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Holcim recommends building solutions for safer, faster construction amid COVID-19

Holcim Philippines’ SFCrete is among several building solutions that can help contractors finish projects safely and on time despite manpower restrictions as it allows road pavements to be ready for use in one day compared with 14 days with regular concrete. Photo above shows SFCrete team when it was used in EDSA repairs four years ago. Leading cement manufacturer Holcim Philippines, Inc. said innovative building solutions can help contractors keep workers safe and catch up to deadlines as construction activity picks up with the easing of restricted activities in COVID-19 quarantine areas. Holcim Philippines Senior Vice President for Marketing and Innovation Ram Maganti said local builders should consider wider use of building solutions already available locally, and look at how other markets are deploying innovative materials and techniques to meet deadlines while having limited workers at sites in compliance with social distancing regulations. “Construction does not have to take b

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Approaching business resiliency amid supply chain disruptions

Supply Chain managers have long been familiar with managing the fluctuations in supply and demand to minimize risks. The arrival of COVID-19, however, has created unprecedented challenges not only on supply chains’ key performance indicators but also on people’s lives and the foundation of global and national economies. All companies, regardless of industry and region, are experiencing extreme fluctuations in demand across the product, SKU, and channel level. When instability in the supply of input materials is added into the equation, supply chains may be disrupted. Consequently, the Philippines’ supply chains were not spared from the global effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Ever since community quarantines were implemented in the country last March, restrictions on mobility and transportation, as well as strict implementation of stay-at-home orders and curfews were enforced to prevent the virus from spreading.  With the slowdown of the country’s sea and airports, a great number of

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Work-From-Home Hacks: 5 Ways Scanners can help you in remote working

Amid the current global health crisis, remote working has become the ‘new normal’ for almost every business. With the implementation of lockdowns and community quarantines that help control the movement of people and stop the spread of COVID-19, today’s flexible working practices urge employees to remain productive while working from home. If you are one of those employees who currently work remotely, then you are probably faced with issues in handling, archiving, and sending printed documents. As they remain to be an important tool for business continuity, handling these papers may need to be digitized for all the good reasons—easy access, preventing clutters and taking up so much of your working space at home, and proper storage. Aside from these benefits, here are some of the other advantages of having a scanning device, especially in ensuring the best remote work experience: One-Touch Information Accessibility One of the best reasons why scanners are useful is due to its one-to

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Online ESL platform 51Talk turns over P5.25M donation to FFCCCI

51Talk turned over P5.25M worth of PPE’s to the Federation of Filipino Chinese Chambers of Commerce & Industry, Inc. (FFCCCII). From L-R are Brgy. 281 Z-26 Manila Chairman Jefferson Lau, FFCCCII External Affairs Committee Chairman Nelson Guevarra, 51Talk Country Head Jennifer Que, and Manila Overseas Chinese Service Center Vice Chairman Amado Chua. Three hospitals in Metro Manila received medical equipment worth P5.25M donated by the online English teaching platform 51Talk (www.51Talk.ph) to the Federation of Filipino Chinese Chambers of Commerce & Industry, Inc. (FFCCCII). During the brief turnover ceremony, FFCCCII External Affairs Committee Chairman Nelson Guevarra, representing FFCCCII President Henry Lim Bon Liong, expressed his gratitude to 51Talk for the generous donation. “On behalf of FFCCCII, I would like to thank 51Talk, its CEO and Founder Jack Huang and Country Head Jennifer Que. We have been working double time with our partner organizations locally and abroad to aid o

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Leveraging Technology to Enhance Customer Experience

The customer has become increasingly influential in determining businesses’ strategies and shaping their reputations across the globe. For Southeast Asia’s SMEs in the retail and hospitality sectors, focusing on the customer experience has become even more important to the future of these businesses. However, research has found that companies in Southeast Asia have significant ground to cover to improve customers’ perceptions of their experiences as consumers rank their experiences at an average of 50 percent of the potential score. In fact, ASEAN SMEs shared with Epson that managing customer experience was one of the top five business challenges they faced. Companies need to start making smart investments in technologies that will help them deliver the experiences customers expect in order to stand out in a competitive market. The technologies contributing to better customer experiences Among the key trends influencing customer spending and preferences in Asia today are personaliz

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data.org Issues an Open Call for $10M Inclusive Growth and Recovery Challenge

Today, data.org issued an open call for breakthrough ideas that harness the power of data science to help people and communities rebound and remain resilient in the wake of COVID-19 and its economic impact. Launched in partnership with Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth and The Rockefeller Foundation, the $10 Million Inclusive Growth and Recovery Challenge seeks to foster and promote innovative, scalable solutions from people and organizations all over the world. The COVID-19 crisis has underscored both the vulnerability of individuals and communities to economic shocks and the important role data science can play in solving some of the world’s most pressing challenges. As private, civic and social sector organizations tackle the health and economic implications of the pandemic, data science can inform the development of tools and insights that can be used in addressing the needs of all segments of society, especially those most vulnerable. The Challenge will award up to ten winn

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Using math to outpace COVID-19

The mathematical model that serves as the heart of a groundbreaking platform, called the Feasibility Analysis of Syndromic Surveillance Using Spatio-Temporal Epidemiological Modeler for Early Detection of Diseases (FASSSTER), took center stage in the latest installment of Ateneo de Manila University’s webinar. Dr. Elvie de Lara-Tuprio, Mathematical Modeling Team Lead for FASSSTER and Chair of Ateneo’s Department of Mathematics, School of Science and Engineering, presented the complex model they are using to provide projections to some of our country’s decision-makers as we continue to face the threat of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) during the Acts of Magis: Ateneans at the Forefront of a Pandemic webinar held last May 22. “A mathematical model is used to gain insights about a phenomenon,” Dr. de Lara-Tuprio explained. “It’s important to know the difference between the real world in which we observe the phenomenon and the conceptual world where the mathematical model works.

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Robotic Automation Pivotal in Powering Manufacturers in Philippines After COVID-19 Universal Robots' collaborative robots co

Universal Robots, Denmark-based collaborative robots (cobots) technology market leader, today urged Philippines manufacturers to accelerate the adoption of robotic automation in order to remain competitive and efficient ahead of tough economic times after the COVID-19 pandemic. Universal Robots’ e-Series family collaboratively functioning with workers With volatile market conditions and constant disruption, leveraging automation to optimise production is a constant challenge. A new class of robots, dubbed “collaborative robots” aims to bridge the gap between fully-manual assembly and fully-automated manufacturing lines. Universal Robots highlights that cobots could potentially improve productivity for Philippines’ manufacturing sector by up to 30 percent. “As the Philippines gears up for a national infrastructure building and improvement program, it will invariably include automation and AI (artificial intelligence or machine learning). To allay reservations for automation replacing

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KonsultaMD releases video app for 24/7medical consultation

Telehealth service KonsultaMD has released an app that allows customers to engage in teleconsultation with a licensed doctor anytime via voice or video without leaving the comforts of their own homes. The app keeps the customer’s account information such as check-up history and remaining subscription balance and lets the users to top up their subscription as well as request e-prescriptions, e-labs, and e-referrals. This contactless approach to health services is endorsed by the Department of Health as a way to relieve hospitals with non-critical cases and prevent the spread of the COVID-19 virus especially among vulnerable members of society. “We understand how difficult it is for people with medical concerns to go to the doctor and face the risk of COVID-19 infection.  Yet there are instances when doctors and patients need to see each other to exchange information especially if visual assessment is necessary such as in the case of skin diseases.  Through the app, we’re giving our c

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UnionBank urges over 1,100 businesses to digitize to survive in the new normal

Over 1,100 small business owners, entrepreneurs and corporates attended a recent webinar on business transformation in the midst of a pandemic, organized by Union Bank of the Philippines (UnionBank) in partnership with Tech Up Pilipinas, the Distributed Ledger Technology Association of the Philippines, UBX and UnionBank GlobalLinker. In the webinar titled “Digitize and Survive,” UnionBank shared how small and medium enterprises can harness technology to transform in order to stay afloat in the new normal prompted by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak. The forum is the first in a 4-part Tech Up series that aims to help companies evolve in simple, easy ways - at almost no cost. UnionBank leaders shared insights on the pressing need for enterprises to fast-track digital transformation. “Many organizations, large, small and of medium-scale, have realized that investing in resiliency is going to be a lot more important going forward,” said UnionBank chairman Justo Ortiz. “

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