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The Coteccons Group is working with the Vietnam Vaccine Joint-Stock Company to register in advance to buy vaccines for 8,000 staff and their families of Coteccons and Unicons, a member of the Coteccons Group. (Photo courtesy of Coteccons Group) HCM City (VNS/VNA) - Several provinces, enterprises and universities nationwide will provide free COVID-19 vaccinations to their residents, staff and students in order to share the financial burden for pandemic prevention and control. The Ministry of Health has approved the import of 30 million doses of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine, the first COVID-19 vaccine to obtain such authorisation in the country. Under the ministry’s plan, the Drug Administration of Vietnam will import the first 200,400 doses of the vaccine for emergency use on February 28. Following the ministry’s approval, Hanoi, Hai Phong, and Quang Ninh and Ba Ria-Vung Tau provinces asked for approval from the Government and Ministry of Health to buy vaccines for their localities. Hai Phong authorities expect that it will be one of first localities in the country to buy the vaccine. It aims to provide free vaccinations to more than 2 million people. Quang Ninh province will allocate 500 billion VND (21 million USD) to buy the vaccine and give priority to frontline workers. Ba Ria – Vung Tau province and Hanoi authorities said they would use funds from their budget and call on sponsors to buy vaccines to provide free vaccinations to local residents. Coteccons Group has been working with the Vietnam Vaccine Joint-Stock Company to register in advance to buy vaccines for 8,000 staff and their families of Coteccons and Unicons, a member of the Coteccons Group. Tran Thi Lieu Vinh, human resources director at Coteccons, said: “Free vaccination to staff not only helps prevent transmission but also makes us feel more confident in work amid the COVID-19 pandemic.” Pham Thai Son, director of the Communications and Enrollment Centre at …

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Each morning before work at a Singapore construction site, Gunasekar Udayakumar, 41, gets his vital signs checked, without going to a clinic, or even seeing a nurse. All he needs is his smartphone, which in just 45 seconds can tell him his heart rate, oxygen levels and even his stress levels. It can also tell him if he should see a doctor. The application, developed by Singapore startup Nervotec, is what construction firm Kajima considers its first line of defence against another outbreak of the coronavirus in Singapore. The city-state has kept a tight lid on its infections and wants to avoid a repeat of last year, when a series of clusters emerged in migrant worker dormitories. Kajima staff at various sites have used the application since December as part of a government-initiated programme that provides companies with trial-stage technology to help them adjust to the new pandemic-era norms. It offers a diagnosis of the user’s health condition, relying solely on a smartphone camera that can measure heart rate by picking up changes in the reflectivity of light on the user’s skin between heart beats according to blood flow underneath. Nervotec founder Jonathan Lau said Singapore’s government was very interested in the technology. “We see the most traction coming from healthcare providers, both private and public,” he said. Nervotec founder Jonathan Lau shows the comparison in vital signs readings between his company's app and a pulse oxygen monitor, in Singapore, February 19, 2021. Photo: Reuters Lau’s initial inspiration came from his experiences as an air force pilot, when he underwent constant check-ups. He eventually founded a company that used wearable devices to monitor pilots. But when the pandemic hit, Lau broadened the focus. The app is still undergoing local review and Chwee Teck Lim, director of the National University of Singapore’s Institute of Health Innovation and Technology, said it could have a big impact if …

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Automation technology can reduce most common causes of injury in manufacturing environments Automation technology can help increase productivity and reduce up to 72 per cent of the common causes of injury in manufacturing environments. According to the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs, Vietnam recorded 3,349 occupational accidents from January to June 2020 with total deaths numbering 378. The accidents were most prevalent in the manufacturing sector (27.41 per cent), construction (23.24 per cent), and services (12.35 per cent) while the remaining 37 per cent was spread across other sectors. Most local manufacturers are currently facing a growing skilled talent shortage which strains their overall productivity and growth. At the same time, employers are also facing immense costs associated with workplace-related injuries. “Cobots can perform tasks that may be dangerous or injury-prone for humans. With built-in safety features that slow the robot arm when a human enters its workspace, cobots can keep human colleagues safe from occupational injuries as they address repetitive and dangerous tasks in the manufacturing sector,” said James McKew, regional director of Asia-Pacific at Universal Robots. For more complex applications, Universal Robots has a comprehensive network of Certified System Integrators and Authorised Training Centres ready to support users with day-to-day operations after the initial installation. Universal Robots’ adjustable safety system allows companies to adjust a range of parameters to reduce the risks involved with implementing an industrial robot application. These include limiting the force, speed, power, or momentum of the robot, or restricting its workspace using safety boundaries. Productivity gains, along with the inherently safe design of cobot solutions, signify this new automation technology could reduce up to 72 per cent of the common causes of injury in manufacturing environments. “As we …

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