Singapore (12 Apr 2005) - The move towards Web Services development excellence in Singapore's tertiary education sector has just received a huge boost from homegrown Ecquaria Technologies with the setting up of a new and advanced Business Process Management (BPM) Lab, and the formal incorporation of Ecquaria's flagship product, Ecquaria Service-Oriented Platform™, (Ecquaria SOP™) into the Temasek Information Technology School's curriculum when the new semester begins in May this year.  BPM is an integral component of a larger technological framework called Service-Oriented Architecture.

This is an industry first where commercial software built by a local company, Ecquaria Technologies, is officially integrated into the Polytechnic's course programme. The software helps students in their problem-solving and technical skills in preparation for the workforce.

At today's IT Project Show 2005 event held at Temasek Polytechnic, Ecquaria Technologies, a leading Singapore infrastructure software solutions firm and associate company of Singapore main board listed Frontline Technologies Corporation Ltd, and Temasek Polytechnic announced the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) which aims to inspire the students' spirit of innovation through creative use of technology, training and hands-on development.

Temasek Polytechnic and Ecquaria see BPM as the next new technology wave where business processes are critically captured and managed as forethought in the course of designing, developing and deploying enterprise solutions. Web Services is a key component of BPM, which allows disparate systems to connect seamlessly together.

Under the MoU and in keeping with Ecquaria's unwavering commitment to promote IT innovation through the academia, Ecquaria has set up the BPM Lab at the campus to immerse students in a learning environment where they can develop hands-on skills in building enterprise information and applications using the award-winning Ecquaria SOP™ donated by the company as well as cultivate research in Web Services software development. In addition, Ecquaria is providing free training, technical consultancy and industry attachment opportunities for the students.

The Lab is equipped with advanced equipment that provides a realistic, state-of-the-art infrastructure for training lecturers and students at the Temasek Information Technology School. It also functions as a proof-of-concept centre where prototype eServices and applications are being developed and deployed by final year students of the School.

More pertinently, through the MoU, Ecquaria hopes to nurture a new generation of software developers adept at adopting a new and radical Business Process-oriented approach towards designing and building innovative, cost-effective enterprise applications leveraging on Ecquaria SOP™, an open, robust and scalable enterprise platform used for quick development and deployment of rich customer-centric services for businesses, industries and public organizations.

Ecquaria pioneered the Service-Oriented Architecture in 2001 that saw its fruition with the birth of the Singapore Government's Public Service Infrastructure when Ecquaria SOP™, an emerging technology at that time, was introduced.

"As we continue to invest ongoing R&D in this disruptive technology, we are excited to share our knowledge and technical skills with the education domain, exposing students to the real world experience and in cultivating a new generation of value-added IT professionals who are able to harness the power of innovation and embrace a proactive business-oriented focus in building solutions that create as well as meet the needs of the growing, dynamic infocomm industry," said Dr Foong Wai Keong, President and CEO of Ecquaria.  

Mr Tan Dek Yam, Director of Temasek Information Technology School said:"In a rapidly changing business world, the ability to model, implement and deploy business process information systems is a key differentiating factor in any IT graduate's portfolio of skills. A deeper understanding of Business Process Modeling (BPM) concepts, coupled with hands-on experience with state-of-the-art development tools, can have a dramatic impact on any student's future career prospects."

"We hope to challenge our young minds to be pro-industry and technoprenuerial by offering them a simulated environment to learn and apply their knowledge and in equipping them with relevant courses and up-to-date IT curriculum. By incorporating Ecquaria SOP™ into our course curriculum, it signals our willingness to adopt and work with locally grown enterprise infrastructure software in the industry," Mr Tan added.

Today's MoU further strengthens the years of close collaboration between the two parties. Ecquaria's partnership with Temasek Polytechnic began as early as 2001 and the company has contributed over S$1 million in software, consulting services and training to date.

The MoU continues the momentum of the Student Internship Programme which is an annual programme by the Temasek Information Technology School through which students gain first-hand experience of the realities of industrial demands by working on client projects of various business domains from design and development to managing projects involving Ecquaria SOP™.  Six students have since joined Ecquaria as employees upon graduation.

About Ecquaria Technologies

Ecquaria is a leading enterprise business platform provider and an associate company of Frontline Technologies Corporation Limited. Unique in the industry, Ecquaria has pioneered a simple and effective way to provide software integration and new application development all in one single, integrated enterprise business platform. Based on a service-oriented model and Business Performance Management capabilities, the Ecquaria Service-Oriented Platform™ (Ecquaria SOP™) offers a comprehensive business platform to deliver a secure, scalable and reliable process-driven infrastructure for all the enterprise's applications. Ecquaria strives to help customers put in place business processes that are integrated end-to-end across the enterprise and with key partners, vendors and customers.

These processes can be reviewed easily by managers, who can respond with flexibility and speed. Offering enterprise-class capabilities, Ecquaria SOP™ enables the enterprise to automate its business processes and provide an efficiently integrated information flow throughout the organization. While providing critical and complete information across the enterprise, Ecquaria SOP™ supports key business objectives to help the enterprise to manage all aspects of its business. Ecquaria is established with offices in Singapore, China, Mexico and U.S. with an expanding network of global partners in ASEAN, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Africa to support the activities of customers worldwide. More information is available at http://www.ecquaria.com.

About Frontline Technologies Corporation Ltd

Frontline Technologies Corporation Ltd is a leading provider of end-to-end IT services that comprise IT consulting, IT infrastructure, systems integration and outsourcing. Established in 1993, we have the experience and a strong regional pool of over 2,700 professionals to service the needs of multinational businesses across a broad spectrum of sectors that include financial services, manufacturing, transportation and logistics, healthcare, education and the public sector. Our strong presence in over 50 cities in Asia - China, India, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand - enables us to better respond to our clients' unique challenges and opportunities.

Frontline has been listed on the Main board of the Singapore Exchange since 2001 and is currently ranked in the top 5% of the Corporate Transparency Index (CTI) in Singapore (Source: Business Times 2004). For more information, please visit www.frontline.com.sg

About Temasek Polytechnic

Temasek Polytechnic is one of Singapore's leading institutions in the area of para-professional education in a variety of areas, especially in Engineering and IT. It aims to not only prepare students adequately for the working world, but also a future of dynamic change. The polytechnic is a firm believer in forging partnerships with industry in order to keep students close to current industry practice. It also actively promotes continuing education and the upgrading of skills for school leavers and working adults via an extensive range of part-time programs, beyond the 32 diploma programs offered to its full-time students. For more information, please visit www.tp.edu.sg.