Working In The Environmental Services Industry – More Than Just Keeping Singapore Clean & Green

NEA-Industry Scholarship

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Despite the ongoing hoo-ha about skipping the morning rinse, Singapore, in general, is pretty clean as far as public spaces go. Matters of personal hygiene aside, the Little Red Dot ranks highly on the list of the cleanest countries in the world, but there’s so much more to the Environmental Services (ES) industry than just exterminating pests, cleaning spaces, and ensuring Singaporeans throw rubbish into the bin.

For more insight on this often misunderstood yet vastly important line of work, we got the chance to speak to 3 scholars who’ve received the NEA-Industry Scholarship. Here’s what they had to say about getting the opportunity to contribute to the ES industry, to ensure that Singapore gets to uphold its title of being a clean and green country with pride.

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Seamless transition from tertiary education into the ES industry

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You might think that you’d have to start your foray into the ES industry by enrolling into courses explicitly related to going green, such as the Diploma in Environmental & Water Technology, but that’s not true at all.

Just ask any 1 of the 3 NEA-Industry Scholarship recipients we’ve interviewed; none of them enrolled in a field of study that you would conventionally relate to ES. Take Saumya Pravit Rai, 20, for example, who’s currently pursuing a Diploma in Robotics & Mechatronics at Nanyang Polytechnic.

Saumya (on the left) facilitating a discussion about personal grooming and social etiquette as part of his co-curricular activities with Nanyang Polytechnic.
Image credit: Saumya Pravit Rai

He couldn’t quite decide what he’d like to study right off the bat after completing his secondary school education, but after some research, his forward-looking perspective had him settling on a course related to technology and eventually, robotics.

Moreover, he was further spurred on by his childhood passion for saving the environment, as he recounts jamming out to the catchy tunes of the Save My World song from the Saving Gaia initiative of the early 2010s. The COVID-19 pandemic also proved to be quite an enlightening, real-world dilemma of what his work in the future could help alleviate.

“Without cleaning services, Singapore would not be able to disinfect premises safely. This is especially true in high-risk areas such as hospitals, where those with weaker immune systems rely heavily on having a clean environment for general health and wellness,” said Saumya. He put two and two together, and this culminated in his decision to apply for the NEA-Industry Scholarship.

Applying for the scholarship wasn’t difficult at all, as Saumya described. After learning about it through his school, he filled up an online application and attended a briefing thereafter. “This briefing was held to share more information about the scholarship, and for applicants to indicate their desired top 5 choices of industry partners they’d like to work under,” explained Saumya.

Soon, Saumya was scheduled for interviews with the various industry partners who would then shortlist the applicants who were best suited for their companies, and offer them the scholarship.

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Hands-on internship experience with a wide range of job scopes

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Lih Qing holding her NEA-Industry Scholarship certificate at the CleanEnviro Summit Singapore 2024.
Image credit: NEA

As for Chan Lih Qing, 20, she decided to take her first steps into the ES industry as a scholar with Ravago Manufacturing Singapore Pte Ltd (RMS). It’s one of the largest plastic processing companies in Singapore, and Lih Qing described her internship experience as nothing short of “fruitful and eye-opening”.

Throughout her 22 weeks with the company, she dipped her toes into 4 different departments within the company. “This opportunity gave me a better understanding of how the company’s key business activities are run,” she said.

For starters, Lih Qing was attached to the Production department, where she supported the team in inventory tracking, as well as accounting for scrap plastics and finished goods. Next up were stints in the Maintenance and Qualitative Analysis departments, which required her to take on tasks such as cleaning and updating databases, along with performing tests on finished goods, grading them, and then selling them to customers.

“All these were new experiences to me, and I found this exposure to the ES industry offered to me by the company to be invaluable and exciting,” concluded Lih Qing.

Lih Qing’s AutoCAD file for a school project where she created a blueprint.
Image credit: Chan Lih Qing

Lih Qing even managed to tap into the skills she picked up as a student currently enrolled in Singapore Polytechnic’s Diploma in Civil Engineering course. She was taught how to use the Autodesk AutoCAD software in school, and was thrilled to be able to use it to help her company remedy some space management woes.

She did so by editing RMS’ layout drawing and planning the arrangement of the company’s inventory of finished goods, in order to fully optimise their limited warehouse storage.

Lih Qing (on the right) at a networking event with Joseph Ng, Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operating Officer of Ravago Asia at the CleanEnviro Summit Singapore 2024.
Image credit: NEA

She also gave credit to her school’s communication modules, as they helped her develop soft skills such as her ability to convey complex ideas both verbally and in writing, which she found to be extremely helpful in the corporate workspace. Lih Qing will be joining Ravago Manufacturing Singapore as a Sustainability Executive upon graduation.

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Working with technology for a better tomorrow for the environment

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Meanwhile, Saumya provided his expertise in robotics to bolster Primech A&P’s cleaning services sector as part of his internship. His experience as a scholar during his internship was a little different; he had to oversee the company’s in-house cleaning management software and tweak it based on customer feedback.

Saumya (first from the left) with his co-workers at Primech A&P.
Image credit: Saumya Pravit Rai

He also got to fiddle around with the company’s robots and was engrossed in the robotics development side of things. Saumya even took it upon himself to conduct extra research online to do his job to the best of his ability, such as thoroughly understanding electrical circuitry and correctly assembling robotic parts.

There were opportunities for Saumya to put what he learnt in school to practical use as well. He recounted one instance where he was involved in developing an autonomous floor cleaning robot, and it just so happened that it ran on instructions fed to it using the Internet of Things (IoT) communication protocol.

This very IoT communication protocol was taught in one of his modules during Saumya’s time in Nanyang Polytechnic, which made it effortless for him to get up to speed with the rest of his team on the project. He then goes on to explain that he has a hopeful outlook on the future of the ES industry.

Image credit: Primech A&P

“My internship experience has helped me realise the importance of technology in the daily operations in the ES industry,” Saumya mused. “The industry is changing rapidly, and integrating technology into our daily taskings makes our duties less labour-intensive, along with creating a new category of jobs for future young talents.” Saumya looks forward to starting his career with Primech A&P as a Management Trainee in time to come.

Speaking of a more tech-driven ES industry, Cheah Ming Hong, 20, definitely knows a thing or two about working with robots. He’s a student enrolled in ITE College Central’s Higher Nitec in Mechatronics Engineering course.

Having spent his internship at Re Sustainability Cleantech, he has gained much-needed experience that’ll give him a headstart in the ES industry. When asked about how he felt about his time working as an intern with Re Sustainability Cleantech, he described it as an “exciting and special experience”.

Ming Hong beside a robotic arm at school.
Image credit: Cheah Ming Hong

Ming Hong was given the opportunity to program cleaning machines to perform tasks such as scrubbing, mopping, and vacuuming of spillages at the push of a button. “I found the experience of working with these robots to be rewarding, as it significantly reduces the amount of manual labour required to clean up large spaces,” he said. “Furthermore, this eases the workload of my elderly colleagues.”

His compassionate motivations went beyond programming robots, as he also taught his fellow co-workers how to operate these nifty companions. Ming Hong also chimed in with a particularly noteworthy aspect of his internship; he was privy to a behind-the-scenes look of what goes into cleaning a concert venue before the crowds pours in as the artistes take centre stage.

Of course, he carried out his responsibilities dutifully, but was then allowed to stay on to catch the concert; an experience not many people can say they have under their belt. Ming Hong will be joining Re Sustainability Cleantech as a Supervisor ensuring operations excellence.

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What is the NEA-Industry Scholarship?

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The NEA-Industry Scholarship is a local scholarship by the National Environment Agency (NEA), and is awarded to full-time Institute of Technical Education (ITE) and Polytechnic students who are interested in building a career within the ES industry.

The scholarship is offered in partnership with various industry firms in the cleaning, pest management, and waste management sectors, and supports young talents who demonstrate academic excellence, strong leadership potential, and a passion for environmental sustainability.

Image adapted from: NEA

Polytechnic recipients of the NEA-Industry Scholarship will be awarded up to $15,000 per year throughout the duration of their full-time course of study, while ITE recipients will receive $8,000 per year.

The award includes payment of the scholars’ course fees, compulsory fees, and other allowances. After graduating from their courses, scholars will then have to serve a bond period equivalent to the length of their study in their current course. If they remain with their sponsoring organisations 1 year after their bond period, they’ll receive a retention bonus of $5,000.

Interested applicants can head to the NEA-Industry Scholarship website to learn more about the scholarship or may register their interest here. Pre-requisites include:

• Being a Singapore Citizen or Singapore Permanent Resident
• Being a Nitec or Higher Nitec Graduate or GCE ‘O’ or ‘N’ Level graduate (for Diploma scholarship)
• Being an ‘O’ or ‘N’ Level graduate (for ITE scholarship)
• An existing polytechnic/ITE student pursuing a relevant course
• Enrolling or currently enrolled into fields of study relevant to the ES industry

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Keep Singapore clean & green by pursuing a career in the ES industry

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When it comes to the ES industry, many people may have the misconception that it’s all about getting your hands dirty by spending hours carrying out laborious tasks. Although we still require some manpower on the ground to maintain a standard of cleanliness, the industry is still brimming with prospective job opportunities, much like any other sectors.

For instance, scholars will take on professional, managerial, executive, and technician roles in their respective Sponsoring Organisations. Moreover, scholars have previously been offered careers in Data Analytics, Engineering, Management Trainees, Operations, Robotics, Software Development, Supervisory, as well as Sustainability-based roles.

The gradual integration of technology with the plethora of ES-related job scopes is another thing to look forward to. From utilising robots to streamlining work processes to tapping into cutting-edge advancements to propel better sustainable practices, the future seems bright for budding talents looking to make their mark in the ES industry.

Apply for the NEA-Industry Scholarship now

 

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This post was brought to you by NEA.
Cover image adapted from: NEA, Saumya Pravit Rai