We have just successfully organised an AOTS Nite Annual Dinner 2012. After so many years of failed attempts! 
A total of 86 members, corporate members, friends and well-wishers attended the Annual Dinner held at Sunway Lagoon Club. All who attended were waiting eagerly for the lucky draws as there was a more-than-50% chance of winning. The happiest diner for the night was of course Mr Gerard Fong who walked away with the grand prize. Many thanks to the Organising Committee headed by Mr Siao. There are more photos in the next few pages.
Next few activities for members will be a health talk on “Preventing heart disease” to be facilitated by our very own En A Aziz sometime in January 2013. Also in the pipeline is a planned visit to an orchard for a “eat-allyou-like” party especially all the exotic fruits like durians, mangosteens, jackfruits, etc.
So please be on the lookout for our circulars or newsletter. I would like to end this message with best wishes for a Happy and Prosperous Chinese New Year to all Chinese members and friends.
Salam sejahtera and warmest regards.
Tan Teng Ek
President
FOSAAS CONVENTION
AT MAKATI- PHILIPPINES ON 14TH -17TH NOV 2012
AOTS or The Association for Overseas Technical Scholarships is a Japanese agency dedicated to developing human resources in the 3rd world. It has trained over 8,000 Malaysians over the last 3 decades. AOTS is now re-named as HIDA. All AOTS ex-trainees are entitled to be admitted as a member of PAAM which is the alumni association.
FOSAAS Convention was successfully held in Makati City –Philippines.
PAAM was represented by the President Mr.Tan Teng Ek, the Immediate Past President Mr.CL Yang , Encik Aziz Kamaruddin and Mr.Lee Hock Leong.
The theme for the bi-annual convention was “Working Towards One ASEAN Community”-Challenges and Opportunities.
The main objectives are:
1. To pursue the possible collaboration network in HRD, Business, Cultural Exchange and Environmental Protection among FOSAAS members and other AOTS Alumni Societies.
2. To strengthen friendship among Alumni by promoting AOTS Alumni Excellence and Cooperation
3. To create concrete actions following Pattaya Declaration The main lectures and discussions focuses on four areas to benefit our respective communities as well as our Alumni network. They are Establishing of FOSAAS Technical Expert Network & Exchange Procedure Promotion, Business Opportunity Network, Cultural Exchange and Environmental Protection Cooperation.
| Mr.Yang was one of the resource persons who presented a paper on “FOSAAS Regional Certification: The Way Forward” The proposed subject on Material Flow Cost Analysis-MFCA was very well responded by the delegates. At the Presidents meeting of the FOSAAS Group, it noted generally that resolutions after resolutions were passed in the past Conventions but member alumni societies did not take the trouble to implement them. | In order to achieve the past resolutions, a bold step of appointing two Presidents ie 2013/2014 President and an immediate past President to ensure continuity of program implementation. Whilst the 2013/2014 President would focus his attention on organising the coming Convention in 2014, the immediate past President would focus on getting all member associations to implement resolutions passed in 2011. | We would like to congratulate and extend our sincere thank to the host –Philcultaros AOTS Alumni Society headed by their President Mr.Lorentti Velasco and their dedicated committee members for having successfully organized such wonderful event. We had the opportunity to witness some significant cultural event and performances, factory tour to Boysen Paint factory and tour to scenic spot at Tagaytay. |
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| A photo with some other international delegates The Malaysian delegation | The President, Mr T E Tan with President of the Philippines Industrial | Confederation and senior officers of Philcultaros AOTS Alumni Society |
ASSISTANT HONORARY GENERAL SECRETARY, ACTING
En Khairuddin was originally from Kuala Kubu Bharu, Selangor. Married to Habsah Ahmad and blessed with seven children, he had his early education at Anderson School, Ipoh. Later he studied at University of Toledo, Ohio and University of NewHaven, Connecticut USA, obtaining a B. Sc (Hons) in Engineering – Computer Science.
He had worked as an Assistant Manager at Mobil Oil Corporation, Branford, Connecticut, then as a financial and IT-related officer to a business entity. Currently, he is the principal of Khairish Consult and Project Management which activities are Business Initiation and Development in United States (New England) and Malaysia, and Business Match Making.
The PAAM Annual Dinner 2012 Organising Committee, headed by Mr Siao, successfully organised the AOTS Nite 2012 a great success. Held on the evening of 10 November 2012 at Sunway Lagoon Club, the event was attended by about 90 members and supporters of PAAM as well as representatives from the Japanese Embassy, corporate members and heads of Japan-related NGOs. The occasion was graced by our Chairman of the Advisory Board’s representative, YBhg Datuk Mohamad Azman, MIDA Deputy CEO 1 and his lovely wife, YBhg Datin Intan.
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Tan Sri Amirsham A Aziz our Chairman was unable to be with us that evening as he had to be at his niece’s wedding.
Everybody was in festive mood with many (6 in 10) walking away with great prizes. The Central Committee would like to say a big thank you to Mr Siao and his team for the good job done.
As has always been PAAM’s tradition, the Chairman of MIDA is the Chairman of PAAM’s Board of Advisors. On
3 Oct 2012, a delegation of PAAM Central Committee members led by the President, Mr T E Tan paid a courtesy call on the newly appointed Chairman of MIDA, YBhg Tan Sri Amirsham A Aziz. During the 45-minute long meeting, YBhg Tan Sri was briefed on the role of PAAM, especially our involvement in the training of Malaysians in different areas of expertise. We also took the opportunity to introduce to him the various issues of our Newsletters and showed him some of our many activities. The fruitful discussion ended with YBhg Tan Sri giving us the assurance that as the Chairman of PAAM Advisory Board he would give his strongest support for any future event/activities.
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Group photo with our Advisory Board Chairman, YBHG Tan Sri Amirsham (4th from left) |
Statistical Process Control (SPC) is a necessity in any production process, if you want Quality!
W.Edward Deming stated, “A state of statistical control is not a natural state for a process; it is an achievement.”
What is SPC? SPC is the use of statistical techniques, to analyse a process or its output, so as to achieve a state of statistical control. The ultimate objective is to improve process capability (and hence, Quality).
There are three simple, but important concepts for SPC.
First, there should be no inspection or measurement, without proper recording. Data which is not recorded properly, means that the inspection or measurement was a waste of time and money.
Second, there should be no recording, without analysis. Without analysis, the data does not become information, but merely pieces of isolated numbers.
Third, there should be no analysis, without action. Action is the final step that produces results! No good action, no good results!
In almost all Japanese factories, SPC is used by the workers on the floor.
They only need to learn the basics. They only need to be taught five (5) rules for SPC.
The five are, that an SPC chart is out of control when:
1. Some points are outside the Control Limits.
2. The number of points above the Centre Line is either much larger or much smaller than the number of points below the Centre Line.
3. The points do not seem to fall randomly above and below the Centre Line.
4. You can see a steady trend of points moving toward one of the Control Limits.
5. Most points are near the Centre Line, or are close to the Control Limits.
If your supplier has no SPC charts in his factory, you can be assured that he still does not fully understand the power, and usefulness, of SPC.
I conduct an awesome three-daytraining course on Statistical Process Control, which you can immediately implement in your workplace. As you know, improving Quality reduces costs, and increases profit. Awesome, isn’t it? So, what are you waiting for? Contact me NOW!
In the Japanese language, there are many common phrases that use repeated words such as dan dan (slowly or gradually), peko peko ( hungry), wareware (we), zenzen (completely, at all) eg Nihongo ga zenzen wakarimasen = I do not understand Japanese at all, etc.
Another such expression which is very frustrating to the listener is “mah mah” which means so so in English.
When you ask a Japanese colleague, upon his return from a trip, how was the journey, he might just reply “mah mah desu” meaning not really that great. The student may just say “mah mah” when asked how he fared in his exam.
To the Westerners, a “mah mah” reply is very ambiguous because it gives us the feeling that the speaker is reluctant to give a more definite opinion.
So the next time when you speak to a Japanese and are not willing to give a definite response, just say “mah mah desu”. And you will find the Japanese respond in frustration by replying “mah mah dake?”, English equivalent of “only so so ?!!!”
Group photo with Mr Danny Sin, Managing Director of SKB SHUTTERS BHD (4th from the left)
Several PAAM’s CCM members teamed up with some leaders of the Technological Association of Malaysia (TAM) to visit one of our strong corporate supporters in Petaling Jaya ie SKB Shutters Bhd one fine Saturday morning in November 2012. Received by SKB Shutters Bhd Managing Director himself, Mr Danny Sin, the team was given a very fruitful tour of the factory in Kota Damansara.
Mr Sin took the pains to explain to us the various innovative technologies his company had come up with to make his products internationally competitive. We saw how his company grew strength to strength from their humble beginning in post war years.
All of us came away very impressed and proud that a Malaysian-grown company such as SKB Shutters could be so innovative in technologies as well as management and has attained international stature in the process.
The visit ended with a mouth-watering durian party hosted by Mr Sin, that we will not to forget.
Thank you Mr Danny Sin and SKB Shutters Bhd. for your kind hospitality!
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Some innovative products from SKB SHUTTERS BHD |
Mr Danny Sin giving a briefing to our delegates |