Security Industry Conference 2024 – Speech by Ms Sun Xueling, Minister of State, Ministry of Home Affairs and Ministry of Social and Family Development

Mr Aw Tuan Kee, Deputy Principal, Temasek Polytechnic

Industry Partners

Union Representatives

Ladies and Gentlemen

Introduction

1. A very good morning to everyone. I would like to thank Temasek Polytechnic’s Security Industry Institute (TP-SII) for organising this year’s Security Industry Conference (SIC), to celebrate the industry’s progress and look to the future.

2. The Ministry of Home Affairs has been working closely with our tripartite partners to transform the industry. We launched the refreshed Industry Transformation Map in 2022 and we have made operations more efficient together with greater integration of technology, focusing less on headcount-based models with outcome-based contracting (OBC), and improving training to equip security officers with updated competencies.

3. We have also been hard at work in improving our security officers’ welfare. The new Progressive Wage Model (PWM) wage schedule, implemented in January this year, will raise security officers’ wages until 2028. I commend our security agencies and our security buyers for recognising the need to raise our PWM wages to ensure that our security officers are not left behind.

4. We have done well collectively, but we must keep up our efforts. We have  an ageing population in Singapore and rising costs due to global inflation, so our operating environment will become increasingly challenging. At the same time, with the security landscape becoming increasingly unpredictable, we must continue to uphold high levels of security and vigilance.

5. It is thus timely that the theme for this year’s conference is “Smart Security: Future-Proofing Your Organisation”. Let us see how we can adapt and pivot early so that we can ride the headwinds of change and emerge stronger.

6. I would like to suggest three strategies.

Future-Proofing the Security Industry

Sustainability of Security Operations

7. The first on Sustainability is: how do we ensure that the security operations remain sustainable in the light of an ageing workforce and rising costs? We must move towards OBC. Through OBC, security providers and buyers have reaped manpower savings by redesigning work processes and leveraging technology.

8. I would like to give an example. Pantech Business Hub had adopted OBC when renewing its security services contract. Its security services provider, Aero Asia Security Systems, deploys various technologies to detect illegal dumping, such as CCTV cameras with video analytics and virtual patrolling capabilities. As a result, Aero Asia’s security officers deployed at Pantech no longer need to manually patrol the premises and can focus on more critical security duties.

9. Our tripartite partners have proactively raised OBC awareness. For instance, Security Association Singapore (SAS) had conducted workshops for residential MCSTs ¹ to teach buyers how to use “OBX”, their OBC contract generator. These initiatives have increased the accessibility of adopting OBCs, raising the confidence of buyers and agencies.

10. I urge those who have not adopted OBC to consider doing so. There are various resources available to help you, such as consultancy services under the Security Tripartite Alliance for Responsible OBC, and NTUC’s Company Training Committee grant.

11. As we move away from manpower-intensive models, we must also adopt sustainable employment practices. This will enable us to retain existing security officers while attracting new talent.

12. I had earlier mentioned the PWM. We have also seen moves to provide decent proper rest areas for our security officers. For instance, Tan Tock Seng Hospital furnished break rooms with air-conditioning, and provided security officers access to the pantry for meals. Rest areas have also been built or improved at other sites.

13. There is also a tripartite study underway to assess the feasibility of reducing security officers’ extra working hours beyond the 44-hour regular work week. There is a growing recognition long working hours are not sustainable.

14. Tripartite partners will continue to explore ways to raise the attractiveness of security careers. We have been working hard together on the “tangibles” like wages. Let us now make effort in the “intangibles” areas like rest.

Innovation to keep pace with technological progress

15. The second strategy is “I” for Innovation.

16. It is heartening to see that demand for advanced security technology, such as security collaboration platforms, has been steadily increasing. A few security agencies are also piloting novel technologies, such as Risk or Threat Prediction and Detection solutions.

17. JASA Security is one agency that has deployed advanced technology with much success. JASA Security had piloted various technologies, like AI-enabled cameras that detect abnormal behaviours of nursing home residents, and robots that trigger intruder alerts or issue warnings when errant behaviours are detected. They had done so through the IMDA’s Advanced Digital Solutions Initiative. With these solutions, their security officers no longer need to conduct frequent physical checks.

18. You too, can tap on IMDA’s Chief Technology Officer-as-a-Service and adopt technology solutions under the Security Industry Digital Plan.

19. We must also look at training because it has to be updated in tandem with technology adoption. In the previous Security Industry Survey, the industry had collectively identified technological proficiency as one of the top skillsets security officers needed to possess.

20. For instance, KABAM Robotics and Temasek Polytechnic Security Industry Institute (TP-SII) have recently co-developed a robotics course on deploying surveillance and patrol robots, and how machine learning is used in threat detection.

21. In addition, as SkillsFuture Queen Bee for the security sector, AETOS Holdings had developed its Secure-X Mentorship programme, which equips security officers with skills such as data sensemaking. These courses broaden our officers’ technical know-how, enabling them to enhance security operations through technology.

22. We can look forward to more training opportunities. TP-SII will be partnering Canon, Axis Communications, BriefCam, and Milestone to establish the Security Technology Experience Centre, which features various advanced security technologies so students can engage in experiential learning. This strengthens the Security Industry Institutes’ standing in delivering specialised security technology programmes.

23. At SIC 2022, I shared that the industry was looking to develop a Security Technologist track, to create a pool of professionals competent at deploying and maintaining advanced technology. SkillsFuture Singapore and Institutes of Higher Learning are currently developing various accredited courses. For instance, under the SkillsFuture Career Transition Programme, Security Technician courses will teach skills for maintaining and operating security technologies such as robotic surveillance, while Security Engineer courses will expound on cybersecurity principles and security systems integration.

Collaborate Better To Harness New Opportunities From Interconnected Areas/Sectors

24. The final area for us to look into is Collaboration – across the various sectors and of course, within our industry.

25. For example, Nineteen Group, our Temasek Polytechnic-Security Industry Institute, and SAS – they are working together to organise major industry events, including next year’s SIC and the marquee Safety and Security Asia Exhibition.

26. In another example, SAS’s new neXt initiative will explore collaborations beyond our borders. NeXt will examine global best practices and standards through dialogues involving local and foreign trade associations and regulators, which could inspire new concepts of operations.

27. Beyond collaborations within the industry, we should also strengthen inter-sectoral partnerships. This is because the challenges that we face are not unique; collective challenges require collective solutions.

28. One example is the integrated facilities management (FM). We are studying successful cases of integrated FM implementation to see how it may be more widely implemented. To support integrated FM, IMDA has collaborated with technology solution vendors to pilot the Integrated Security Management platform. Integrated FM will streamline workflows and pool resources across sectors, enabling us to achieve security outcomes more effectively.

Conclusion

32. To conclude, we will have to work closely together, and the Home Team is fully committed to doing so, working closely with our tripartite partners to implement various strategies that I have laid out. We hope to further drive industry transformation, and I thank all our industry stakeholders for coming together and being excellent partners on this journey. Let us continue being bold and daring in our ambitions, our ideas and practices, and together, uplift our industry.

33. Thank you very much.

[1] Management Corporation Strata Title.