Application Developer
At A*STAR (SIMTech)
(Mar 2023 - Jun 2026)
Description: Engineered immersive Virtual Reality (VR) training simulations and digital twin systems for Model Factory at SIMTECH. Developed and supported full-stack web applications for research tools, authored custom character animation clips for interactive showcases, and optimized asset integration pipelines. Managed end-to-end deployment workflows across mobile platforms and delivered numerous confidential ad-hoc R&D prototyping projects.
Organization/School: A*STAR (SIMTech)
Project Team Size: Varies by Project; most of the time, an independent developer
Duration: 3 years 3 months.
Programs/Tools/Language: Unity, Angular, TypeScript, Python, Flask, Blender, Adobe Photoshop, HTML5, CSS3, C#, Git (GitHub, Bitbucket)
What I did as an Application Developer at A*STAR (SIMTech)
"Note: Project details, designs, and brand names have been generalized or omitted to comply with non-disclosure agreements (NDAs)."
SIMTech operates a model manufacturing facility — real production machines on a real factory floor. My work was on its digital twin: a live virtual replica in Unity where each machine's actual state — running, idle, faulted, throughput — streams in over MQTT and updates the 3D environment in real time.
The Digital Twin exists to de-risk the physical floor. Layout changes, automation strategies, operator training — all expensive, disruptive, or risky to attempt on live production — could be tested and taught virtually first, at zero cost and zero risk.
My ownership was the VR interaction layer end-to-end — all in-headset machine operation and training interactions — and the 3D asset pipeline: every model arrived from the vendor as blank, untextured geometry, and I processed each in Blender (artifact cleanup, polygon reduction), then colored and integrated them in Unity using shader colors with static baked lighting, matched to on-site reference photos of the real facility — no photogrammetry or LiDAR, just reference-accurate hand work. The optimization target was a full production floor holding stable VR framerates, where dropped frames aren't a visual glitch but motion sickness.
Model Factory at SIMTech
Digital Twin Model Factory - Unity Engine Game View
VR Training — Solenoid Replacement (Meta Quest 2)
Guided beginner tutorial with voiceover: replacing a solenoid as part of machine maintenance, fully in-headset.
VR Food Factory — Two-Operator SOP Training (Meta Quest 2)
Two users in-scene as simulated workers, built to evaluate whether VR training alone can bring new workers to standard operating procedure without consuming real materials.
Midway through, budget constraints meant I also took over the MQTT integration from a departing colleague and [maintained / extended] it solo — inheriting a live real-time data pipeline and keeping it in production. Additionally, the MQTT-based messaging architecture is to bridge a web-driven order application with an interactive virtual simulation. By establishing this real-time data pipeline, the simulation environment could dynamically receive, process, and execute unique work orders on the fly, creating a fully responsive and adaptive digital twin system.
Snapshot of Autonomous Vehicle
Limited to a short video showcase, an Autonomous Vehicle was mimicked via animations, doing exactly how it would operate in a real factory environment, also responding to work order application.
Other short term work I did for other department within A*STAR,
I was brought in as an animator at A*STAR's Advanced Remanufacturing and Technology Centre (ARTC) to animate the 3D mascot for the launch of the AI Experience Nexus. Working in Blender, I authored a set of expressive motion states — idle, thinking, gesturing, pointing — which were delivered for use in the mascot's live showcase.
3D Mascot Animation Reel
Using Blender, NonLinear Animation(NLA) was used for the animation alongside the Action Editor/Dopesheet to smoothen the animation, as the showcase screen is running at 60fps, various character poses, hand pose/movement, and facial expressions were added to give more life to the 3D mascot, making it more expressive and able to fit along with the showcase as it moves around in the AI Experience Nexus.
To conclude,
Much of my work at A*STAR SIMTech remains confidential, but the through-line was building real-time 3D systems for industrial contexts — VR training simulations that mirrored live factory operations, digital twin development, and contributions across a range of shorter projects including a stint as an animator at ARTC. Working across varied briefs meant picking up new tools and domains quickly, which is the part of the job I want more of.