Beng Kuang Group, as part of its transformation journey, has announced that it will be acquiring a strategic stake in Singapore-based Internet of Things (IoT) company, IOT Workz.
Under the agreement, Beng Kuang Group will acquire a 10% equity stake in IOT Workz with a first-right-of-refusal (FROR) to acquire another 20% equity stake.
IOT Workz is a spin-off from the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), a onestop IoT-centric solution provider with proven industry use cases using own state-of-the-art and proprietary smart platform that is network agnostics, integrating edge devices for centralised management with near real-time analytics.
Offering multi-dimensional, multi-scene end-to-end IoT integration with analytic capabilities involving solution design, software design and development, data analytics and dashboard deployment, IOT Workz has built up a growing track record in this specialised field with the deployment of automation projects in offices, communities, industrial, hospitality, healthcare and education.
Recently in February 2022, IOT Workz and A*STAR announced a joint collaboration to develop and productise a smart asset management system that can be adopted for indoor and outdoor applications based on a sensor network that is being powered wirelessly.
See also: Vitasoy ‘open to collaboration’ as speculation mounts over Philip Ng takeover
Yong Jiunn Run, CEO of Beng Kuang says, “Technological innovation is showing no signs of slowing down and we are seeing emerging technologies like IoT, Artificial Intelligence (AI) to be developed and deployed faster than ever. The technology and innovations from IOT Workz offer a broad range of IoT solutions to improve its clients’ productivity and enhance their competitiveness.”
“Through this acquisition, we aim to build on our technology ambitions to create new business opportunities and strengthen our business model, so as to deliver value to our employees, customers and communities that we serve,” he adds.
On top of this acquisition, the group has appointed Mike Chua, as the chief technology officer of its in-house strategic innovation business unit. Chua is a technology veteran with about 28 years of industry experience. He had held various management and regional roles in technology-related companies in his past tenures.
See also: Anglo American to sell rest of coal business in US$3.8 bil deal
Among its key priorities, the in-house strategic Innovation business unit will focus on keeping abreast of technology developments and emerging trends so as to enhance the business activities of the group’s core businesses and improve sustainability. In addition, the strategic innovation business unit aim to incubate promising startups and establish new technology partnerships and collaborations with a long-term value-creation approach.
In the past 12 months, shares in Beng Kuang have risen some 50% to trade at 7.5 cents on Mar 7.