History of Innovation

The history of the NYP can be traced back to its predecessor institutions of the late 1970s and early 1980s - the Japan-Singapore Institute (JSI), German-Singapore Institute (GSI) and French-Singapore Institute(FSI) set up by the Economic Development Board (EDB) of Singapore. The set-up of these joint training institutes with foreign governments was a critical factor for EDB’s successful response to the economic challenges then. These institutes provided skilled manpower required by the newly established industries.

It is acknowledged that “the greatest innovation that EDB has made in Singapore’s industrialisation efforts must be its manpower and training schemes”. These EDB training institutes were subsequently transferred to Nanyang Polytechnic in 1993.

In NYP, innovation is defined as the translation of knowledge and technologies into creating value and satisfaction for customers in the form of newer and better products and services. Being innovative adds value to our graduates' education and training, gives them the extra edge and ultimately increases their employ- ability.

These are the challenges and the drivers of innovation at NYP – the need to provide training that employers value in our graduates; the need to form value-adding and win-win partnerships with industry leaders; the need to provide an authentic, up-to-date, practice oriented training environment in the face of rapid technology advancement and equipment obsolescence; the need to attract staff with sound theoretical knowledge and practical experience and ensure they keep up with developments in their respective disciplines and industry sectors.

 

Our senior management takes the lead in developing the innovative capability of the polytechnic and have shaped NYP’s culture and created the distinctive polytechnic that we are today, through the guiding principles of NYP++ Model for Excellence and the deployment framework of Innovation Everywhere. This is closely aligned to NYP’s mission of providing quality education and delivering industry services to meet Singapore’s economic needs.

 

At NYP, we nurture and develop:

  • A robust culture built on people with pioneering and dare to dream spirit, coupled with the vision and ability to turn ideas into reality
  • Unique teaching and learning concepts relevant to the real world environment and continuously expand on its concepts for present day relevance
  • Organizational capacity and staff capability by pooling resources and through staff development
  • Excellent industry and international connections