Taiwan Manufacturers Eager to Join Government's Big Data Program

Taiwan's heavyweight manufacturers including the Hon Hai Technology Group, Hiwin Technologies Corp., and Advantech Co., Ltd. have expressed eagerness to join Taiwan's executive ministry's program to push application of big data.

Hon Hai Chairman Terry Gou told Vice Premier Simon Chang of his hopes for the government to integrate the island's enterprises into its big-data environment during Chang's visit of Hon Hai's operational headquarters in Tucheng, northern Taiwan recently.

Chang is coordinating all the ministries and  academic community to build a governmental big data environment for all governmental databases in hopes of improving quality of governmental policy making.

The government will set up ground rules to encourage local enterprises to use such governmental big data environment, says Chang.

Hon Hai, while offering healthcare and learning services, looks to the government to assist local enterprises to facilitate offering the same services.

The Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) will launch a four-year, NT$1.2 billion (US$38.70 million) big data project this year, to also commission the semi-official Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI) and the Institute for Information Institute (III) to study big data trends, applications, and to encourage the private sector to apply the same to their businesses.

Senior officials of the MOEA say it has received 50-plus big data R&D project proposals from the academic circle and will coordinate governmental organizations and academia to work on these projects.

They say big data is a very smart technology and many local enterprises are vigorously using such  technology to increase business opportunities, including machine-tool maker Hiwin and industrial computer maker Advantech.

But local manufacturers are grappling with obstacles when using big data to develop business, with stumbling blocks being the lack of big data brainpower and legal restrictions. For instance, the government's universal healthcare database is prohibited by law from sharing personal data, thus inhibiting the development of online distant healthcare or treatment service.

(KL)