TM R&D assists Orbix International School in adhering to the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) with deployment of EWAR towards curbing the spread of COVID-19 virus.

​​​​​Telekom Malaysia Berhad (TM), through its innovation arm, TM Research & Development (TM R&D), further promotes the adoption of digital solutions in the education sector by deploying its Early Warning, Alert & Response or "EWAR" at Orbix International School (Orbix), a private school in Muar, Johor. EWAR is an Artificial Intelligence (A.I) driven contactless temperature screening solution internally-developed by TM R&D. ​

In an effort to digitalise the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) outlined for schools, Orbix has installed EWAR Compact, one (1) of EWAR's product categories, within their premise to better facilitate the temperature screenings of their students, teachers and visitors towards curbing the spread of COVID-19 virus.

Commenting on the initiative, Dr. Sharlene Thiagarajah, Chief Executive Officer, TM R&D said, "We are honoured to be working with an educational institution such as Orbix to deploy our cost-effective and innovative solution in response to the required safety protocols. This illustrates the flexibility and readiness of education vertical in adapting to the new normal. At TM R&D, we are ever ready to assist businesses and organisations to get back on their feet safely."

"We truly believe that deploying the EWAR Compact at schools or any educational institutions can provide students and teachers with a near-normal return to school experience as possible. We hope that this effort can encourage other schools and educational institutions to install EWAR Compact and simplify the adoption of the new SOPs in our battle against COVID-19."

EWAR Compact is an AI-driven, one-on-one contactless thermal screening solution with a high accuracy of +/- 0.3℃, fast (~1sec) detection and voice prompt. In addition, AI-based facial recognition capabilities can also be applied with the solution. With EWAR Compact, students and teachers can go to schools with peace of mind, knowing that their schools are using the most effective technology available to safeguard their health.

"Besides that, we are delighted to see more schools adopting digital solutions as this will expose teachers and students on how technology can help improve lives through safety. The exposure to EWAR Compact will also help students to experience digitalisation in action first-hand, and witness the benefits of digital adoption even before they enter the workforce. We hope this will help groom an industry-forward talent pool which will subsequently drive the nation's digital aspiration, befitting TM Group's role of the enabler of Digital Malaysia," she added.

"Deploying EWAR Compact was a vital step for us as we were looking for the most effective technology available in safeguarding the health of our students and teachers. So far, we have received positive feedback on how EWAR Compact has enhanced the efficiency of temperature taking while simultaneously improving social distancing," said Govindan Nair, Chief Marketing Officer of Orbix Education.

"The students especially have shared that they like how interactive the solution is. As we are firmly committed to ensuring the health and safety of our students, it is also important for us to expose our students to how innovation results in real-world solutions," he added.

Back in July, TM R&D has successfully installed EWAR Compact at 12 selected schools under the purview of Bangsar / Pudu District Education Office (PPDBP) namely Victoria Institution, Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan (SMK) Dato' Lokman, SMK Seri Saujana, SMK Desa Petaling, SMK Cochrane, SMK Taman Maluri, SMK Alam Damai, SMK Bukit Jalil, SMK Dato' Onn, SMK (P) Bandaraya, SMK Convent Jalan Peel and SMK Seri Permaisuri.

During the early stages of the Movement Control Order (MCO), TM R&D has introduced two (2) main product categories under EWAR, namely EWAR Crowd and EWAR Compact as part of its contribution in the fight against COVID-19. The solution comes with four (4) main capabilities that close the critical loop from detection to containment. It is non-intrusive and has use-cases for both crowd and one-on-one scanning, respectively.

EWAR Crowd comes with a dual-camera (thermal and optical) and is designed to conduct a rapid body temperature screening of approximately 10-15 individuals per second simultaneously at high traffic areas. It can easily be deployed in locations with mass traffic flow such as offices, shopping complexes, transportation hubs, universities, schools, tourist attractions, airports, immigration centres, and hospitals. EWAR Compact on the other hand is more suitable for a one-on-one contactless thermal screening. This can eliminate the need of the hand-held temperature taking, which can subsequently improve social distancing and minimise long queues.

Both EWAR models have been installed at more than 150 sites across several industry verticals and have gone regional to help keep businesses safe beyond Malaysian shores. The solutions have been installed at the quarantine and treatment centre for COVID-19 cases at Malaysia Agro Exposition Park (MAEPS) in Serdang, large and mid-size office lobbies, hotels, Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) payment counters, various sales galleries and Gamuda Land construction sites, just to name a few. 

TM R&D has been growing from strength to strength since 2016, winning seven (7) globally recognised awards over the last two (2) years. Our innovations cut across multiple verticals such as the Smart Retail Analytics and Smart Safety Helmet, all developed internally by local talents in TM R&D. As the organisation continues to expand beyond connectivity and into new value-added digital and smarter platforms, its role in TM has become more prominent and exciting.

For more information about TM R&D and its products and services, please log on to www.tmrnd.com.my. Follow us on LinkedIn (TM Research & Development) for more news and updates.