A prototype for cooling techniques in Singapore is expected to be implemented by the end of next year — among the strong research collaborations between the country and Switzerland.
The prototype is one of the projects from the Singapore-ETH Centre for Global Environmental Sustainability, which is a joint research centre between Singapore and Zurich.
On the first day of his official visit to Switzerland, President Tony Tan Keng Yam visited ETH Zurich, a Swiss Federal Institute of Technology.
At the institute, President Tan was given a demonstration at the laboratory of hydraulics, where he was shown what happens when a downtown area is flooded, and ways to prevent that.
He also saw how structures can be made resilient in the face of natural disasters, like tsunamis.
Some National University of Singapore students on an exchange programme with the institute also met President Tan.
In phase two of the Singapore-ETH Centre’s research, a cooling technique is being developed to make Singapore a more sustainable city.
“We have developed prototypes for cooling technologies which can reduce the amount of energy that is needed by 50 per cent, and now it’s a matter of designing buildings which use this kind of improved technology,” said Peter Edwards, director of the Singapore-ETH Centre for Global Environmental Sustainability.
Chan Xiang Quan, a Singapore exchange student at ETH Zurich, said: “What I gained most from here is the ability to look for information on my own, and also to rely more on myself.”
The Singapore-ETH Centre is housed on the NUS campus. Going forward, other programmes planned for the centre include nutrition and health.
It is hoped that the outcomes from the research groups to make life better for Singaporeans will also be applicable to other countries.
