Details of the Applicants

Name : PROF DR NOOR INAYAH YAAKUB

Address : DEPUTY DIRECTOR, UNIVERSITY PERFORMANCE N

INNOVATION MONITORING DIVISION,CENTRE FOR CORPORATE
PLANNING,UKM, 43650, BANGI, SELANGOR MALAYSIA
Telephone : 603-89214650

Mobile Number: 60193324036

Email: inayahyaakub@gmail.com

Details of Project/Initiative mplementing Agency

Name of the Organisation: Faculty of Engineering and Built Environment (FKAB)
Address: Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, 43000 UKM Bangi, Selangor, Malaysia.
Name of the Head of the Organisation: Prof. Ir. Dr. Mohd. Marzuki Mustafa
Telephone: +60389216110
Email: marzuki@eng.ukm.my
Web: www.eng.ukm.my

Name of the Organisation: APM ENGINEERING & RESEARCH SDN. BHD. (APMER)
Address: 62-68 Jalan Ipoh, 51200 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Name of the Head of the Organisation: DR. FUN WOH PENG
Telephone: +6038946 3333
Email: rnd_apmss@apm-automotive.com
Web: http://www.apm-automotive.com/apmindex.htm

Details of the Programme/Project/Initiative

Brief Description of the Programme/project/initiative:

The cooperation between FKAB and APMER aims to provide opportunities for both
parties to share knowledge and information while pursuing activities in
collaborative research and industrial attachment, such as in the areas of
materials processing and integrity, and computer aided engineering applications
for automotive system design and related parts, and various others. Programmes
have been established that enabled interested and qualified students and
personnel from FKAB and APMER to conduct collaborative research work,
industrial attachment and industrial training. As an example, recently a
collaborative work between FKAB and APMER has started with the latter providing
industrial training placements for students from FKAB with a close supervison
from both FKAB and APMER personnel. The industrial placement was designed to
expose the students to the real work environment. As the internship programme
at FKAB was carried out prior to the final year, topics related to their industrial
training were identified and were later carried out as their final year research
projects. Among the topics assigned were on the investigation of the materials’
intergrity aspect of an automotive components and were successfully completed
by the trainees. These students, upon completing their studies, were immediately
employed by APMER and its parent company. Collaborative work on various
others areas between FKAB and APMER is ongoing.

Why Was the Project Started:

To inculcate the members of both parties the benefits and the importance of such
collaboration work between university and industry

Objective:
1. To explore and pursue potential areas of research cooperation between
FKAB and APMER such as in the areas of materials processing and
integrity, and computer aided engineering applications for automotive
system design and related parts and components, and various other areas.
2. To establish programs that will enable interested and qualified students
and personnel from FKAB and APMER to conduct collaborative research,
industrial attachment and training from time to time.
3. To seek relevant funding and other matters relating to the implementation
of this collaborative effort.

Target Group:
1. Qualified and interested students from FKAB
2. Personnel from both FKAB and APMER

Date from which the Project became Operational:

April 2009

Is the Project Still Operational:

Yes

10 points that make the Programme/Project Innovative:

1. This successful collaborative initiative model between an Institutional of
Higher Learning and an Industry can become the catalyst to many more
collaboration work between UKM and industries.
2. UKM students can gained industrial experience/exposure from the
collaborative work.
3. Provide opportunity for UKM personnel to gain industrial experience via
industry attachment exercise.
4. The experience gained by UKM personnel can be used in the exercise of
registration as professional engineer.
5. APMER has gained knowledge particularly by better understand the aspect
of processing and materials’ integrity of their components.
6. Increase the employability of students (interns hired by the industry upon
graduation).
7. Increase the profile of the final year project as the topics are industry-
related.
 8. UKM students can benefit from industrial talk by APMER personnel.
9. APMER personnel can benefit from training by FKAB personnel.
10.Better chances for UKM personnel to obtain relevant research funding from
related industries.

List 5 acheivements of the programme/project?

1. APMER and its parent company has now committed in providing industrial
placement for FKAB students/trainees.
2. A personnel from APMER has been appointed to FKAB Industrial Advisory
Panel.
3. Increase the employability rate of FKAB graduates.
4. The parent company of APMER has given more priority to research and
development activity.
5. A more comprehensive collaborative research work between FKAB and
APMER has now been established.

List the 5 key challenges faced while implementing the

programme/project/initiative and how they were overcome?
1. To initially gain trust from industry of the capability of FKAB’s staf and
students. This is obtained by initially placing the students as trainees with
a close supervision from FKAB’s academics, followed by implementing the
final year project as mentioned above.
2. To initially explain the industry on how institution of higher learning can
help them, particularly the importance of research and development
activity as an integral part of their business. This is obtained by a series of
meeting and discussion.
3. To convince the industry and students that industry-based problems can
be assigned as a two-semester final year research project. This is done by
specifying a clear scope of the work and assigning a few students to work
as a team on a similar theme but with clear separate specific objectives.
4. To convince the students that they are capable of carrying out this
industry-based problem as their final year research project. This is done
by close supervision from both FKAB and APMER personnel on the
students.
5. To convince fellow academics that this collaborative is possible and is a
win-win initiative. This is done by careful planning and making sure that
this collaborative model is working.

List the 5 points how the programme/project/initiative serve a a model

that can be replicated or adapted by others?
1. Fellow academics need to identify and approach industries in the areas of
their expertise.
2. Gain the trust of the industry/organisation identified, e.g. by starting with
an agreed topic on a not so critical problem as faced by the industry.
 3. Design a clear scope of work and deliverables on the identified
collaborative project.
4. Get the support from fellow academics, particularly if their field of
expertise/research is required for the identified topic/subject.
5. Perseverence and commitment from both UKM and the industry identified.
6. The model above has been successfully executed.

List 5 points to elaborate on the scalability of the

programme/project/initiative:
1. Long term internship placement for students.
2. Long term industrial attachment for academics.
3. Long term commitment on closer collaborative work between research and
innovation of both parties, which can be expanded.
4. Long term opportunity for academics to bring their professionalisme to a
higher level, e.g. as part of the exercise towards obtaining a professional
engineer qualification.
5. Long term commitment on the part of university and industry to increase
the profiles employability of graduate engineers.