KUALA LUMPUR: The first drone and robotics hub in South East Asia is being developed in Medini Iskandar Malaysia in Johor to promote locally developed drone-powered solutions and elevate the country's visibility in drone technology.
Drone and Robotics Zone (DRZ) Iskandar is a collaboration with the National Technology and Innovation Sandbox (NTIS), spearheaded by the Science, Technology and Innovation Ministry which allows researchers, innovators, startups and high-tech entrepreneurs to test their products, services, business models and delivery mechanisms in a live environment.
This controlled sandbox is led by the Malaysian Global Innovation and Creativity Centre (MaGIC) as the lead secretariat of NTIS, with the support of Malaysia Technology Development Corporation (MTDC) as the primary funding agency, to better funnel high potential NTIS approved startups, accelerate the creation and acceptance of local innovations through a structured framework within a controlled environment and towards commercialisation stage.
The Civil Aviation Authority of Malaysia will provide technical, regulatory framework and parameters for drones to operate efficiently and safely in the NTIS Sandbox.
NTIS is also spearheading an initiative which will see five high-technology companies testing new agricultural solutions to accelerate the competitiveness of the national agriculture sector whilst improving the socio-economic outcomes for Felda settlers.
MaGIC chief executive officer Dzuleira Abu Bakar said the NTIS-DRZ initiative aimed to advance technology related to the Fourth Industrial Revolution (IR4.0) especially in drone and robotics by facilitating rapid testing and relaxation of relevant drone regulations.
"We also hope to accelerate the adoption of technology to boost smart farming / agritech, logistics, healthcare, security, construction and other relevant industry sectors.
"Besides this, the initiative also aims to attract investment from regional/global companies into Malaysia, boost Malaysia's visibility/attractiveness to global communities, increase opportunities of employment into higher skilled jobs and grow Malaysia's unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) market growth and value," she added.
Another important impact of the initiative is to increase integration and use of technology into areas such as emergency response, disease control, humanitarian/disaster relief and more.
"We also hope to increase awareness on the local DroneTech ecosystem, safe flying practices and benefits of Drone Technology, adoption of DroneTech and showcase its IR4.0 implementation — IR4.0 opportunities, improve Malaysia's Drone Readiness Index Ranking, and get more Malaysian DroneTech companies to become global champions," she said.
MaGIC has also signed a Memorandum of Understanding with DHL Express (Malaysia), Asia Pacific Innovation Center (DHL APIC) and DHL Express (Singapore) to strengthen the local innovation ecosystem.
DHL APIC is the first dedicated center for innovative logistics services in Asia Pacific and one of three DHL innovation centres globally, while APIC is a test bed for emerging logistics-related technologies and a showcase of the latest innovations to reinvent supply chains.
The initiative also aims to upskill local talents and move them higher up in the technology value chain, thus creating greater socio-economic impact.
It is also in line with the National Policy on Science, Technology and Innovation (2021-2030), which aims to advance Malaysia towards a more competitive and competent nation built upon strong Science,Technology and Innovation (STI) foundations.
The policy charts new directions to guide the implementation of STI in creating a scientifically advanced nation for socio-economic transformation and inclusive growth.
Dzuleira said NTIS also hopes to connect local technology companies to bigger industry players and multinational companies such as DHL.
Currently there are two companies based at DRZ Iskandar — MATA Aerotech, which produces drones for smart farming, and Garuda Robotics, which produces delivery drones.
"Malaysia is currently ranked top 3 in Drone Readiness Index and Biggest Market Size in Asean. We are poised to be the frontrunner in the DroneTech industry. But first, we must establish an ecosystem to eradicate barriers that may hinder our progress. We believe the process of recovery and economic development of the country requires the cooperation of all parties. NTIS welcomes anyone to collaborate and we will continue to establish good relations with all players in this ecosystem," said Dzuleira.
MATA Aerotech's smart agricultural model solution consists of aerial imagery and survey, data analytics / artificial intelligence, GPS coordinates, and UAV and Automated Guided Vehicle (AGV) applications, in agriculture management and operations for national food security enhancement.
Garuda Robotics is working on rapid drone delivery of automated external defibrillators from the hospital to a heart-attack victim as a first responder to a 999 call before the ambulance arrives at the location.