COMMUNITY
NDP FUNPACK BY SINGAPOREANS FOR SINGAPOREANS
03 Jul 2007
If we did not have mama shops (colloquial slang for provision shops) in our HDB void decks, we probably could not buy drinks to quench our thirst after a game of basketball at the nearby neighbourhood court.
Similarly, for Second Lieutenant (2LT) Shawn Yeoh and Third Sergeant (3SG) Ricky Ng, they would not have been able to come up with their design for the LED Animal Visor, if not for the mama shop.
The visor, which is made of foam and fitted with LED lights in the animal's eyes, is one of 28 items in the FunPack for National Day Parade (NDP) 2007.
"At the start, we went to many mama shops to look for visors, just to get ideas and look for options," said 2LT Yeoh, who is doing his National Service (NS) at Headquarters Singapore Combat Engineers (HQ SCE).
"So technically, we didn't design the visors. We merely adapted the idea."
Together with 2LT (NS) Shone Ng, who has since completed his full-time NS, the trio came up with a design that will fit anyone, from young children to adults, and also shade spectators from the sun.
The visors come in the shape of six different animals with the butterfly and hornbill representing the air, the lion and giraffe representing the land, and the shark and clownfish representing the sea.
One of the main challenges the team had was how to make sure the LED lights lit up properly.
3SG Ng said: "The lights just refused to light up initially because the wires couldn't come into contact with the batteries properly. I had to do some soldering and adjustments before it could work."
Added the engineering diploma graduate with a smile: "Finally I'm putting what I learnt in school to good use!"
Apart from the animal visors, another two interesting items in this year's FunPack are the LED fan and the Clappastar.
The LED fan is a conventional hand-held fan fitted with LED lights on its blades and when switched on, messages like "HAPPY BIRTHDAY SINGAPORE" and "NDP @ MARINA BAY" can be seen.
Designed by a pair of Nanyang Polytechnic students, the Clappastar, which is shaped like a star, is a combination of a torchlight and a clapper, allowing the spectators to contribute to both the light and sound aspect of NDP 2007.
At the media brief held at the seating gallery on 3 Jul to launch the FunPack, Lieutenant-Colonel (LTC) Alvin Koh, Chairman of the Logistics and Finance committee, said: "We're mindful that the spectators want to be part of the parade so we want the items to be trendy, practical and innovative.
"Furthermore, we want to design a bag that all Singaporeans would be proud of."
Several local designers were involved in the creation of the FunPack and the items found in it. Mr Hanson Ho, who came up with the design of the FunPack , is one of them.
The FunPack is made up of three individual fabric panels and two side panels with a strap.
The sling-bags are available in six different colours, similar to those of the seats at the seating gallery.
The panels are joined together by nylon zippers and spectators can customise their bags into any size or colour by swapping the panels with their fellow spectators.
Similarly, for Second Lieutenant (2LT) Shawn Yeoh and Third Sergeant (3SG) Ricky Ng, they would not have been able to come up with their design for the LED Animal Visor, if not for the mama shop.
The visor, which is made of foam and fitted with LED lights in the animal's eyes, is one of 28 items in the FunPack for National Day Parade (NDP) 2007.
"At the start, we went to many mama shops to look for visors, just to get ideas and look for options," said 2LT Yeoh, who is doing his National Service (NS) at Headquarters Singapore Combat Engineers (HQ SCE).
"So technically, we didn't design the visors. We merely adapted the idea."
Together with 2LT (NS) Shone Ng, who has since completed his full-time NS, the trio came up with a design that will fit anyone, from young children to adults, and also shade spectators from the sun.
The visors come in the shape of six different animals with the butterfly and hornbill representing the air, the lion and giraffe representing the land, and the shark and clownfish representing the sea.
One of the main challenges the team had was how to make sure the LED lights lit up properly.
3SG Ng said: "The lights just refused to light up initially because the wires couldn't come into contact with the batteries properly. I had to do some soldering and adjustments before it could work."
Added the engineering diploma graduate with a smile: "Finally I'm putting what I learnt in school to good use!"
Apart from the animal visors, another two interesting items in this year's FunPack are the LED fan and the Clappastar.
The LED fan is a conventional hand-held fan fitted with LED lights on its blades and when switched on, messages like "HAPPY BIRTHDAY SINGAPORE" and "NDP @ MARINA BAY" can be seen.
Designed by a pair of Nanyang Polytechnic students, the Clappastar, which is shaped like a star, is a combination of a torchlight and a clapper, allowing the spectators to contribute to both the light and sound aspect of NDP 2007.
At the media brief held at the seating gallery on 3 Jul to launch the FunPack, Lieutenant-Colonel (LTC) Alvin Koh, Chairman of the Logistics and Finance committee, said: "We're mindful that the spectators want to be part of the parade so we want the items to be trendy, practical and innovative.
"Furthermore, we want to design a bag that all Singaporeans would be proud of."
Several local designers were involved in the creation of the FunPack and the items found in it. Mr Hanson Ho, who came up with the design of the FunPack , is one of them.
The FunPack is made up of three individual fabric panels and two side panels with a strap.
The sling-bags are available in six different colours, similar to those of the seats at the seating gallery.
The panels are joined together by nylon zippers and spectators can customise their bags into any size or colour by swapping the panels with their fellow spectators.
ALSO READ IN COMMUNITY
S’pore Airshow 2026 takes flight
05 Feb 2026
The Singapore Airshow marks its 10th edition and 20 years of contribution to the global aerospace, defence, and space sectors.
How to survive an NS relationship
03 Feb 2026
Do NS relationships really last? Is getting your girlfriend “stolen” when you’re in Basic Military Training just a myth? Here’s some advice from Singaporeans!
RSAF returns with dazzling aerial display at S’pore Airshow 2026
31 Jan 2026
Visitors to this year’s Singapore Airshow can look forward to 17 thrilling manoeuvres performed by the RSAF’s F-16C fighter jet and AH-64D Apache attack helicopter, and a static display of 10 different assets.