UEFA 027 – Benz & Katowski

UEFA 027 – Benz & Katowski


My next outing was a group dinner with Mr Benz, Mike, Yakhzan, Seo and Moon to an Expo. I could only recalled that there were fashion shows and loud music. There were many youngsters. As usual, in such functions there were free beers and soft drinks, as Europe is the land of wine and distillers.



Despite his name, Mr Benz did not drive, but he took public transport. As such, we had to leave the premises by 9pm to catch the last bus. Mr Benz was one of the many authors of the Leica Service Manuals.


Mike Clissold from Atlanta US, was doing training with me. Mr Yakhzan from Israel was doing Electronic Distance Meter (EDM). Mr Seo and Mr Moon were from Korea, doing training of levels. There were a few more guys but I had forgotten their names.


The third outing I had was dinner with Mr Olaf Katowski at his house. He lived nearby in Balgach with his friendly wife Helga.

Olaf was about 50. He was one of Leica’s technical consultants who were the Leica project partners I mentioned earlier. He was a specialist in Leica’s Wild TM3000 motorized theodolites, which was also used in the manufacturing industries for setting up of electronic and robotic machines.

I admired his garden so much that I requested him to take this photo of me with the background of the vast open space infront of his garden. Olaf must have cleverly cjosen the best location where there is no other house infront of his house.

I must tell you that I am dreamin to live in his kind of house. In fact, it became one of my ambition to migrate to Switzerland, though I know it was a crazy impulsive thoughts and dreams. Anyway people says dream are free, so why not.

Here in his living room, Olaf and Helga spent his late afternoon chit chat with me, after the steak dinner. The deco were very simple and natural. I like his book case. If I am not wrong, Olaf has no children. I wonder what he is doing now, after 14 years since I met him in 1994.

This is the furnace area, also as simple as the living room. In fact, it is in one corner of the living room.

Olaf came very often to Singapore and was with me, for many midnights in the MRT tunnels doing inspections, adjustments and modifications to the setting up of the TM3000.

This is the bulky TM3000 which I guess was about 5 kg.

My function in the tunnel monitoring project was the technical support, e.g. alignment of the TM3000 to hundreds of prism targets mounted on the tunnel wall, ceiling and floor.

It sound simple, but, I tell you it was challenging, as everything is digitally controlled by joy stick.

Precision instruments are best handle with fingers for accurate pointing. It became unbearable because the 5kg TM3000 was mounted at a height of about 7 metre on the wall of the tunnel.

I was squinting and squirming with my neck bend following the contour of the top curve of the tunnel, in order to get a view of the prism through the telescope.


The main players were my Sales Manager, William and his technical executive, Mr Akram. Both of them launched the TM3000 with tailored software for the monitoring. Olaf was to make sure that both the TM3000 and the software run perfectly well for commissioning.

This is a group photo of the Leica team from Sinagpore, Malaysia and Indonesia at the Leica Expo in Singapore. I think it was in 1994. From left is Anwarisanto, Joe, William, Zimmermann, xxx, Helen, Francis, Ricky, Adam, Busroni and Max.

And this is Akram, who was the Tunnel Engineer, working very closely with Olaf ensuring the TM3000 was functioning properly before the monitoring project was commisioned.

Akram was so close to me that we did went out together for dinner and lunch. Even after office hours we do meet. We were so close that I visited him at home and get to meet his mother, brothers and sisters.

He also came over to my house for dinner and after that we took a double decker bus No 23 to Masjid Angullia, where Akram and I used to attend religious activities. After prayer, we walk across to Mustapha Centre and had our Naan dinner there.

We did not stop there. I went with him to several art gallery in support of his brother's painting activities. His brother was a famous painter who passed away recently in 2007.

We were so close that we used to confide our sorrows and had religious discussions at a wide scope of thoughts.

When his sister took up agency for a health products from US, my family and I patronised them.

Unfortunately, after Leica, Akram took up a job in Turkey in late 1994. He returned to Singapore sometime in 1996 and off to Australia to pursue his degree in Land Surveying. He returned to Singapore again in 1998 and worked at the Changi Airport MRT project as a resident Surveyor.

He left that job in 1999 to join Leica once again as a Consultant. He was sent to Leica factory in Switzerland for a year, but when he returned once again to Singapore in 2000, Leica had reshuffled their set up in Singapore and there was no need for a local Consultant anymore, and Akram was retrenched without any benefit, as he never start work. That was the same year I left Leica.

I was always present to bid him goodbye and in welcoming him home. I met Akram several time in 2000 until he took up full time job helping his sister with promoting the health products.

Drafted on 07.04.2007

First Edition on 03.05.2007 at 0038 hrs

Second Edition on 21 August 2008 at 0059 hrs

At Woodlands Avenue 5