Watch Out for More Innovation from the Regions, Says DOST
by Faith P. Macatangay
Innovation need not be confined to cities.
Each region is eyed to be a breeding ground for innovation through the establishment of Metals and Engineering Innovation Centers (MEIC). Leading the regions where MEIC establishment is concerned are the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR), Regions I, II, III, and X.
The MEICs are especially designed to cater to peculiar metalworking needs of the regions, and this will be realized through the partnership of the Department of Science and Technology-Metals Industry Research and Development Center (DOST-MIRDC) with the academe: the Ifugao State University (CAR), the Don Mariano Marcos Memorial State University (DMMMSU) in Region I, the Cagayan State University (CSU) in Region II, the Nueva Ecija University of Science and Technology (NEUST) in Region III, and University of Science and Technology of Southern Philippines (USTP) in Region X.
Playing a crucial role in the roll-out of the MEIC project are the DOST Regional Offices which are nominating academic institutions as prospective MEICs.
Fabrication equipment will be installed in the MEICs. These will be included in the mainstream engineering and engineering-related curricula of the partner academic institutions. The MEIC will not only house equipment and technology, but will be a center for research and development activities as well as a hub where metalworking expertise will be optimized and shared to encourage continual innovation.
The MEIC project team conducted a site inspection of the MEICs in preparation for the arrival and installation of equipment. Very soon, product development, fabrication, and manufacturing will be a productive economic activity in the countryside.
Register at this link: http://bit.ly/MIRDC_WebRegs_Basic_Modeling_UsingNX_Feb23_9-11am
Note: LIMITED slots only. First come, first served basis
FREE Training on Mold Technology for Filipino Workers and Students
By Genevieve M. Barsales
Filipinos who are in the manufacturing industry, particularly those focused on the use of mold technologies, are in for a very special treat from the Department of Science and Technology – training webinars for FREE!
This offering is in line with the establishment of the Mold Technology Support Center (MTSC), a facility that will be built at the Cavite Economic Zone. This facility is an Official Development Assistance (ODA) from the Republic of Korea.
One of the goals of the MTSC project is to develop human resources for the local die and mold companies. To achieve this goal, nine (9) local die and mold engineers and technicians were trained in Korea and will then be the trainers for local trainees of the MTSC project.
Despite the pandemic, the project team managed to conduct trainings which started in August 2020. The project team initially targeted to produce 600 trainees in 2020. There was a very positive turnout of participants as the team was able to conduct 28 online training programs and produced a total of 1,540 trainees by the end of December.
The MTSC training offerings focus on Part Design for Mold, Mold Design and Processing, and Technical Drawing. The trainings will be using the NX Siemens software. The MTSC trainers who received rigid training in Korea last year are presently undergoing training for the said software, in preparation for the MTSC training programs to be conducted this year.
Along with the computers and the software that were shipped to the Philippines are training modules especially prepared for the local participants who will avail of the free trainings at the MTSC.
The free training programs will be offered by the DOST-Metals Industry Research and Development Center (DOST-MIRDC) and the PDMA, Inc. starting February 2021. This initiative aims to help increase the competitive advantage of the Filipino workers in mold technology. The list of training programs to be offered and their schedule will be posted at the DOST-MIRDC website.
