Hi readers, the trip is going well and we have had no problems thus far. We have all been enjoying the company of our professors and peers. This blog pertains to the 14th. Late last night (on the 13th) at about 9pm we boarded a night train to head back to Singapore from Kuala Lumpur. We were on the train until about 8am this morning. Overall most people got some much needed sleep. Some stayed up for a bit to chat/play cards. Those who got some quality sleep were in much better shape for the day’s activities.

After a few quick showers and some reorganizing of rooms at the hotel we were off to an early morning start at SAP at about 10AM. There was not much to see at this stop nor was there too much to take pictures of but the presentation was top-notch! The Asia-Pacific CFO gave a great presentation about the market and overall business model of SAP. They create business solution through IT. For many companies using SAP software can be very beneficial in the long run but many times it can be monetarily costly and time costly. They hold much of the market share in many different industries and are looking forward to grow in the areas of banking and retail. These areas are weak according to the CFO because the time spent on developing this type software is not as vast as other products.

As the day moved on we took a quick lunch break and we soon found ourselves at 3M learning a great deal about a completely different industry. We went from software solutions to an innovation think-tank all within a few hour window. That is the beauty of this trip, everyone is able to experience such a great variety of companies in a completely different culture on the other side of the world. We learned that this company was first started as a adhesion products based company. They grow because of the people they hire. They continue to invent new products as well as continue to find new applications for old inventions. What was also interesting was the billions spent on R&D and the patents put in place to protect products now and ones they may create as products out in the future.

As we changed gears into the night it was fitting to visit Singapore’s very own night safari. We got to see many exotic animals from this part of the world including Africa. There was a tram and many paths to walk down to see the animals close up. One of the problems was that the lighting was so low because the animals are nocturnal (light damages their eyes) that the cameras didn’t pick up great pictures. Even though you might not be able to tell from some of the pictures it was an amazing time. John even held a huge boa on this back. What a day!! Make sure to keep checking in for our updates.

Safari Pics…

Ryan R. and John C.