Jouko Karvinen, chief executive officer of Philips Medical Systems, a division of Royal Philips Electronics, said the move was part of the company's strategy to put more effort and investment into Asia Pacific.

 Named Singapore Learning Centre, the 3,500-square-metre centre is the company's third and has Philips' advanced medical diagnosis equipment and systems, including cardio-vascular X-ray, general X-ray, computer tomography, CT scan, magnetic resonance imaging, ultrasound systems, and patient-monitoring systems.

 The centre aims to enable the utilisation of technical diagnostic equipment for better and more accurate diagnostics, thereby accelerating the delivery of quality healthcare at various points in the healthcare system.

 "The centre is expected to allow Asian people to experience the future of healthcare with advanced healthcare technologies. We are interested in the care cycle - prevention, early detection, correct diagnosis, treatment, and distance care," said Karvinen.

In the Asia-Pacific region, the major healthcare challenges include an ever-increasing ageing population - the number of people over 60 years of age is expected to more than double by 2030. Rapid urbanisation trends have projected that around 1.1 billion people will be living in cities by 2030. There will therefore be an increased demand for healthcare.

Andreas Wente, president and CEO of Philips Electronics Asia Pacific, said the medical equipment market in Asia Pacific is around ¤5 million, accounting for 20 per cent of the global market. Total average spending on healthcare of the Asian countries is 6.5 per cent of the countries' gross domestic product, which is lower than the global average spending. This means there is room for growth in market. Last year, the company experienced over 20-per-cent growth in sales across the region.

Thailand is one of key markets with a growth rate of 15 to 20 per cent - more than other countries in Asean.

Philips' customers in the Thai market include Bangkok Hospital, Samitivej Hospital, Ram Khamhaeng Hospital, Siriraj Hospital, Ramathibodi Hospital, and Phyathai Hospital. The company will continue to increase its investments by 10 per cent across the Asia Pacific region. Last year the revenue generated by Philips Medical was around ¤6.3 billion, and that accounted for around 20 per cent of the total Royal Philips Electronics revenue worldwide.