ADVERTORIAL

Phoenix signs MoU with STC

Phoenix Industries Ltd recently signed an Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with State Trading General Corporation (STC), to cater the State sector establishments and its employees with unique plastic products. Phoenix will be partnered with STC to supply the full range of products manufactured at their state-of-the-art plant at Makandura Industrial Zone.

Under the MoU, Phoenix confirmed that STC will act as its nominated channel partner to supply all Government sector establishments with Phoenix plastic products. The Government sector will immensely benefit in this partnership by receiving products at a very competitive price, coupled with timely delivery.

Kramski award ceremony

Although the European market is currently facing the economy crisis, I am glad that Sri Lanka is exempted from this situation, said W. Kramski in the Certificate Awarding Ceremony of the first batch of trainees, trained by the Kramski Training Center.

Kramski, situated in Pforzheim, is an independent and privately owned enterprise with subsidiaries in Sri Lanka, India and North America. Founded in 1978. Kramski started as a tooling company for manufacturing high-speed stamping tools. Today, we develop and manufacture complex, technical, highly sophisticated stampings, mouldings and manufacturing systems.

As an “Approved Supplier” we produce micro parts from metal and plastic for the leading companies in the automotive, electronics, telecommunications and medical industries.

Our strengths are the processing of the thinnest materials, the integration of the various technologies in the stamping process, and the compliance to closest tolerances.

Kramski Lanka is founded in 1994 and since then more than 50 employees have been trained in Germany. This organization has been already awarded the ISO 9001:2000 and ISO TS 16949-2002 certificates and is working towards obtaining the ISO 14001 in the near future.

Kramski Training Center was established in April 2007 with an intention of training 10 best students from Sri Lanka for a period of two years. Kramski Group has allocated a sum of Rs. 1 million per student for a period of two years.

Presently, Kramski Training Center is the one and only organization which could conduct the Government approved courses of ‘Tool and Die Maker’ and ‘Machinist General’ under one roof.

The second batch of trainees are currently undergoing training and for the third batch, selections now in progress.

Chairman, W. Kramski, Ms. Kramski, Ms. Sabine Kramski, Michael Torres, Managing Director Armin Latussek, General Manager (Technical) Nilantha Edirisinghe, Managers and the parents of the passed finalists attended this event.

Eye health services for IDPs

The National Secretariat for Vision 2020 of the Ministry of Healthcare in collaboration with the College of Ophthalmologists designed a program to provide eye health services for IPDs in the North.

Standard Chartered Bank has been the initial contributor towards this program, providing US$ 5,000 through the Sightsavers International and also signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in this regard with the Minister of Healthcare and Nutrition and Sightsavers International.

Standard Chartered Bank Sri Lanka has been a long history of supporting eye-care in Sri Lanka with the aim of eradicating avoidable blindness in the country. Standard Chartered Bank is the only bank to allow its customers to contribute directly to funding eye care initiatives by transferring Standard Chartered Credit Card Bonus Points towards Cataract operations.

Philip Goodstein on ‘An Introduction to Advertising’

The Sri Lanka Professional Advertising And Creativity School (SPAACS) recently appointed Philip Goodstein as its Course Director.

SPAACS set a new benchmark in the Sri Lankan advertising sphere as the first and only academy solely dedicated to advertising and its related fields. Providing comprehensive courses in all aspects of advertising, SPAACS has already laid the foundation for the careers of a number of its students who recently graduated from the first two batches of the school’s popular course ‘An Introduction to Advertising’.

Many of these students have already secured jobs in leading advertising agencies and other advertising-related fields, while others are undergoing internships.

Philip Goodstein is the founder of Brand Partners, and has more than 30 years experience in marketing and advertising across three continents - Europe, Africa and Asia.

Beginning his illustrious career with Unilever in London, he advertised many of the world’s best known brands including Colgate, Guinness, Palmolive, Hennessy, Heineken, IBM, Nestle, Kodak, Dove, Wilson, Lipton and American Express.

Philip has also worked in Milan and in the demanding markets of South Africa and Taiwan. His career has also taken him to Japan, where he opened a regional office for Ogilvy and Mather in Tokyo using a 10-year business model that is still being successfully implemented today.

The new courses in ‘An Introduction to Advertising’ that are soon to be launched will be under Philip’s expert guidance. With his unique understanding of business and advertising, Philip is sure to use his global expertise to add new direction and momentum to SPAACS.

Dialog TV partners Microimage mobile media

Microimage Mobile Media signed a contract with Dialog TV, a subsidiary of Dialog Telekom, for Microimage’s vStation - AF Advert insertion platform.

vStation AF is part of Microimage’s award winning Video Broadcast Suite with three core solutions, vStation VF (Video/TV Automation Solution), vStation LF (3G/Broadband participation TV solution) and vStation AF (Ad-insertion solution).

The agreements were signed by Chief Executive Officer Dialog TV Nushad Perera and Chief Executive Officer of Microimage Harsha Purasinghe, at BroadcastAsia 2009 in Singapore. Microimage is featuring its range of media and entertainment products at this regional broadcast solutions exhibition.

“We are proud to have been chosen by Dialog TV for deployment of our vStation-AF advert insertion platform, which will enable it to generate new revenue streams by local commercial advert insertion”, said Purasinghe.

Microimage vStation AF is a full-featured Advert Insertion Solution. It gives broadcasters the ability to insert local commercials and replace existing adverts on a selected DTH channel.

This platform can be deployed with any DTH, Cable or IPTV broadcaster looking to generate revenue from local advert insertion. vStation AF platform is bundled with a complete set of modules covering an innovative video console, commercial traffic scheduling, billing, content ingest and management information.

“Dialog is a firm believer in Sri Lankan talent, which is world-class. In pursuing an ad-insertion solution, we sought a superior product with the added advantage of a strong partnership, support and flexibility.

Microimage presents these every attributes, and we are pleased to partner them in our new initiative. Made in Sri Lanka, for Sri Lanka - is one of Dialog TV’s primary objectives, as amply demonstrated with this partnership. We will continue to harvest and harness Sri Lankan talent both on and off the screen,” Perera said.

PEO TV brings on YA Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka Telecom PEO TV launched the new public services broadcast channel YA Sri Lanka, as part of a collaborative effort with Young Asia Television last month.

The channel was inaugurated under Chairperson, Sri Lanka Telecom Leisha De Silva, CEO, YATV Hilmy Ahamed and CEO, SLT VisionCom Thusha Weerasooriya.

With the launch of YA Sri Lanka, PEO TV takes another step in the progress of television in Sri Lanka, by bringing a unique interactive line up, which features the best in social, political, cultural and environmental programing.

This new initiative builds on PEO TV’s reputation, bringing to its audience in Sri Lanka, a trilingual channel, which offers a forum for young people to express themselves as well as raise media awareness on a plethora of issues, ranging from sustainable development to youth empowerment.

YA Sri Lanka’s partnership with PEO TV will be an opportunity to provide an alternative to the mainstream, an opportunity to reinvent the usefulness of the medium of television as well as to share ideas and knowledge, gain skills and capacities, build communities and bridges.

Chairperson Leisha said, “Today PEO TV has managed to touch the lives of the local consumer by providing for their day to day information and entertainment needs in an innovative manner.

By understanding the changing infotainment needs in the community and catering to what the youth needs in keeping with the ethical standards of the industry, and the backing of the organizational capabilities of SLT and PEO TV, YA TV has the potential to be one of the most sought after channels.

I extend my appreciation to YATV and Sri Lanka Telecom PEO TV for this strategic alliance that has been made, and whilst wishing success to both organizations in their future accomplishments, I’m confident that the television audiences of Sri Lanka would tremendously benefit from the new venture that has been formed, Lisha said.

Hilmy Ahamed, said, “With the launch of YA Sri Lanka, Young Asia Television makes a significant contribution to Sri Lanka’s television industry - the partnership with SLT’s PEO TV brings a brand new television experience to local audiences. Young Asia Television has been at the forefront of development television initatives in the Asian region for over a decade.

In Sri Lanka too it has been the leading social communications organization, pioneering the use of innovative approaches and introducing youth to social TV production.

Metropolitan moves to Panadura

A new Metropolitan outlet was opened last week in Panadura. The outlet aims to offer Panadura residents the range of Metropolitan products and services.

“This showroom in Panadura marks an important step in our expansion into the retail environment, and our vision towards a better retail customer friendly service,” Assistant General Manager - Regions, Metropolitan Office, Jerome Fernando said.

“This new showroom is a great convenience to us as earlier we had to travel to Colombo to purchase our requirements, even if it was a small consumable item like cartridges,” said Purchasing Manager of the Lanka Brush Exports Pvt. Ltd, Dushmantha Rajasinghe.

“Now our travel costs will be reduced and we have the added assurance of being able to purchase our requirements speedily and efficiently,” Rajasinghe said.