Wimax is on a trial basis in KL. You can get more info here. The company providing the service is P1, and the service is call P1 W1MAX. Someone told me the Internet is making bad spellers, and I would tend to agree 🙂
My opinion? This roll out is on the bleeding edge. Only apply if you want to be the first on the block to have it. Me, wait till TM comes up with Wimax, then you have national pride on the line. In the meantime, use unlimited 3G.
11 Comments | 
business opportunity, Malaysia | Tagged: P1, wimax | 
Permalink
Posted by Wata
We’ve all heard about how people can detect laptops left in cars, even if you keep them out of sight in your car boot. I guess the only way they perform this detection is if they are picking up a unique resonance frequency from a radio circuit on the device. The most widely installed device with such a circuit is your wireless chip (does this mean that old, pre-wifi era laptops are more secure?). I suppose that if you had a tv tuner card or bluetooth, that could provide a resonance frequency as well.
Wifi operates at 2.4 GHz (125mm), so you could probably build one out of standard metal mesh to place your laptop in, making it invisible to RF scanners.
Alternatively, buy a ready-made bag here.
9 Comments | business opportunity, Malaysia | Permalink
Posted by Wata
Noting that here in Malaysia there has been a lot of interest in converting petrol vehicles to NGV guzzlers, I was musing on the idea that perhaps motorcycles could undergo the same surgery.
Sniggers could be heard, erupting into full blown laughter after introducing the plan to others.
Other parties have stifled their mirth, put pen to paper. The results are here, here, here.
5 Comments | business opportunity, engineering, Malaysia | Tagged: cng, conversion, ngv, two stroke | Permalink
Posted by Wata
I was introduced to the ‘blue ocean’ strategy on the 25th, when the IEM arranged a visit to PETRONAS’s Prince Court Hospital. The strategy involves you choosing a market where there are no competitors (swimming alone in the ocean blue, get it?).
All of the oil and gas businesses of note I know swim in red oceans, where we fight and cut and tear at each other.
In the oil and gas industry, you can start out with a niche market (ex. high end process consultancy, HAZOP leadership, good engineering when your competitors are rubbish) which you hope you have no competition, but when you want to play with the big boys, you have to go head-to-head. If you are successful, you create a blue ocean for yourself by buying up (or bumping off) your rivals.
So, you can go blue ocean – red ocean -> blue ocean. If you don’t see that cycle, you’re doing it wrong, at least in Malaysian territorial waters.
3 Comments | business opportunity, engineering, Malaysia, oil and gas | Tagged: blue ocean, competition | Permalink
Posted by Wata
ExxonMobil’s looking for new cafeteria management. Those who are interested (criteria includes preparing halal meals) can enquire at Menara ExxonMobil, KLCC
I would suggest that interested parties call the main line (+603 2380 2000), and ask for Facilities Management, or Building Management. Don’t ask for Facilities itself, as you will get Operations Technical Support (or should).
Hah, or you could ask me, and for a certain fee I will provide you with a lucky extension number (which is on the wall of the ME musalla, actually).
Did I say I don’t work for EMEPMI?
2 Comments | business opportunity, Malaysia | Permalink
Posted by Wata
I’m a geek, facinated with the latest tech. While listening to The Tech Guy, I heard of the Cradlepoint, which takes broadband (read EVDO) enabled phones, and create a wifi hotspot. How cool is that? You can create (and share) a wifi hotspot anywhere you can get EVDO. The caveat is, EVDO is a US only service.
Now Celcom offers the same concept, but using a 3GX (3.5G to us peons), 3G, EDGE or GPRS SIM card. Imagine the possibilities:
One problem is that you will be tethered to a power socket until you can figure out a portable power source.
I have been informed that there is a phone socket on the machine, so that you will be able to receive and make calls while it uses your SIM card.
Will you be able to use other service providers with this piece of equiptment? Unknown, I haven’t been given a test unit (you can tell I’m low on the food chain).
Contact Rizal at rizaldee@celcom.com.my or +60196201771.
9 Comments | business opportunity, engineering, Malaysia | Tagged: Celcom, Cradlepoint, tech guy | Permalink
Posted by Wata
Here’s a thought. Say you really want to break into a new engineering market (characterization, dynamic simulation, flow assurance). Business sense might dictate that in order to get recognised, you have to win jobs in that market (business sense hah, try common sense).
Problem is, to win those jobs and gain goodwill, you might have to lower your cost, sometimes much below that of the jobs you do in your current market, while maintaining the same quality of product. Your plan is to raise your rates once you have established yourself as a provider of world-class product, and command fees to boot.
An alternate case is that your new clients are only interested in cost only, and as soon as you raise your rates, it’s bye-bye time. You may also have spoiled your core business, as word spreads that you can be got at lower prices as long as the other parties stick to their guns.
Here’s a solution. Seek out these new fields using the name of another company, one you don’t mind associating with low cost. For example, your boutique is called MAS, and your budget line is called Firefly. After you convince your clients that they really want MAS services, close down Firefly (or stop responding to invitation to bids), and tell them that MAS will provide the services they value so highly, which comes with a price.
At least MAS is still seen as a boutique.
6 Comments | business opportunity, engineering | Permalink
Posted by Wata
Here’s an idea I got from other businesses. They charge out their services according to the benefit the client receives. An example are energy conservation consultants. They get paid a portion of the energy savings realised by their client.
Imagine translating that into the oil and gas industry. Here’s an example. Say a separator is designed for 100 thousand barrels per day (kbd) of crude. Later, this turns out to be a bottleneck preventing a production increase to 105 thousand kbd (not an unrealistic value). If you use a profit sharing model (say 10% of the production increase), then this translates to 5,000 x 10% x USD50/barrel (I’m using low values here to make a point) = USD25k a day.
You can pretty much do whatever cost analysis you want. If you think how much you charge using the Engineering, Procurement, Construction and Commissioning (EPCC) method, how much would you get? For debottlenecking a process by changing vessel internals, prob USD500k, of which about 30% would be profit (I’m guessing nos. here).
Which profit model would you like? And if you work for a production company, you should be proud in the rate of return the company gets from you.
At another level, profit sharing is pretty much in vogue for the independent Malaysian oil and gas companies. Profits are shared by issuing stock to employees. Examples of companies that do this are Talisman and Newfield. Examples of companies that do not are ExxonMobil and Shell.
10 Comments | business opportunity, engineering, Malaysia, oil and gas | Tagged: profit sharing, value added | Permalink
Posted by Wata
Jabba is building himself a fan base. Some have even said that Jabba and Wata are the same person, kinda like Sidious and Palpatine. Nah, Jabba’s office is nicer, as the photos below attest:
and
Notice Jabba endorses Casio calculators. Later he will send Bib Fortuna over there to collect the royalties if he is a good mood, or all their assets if he follows SOP. And let them retain their lives.
3 Comments | business opportunity | Tagged: Jabba | Permalink
Posted by Wata
Another week, another scan of the Saturday Star newspaper. Here’s a list of job ads in the paper:
Happy hunting. Let me have some feedback if you find this list useful. Even better, spread the news. PayPal donations welcome.
1 Comment | business opportunity, engineering, Malaysia, oil and gas | Tagged: GL Konsult, IEV, IGL, Murphy, RasGas, Shell | Permalink
Posted by Wata
You are currently browsing the archives for the business opportunity category.
Paypal donations accepted.
Wata - Malaysian Oil and Gas Engineer 