took the chance to be a part of it as an exchange

Eastern Asia participated to accomplish it.

student from Chalmers.

My feeling right now is happiness, partly due to that I have had

To be honest, I do not really think that students home in

the chance to travel so much and meet a lot of new people,

Sweden realize the opportunity that is given to them with

partly because I am having such a good time in a country almost

Chalmers Asia. The small technical university at the west coast

10000 kilometers away from home: new culture, different logics,

of Sweden suddenly shows up on the international arena. It

difficult language and interesting food.

gives us as students a chance to visit international corporations, talk with CEOs and travel around learning more about different

I did not really expect anything when I came here to Taiwan but

industries. Studying abroad for about one year is just what a

I knew it was different. My goals were to learn the language,

student needs to get a more complete world experience. I

taste the food and get new experiences from a global world far

needed to complete myself.

from home.Taiwan is a beautiful mix of so many things. It is hard to put it in one category of countries. It is such an interesting 2

Johan Svennung

asiaChronicle

asiaOffice Representatives

The grand reopening and 6th anniversary

Johan Svennung - Head of Office.

of the Chalmers office at NCTU Taiwan in

Graduate student at the Department of Business Admintration

september was the beginning of a long line

and Electrical Engineering at NCTU. Similar background at

of events following throughout the autumn

Chalmers University of Technology.

semester.

Jesper Nilsson - Deputy Head of Office.

The grand opening was followed a few weeks

Graduate student at the Department of Applied Chemistry

later by the two professional dancers in

at NCTU. Similar Background at Chalmers University of

our crew giving a lesson in Swedish Boggie

Technology.

to interested Taiwanese and international students.

Mattias Winsten - Representative.

Responsible for the Alumni group. Graduate student at the

Next up in the rather long line of events was

Department of Electrical Engineering at NCTU. Similar

a movie night and two evenings of continueing

background at Chalmers University of Technology.

tradition – teaching the Taiwanese to play floor ball. Then came advent and the lighting of the

Anders Twetman - Representative

first of four candles, gingerbread, mulled wine

Editor of the Chalmers Asia Magazine. Graduate student at

and all around merriment.

NCTU’s Department of Electrical and Control Engineering.

Similar background at Chalmers University of Technology.

The Nobel price ceremony interrupted the Christmas preparations. With Nobel being

Karl-Johan Sellberg - Representative

Swedish we decide to give the students at

Art Director of the Chalmers Asia Magazine. Graduate

NCTU a bit of a feeling for what it might be

student at the Department of Architecture at NCTU. Similar

like, with fancy clothes and champagne. Next

background at Chalmers University of Technology.

was the very Swedish Tradition of Lucia with more gingerbread and Lucia buns and singing

Martina Johansson - Representative.

that was appreciated by the visitors. The final

Member of the Corporate Relations group. Graduate student

event of the semester was on Christmas

at the Department of Bioscience and Engineering at NCTU.

eve itself where visitors got to help make

Similar background at Chalmers University of Technology.

decorations, build a gingerbread house and sing songs.

Maria Arvidsson - Representative.

Member of the Academic Exchange group. Graduate student

So there you have a brief review of our first

at the Department of Applied Chemistry and Environmental

semester here. Mixed in with school work

Engineering at NCTU. Similar background at Chalmers

and the joys and troubles of surviving in, and

University of Technology.

exploring a very different country than our own, we have displayed some of our own

Anna Gunnarsson - Representative.

culture through these activities. But enough

Member of the Academic Exchange group. Graduate student

about that, now on to what you have been

at the Department of Management Technology at NCTU.

waiting for, the brand new Chalmers Asia

Background from the Department of Mechanical Engieneering

Magazine in your hands. Enjoy!

at Chalmers University of Technology.

3

Legacy of the Beijing Olympics Text: Anders Twetman Photo: Anders Twetman

It has gone a little over four mounts since the end of the

She also tells me that Beijing has invested much money in new

Olympic games in Beijing and I have been there to see

building projects, Olympic facilities such as the Water Cube and

what has happened in the city in that time.

the National Stadium being the most obvious. Joakim says it has not been limited to that, but that many other things have been

My first impression of Beijing as I look out of the window of

built. This is partly due to the general economical growth in the

the air plane is.... Brown. Dusty fields and uniform houses seen

country but he thinks it would not have been so much and so

through a haze of low clouds or smog – I cant really tell the

spectacular so quickly had it not been for the games. After the

difference – dull,boring brown. All that changes the next day, as

pre-game rush some of the heavy traffic involved in the building

I go to the Swedish embassy for an interview with commercial

projects has diminished and this has also contributed to the

officer Joakim Diamant. The sky is blue and the sun is shining

good air.

and Joakim, who has been living here for 3,5 years, points out that because of the Olympic games there are many more days

The changes in Beijing due to the games are not only physical,

of blue sky than before. Looking out the window, one can see a

both Jessie and Joakim point out that there has been a change

tall building not so far away and Joakim tells me that before the

in the people. The people have gained a new confidence in

Olympics it was common that this building was so coverd by

themselves and become more openminded and friendly. They

the smog that it was invisible.

dare to get in touch with others more often and some even learned English for the Olympics. There is also a new found

He explains that some big factories where moved from the

national pride and, according to Joakim Diamant, China as a

central parts of the city before the games and despite an average

country is showing its strength more as the games have taken it

number of 1000 new cars per day, the air is still cleaner. This is

one step further on to the international arena. Part of this step

due to the Beijing government limiting the number of days per

is of course the 2010 World Expo in Shanghai which, some say,

week any given car can drive within the city limits. All in all,

is the next big thing after the Olympics. That it will be held in

much was done to make the environment - especially the air

Shanghai rather than Beijing could be because financial centre

quality - better.

Shanghai wants to show culture capital Beijing that it too can put on a big event, as part of an ongoing rivalry between Chinas

That the air is fresher and that there are more days of blue sky

two major cities.

is something that Jessie, my contact at Ericsson, also mentions when I meet her at the Ericsson tower. She has lived in Beijing

However, time flies, and both Joakim and Jessie say that it is

and worked as an accountant for Ericsson for 1,5 years and even

sometimes hard to believe that it has already been four months.

during this relatively short time she has noticed many changes

The preparations for the Olympics where big and during the

due to the Olympic games. Except for the environment she says

actual games there was much going on as some people would

that the communication has become better with more buses

even stop working to watch an important event, but afterwards

and new subway lines. The buses have also become cheaper.

things quickly slowed down. According to Joakim, the tourists who would normally show up in September came in lesser numbers this year as the “big thing” had already happened.

Quite a dramatic slowdown in my opinion.

4

Even though I myself experience a blue sky every day of my stay

So what is the Olympic legacy? I see the most obvious one

in Beijing it will not necessarily stay this way. The smog might

with my own eyes, the large, empty stadium that, together with

be on its way back, just as some of the beggars – who were

the rest of the Olympic venues, is unlikely to be put to full use

moved to other places during the games – have found heir way

again in the near future. Apart from this, the communications

back. In the same way, some clubs and bars of the less sightly

are better and cheaper, the environment is fresher and cleaner

kind are starting to reopen after having been closed. To put it

and the city is full of people who are more open minded, more

simply, many things where done before and during the Olympics

friendly and have more pride and confidence in them selves.Will

but things are going back to normal now that the spotlight

these changes last long enough to become a real legacy? Let’s

of the world is aimed elsewhere. However, people hope that

hope so, but only time can tell.

the changes are here to stay and there is a generally positive atmosphere about them.

5

“The best and worst thing about Japan is the Population” Text: Rebecka Weideman

Photo: Anton Kolbe

When visiting “Tokyo City View” located on the top

Is it the size of this massive Metropolis (or Megalopolis) that

floor of Mori Tower, a 54-floor building in Roppongi Hills

makes life in Tokyo so special? Or is it perhaps rather the

in the center of Tokyo, looking at the panoramic view

population density?

without finding any end of the high buildings raising up all over beneath me, my friend suddenly exclaimed:

Out of the 33 million people living in Tokyo, 8,652,700 people are

“This is the first time I’m in a city that I find to be too

living in the 23 wards of Tokyo, together these municipals form

big for me!”.

the core of Tokyo . Most of the places people would think of when talking about Tokyo, places like Shibuya, Shinjuku and Meguro,

It is rather impossible to see the end of Tokyo metropolitan

are located within the 23 wards. Because of their popularity

from Mori Tower, at most you can recognize a building that is

and their attractiveness in form of restaurants, shopping, events

located in Yokohama, Kanagawa prefecture which is next to

and other entertainment, the population density for these areas

Tokyo prefecture, and on a clear day you can sometimes see

is more than double of other parts of Tokyo; population density

Mount Fuji. But that is it. Perhaps I should use the term Tokyo

of the 23 wards are 13,890 people per km2 compared to 5,796

megalopolis instead of Tokyo metropolis. Tokyo is namely a part

people per km2 for the Greater Tokyo Area. These numbers

of the Tokaido corridor, a megalopolis (an continuous chain

could also be compared to the population density of New York

of metropolitan areas) which stretches from Ibaraki, through

which is 10,482 per km² and 1,108 per km2 for Gothenburg.

Tokyo and Kanagawa, it passes Osaka all the way down to Oita prefecture in the south. It stretches over 1200 km and it includes 82.9 million of Japan’s 129 million people.

6

Recently, the concept of Quality of Life (e.g. the degree of

Because of the high population density Japanese society has

well-being felt by an individual or group of people) has been

become better and better at efficiently using public space.Talking

frequently discussed in Japan. Having that high population

to Japanese people who have been living in different places in

density means that an enormous amount of people has to live

Japan they still find Tokyo to be one of their favorite places

in and share the same space. This can many times be frustrating

to live. “-Tokyo has so many business opportunities and it is

for the citizens and can have a negative effect on the Quality

soo benri!!”, the older man explains. Benri means “convenient”

of Life; to never be able to sit down on the train, to always

in Japanese. And yes, there are many things in Tokyo that are

bump into people while walking the streets, always queuing for

convenient, I would rather say that Tokyo is the birth place of

restaurants and exhibitions and so on. But in a survey made by a

“convenient” inventions (see next page).

European magazine in 2007 which used criteria such as housing, cost of transportation, crime rate, education and environment,

So, as a “Tokyoite”, if you find it hard to stand sharing the space

availability of public Wi-Fi net access, restaurant hours and so

with all of the 14 000 people living in your neighborhood, you

on, Tokyo actually came as number four despite the general

just need to remind yourself that, maybe it is just because of

trend for smaller cities (cities with less than 2 million people)

the high population, just because of the high population density,

to rank higher than larger cities.

that all of these clever “convenient” inventions has been made possible.

The following comment found in a forum on the internet might explain the high ranking of Tokyo in the survey; “The best and worst thing about Japan is the population”.

9 Hard work in the Body shop, Bangkok factory

asiaGadgets

Tokyo Convenience

Text: Rebecka Weideman

Photo: Rebecka Weideman

Automatic multi-level parking system

Land in Tokyo is scarce which makes parking really expensive so Japanese tend to build on the height and not on the width. Just park the car on the parking pallet and the car will be automatically be moved to an empty place on some upper level of the building.

Pay with your cell phone

No more cash and no more plastic cards – all you need to pay in stores and on trains is your keitai.

Click & pay – ordering at restaurants

No more misunderstandings when ordering, just enter some money and press a button and give the ticket you receive from the machine to the waitress and you will be served.

Toilets with flushing sound buttons

Walls in Japan are quite thin and sometimes you just don’t want to share everything with others…

2D code bars

If you get lost you can always take up your cell phone, take a photo of the 2D code bar on the street sign and the phone will connect to the internet and download a map of where you are.

100 yen stores

“10 kronor” stores never became a hit in Sweden but in Japan it is definitely popular, both young students and business men shops at this store to buy everything from food to kitchen ware.

Umbrella dryer

No more accidents in shops because of wet floors – this environmentally friendly gadget will quickly dry your umbrella.

Plastic sample menus

Have you ever ordered something that sounds good and got really disappointed when the food arrives?

This is not a problem in Tokyo, most of the restaurants literally shows you the food at the entrance.

Convenience stores

Convenience stores is said to be “the only shop you will ever need”. It is open 24 hours a day so you can buy all your days meals here; breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks and alcohol.

You can also buy flight- and concert tickets, withdraw money, pay your bills, use the toilet or the laundry service and even borrow money from their bank service.

Trains

The trains arrives every second minute, it will take you anywhere and you hardly ever need to walk further than a few hundred meters from the station to get to your destination.

8

A leading global biotechnology industry Text: Martina Johansson

Biotechnology

is

an

expanding

field

in

most

Today these fields incorporates environmental science, food and

developed countries. From the beginning of year 2000

plant science, organic and bioorganic chemistry, enzymology,

biotechnology companies has practically exploaded and

microbiology, virology, tissue engineering and a lot more. The

is now increasing as never before, by making money out

visit was very exciting, and very secretive.

of basic research.

When I entered the building they took my camera and cellphone In the year 2000 the Japanese government funded a lot of

and my laptop was properly sealed with tape. I was then guided

companies in the biotechnology field as well as research and

by two Ph.d students that showed me around in this giant

development with the goal to become world leading in five

building that was completely stuffed with engineers, researches,

years. This goal was achieved in 2005 as planned, when Japan

professors and teachers in lab after lab. I soon realized how

actually had the second largest biotechnology sector in the

Japan can be so far ahead in this field. A strong commitment

world after United States.

together with working spirit and first-class technology can’t possibly fail. All the labs were super modern and had very costly

By 2010, the Japanese government predicts that its biotechnology

equipment.

market will reach 25 trillion yen and create at least 1000 new biobased companies, driven primarily by transferring basic research

This is not the only research complex in Japan. In fact, only

and development into industries that are entrepreneurial in

this association have seven buildings of the same size spread

nature.

throughout the country.

Biotechnological innovations incorporate biomass materials and

Socially, bio-based innovations have two clear markets. The

information into processes, services, goods or tools that can be

aging population in Japan will benefit from new diagnostic

applied to the development of new medicines and foods, create

treatments, medical equipment, and other applications for home

new energy sources, or generate new organs. Drug discovery

and health. The second covers innovations that can ease the

and medical treatments gets the greatest attention because of

growing environmental and energy concerns. After my visit to

their potential of making money. 40% of the current market in

Japan, I am more convinced than ever that biotechnology really

Japan is credited to bio-pharmaceuticals.

is the world’s most modern research field, as well as the future solutions to modern concerns.

As we can see, Japan was an obvious destination for me as a graduate student in Biotechnology. I went to Tokyo to visit The Japan Society for Bioscience, Biotechnology, and Agrochemistry, the largest and oldest biotechnology association in Japan. The association was founded in 1924 as an academic organization with the purpose of contributing to scientific, technological and industrial developments, mostly in the field of agriculture. In 1989 the Agricultural Chemical Society of Japan changed its name to the current as its research fields had greatly expanded.

9

Borderline Biz. Text: Maria Arvidsson / Jesper Nilsson

Photo: Maria Arvidsson

The so called Sunshine Policy, established by the former South Korean president (and Nobel Peace Prize winner) Kim Dae Jung in 1998, has been abruptly halted. The policy was considered

South Korea has technically been at war with its northern

by many as an attempt to prepare for a unified Korea. The

neighbour for more than 50 years and the boarder is

Sunshine Policy emphasized cooperation and major economic

under constant surveillance from international parties.

assistance for the hungering North Korean population. The

The question then, must be; what is it like to try to live

frosty relationship was getting better and few argue the fact

a normal life and run a business in a country in constant

that things were looking up. This made the very isolated North

conflict?

Korea open a few windows.

July 27, 1953 the Korean war ended with cease fire. Since the

In 2004 this resulted in the opening of Kaesong Industrial Park,

two countries haven’t signed an official peace treaty, they are

an economical cooperation between North and South Korea,

still technically at war and the situation is tense. North and

located one hour from Seoul. The industrial park basically

South Korea are devided on the 38th degree of latitude and the

consists of South Korean companies constructing manufacturing

boarder is the world’s most surveiled demilitarized zone, also

facilities with North Korean labour, employing over 30 000

known as the DMZ. Under these conditions an economy of

North Koreans. The story goes that a poor North Korean boy

gigantic proportions is thriving, aiming to become the economic

stole one of his villages cows and went south to sell it. For the

centre of Northern Asia. It is just recently that things have taken

money he earned he started his own business. As his business

a turn for the worse... again.

grew the boy, who now was a man, wanted to return what he

10

once had stolen. After some calculation he decided to return one

doubt do most South Koreans refer to themselves simply as

thousand cows to his home village. This gesture gave the man,

Koreans, there’s no distinguishing of sides and it’s hard to make

who was the founder of Hyundai, a very good reputation in North

out the extreme situation they’re in. The answer to the question

Korea and improved the relationship between the countries. So

of unification is predominantly positive. The issue is not when

it might not be a coincidence that Hyundai Asan, a devision of the

but how, and at what cost. It’s obvious that the main concern is

Hyundai empire, got the contract for the development of Kaesong.

the enormous change of cash flow a united Korea initially would

Another example of good will between the two countries was

experience.

the opening of some mountain tourist areas, the Mount Gumgang tourist region in the very east of Korea.

Perhaps it’s the people of an exhausted nation, tired of hardships that eventually have to decide. From an international point of

The election of sitting South Korean president Lee Myung-bak in

view there’s not much to gain from a unification in the six-state

2008, changed things dramatically. The new government has put a

region.The initiative most likely has to come from within, through

stop to further implements of the Sunshine Policy, mainly due to

cooperation and political contact. As generations shifts, this may

the lack of response from the North Korean side regarding the

prove more difficult as the population remembering a united

dismantling of it´s Nuclear program. Since the fifties, and still, the

Korea grows ever thinner.

defence of South Korea relies greatly on US assistance. It’s said that the withdrawal and passing of command will soon take place,

However a shot at new, improved international relations may

putting South Korean military in charge once again.

have appeared on the horizon as there’s a new player stressing the importance of international talks in charge in the US.

It’s astonishing, the attitude Koreans have to each other. No 11

Bridging Cultures Text: Magnus Kruber / Erik Hallberg

Photo: Magnus Kruber

The cultural differences between the east and the west

Geert Hofstede and Gert Jan Hofstede (Yes they are related).

can be a huge barrier to any foreigner trying to adapt to

Together they argue that the cultural learning process can be

the Japanese society, even more so than the language.

divided in to three steps. Awareness, Knowledge and Skills. Of

Despite this; with just a little interest and effort this

these awareness is the most important because it requires

problem can be mended if you have the necessary

the individual to understand his own mental programming and

tools.

what implications this has on his social interaction in a foreign cultural context.

The process of understanding a new culture can be both difficult, painful and time consuming, especially if you lack a good

A good example is nepotism, that is shunned in a Swedish

approach. So I did what every respectable science student would

context, but to not act accordingly would dishonour our peers in

have done, I explored the literature and applied it in practice.

a Japanese context. This difference can, along with many others,

This turned out to be a good move. One could argue that it

be traced back to one of the fundamental differences between

would have been easier to ask a native Japanese citizen but that

the Japanese collectivist and the Swedish more individualist

method falls short because most individuals are not aware of

oriented cultures.

what factors that form their behavioural patterns, what makes them “tick�.

The root cause can be traced to how the emphasis on social acceptance of an individual is oriented. In Sweden each individual

There is a vast amount of information on this topic but after

is assessed and judged based on his different skills, capabilities

some research I found two of the real gurus in the field,

and so on while in Japan your organizational belonging is vastly

12

more important.You practically exist through your organization,

but expensive courses thus predominantly utilized by company

something that became exceedingly apparent to me the more I

executives. Instead my advice is to quickly form bonds and

mentioned my Japanese university in regular conversations with

spend a lot of time with your Japanese peers at your university

Japanese citizens.

institution.They have more or less an obligation to help you and frequently your supervising professor will assign you a fellow

The next step in the process is to gain knowledge about the

Japanese student to assist you in practical matters. Moreover

particular culture. For this end Hofstede utilizes the terminology

closer relationships make it easier for your peers to express

and framework created by C G Jung, learning about the cultural

what possible faults or offence you commit where a more

symbols, heroes and rituals. This terminology describes the

distant peer would not because the risk of brining you shame.

core of the mental programming that in the end constitutes

This type of pragmatic approach to the final step involving your

the individuals we are, and explain why we act and react as we

institutional peers creates a safe and efficient environment for

do in different situations. A business application of this would

you to evolve in.

be the customary exchange of business cards, or “Meishi�, not something to be taken lightly as it is closely linked to personal

These three steps will ultimately open your mind to new mental

and professional respect.

programming, thus allow you to assimilate new symbols, heroes and rituals as well as finally hone your social relation skills, thus

The last and final stage is skills. Skills are gained by combining the

hopefully allow you a more smooth transition into the Japanese

first two to steps and applying them in practie. The possibilities

society.

to do this prior to the arrival are available through practical 13

Facts: Huaweis approximate plan for LTE is as follows: 2008: Final standard for LTE decided before the year is over 2009: The first commercial LTE products for testing launching on the market 2010: Hauwei launches LTE for the operators and more mature products are developed 2011: The operators will probably have a few hot spots where LTE works 2013: Commercial launch of LTE from operators to consumers

Huawei takes the lead for 4G Text: Anders Frick Photo: Anders Frick

Mobile phone with TV and super fast, cheap, mobile

Huaweis biggest competitor is Ericsson, who did not participate

broadband access. Those are the latest trends in the

in the congress but still had a few scouts on location. Even

mobile business, presented at a congress in Macau a few

though Ericsson at the moment is in the lead concerning

weeks ago. The Chinese company Huawei dominated

the development of LTE, Huawei is quickly catching up. Every

the congress and try to pass Swedish Ericsson in

month Huawei’s LTE department increases by a little over 100

the development race for next generation mobile

researchers and engineers. At Huawei, a total of 800 people are

telecommunication.

working with LTE and 500 with SAE, the network architecture behind LTE. Most of them have previously worked with research

In Asia, the name of the game is TV - everywhere. On the bus,

and development of GSM, where about 5000 people still work.

on the train and at home. The Chinese mobile phone producer

The LTE development takes place at four locations around the

ZTE showed a bunch of new phones prepared for analogue

world, three in China and one in Kista, Sweden.

and digital TV, double SIM cards and support for communication over IP.

”LTE is extreemly important for us but it will take another few years before system and terminals are developed enough for

On the system side, mobile broadband is still the hottest thing,

consumers to use the technology”, says Jason Hao at Huawei.

but now it is all about making the Internet connection even faster, cheaper and more mobile. Chinese Huawei, that produces

Another advantage for Huawei is that the company started to

system equipment for telecommunication showed its latest

work with the network standard WiMAX five years ago, which

advancements in fourth generation mobile telecommunication

is more similar to LTE than 3G is.

– LTE.

14

Pay with the TV-Mobile Text: Anders Frick Photo: Rebecka Weideman

Jason Hao

The mobile phone of the future contains both a wallet and an entertainment system. And further on, you will even be able to pay with your phone, via a wireless transaction chip.

That is at least what the organization GSM Association hope for with their project ”Pay-Buy-Mobile”

Within the first six months of 2009 the company promises the first commercial launch to operators. After that it is up

”Instead of swiping your credit card when you go shopping,

to the operators to decide when to let normal users take

you just hold your phone in front of a reader and hey presto,

part of the technology.

the hamburger or shoes are payed for”, says Bob Lovett, marketing director of GSM Association.

However, many operators will keep using HSPA and the upgraded version HSPA+ a while longer. HSPA+ will soon

Right now a pilot project is on the way in a number of

be released and can reach speeds up too 42 Mbps.

countries - including France - to ensure that the solution will work with different types of payment systems. GSM

”At the start, the operators will probably use different

Association have decided that Pay-Buy-Mobile should follow

versions of HSPA together with LTE. But LTE is more

the standard Single Wire Protocol.

advanced, easier to use and really the ultimate technology.

The prices will also decrease drastically, both for operators

”This will be available within two years, as I see it”, says Bobn

and end consumers, since the base stations are much more

Lovett.

efficient”, says Jason Hao.

Facts: To be able to pay with Pay-Buy-Mobile, a special SIM card is needed, called UICC (Universal Integrated Circuit Card) and a special NFC-chip (Near Field Technology), together with payment software from e.g. VISA or Mastercard. Moreover the seller must have the correct equipment.

15

Shipping - An industry on the move Text: Henrik Svensson / Göran Nilsson

Photo: Henrik Svensson / Göran Nilsson

Shipping of goods is a vital part of today’s economy,

all shipments go through the entire value chain customer –

fueled by worldwide trade. In addition, the future

forwarder – ship broker – shipping line. A really large customer,

prospects of the shipping industry are looking bright

for instance, may skip both forwarders and ship brokers and

with the accelerating globalization. Yet, shipping is

negotiate directly with shipping lines.

relatively anonymous amongst Chalmers students and few choose to pursue a career within the industry.

So far about the industry and our interviewees’ backgrounds,

To learn more about the industry and hopefully be

but what is it like to live in Singapore in general and work

inspired, we met up with Anna Lundgren and Anna

with shipping specificly? Are there big differences compared to

Holstensson, who are both working in Singapore for

Sweden? Anna and Anna both agree that there are differences

shipping companies, to discuss their experiences.

compared to back home. Even though Singapore is somewhat “Asia light”, it is still important to be aware of the Asian culture.

Before coming to Singapore, Anna L studied Industrial

An example is that it is important not to make anyone lose his

Engineering and Management in Lund. Her interest in working

or her face. Anna L points out that it is important to be humble.

abroad led her to write her Master’s Thesis for a company in

Not in such a way that one needs to be afraid to take initiatives,

Singapore. While doing so, she got in contact with the Danish

but simply just to avoid the “here-I-am-I-know-everything“-

shipping giant Maersk at a career fair. Today, she is employed by

attitude. Even if this is not the most popular attitude in Sweden

Maersk Tankers with operations for Handytankers, a partnership

either, it is especially important as a westerner in Asia to have a

between five large shipping companies that operate a Pool of

respectful attitude towards the locals. Another big difference is

product tankers.

the attitude towards meeting times and deadlines, which both interviewees find to be worse in Singapore than in Sweden.

Maersk was the first contact with the shipping industry for

When asked how she deals with it, Anna H says, half joking, that

Anna H as well. During her studies in chemistry at Gothenburg

she uses the simple strategy of being moderately late herself

University she worked part time, as well as writing her Master’s

to avoid the frustration of spending too much time waiting for

Thesis, for Maersk. After graduation she went on to participate

others.

in Maersk’s international trainee program, where she got placed in Singapore. Since then she has been working at the logistics,

The social life in Singapore is something that both find very

finance & accounting and customer service departments at

satisfying. They rarely go straight home after work. Instead

Maersk. Currently she is working as a Systems Manager at Shipco

they go for dinner with friends and of course for an occasional

Transport, a non-vessel operating common carrier (NVOCC).

drink or two. A lot of business in the industry is made in

NVOCCs operate as logistics intermediaries booking space on

person, making personal contacts very important, so there are

ships and selling it in smaller quantities.

numerous networking functions. The picture we get from our conversation with Anna & Anna, as well as other people working

The shipping value chain begins with the customers – companies

with shipping, is that the people in the industry often spend

and individuals demanding freight transportation. The next

time together, both professionally and personally. It is common

step is forwarders (e.g. NVOCCs), whose main function is

to have friends among both clients and customers and even

to consolidate volumes and buy shipping capacity from the

competitors.

shipping lines (e.g Handytankers). Between the forwarders and the shipping lines there can also be shipbrokers, buying capacity

Another example of cultural differences is shown in company

from shipping lines and selling it to forwarders. Naturally, not

parties in Singapore. A typical Singaporean get-together consists

16

of playing games of various kinds, as well as eating food. A

Although she acknowledges the risk for “little girl”-attitudes,

popular way to get everybody to stay as long as possible is to

she finds men easy to work with, so she does not have any

have a lucky draw at midnight.

problem with the male domination in numbers. Anna H does not have any problem with male domination either. Her office

The next office happening for Anna H is a treasure hunt in the

is actually pretty even in terms of male vs. female employees.

city, where the participants will try to find various things and

Several companies in the industry are trying to even out the

“collect them” by taking photos of them. The get-togethers are

gender distribution. As an example is Maersk, who, according to

quite different from the typical Swedish company parties (let’s-

Anna H, employs 50 % women in their trainee program.

get-drunk-and-do-things-we-will-regret-tomorrow).

Looking into the future, neither Anna H nor Anna L plans to We have covered the cultural perspective about working in

leave Asia. They both agree that Singapore offers an exotic

Asia, but what is it like to be a young woman in an industry

and comfortable lifestyle compared to Sweden. At work, it is

dominated by middle-aged men? Not surprisingly, Anna L who

not negative for the career to be a westerner. Rather, our less

is working within shipping operations – “hard core shipping”, is

hierarchical culture and mindset often allow us to take more

almost entirely working with men.

initiatives, which may lead to faster promotion.

17

Getting wuffed in China Text: Karl-Johan Sellberg Photo: Karl-Johan Sellberg

WUF is short for the World Urban Forum and is the United Nations and UN Habitat´s attempt to deal with global environmental issues and also an attempt to create an open international forum for knowledge, debate, exchange of experience and solutions to problems of housing and building - as close to reality as possible.

The theme for this year was ”Harmonious Urbanisation: The Challenge of Balanced Territorial Development”. The actual manifestation involved around 8000 participants. During four days in the beginning of November people from all over the world came just to participate in the fourth edition of the biannual conference WUF. The schedule included a wide array

The conferance area

of activities; both social events and more lecture-like events all

Sweden had a big participation and a great many organisations

parallel with the big exhibition where countries, organisations,

including Boverket, the Building- Living Dialogue, the Swedish

foundations and companies expressed themselves and their

trade council, Formas, KTH, Lund University, The Government

opinions.

Offices of Sweden, The Swedish National Heritage Board, Sida, SLU, and the project The Good City all made their contribution

The Chinese government hosted this event which took place in a

to the Swedish showcase “The Swedish Centre” which

huge and newly built conference area on the outskirts of Nanjing.

became a hub for politicians, planners, researchers, officials and

Giant billboards were seen all around Nanjing announcing the

entrepreneurs. Deputy environment minister Elisabeth Falemo

conference in a loud and proud manner.

was also present at the conference.

3/4 of the total exhibition area was filled with Chinese provinces

Chalmers was also present, as many students and staff from the

promoting themselves, mostly with some giant city models. This,

architecture department had travelled to Nanjing to participate

combined with my impressions of the vast construction-areas

in the prize ceremony for the international student competition

constantly expanding Nanjing, really put the whole conference

“Cities without oil”. All of the competition entries were

in another point of view. It is predicted that in 50 years 2/3

displayed close to the Swedish centre.

of humanity will be living in cities. With China as an example; presently a building site of epic proportions, I can now catch a glimpse of the impact of the choices we make today will have for the environment and sustainability of the future.

18

WUF edition 5 will be held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 2010.

Every member was further divided into one of 24 different countries that actually have something to do with the three current issues discussed by organisations world wide.The issues were whether whaling should continue, whether the rainforest should be saved and about lowering the carbon dioxide emissions due to the Kyoto protocol.

Eight countries were in each issue, half of them were pros and

The sixth extinction Text: Johan Svennung Photo:Johan Svennung

half were cons. The country members were to find arguments for their country, and also to buy votes from other countries with fictive money that each country got.

At the end, prices, awards and diplomas was distributed to everyone, depending on their performance during the last negotiations.

Spending four days with students from all over the world, one could actually see differences between people depending on where they come from. Most of the people agreed upon that

What happens when animals become extinct due to

western people share the same habits and that one actually can

man, when the rainforest is subject to deforestation

feel like home, by visiting another western country. While being

or if no one takes responsibility for decreasing the

in an eastern country, almost every day is a new adventure with

emissions that boosts the green house effect?

surprises and interesting situations one never expected to be in.

Issues like this were discussed by people from all around the world together with Taiwanese students during a four days long

The guests who participate were mostly students in Taiwan,

conference in Zhong-li,Taiwan. Including activities such as visit to

about half of these were foreigners. Many people were originally

the president’s resident and Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Taipei,

from South and Central America or from other Asian countries.

yoga lesions and tips in how to relax from a Chinese Kung Fu

Five Europeans participated, where one, the British oxford

Master, it was a crammed schedule.

student John, came all away from England, just to visit this four day summit. The next Global Youth Leadership Summit will be

The Global Youth Leadership Summit was held for the third year

held in Taiwan next summer.

in a row and was very much like a copy from the real United Nations agenda with declaration and commission discussions, with each guest representing a nation. Living in a dorm, the schedule started 07.30 a.m. every day and ended at 10 p.m. The first day included speeches by professors in each area that was discussed during the summit, in order to provide necessary information for us.

19

The northernmost tiger is on the hunt Text: Johan Svennung / Anna Gunnarsson

Photo: Anna Gunnarsson

South Korea is on the move. As competition from low

employees work in average 2,357 hours per year. That is the

cost countries gets tougher, so does the Korean people

most out of all OECD members. Nowadays, entrances from

as they strive to catch up with, not only the rest of Asia,

international firms, mostly from the west, has caused an eye-

but also the west. We have visited several companies in

opener for many Korean workers, showing that the international

Korea to investigate.

firms only have eight hours of work per day, and that this still is keeping the company competitive.

It is said that South-East Asia has four newly industrialized countries, these are also known as the Asian tigers. One of them,

As for all of the four tigers, the infrastructure in the country

South Korea is facing major competition on many levels. One is

has shown considerable development during the last decades,

in the production area, where China and other Asian countries

for example the complex metro system in Seoul was built in

have far cheaper labor costs. For instance the production cost

1974 and now has the second largest amount of stations in the

in North Korea is 10% lower and in China it is 20% less than

world after New York City. Another modern way of intercity

in South Korea. Another one is in their innovation area, where

transportation is KTX (Korea Train eXpress) which was built

Europe is regarded as a big threat and a role model, dealing with

in 2004. KTX is a copy of the TGV from France and it makes

new thinking for several decades.

the country more united as it only takes two and a half hour to travel from Seoul in the north to the next largest city Busan in

Considering that South Korea does not really have any natural

the south, in total 330 kilometers.

resources they have to focus on their labor force and on innovative thinking. Their strength is in the knowledge and the

The South Korean economy is today on the 13:th place in the

culture of hard working employees. Just like in the Japanese

world and on forth place in Asia. One reason is their huge

culture the employees of Korean companies are expected to

export, surely you have heard of brands like Samsung Groupe,

work far more than that of the usual, compared to European

LG, and the car manufacturing company Hyundai Kia Automotive

working hours.

Groupe. A lot of foreign companies have established offices in South Korea, among them many Swedish companies such as

It is not rare that an employee, who works in a Korean company goes to work at six o clock in the morning, works until seven in the evening, goes home for dinner and then continues to work at his home until twelve. South Koreans are the hardest working nation in the world, looking at Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) South Korean

20

SKF, Saab and Atlas Copco.

To maintain their strong economy South Korea has invested a

Today the government is also extraordinary devoted to the

lot of money in the education system to make it competitive

Korean industry. They will do anything to keep its shipping

and it is common that young people continue to study after high

industry alive and in the world lead, in fact, half of the produced

school. One way to make the schools more competitive was to

ships in the world are made in Korea. Such teamwork is rare. And

provide all schools in the country high speed internet access.

it shows that South Korea has something special, which makes

South Korea has the highest broadband internet access in the

them strong and unified.

world, for example you can bring your laptop down to the beach in Busan.

It is this, which makes Korea such a special country, a perfect harmony between government, population and industry. They are

This shows that South Korean society is unique. For some

slowly growing towards the size of a modern western country.

curiosity, not only is their written language so unique that it is

The northernmost tiger is on the hunt, slowly, catching up, and

on the list of UNESCO, but the Korean people are also uniquely

soon, very soon it will reach its competitors in the west, and then

devoted to their country. Once when the country suffered from

on to new goals.

economic crises the whole population brought all their gold to the banks to save the country and succeeded.

23

Efficiency and perfection Text: Mattias Winsten

For most car manufacturers the name Toyota is

discovers a mistake or suspects that something is wrong with a

synonymous with efficiency and quality. All over the

car on the line, he or she can pull a rope that goes around the

world, companies like Volvo and Saab are trying to

whole line, and an alarm is set off.

implement the “Toyota model”. So what is it that makes Toyota so special?

The production line is divided into workstations where each station is responsible for assembly of a small part of the car.

Toyota city is the main facility of Toyota Motor Corporation

A person only working with quality goes to the alarmed

with 8 production plants and a science park with the impressive

workstation and helps out to solve the problem. If the problem

amount of 10 000 engineers. The production plants are located

is not solved when the car reaches the next station the person

in such a way that it only takes 15-20 min between them by

pulls the rope twice and the line is stopped. The car with

car.

problems is removed from the line and is transferred to another location in the factory.

Toyota city’s original name is Koromo and was changed in 1951. The natural name for Toyota would be Toyoda, the same

When each car is finished a lot of tests awaits to check if it

as the name of the company founder Kiichiro Toyoda, but to

fullfills the high quality standard. For example the

differentiate his working life from his home life he decided to

check for scratches on both interior and exterior. A lot of

name the company Toyota.

functionality tests are also performed, e.g. checks are made to

at Toyota

see if water leaks in and if the breaks are working property.

Toyota were pioneers in the “just in time” concept that today is standard among anyone wanting to be a competitive car

The working environment also holds a high standard and each

manufacturer. Just in time means that, to decrease investments,

car lies on an adjustable table so that, if two workers at different

stocks are reduced as far as possible. This means that products

stations have different height, the car will also be on different

are delivered to the factory just before they will be used. As a

heights. A special hanging chair is used for some assembly

result of this, most of Toyotas suppliers are located in or around

operations inside of the cars, so the employees can work in

Toyota City, to be close to the plants.

better positions.

The efficiency and quality in Toyota is stunning. Before new

Toyota also concerns itself about the environment and tries to

employees

start working in the factories they have to go

reduce the amount of energy needed in the production. For

through an introduction. The purpose of the introduction is to

example have they come up with a way to dry three layers of

educate them, both in the ideas of Toyota as well to train the

paint at the same time, instead of drying them layer by layer.

personal in assembling. So before new employees are ready for

Apart from this Toyota, like many other Japanese companies,

the production line they have to pass a lot of different practical

also helps the environmental by planting threes. The market of

test and learn how to follow assembly instructions and to

Japan differs from the market of west, and concern about noise

increase their speed. For example a test can be to wire a rope

levels and perfection have to be made, but it results in high

through several rings in a short period of time.

efficiency and products of very high quality.

The quality thinking in Toyota permeates the whole assembly process e.g. all employees have the right to stop the entire production line. The process is as following, if an employee 22

One way ticket to Shanghai Text: Anders Frick

Photo: Anders Frick

Three years ago, Klara Sibeck bought a one way ticket to China. At the time she had just got her degree in technical design engineering from Chalmers University ofTechnology and thought it was about time to get an interesting job – for example in Shanghai.

She got her first job after only six weeks in China. That was for a French lighting company. One of the lamps she developed there is now sold in the Swedish store Clas Ohlson, by the name Polaris. ”I replied to an employment advert I found on the Internet and a few days later they asked me to come to an interview. The day after I was told I got the job, and i started working the following Monday”, says Klara Sibeck.

The whole process from the company placing the ad until Klara got the job took less than two weeks. After some time at the company she switched both jobs and field of work and started working in the manufacturing industry instead. For the last year, she has been project manager at the design firm WILDDESIGN, where she works with ten other people. The firm focuses on industrial and product design, and also graphical form and marketing materials.

Klara is mainly involved with branding, graphical form and packaging.

One of her latest projects was to develop a new chewing gum package for an American company that is going to launch a new brand in China in the near future. On top of that, she is running her own company which is offering production services in China. ”I feel that my engineering degree is of use, especially in these projects. Right now, for example, I am involved in development of an electrical vehicle for a Swedish customer”, says Klara Sibeck.

Today Klara Sibeck is manager for design projects in China

Klara has earlier been an exchange student in Taiwan, while there she got a taste for Asia. She points out that even though the salaries

”After living in Asia, Europe soon becomes rather boring”,

are lower in China, the taxes are also lower, which gives a pretty big

says Klara Sibeck.

disposable income. She has friends with an age around 25, who earn between 5000 and 50000 SEK per month, but the main reason for working here is not the pay:

23

asiaApply

National Chiao Tung University

Chalmers Asienprogram National Chiao Tung University (NCTU) är det främsta tekniska

att i sitt yrkesliv ha kontakter i hela området från Japan till Sin-

universitet i Taiwan. Universitetet har sin starkaste profil inom

gapore. Därför har Chalmers utvecklat ett specialprogram som

elektronik och informationsteknologi. I samarbete med National

ger studenter möjligheter till studier och erfarenheter från dessa

Tsing Hua University täcker utbytet alla civilingenjörsprogram på

ekonomier.

Chalmers. Utbildning ges på engelska för studenter från Chalmers genom anpassning av de kurser som utbytet omfattar. Utbudet på kurser som kan ges på engelska ökar men det är en fördel att kunna en del kinesiska varför företräde ges till de studenter som genomgått språkkursen i kinesiska föregående sommar.

Programmet består av följande delar: * Intensivkurs i kinesiska, 6 veckor i juli – augusti 2009.

Kursen är förlagd till Hsinchu,Taiwan. * Kurs i Ostasiens ekonomi och teknik, som planeras till våren 2009.

Ekonomierna i östra Asien har visat en enastående ekonomisk

* Studerandeutbyte med National Chiao Tung University

utveckling under slutet av 1900-talet. Japan har fått sällskap av

* Utbyten med andra partneruniversitet i Asien: Japan,

Kina bland världens ekonomiska giganter. Regionen är intressant, dynamisk och utmanade. Allt fler med teknisk utbildning kommer

24

Singapore och Hong Kong.