Roro: Made in PH

First Pinoy-made RoRo ship launched


Michael Joe Delizo
ABS-CBN News
19 August 2019

MANILA — The first Filipino-made roll-on/roll-off (RoRo) vessel was launched Saturday at North Harbor in the capital, providing a potential boost to the local ship-building industry. 

The 468-seater M/V Isla Simara passenger ship with a 12-meter long vehicle ramp is the brainchild of Shogun Ships Corp. Inc. and Josefa Slipways Inc.

It is the first RoRo ship in the Philippines with a modern Automation and Control System that can be monitored real-time in the company’s head office. 

M/V Isla Simara is also the first local RoRo ship with a Marine Evacuation System, a lifesaving device that is similar to an airplane’s evacuation chute through which passengers can slide directly to a lifeboat without getting wet. 

The ship is expected to sail on its maiden commercial trip next week from Matnog to Allen towns in Northern Samar.

“This will boost the local ship-building industry in the Philippines,” said Thadedeus Jovelanos, president of Philippine Register of Shipping. 

“It shows that we can build better, better, and better because we continuously learn,” he added. 

M/V Isla Simara is part of the Shogun Ships' initiative to improve the quality of locally built ships, said the company's president Vicente Cordero. 

“We hope that with this project, [we] can inspire other ship owners and ship builders to do this kind of ship in the future,” he said. 

Pinoy designers in Dubai

Filipino designers to highlight natural materials in Dubai 

Manila Standard
10 August 2019


Lifestyle products crafted from natural and eco-sustainable materials will be the focus of this year’s Philippine participation at Index Dubai—the biggest design event in the Middle East and North African region, which opens on Sept. 17 to 19 at the Dubai World Trade Centre in the United Arab Emirates.

Organized by the Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions, the export promotion arm of the Department of Trade and Industry, in partnership with the Export Marketing Bureau and the Philippine Trade and Investment Center in Dubai, the participation will feature seven companies from different lifestyle sectors: furniture and furnishings, home décor and fashion accessories.

“This participation will bring to the forefront the resourcefulness and ingenuity of our skilled Filipino craftsmen and designers,” said DTI-Citem executive director Pauline Suaco-Juan. “Through their intricate and innovative pieces, these exhibitors will help elevate Philippine design in both the Middle Eastern and the global markets.”

Frog shell and brass camel by Arden Classics

The seven companies will feature their latest creations that promote world-class craftsmanship made with locally sourced, eco-sustainable or repurposed materials like old fabrics, driftwood pieces, natural seashells from non-endangered species and other reusable objects that are typically considered as “waste,” to emphasize that responsible sourcing is an integral aspect of the Philippine design industry.

Exhibiting under the Philippine participation are companies that include James Doran-Webb and Furniture Doctor. Both use raw and re-engineered driftwood to create original and functional furniture pieces.

Another furniture exhibitor, Coast Pacific, perfectly balances the use of natural and synthetic materials in developing new weaving patterns and enhancing traditional techniques for their product line. Joining these furniture companies in Dubai are two fashion accessory brands: traditional jeweler, Kit Silver; and minaudière maker Mele + Marie.


Rounding off the list are home décor and accessory companies Arden Classic with their blend of natural seashells and metalworks that depict the magnificence of nature and Bon-Ace with their home accessories made with all-natural materials designed with Filipino and Italian influences.

After doubling its sales target in last year’s edition with $2.77 million, the Philippines is now eyeing to generate $2.9 million in export sales for this year’s show.

Citem is partnering with the Export Marketing Bureau to achieve optimum results for this year’s participation, with DTI-EMB organizing business-matching activities during the show proper.

Pinoy ecofloor tile inventor

Filipino in Taiwan turns paper cups into 'eco plastic tiles'

Plastic film on surface of paper cups can be put to good use

By Huang Tzu-ti, Staff writer

Taiwan News

10 August 2019

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – A Chinese Filipino who lives in Taiwan has come up with a smart solution to the non-recyclable plastic layer in paper boxes and cups – turning it into eco floor tiles.

Eco-plastic tiles inventor Tsai Sheng-lun (蔡昇倫)(right)(CNA photo)

Formerly a successful architect, Tsai Sheng-lun (蔡昇倫) left his high-paying job 11 years ago to work for the NGO Tzu Chi Foundation in eastern Taiwan's Hualien. He has thus shifted his focus from space planning to the invention of eco-friendly products over the past few years, reported the Central News Agency (CNA).

Acknowledging that the outer material coating many disposable paper cups and boxes plastic and hence not recyclable, Tsai has invested effort into making the most use of the waste, which can easily reach 200 tons a day. It was a task commissioned to him by Master Cheng Yen (證嚴法師), a Buddhist leader and founder of the Foundation, Tsai said.

After two years of research and experiments, the effort paid off. Tsai managed to convert the plastic garbage into floor tiles, with each piece measuring 8 by 20 cm. The tiles can be joined together seamlessly, are surprisingly solid and resistant to impact, and can support up to 40 tons.

The eco tiles, which are made with 1.7 kg of plastic trash per piece, were patented on Thursday (Aug. 8). The innovative technology can also be applied to the disposal of candy wraps and other forms of plastic waste, providing an alternative to ceramic tiles while advancing the cause of environmental protection, reported CNA.