Today is 26 November 2016, a very special day for me. Since the last posting two years ago, nothing much to shout about as world economy and geopolitics become haphazard due to low oil prices and political conflicts every where in the world including in the region where I live. All these issues collectively affecting business growth. Many corporate companies start downsizing their operation thus, retrenching workers. Small business spruce up and many also winding up. 2015-2016 I worked triple hard and making many business trips around the region for business development activities but sadly to say the output is not encouraging at all. Attending many marketing presentation to potential customers but in the end procurement is halted due to do budget constraints. With so many pending prospects to follow up with uncertainty of closing the deal, I got tired very fast and become impatient. I am now thinking of moving out from this telecommunication business and try to do something else. But what is it? I don't know. At this age probably it is already late to change course. Any how, will never give up and will continue to explore something new till I succeed in rebuilding my business. God Willing. Happy Birthday!

Today 26 November 2014 is my birth date and I am now 61 years of age. Looking back, times flies so fast that life is just like flowing rivers from upstream to river mouth leading into a deep rough ocean. I can never go back upstream again where spring waters are pure and clean. The journey is just like a split seconds not 61 years. The journey was never smooth. It begins with small spring water, decently clean and move slowly. Its then joining other spring waters and combined into bigger volume and stronger forces it flowing down the rift and a thousand mountains forming waterfalls and rivers. We go through rough rapids with fast speed during raining days and moving very slowly during hot and drought periods. Life journey has so much ups and downs, happiness and sorrow, going through good times with so much laughter with friends, very quite and secluded during bad times. Went through so much difficulties and challenges; also tasted success and happiness. During the journey of life, I have met many good an honest people but I am also not spared from meeting people who are ungrateful, greedy, disrespectfully taking advantage of my humble and kindhearted nature. These people always turning my good deeds into troubles that affected my self esteemed and drive. However, I always believed Allah almighty always with me protecting me all the time. During good times and bad times I pray to Allah for guidance and protection. With this conviction I found peace and forgiveness in my heart, continue to strive in doing good things in life, continue to be humble and kindhearted in helping, motivating and encouraging people that comes my way. In this remaining years of life, I just want to reward myself by doing meaningful things to nature and human beings so that when I go, I will go in peace not tied up to the worldly problems. Insya Allah, god willing.

MINI HYDRO AT NING DE, CHINA

In September 2010, I visited a friend Mr Cai Un Yen who own 2x 2MW Mini Hydro Power Plant in Ning De, Fujian Province. The Hydro Plant is located on top of Hong Kuk Mountain slightly over 2 hours drive from Ning De town. Upon reaching the Mountain, we have to take a wooden boat crossing the beautiful lake to go to the Power House housing water turbine generators that generate 2 x 2MW electric supply which connected directly to the main grid. The set up is surprisingly simple though the construction of the plant could be very challenging in view of its location. The operation of the hydro plant is only manned by two technicians overseeing the performance of the plant through quite a sophisticated Computerised Control Centers. The cost per mega watts is about $1.5M per Megawatts. It took about 2 years to build due to logistic problems.

RENEWAL SUSTAINABLE ENERGY

By mere coincidence, in the last three years I've encounters many opportunities coming towards me. Suddenly now, I'm getting involved more and more in "The Renewal Sustainable Energy" and "Green Technology" stuffs taking me away from my original profession as "Communication Engineer" for the last 35 years. May be subconciously I have inclination over this heavy current stuff except that it did not comes earlier as I subconciuosly wanted. Come to think of it, although, I have been doing the "Communication Engineering" stuff all along but the the elements of "Electrical Power" are always there. In all my communication projects there are always requirements for Power System such as Generator Sets, Battery System, Solar Panel etc. Even, I implemented Fiber Optic Cables Projcet that strings OFC over the Power Transmission Lines both in Serawak as well as in Peninsular. This OFC projects over Power Transmission Lines were really giving direct hands-on experience dealing with Power Lines.

In the last three years I have been receiving many joint venture request to develop Power Plants using Renewal Sustainable Energy like Hydro and Photovoltaic System. Lately, I have been approach by Licensed Independent Power Producer from Indonesia to jointly develope 2 x 200 MW Coal Fired Power Plant and 2x150 MW Gas Fired Power Plant in Indonesia. I also been approached by Licensed IPP in Indonesia to consider developing Mini-Hydro Power Plant in several locations in Sulawesi. I am indeed feel challenged to accept the offer for long terms economics reasons. Therefore, I am considering the offer very seriuosly but not before I acquire some knowledge about the IPP business, the tricks of the trade and the technology behind it. For the last 2 years I've been busy visiting many Power Plants both locally and abroad just to get the feeling of the business as well getting some ideas from the operation side of the Power Plant.

I attached here in some photographs of mine visiting Power Plants locally and abroad.

RADIO COMMUNICATIONS PROJECT FOR DISASTER MITIGATION AGENCY IN PADANG, MENTAWAI ISLAND AND OPERATION CENTER IN JAKARTA

This is a fast track project following the earth quake and tsunami incidents on 26th October 2010 that hit Padang and Mentawai Islands in West Sumatera. The Disaster Mitigation Agency Control Center in Padang only knew the tragedy 8 hours after the incidents from a group of surfers who got drifted to Padang shores by strong waves from Mentawai. We has been appointed as System Integrator and vendor for Rapid Deployment Radio Communications using HF Radio and VHF Tetra Technology. The project was successfully commissioned and launched right on the new year eve 31.12.2010.

Electrical Vehicle

Suddenly now, I am getting very interested in getting my hand into green technology, Clean and Carbon Emission Free Energy. Unconsiously, I've been visiting 2 mini hydro power generation plants, one in Makassar and the one in China. Without realising it, I also delved myself in Photovoltaic and hybrid power system. Although these encounters, experiences and circumstances I am in with respect to clean energy environment, has not given me any substantial monetary gain yet; but the amount of manhours and efforts I have put in by making site visits, preparing business plans are enormous. Recently, I've been invited to visit few factories in China that produce Electric Vehicle and Electric Scooters. I was so impressed with the commitment that China government has given in reducing carbon emission by endorsing the production of Electric Vehicle powered by Batteries in the Republic People of China. The electric vehicle not only emitting zero carbon but also reduce noise from the sound emitting from vehicular exaust. The Electric vehicles so quite that sometime can be dangerous too as they come from behind soundless. But, this is certainly a revolution and evolution in automative industry has taken place and has begun. It begins real big in China. I just hope I would be the first person in Malaysia that will help the world in limiting carbon emission by delivering affordable electric vehicles to every population in Malysia.

Detecting Pipeline Cracks using Acoustic Emission

When I did my Bachelor Degree 35 years ago, my final year project was to build video amplifier that can detect image of under water object by transmitting and receiving low frequency signal through a Pizoelectric Transducers that can convert electromagnetic pulses into Electrical Signal. That was an amazing experience when I could successfully see the shape of the under water object clearly from my video screen just by pumping 1 Mhz signal. Wow, that was 35 years ago.

In May this year that beautiful memories came back to me as my company Abtel jointly with UK base company Tangent Technologies Ltd conducting a Test on Oil Pipelines using this Acoustic Emission Technology whereby Pizoelectric Sensors or Transducers were use to detect cracks in the Pipeline Structures.

It was really amzing to see that what I learn 35 years ago re-visited me and that little knowledge became very handy in conducting the testing due to my fresh understanding of the subject.

Acoustic Emission Technique has been used quite widely these days to monitor oil and gas pipelines and storage tanks integrity and gives early detection on any possible cracks or structural stress before it actually happens. Thus, protecting any possible pipe burst or explosion by reacting to quick maintenance at the exact location of problem areas identified by AET.

The AET Methodology can also be used to Composite Pipes to detect Structural Damage, Glueline Debonding and Fiber Breaking. The other interesting development is that there are going to be Wireless Sensors in the near future in order to eliminate the use of cables which can be very useful to transmit signal from a difficult sensor locations such as near high temperature and hidden areas.

This AET Technique can also compliment NDT Contractors to identify exactly where the cracks are especially in those difficult areas beyond the reach of its scanning devices.