Fact Sheet - MINDEF/SAF's First Live Digital Testbed @ RSS Singapura – Changi Naval Base

Background

RSS Singapura – Changi Naval Base has been designated as the Live Digital Testbed (LDTB) to support the design and testing of smart digital solutions for the Ministry of Defence (MINDEF) and the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF). The idea of a LDTB was first conceptualised in 2017 and took on its first trial in Feb 18. The driving motivation behind the idea of a LDTB was to harness the potential of digital innovation to transform the way servicemen live, work and train. 

A Dedicated Space for Innovation

Jointly established by MINDEF/SAF and the Defence Science and Technology Agency (DSTA), the LDTB is the first-of-its-kind digital sandbox within MINDEF/SAF. It provides innovators with a physical space to experiment with digital innovations and more importantly, it is a safe-to-fail environment so that innovators can focus on testing and improving their projects. 

Building an Infrastructure That is Digital at its Core

The LDTB will be designed with an infrastructure that is digital at its core. Commercial cloud-based platforms at the LDTB will provide users a digital foundation upon which they could build mobile applications and tap on specialised services such as machine learning and data analytics. These digital services will allow the project teams to carry out rapid prototyping. 

Empowering Innovators Through Useful Partnerships

Beyond being a physical space and digital infrastructure for projects to be trialled, project teams can participate in design thinking workshops facilitated by MINDEF/SAF's partners such as DesignSingapore Council and Singapore University of Technology and Design. These workshops equip teams with the skills to critically analyse the 'pain-points' they face in their daily operations. By doing so, it allows teams to dive deeper into the underlying causes of 'pain-points' so that their innovations can more effectively tackle the root of the problem using digital technology.

The success of the LDTB is underpinned by the strong collaboration between innovators from the SAF and technologists from DSTA and the DSO National Laboratories. Together, innovators can tap on expertise and best practices from institutes of higher learning, industry and start-ups, and expand MINDEF's defence technology ecosystem to spark new innovations to transform the way we live, work and train.

Live Digital Testbed Projects 

To date, there are 10 ongoing projects spearheaded by the RSN across domains such as human resource, safety, training, engineering, finance, base access, medical, fitness and green buildings that are part of the LDTB. Some examples are outlined: 

a) Smart Base Services. Access to base information and services are currently hosted on fragmented platforms, leading to tedious and manpower intensive administration. The RSN is prototyping a mobile application to integrate base information and services to improve base experience and productivity. The application aggregates five key services: Security, Base Services, Administration, Base Information, and Productivity and Collaboration. It will leverage digital solutions in areas such as resource booking for base facilities, reporting of safety hazards, allocation of cookhouse meals, and security access into and within naval bases. 

b) Gamification of Training. The RSN is developing a dedicated platform to provide training resources that can be readily accessed anytime and anywhere, to enhance training effectiveness and efficiency. For example, a naval wargaming application has been created to allow servicemen to better learn the fundamentals of naval warfare through mobile gaming. This allows revision of training concepts on the go, without having to rely on physical training facilities. The new platform will build upon the success of this application to expand the scope of training, incorporating elements such as performance tracking and differentiated pace of progression, providing a fail-safe virtual environment to undergo training for mission scenarios.

c) Smart Self-Auditing. This project provides a data-enabled self-check tool to achieve stronger governance and compliance in procurement. The RSN developed a Finance and Logistics Assessment Gauge with 11 key risk indicators to allow contract managers and executives to perform self-checks on procurement, acceptance and payment. Utilising digitisation, process automation, embedded controls and data analytics application, the self-check tool will tighten authority-vendor work processes, reinforce pre-emptive monitoring and detection of non-compliances and lapses, and review work trends and data patterns to identify potential areas of concern affecting compliance and productivity. It aims to standardise and streamline the procurement process while enhancing compliance checks, and can cut down time spent from 100 man-days to one hour.