IEM Shout Out – Talk on Bio-Cosmetics Process and Safety Aspects

May 5, 2012

This is a shout out for the IEM. My Technical Division will be hosting a talk on the 19th May, 2012. It’ll start at 10.00am and is worth 2 CPD hours.

The Chemical Engineering Technical Division (CETD) is planning to organize a talk on Bio-Cosmetics Product Development – From R and D to Market. The talk shall include topics such as extraction, bioactivity studies, safety and toxicology evaluations, product development and efficacy study. The speaker will be sharing her experiences in developing cosmetics products utilizing natural active ingredients sourced from local ginger species from bench scale to commercialization.

Dr Zanariah bt Ujang is currently the Head of Marketing & Sales for The Research & Technology Development Division of SIRIM Berhad. She is responsible for marketing and new business development in the areas of industrial biotechnology, renewable energy, environmental technology and advanced materials. She graduated with a B Sc in Chemical Engineering from The University of Toledo, Ohio in 1984 and later obtained her M Sc in Process Engineering in 1994 and PhD in Chemical & Process Engineering in 1998 from The University of Strathclyde UK. After graduating from her PhD study, Dr Zanariah was appointed as a Principal Researcher at the Chemical and Industrial Biotechnology Center of SIRIM Berhad. She was responsible for setting up the cosmeceutical R & D program in SIRIM Berhad and has more than 15 years research experience in the field of industrial biotechnology and natural product development. Among her research interests and areas of expertise are in:

  • Biocatalysis – developing enzymatic processes for the production of fine and specialty chemicals
  • Biopolymers – developing natural polymers for wound management application
  • Bioactives – developing natural based active ingredients for cosmetic and topical therapeutic application
  • Nano lipid delivery systems for bioactive compounds

Register here or download the form here.

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Posted by Wata

PTPTN and the lack of Petronas specifics

May 5, 2012

Ah, a linkage between education and oil, or lack thereof. BTW, here’s an touching article from the SunDaily.

Dateline 2012-04-20:

PARTI Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) raised brows last week when it announced that if Pakatan Rakyat (PR) were to form a government, it would abolish the national higher education fund (PTPTN). The PTPTN was formed in 1997 with the objective of providing loans to students unable to afford fees in local higher education institutions. The larger argument of this proposal is to channel PTPTN funds more effectively to ensure more Malaysians can access education, itself a policy debate that surely must be taking place today.

Public focus, unfortunately, has somewhat shifted away from the issue of higher education itself, following PR leader Anwar Ibrahim’s suggestion that outstanding PTPTN loans of an estimated RM43 billion be written off with Petronas funds. The government however contends that doing so would “squeeze Petronas dry” and kill the goose that lays the golden eggs.

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Esso minority shareholders told to reject Petron offer

May 4, 2012

Don’t know about you, but didn’t Esso sell EMB because it wasn’t making that much money?

Dateline 2012-04-20:

Kenanga Investment Bank Bhd, which is the adviser for Esso Malaysia Bhd (EMB) minority shareholders, has advised them to reject the takeover offer by Petron Corp, an affiliate of Philippines-based San Miguel Corp (SMC) so that they may benefit from the positive prospects of the oil and gas industry in which EMB operates in.

…

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Malaysia’s Petronas Said to Sell Labuan, Penara Oil for June

May 3, 2012

Can some trader tell me why this is important, and how it affects the rakyat? And interpret the ‘said’ as ‘CYA’.

Dateline 2012-04-19:

Petroliam Nasional Bhd., the Malaysian state oil company known as Petronas, sold a cargo of its Penara crude to Royal Dutch Shell Plc (RDSA) and a shipment of Labuan to Exxon Mobil Corp., said two traders who participate in the market, declining to be identified because the information is confidential.

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Reforms in fuel subsidy not expected until after GE

May 2, 2012

Dateline 2012-04-12:

Malaysia’s huge fuel subsidy bill, estimated at RM20 billion last year, is overdue for an overhaul. While reforms are imminent, few expect any of it can happen until the general election (GE) is over.

An indication of how far off we are from real market prices is plainly seen at the pumps.

Last week, the price of the market-driven RON97 petrol blend was increased by 10 sen to RM2.90 a litre. The more widely-used RON95 blend and diesel selling prices were kept at RM1.90 a litre.

It was estimated that the cost of petrol is at least RM2.80 a litre based on the crude oil price of US$120 a barrel.

…

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IEM Shout Out – Talk on Plasticizers For Plastics – What, Where, How And Why

May 1, 2012

This is a shout out for the IEM. My Technical Division will be hosting a talk on the 1th June, 2012. It’ll start at 5.30pm and is worth 2 CPD hours.

Plasticizers are additives used in the plastic industry especially for polyvinyl chloride (PVC) manufacturing. It is the softening agent added to polymers to induce flexibility and improve processability. Initially, the plasticizer application is limited to the plastic industry, until the issue boom from Taiwan bubble tea industry, where plasticizer is used as clouding and thickening agent to induce smooth tastes of the beverages. This issue becomes so serious because plasticizers can cause serious health hazard when consumed orally. The most commonly found plasticizer is phathalate-based type. This type of plasticizer includes Diisononyl phthalate, Bis (2-ethylhexyl) phthalate, dioctyl phthalate, etc., and has been banned in Europe and western countries, mainly due to its high dose exposure has shown change of hormone levels and cause birth defects. In addition, adding large amount of plasticizer in plastics can increase its fire risk, because plasticizer itself is a high flammable substance. Nevertheless, plasticizers are not added in every plastic product. Some of the plasticizers are produced from the renewable resources such as soy bean oil which has found its usage in medical products as well.

Ir. Dr Tee Tiam Ting is an associate professor in Chemical Engineering Department of Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR). He has more than 30 years of teaching and research experiences in the university. He was the former vice president of IEM and currently the fellow member of IEM.

Dr Lee Tin Sin is an assistant professor in Chemical Engineering Department of Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman. He graduated from the Universiti Teknologi Malaysia with First Class Honours in Bachelor of Engineering (Chemical-Polymer) and PhD in Polymer Engineering.

Register here or download the form here.

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Malaysia’s ambitious plan to transform its economy

May 1, 2012

Dateline 2012-04-28, and I’m being paid too low…

The government of Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak launched the Economic Transformation Programme (ETP) in September 2010 with the ambitious goal of doubling income per person to $15,000 to reach developed-nation status by 2020.

…

The ETP aims to consolidate Malaysia’s oil and gas (O&G) offshore fabricators to become more competitive regionally. OSK said this could benefit Kencana Petroleum Bhd (>> Kencana Petroleum Berhad) and Malaysia Marine of Heavy Engineering Bhd (>> Malaysia Marine & Heavy Engnrg Sdn Bhd), the remaining two listed larger fabricators. Offshore services firms such as Bumi Armada (>> Bumi Armada Bhd) are seen gaining from investments in the energy sector.

…

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Saturday Star 2012-04-28 – Job Opportunities

April 30, 2012

Support me by purchasing my recommendations, or buying through my Amazon store. I need the money to pay for running this site. Corporate level sponsors are encouraged.

If you need my help to submit your CVs, donate to the blog, and I’ll review your CV to see if it is worthy of my (and my associates’) expectations. If you can’t figure out how to donate, no need to ask.

  • I’m looking for a senior process engineer, 7+ years experience. Send your cv here . Also looking for process safety persons, lead piping designer, lead instrument engineer, and other seniors you think will catch my eye.
  • Shell is looking for people for a mess of people. You can visit www.shell.com/careers and select Job Search & Apply → Malaysia.

May I suggest that readers install the Waze app on their phones? And use it as much as possible? It says its a “a social mobile application providing free turn-by-turn navigation based on the live conditions of the road. 100% powered by users, the more you drive, the better it gets. Join the community of drivers in your area today!” It’s definitely getting better for the Klang Valley area, though we need more users from East Malaysia.

Support your local bookshop! Visit Bookalicious at The Summit Subang, good selection of imported books. I think they focus on trilogies, quadrilogies, and otherologies. Tell them I sent you, and enjoy the look of perplexity on their faces. Maybe I should say that next time I visit them. Those of you who have dropped my name, thanks!

BTW, did I tell you that I am the Secretary of MOGEC?

For those of you who have a healthy skepticism to my industry, these books are for you:

  

Why We Hate the Oil Companies: Straight Talk from an Energy Insider, The Party’s Over: Oil, War and the Fate of Industrial Societies, Barbarians of Oil: How the World’s Oil Addiction Threatens Global Prosperity and Four Investments to Protect Your Wealth (Agora Series)

This week’s food promotion is … masak asam pedas. If you find nice places around PJ, let me know. I’ve tried the one across from the PJ State Police Station, and the shop next to Dewan MPSJ in PJ State.

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Petronas will fold if Pakatan takes over

April 30, 2012

Dateline 2012-04-09:

Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin today ridiculed Pakatan Rakyat’s plan to abolish the students’ loan scheme and offset it using the oil income, saying the idea would bankrupt the country’s oil company Petronas.

He called the idea mooted by Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim an irresponsible populist measure proposed without considering the repercussions.

Weak exports and domestic market makes oil Malaysia’s major income contributor. Muhyiddin claimed Petronas would have to spend as much as RM43 billion to offset the loans, something the country can’t afford.

…

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O&G Industry Set To Stimulate Sabah’s Growth In North Asia, BIMP-EAGA

April 29, 2012

Dateline 2012-04-09:

The oil and gas industry is set to play a leading role in stimulating growth for Sabah within the North Asia and the Brunei-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East Asia Growth Area (BIMB-EAGA), said Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman.

He said Sabah is strategically located between the two major economic regions.

“One is the affluent markets of North Asia including Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong and China, and second is the growth of developing markets within the BIMP-EAGA,” he said in his remarks when opening the 2012 Sabah Oil and Gas Conference and Exhibition here Monday.

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