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WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 20, 1982

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+THE ADVENT OF MICRO-PROCESSOR TECHNOLOGY HAS GREATLY ENHANCED THE ABILITY OF THE CONVENTIONAL TELEPHONE INSTRUMENT TO PERFORM THE MANY ASPECTS OF COMMUNICATION. I AM PLEASED TO NOTE THAT OUR MANUFACTURERS HAVE BEEN QUICK OFF THE MARK TO DEVELOP THE MARKET FOR TELEPHONE INSTRUMENTS,+ HE SAID.

THERE WERE THREE OTHER DEVELOPMENTS IN THE ELECTRONICS INDUSTRY, OF WHICH HONG KONG COULD BE PROUD, HE SAID.

FIRSTLY, THE INDUSTRY HAD UPGRADED ITS PRODUCTION FROM MANUFACTURING COMPONENTS FOR COMPUTERS TO THE MAKING OF COMPLETE COMPUTERS.

SECONDLY, SOME MANUFACTURERS HAD ADVANCED FROM THE STAGE OF ASSEMBLING IMPORTED SYSTEMS TO THAT OF DESIGNING THEIR OWN COMPUTER HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE SYSTEMS.

THIRDLY, HONG KONG HAS THREE FACTORIES MAKING WAFER CHIPS, WHICH WILL ENSURE THAT HONG KONG'S EXPANDING ELECTRONICS

INDUSTRY WILL NOT LACK ESSENTIAL COMPONENTS.

HE ASSURED THE MANUFACTURERS THAT THE GOVERNMENT SPARED NO EFFORTS IN SUPPLEMENTING THEIR EFFORTS BY PROVIDING MANPOWER TRAINING AND TECHNICAL BACK-UP AND INDUSTRIAL SUPPORT FACILITIES.

FOR EXAMPLE, THE HONG KONG POLYTECHNIC PLANNED TO START

A DEGREE COURSE IN ELECTRONIC ENGINEERING IN SEPTEMBER 1983, WHILE TWO NEW ELECTRONICS INDUSTRY TRAINING CENTRES WOULD START COURSES IN SEPTEMBER 1984, HE SAID.

+THE CENTRES WILL TRAIN A TOTAL OF 290 CRAFTSMEN AND

2 300 OPERATIVES FOR THE INDUSTRY EVERY YEAR. TOGETHER WITH THE EXISTING FACILITIES IN THE UNIVERSITIES, POLYTECHNIC AND OTHER INSTITUTES AS WELL AS OVERSEAS GRADUATES RETURNING TO HONG KONG, THE INDUSTRY SHOULD HAVE A STABLE SUPPLY OF WELL-TRAINED MANPOWER AT ALL LEVELS.

+ THE INTRODUCTION OF COMPUTING AS A SUBJECT FOR FORM IV STUDENTS AND ABOVE WILL NOT ONLY BRING HONG KONG'S STUDENTS UP TO THE STANDARDS OBTAINING IN THE MOST ADVANCED COUNTRY, IT WILL ALSO PRODUCE, FOR HONG KONG, AN ESSENTIAL HUMAN RESOURCE TO SUPPORT FUTURE EXPANSION IN THE COMPUTER INDUSTRY,+ MR TSAO ADDED.

ON TECHNICAL BACK-UP AND INDUSTRIAL SUPPORT FACILITIES, THE GOVERNMENT HAS PROVIDED FUNDS FOR A TECHNO-ECONOMIC STUDY ON THE ELECTRONICS INDUSTRY AS WELL AS SEVERAL MICRO-ELECTRONICS RELATED PROJECTS. SOME OF THESE PROJECTS ARE ALREADY IN PROGRESS. THE FINDINGS WILL NOT ONLY IDENTIFY THE STATE OF THE ART OF THE INDUSTRY BUT ALSO INDICATE THE IMPROVEMENTS NEEDED TO FURTHER DEVELOP THE INDUSTRY.

+WE ARE IN THE PROCESS OF ESTABLISHING A CALIBRATION LABORATORY AT A COST OF SOME $12 MILLION, A FACILITY WHICH WE ARE SURE WILL BE OF USE TO, AND WHICH WILL MEET THE DEMANDS OF THE INDUSTRY, MR TSAO CONCLUDED.

THE FAIR IS JOINTLY ORGANISED BY THE HONG KONG EXPORTERS' ASSOCIATION AND THE HONG KONG ELECTRONICS ASSOCIATION.

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