| Syazwani Hj Rosli |
MINISTER of Development Dato Seri Setia Awang Haji Suhaimi bin Haji Gafar presided over the launching of the 7th Brunei International Conference on Engineering and Technology (BICET 2018) at Universiti Teknologi Brunei (UTB) yesterday.
BICET 2018 is held for three days until November 14 under the theme of ‘Sustainable Development in Engineering and Technology’.
UTB Dean of Faculty of Engineering Dr Hajah Ena Kartina binti Haji Abdul Rahman in her remarks hoped that BICET would continue to be a platform for students, academics and engineers to disseminate their research findings and views, while also strengthening future research activities in engineering and technology, for the purpose of promoting a knowledge-based society.
She said, “In planning for our further development and in preparation for a more competitive future, UTB recognises the need to expand our research capacity, both locally and internationally.
“Hence, under UTB’s new Five-Year Strategic Plan 2019-2023 with the vision of ‘A Global University Impacting Society’, UTB has recently realigned its research thrusts into six categories, which are Agrifood, Wellness, Society and Enterprise, Digital and Creativity, Energy and Sustainable Built Environment.”
She also highlighted the recent establishment of UTB’s Centre for Research in Agri-Food Sciences and Technologies (CrAFT), which focusses on research and development to enhance the value, productivity and profitability of agriculture and food sectors.
According to Dr Hajah Ena Kartina, CrAFT aims to work closely with relevant agri-food sectors, government agencies, local and overseas research and development (R&D) organisations for the advancement of science and technology in agri-food. “It is our hope that, with the establishment of these new research thrusts and new research centre, Insya Allah, UTB will be able to develop world-class research which can contribute to finding solutions to pertinent national and international issues; be more assertive in obtaining research grants; and be able to promote and develop strong partnership with industries and other universities locally and internationally,” she said.
Following the opening ceremony, the first keynote paper of the conference, ‘From Smart Grid, Microgrid to Energy Internet’, was presented by Professor Dr ZY Dong from the School of Electrical Engineering and Telecommunications at the University of New South Wales (UNSW) in Sydney.
This year, a total of 125 papers will be presented across four ‘tracks’: Track A – Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Track B – Civil Engineering, Track C – Mechanical Engineering, and Track D – Petroleum and Chemical Engineering. The presenters hail from Australia, Bangladesh, Brunei Darussalam, China, India, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, the United Kingdom and Vietnam.
There will also be two other keynote presentations, which are ‘Urbanisation and Decarbonisation – Contradictory or Complimentary?’ by Professor Ng Shiu Tong Thomas from the Department of Civil Engineering from the University of Hong Kong, and ‘Thermal Processing of Bioresources using Microwave Heating’ by Professor Dr Farid Nasir bin Ani from the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering at Universiti Teknologi Malaysia.
UTB is the main organiser of the conference, with the collaboration of the Insitution of Engineering and Technology (IET) Brunei Darussalam as the Technical Partner.
BICET 2018 is sponsored by Petrokon Utama Sdn Bhd as the Gold Sponsors; Brunei Shell Petroleum Company Sdn Bhd (BSP) and Brunei LNG Sdn Bhd as the Silver Sponsors; Aisha Automation Company (AAC); Berakas Power Management Company Sdn Bhd (BPMC); Bian Hoe Sdn Bhd; QESS Energy Sipport Services Sdn Bhd; Power Transmission Distribution (PTD) Technology, and Insurans Islam Taib General Takaful Sdn Bhd as the Bronze Sponsors.