BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN – The eighth edition of the Creative, Innovative Product and Technological Advancement (CIPTA) Award 2019, which recognises local and regional young inventors, came to a close on Thursday with sensory suit for the blind, port-a-potty for healthcare professionals among prized entries.
Carrying the theme “Industry 4.0: Convergence of Innovation”, the biennial competition attracted 41 participants, 14 of which comprised inventors from other ASEAN countries.
In her speech, Acting Vice-Chancellor of Universiti Teknologi Brunei (UTB), Dr Hjh Noor Maya Hj Md Salleh said that the developments of ICT has changed the nature of industry in today’s day and age which necessitates the need to be adaptable to any “smart environment”.
Industry 4.0, also known as the Fourth Industrial Revolution, refers to the fusion of digital, physical and biological spheres, marked by breakthroughs in technologies such as robotics, artificial intelligence and blockchain, to name a few.
Dr Hjh Noor Maya added that to ensure the nation is heading towards a prosperous and sustainable economy, the sultanate must develop a skilled workforce in science and technology.
During the event, the Crown Prince HRH Prince Haji Al-Muhtadee Billah, as the patron of the competition, presented cheques, trophies and certificates to the winners of the five categories — four local categories and an ASEAN category.
No winners or runner-ups were chosen in the first category for creating new product, process or technology, however, third place went to Dr Hj Sharul Tazrajiman Hj Tajuddin and Nur Hamizah Hj Harun for their Water Leakage Detection and Management prototype.
The second category for modifying existing product, process or technology was won by Sufre Hj Muhd with his Variable Speed Multi Grits Sander Machine and second place went to Abd Hafiz Abd Wahab with his plant disease detection system, Spotgenic. Third place went to Ak Mohd Zulfikri Pg Hj Zulkifly, Muhd Amirul Fahmiin Abdullah and Wan Nur Zahidah Metussin for their V3PO Device, a portable toilet for healthcare professionals.
There were also no winners in the third category for creating new or modifying existing product, process or technology by young inventors, however second place went to students from Seri Mulia Sarjana with their Eco BN Waste Management Bin while third place went to students from the Berakas Secondary School with their Blind Assist Sensory Suit.
Chung Ching Middle School won first place for the Smart Junior Competition category — for school students between ages 12 to 14 — with their My PenPal Pen for Dyslexics. Second place went to Chung Hua Middle School with their Bfit Shoes while third place went to Berakas Secondary School for their Innovative Green Energy Collector.
No winners were named for the ASEAN New Invention and Innovation Category, however, for the Young Inventor Category, students from the Tengku Lela Segara International Secondary School, Terengganu took first place with their Te Ractor.
As the previous CIPTA in 2017, no winners were chosen for the Crown Prince CIPTA Award Trophy this year as no inventions were able to meet the requirements that have been set to win the grand prize where participants must accumulate a total score of 90 per cent.
One of the judges, senior agriculture officer Hirman Hj Abu said that due to the prestigious nature of the CIPTA competition, requirements for the grand prize are observed strictly and are “difficult” to achieve.
What was being considered, according to Hirman was whether the innovations presented during the competition were new inventions or existing ones that have been modified.
“Most of the inventions [presented to us here], although innovative, are not new, a number of them are modifications of inventions or machines that have existed or been available in the market for a while.”
“Looking at all the aspects, the judges decided that there were no participants that were eligible to win the grand prize”.