If you need research done or help in surveying the market, you can tap into any of these Government or Government-related services.

National Library Board (NLB)

NLB offers publishing and research services to businesses in Singapore.These range from basic help in searching and retrieving information from the library's sources to customised reports and research assistance.

Reference Point Service (free)

• You can ask for research help via email, SMS, phone, fax or over-the-counter.
  
  
• The service is free for all members of the public.

See:	Reference Point Service

Information Support

• You may hire dedicated researchers to help you with your research.
  
  
• Fees are S$67 per hour or S$1,700 for three days.

Industry Trend Alert

• Track the latest developments in any industry. Each industry report contains a maximum of 6 topics in the industry.
  
  
• Reports will be provided to you monthly for S$1,500 each.

Research Report

• You may contract NLB to prepare research reports for you on any subject.
  
  
• NLB will search, filter, aggregate and package information from both online and print resources.
  
  
• A bundle of 4 research reports is priced at S$5,700 each.

Strategic Information Services

• Trend Analysis - NLB will compile trends, statistics and profiles of 5-10 key sectors to help your business make better strategic decisions.
  
  
• Benchmarking - NLB will assess your business' overall positioning against its competitors, locally and overseas.

Document Delivery Services

• NLB will deliver the materials in the Information Searches, Industry Trend Alerts and Research reports to you in print if they are not available online.
  
  
• Document Delivery Service requires a S$1,000 deposit.

See:	National Library Board (NLB)

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IE Singapore

• IE Singapore is the official source for Singapore trade statistics.
  
  
• The trade statistics are published:
  • annually
  • cumulatively
  • quarterly
  • monthly
    
    
• The trade statistics cover trade volume and value of:
  • imports
  • exports
  • re-exports
  • domestic exports
    
    
• All commodities in the trade statistics follow both of these classifications:
  • HS (Harmonised System)
  • SITC (Standard International Trade Classification)

Online Trade Statistics (StatLink)

• You can obtain the trade statistics online using StatLink.
  
  
• To use StatLink, you have to pay an annual subscription fee of S$20.
  
  
• For each report you generate from StatLink, there is a further S$10-S$20 fee.

See:	StatLink – Singapore Trade Statistics

• Customised Trade Reports are available from the IE Shop.
  
  
• If you wish to have a Trade Report that is not available at the IE Shop, you can ask IE Singapore to create the report for you.
  
  
• You can make the request by email or over-the-counter. The following rates apply:
  
  

  	Via Email	Over-The-Counter
  Per SITC/HS code	S$23	S$10 - S$20 plus S$5 admin fee per report
  Per Trade Type
  Per Time Period

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SPRING Singapore

SPRING Singapore has information specialists who can help small and medium enterprises (SMEs) search for information on standards.

• You can ask for:
  
  
  • research and statistics on a broad subject
  • detailed research on a particular topic
  • specific research 

• The information can be packaged as:
  
  
  • short alerts
  • listing of sources
  • summaries and abstracts

• You can choose how often and in what form you want the information to be delivered (soft copy or print).

See:	SPRING Information Resource Centre

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Enterprise Development Centres

• Enterprise Development Centres (EDCs) provide consultancy and administrative services to businesses in Singapore.
  
  
• They are set up by associations and chambers of commerce with the support of SPRING Singapore.
  
  
• Simple small-scale marketing research costs about S$5,000 while larger projects can cost from S$6,000 - S$10,000.
  
  
• Some EDCs also have their own libraries and data sources and can customise reports for businesses for a fee.

See:	Enterprise Development Centres (EDCs)

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