UNIVERSITI Putra Malaysia (UPM) bagged two major prizes and six awards at the Selangor Research, Development & Innovation Expo 2019 held in Kuala Lumpur recently.
The varsity submitted 12 entries at the event which was positioned as a commercial platform to encourage studies and research among universities, research institutions as well as establish an industrial network.
UPM entries came under the Life Sciences, Machinery and Equipment, Electrical and Electronics, Transportation, and Food and Beverage clusters.
Dr. Karmegam Karuppiah and Nur Athirah Diyana Mohammad Yusof of the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences at UPM took top prize as the champion of the Transportation Cluster (university category).
They were awarded the Best Cluster title, receiving a prize worth RM50,000 for their innovation - the Child Pillion Safety Backrest Prototype - which specifically tailored to protect the safety of the young rider.
The team led by Associate Professor Dr Mohamed Thariq Hameed Sultan of UPM's Tropical Institute of Forestry and Forest Products (INTROP) was named the top winner of the Machines & Equipment Cluster (University / College Category) which entailed a prize worth RM10,000.
The victory was the result of a collaboration between Mohamed Thariq's team and a group of researchers from UTHM led by Professor Dr. Yusri bin Yusof and Malaysia Unmanned Drones Activist Society (MUDAS) led by Mohamad Noor Ab Rahim and William Robert Alvisse.
The event also saw the inking of a memorandum of agreement by UPM and Upstream Downstream Process Sdn Bhd for the licensing of ImprintSorb, a mercury removal polymer innovation by a team led by Professor Dr. Nor Azah Yusof from UPM's Faculty of Science.
In addition, various side programmes were held in conjunction with the expo such as business matching for R&D entities and industry, sharing sessions, among others.
Deputy director of UPM Putra Science Park's Intellectual Property Division Associate Professor Dr. Zahira Mohd Ishan presented a talk during a seminar on Intellectual Property Management and Commercialisation.