Kopi Chat Deep Dive: Innovation and Sustainable Manufacturing Within Asia

Contributing to about 16.69% of Vietnam’s GDP in 2020, the manufacturing industry has seen a steady increase over the years, slowly becoming one of the biggest economic focal point within Asia, many manufacturing industry leaders have embraced various manufacturing innovations in order to increase their productivity levels.

As exciting as it may sound for its growth potential in Asia, we have to ask - is this sustainable? How do these technological innovations play a role in achieving sustainable manufacturing? What is technology-enabled production's impact on the social and environmental landscape?

In a study conducted by the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the manufacturing industry within Vietnam is still unsustainable to a large extent. Some of the most largely unsustainable sectors include the chemical, metallurgy, and mining industry with the three main issues being wastewater management, material wastage, and inefficient energy usage. As such, BLOCK71 Saigon is organizing a Kopi Chat Deep Dive on Innovation’s Impact on Sustainable Manufacturing.

We will be exploring the role of innovation in alleviating the aforementioned issues and how it comes hand in hand with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal.

Our curated panel of speakers include:

1. Luong Nguyen | UNDP Accelerator Labs, Head of Solutions Mapping

Luong is the Head of Solutions Mapping with the UNDP Accelerator Labs, the innovation arm of the United Nation Development Programme. Luong specializes in developing strategies to facilitate sustainable development and has dedicated his time to transform the Vietnamese innovation ecosystem towards greater sustainability and collaboration. We believe Luong can provide a wider perspective on Vietnam’s progress towards achieving the sustainable development goals and how innovation helps to bridge that gap.

2. Dr. Mohammad Sherafatmand | Hydroleap, CEO

Dr Mohammad pursued a PhD in environmental engineering and his areas of interest include renewable energy and wastewater management. He has leveraged on his research expertise to provide environmentally sustainable solutions and eventually founded Hydroleap. Hydroleap is a wastewater treatment startup that introduces a cleaner way to treat wastewater by using electricity-based solutions rather than chemical solutions, creating sustainable manufacturing practices

3. Long Hoang | FireVisor, Chief Technical Officer

Long is the CTO of FireVisor Systems. FireVisor creates self-aware factories that understand defect patterns and improve yield. As of now, their systems analyze more than a million products every day. FireVisor’s end goal is to create an efficient manufacturing model for businesses and eventually a surplus in produced goods. They hope to reduce material wastage in manufacturing practices through early error detection.

4. Thao Tran | New Energy Nexus, Programme Manager

Thao is the programme manager of the New Energy Nexus accelerator programme. The New Energy Nexus is an international non-profit organization that supports clean entrepreneurs and sustainable innovation, their fields of expertise include clean energy and innovation. Energy is widely considered to be the key contributor to global warming, accounting for about 60% of the global greenhouse gas emission. As such, we believe Nexus’ expertise in renewable energy adds value to the panel discussion as renewable energy is a powerful driving force behind creating a circular economy.

What you can expect from the session:

1. Get a deeper idea behind the meaning of innovation and sustainability in the context of manufacturing, one of the biggest economic sectors in Vietnam

2. Get a clear sense of direction in the necessary steps required to tackle these issues.

3. Reach out to our panelists to voice your thoughts and establish a network of connections.