KUALA LUMPUR, 10 May – Three Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) researchers won 3 Gold and 1 Silver Medals respectively at the International Invention, Innovation and Technology Exhibition (ITEX) 2014.

The three researchers were Prof. Ir. Dr. Warid Hussin, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Arham Abdullah and Dr. Mohd. Farid Mohd Ariff.

Prof. Mohd Warid achieved 2 Gold Medals for his two respective products, namely, Fibrous Nano-Biomass Concrete (FNBC) and Micro Polymer Concrete from Biomass and Iron Ore Tailings.

The FNBC is a product that utilizes composite materials from Biomass waste easily available in Malaysia. This new product is cost effective, durable and sustainable for the construction industry as 80 percent of concrete used in normal production can be replaced by palm oil waste.

The Micro Polymer Concrete from Biomass and Iron Ore Tailings is a concrete product innovation that does not use cement and water. This innovation involves the use of mixed resin of ash mills for filler material and iron ore as a substitute for sand and aggregates.

Another Gold Medalist was Assoc. Prof. Dr. Arham Abdullah with his Dust-Buster (Dust Control Technology in Demolition Site) product.

His product is the solution to dust control in construction sites. The current method uses water spray which is not only a waste of water, but also causes the formation of water puddles at the demolition site. Through the Dust-Buster invention, the water pressure, air flow and speed can be optimized in controlling demolition dust, which indirectly saves 50 percent of water consumption.

Dr. Mohd Farid Mohd Ariff from the Faculty of Geoinformation and Real Estate achieved Silver through his product, the Close Circuit Television Camera (CCTV) and Space Calibration Device.

The product involves the use of an Invar Bar, with a dimension of 1.2 meters long and 0.8 meters wide, designed for the purpose of calibrating space (the scene) and CCTV. With this invention, the problem of poor quality image due to distortion can be corrected with the CCTV lens calibration process. which is particularly useful  as evidence in a court trial.

The three day exhibition which began on May 8th 2014, held at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Center (KLCC), was officiated by the Deputy Minister fpr Science, Technology and Innovation, Yang Berhormat Datuk Dr. Abu Bakar Mohamad Diah.