Before striking out on his own, Mr Koh San Joo worked in a logistics firm where day-to-day operations such as inventory management and order processing were driven by manual labour.

These processes - often tedious and time-consuming - spurred Mr Koh to digitalise iHub Solutions, the supply chain logistics business he started in 2000.

In the first few years of business, iHub rolled out a proprietary Virtual Logistics System (VLS) that enabled employees and customers to track and trace the movement of goods and services online 24/7.

With the web-based integrated platform, users could manage and monitor inventory and orders, upload images and digitalise invoices, set replenishment and expiry alerts, and view signed proofs of deliveries in real time.