KUALA LUMPUR, 27 Dec. – The Malaysia-Japan International Institute of Technology, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM-MJIIT) organised a special annual event, MJIIT Japan Day 2022, on the 27th December 2022, at the Grand Banquet Hall, Level 6, Residensi UTMKL. Attended by more than 400 visitors, this one-day event with the tagline “Connecting Industry through Innovation” was aimed at bridging the gap between industry, academia and the public by bringing the key players from industries to showcase their services and products. Various activities were held, including a forum, a series of industrial talks, the iKohza Open Exhibition, the MJIIT Industry Exhibition, the Japanese Language and Cultural Exhibition, the One-Man Rescue Demonstration and Rappelling by Keramat Fire and Rescue Station.
This prestigious event was officiated by the Ambassador of Japan to Malaysia, His Excellency Takahashi Katsuhiko, after the welcoming speech by Prof. Ts. Dr Abd Latif bin Saleh, Pro-Vice-Chancellor of UTM Kuala Lumpur Campus. To accompany the distinguished guests, Prof. Ts. Dr Ali bin Selamat, Dean of UTM-MJIIT, was present at the venue and throughout the event. Upon the event’s launch, His Excellency Takahashi Katsuhiko proceeded to launch three milestones of UTM MJIIT: the establishment of Sangaku-Renkei Center, Revitalised Core Values, and a commemoration book titled ‘MJIIT: Commemorating 10 Years of Achievements’. The VVIPs were then escorted to visit industrial booths, iKohza Open Exhibition, and the Japanese Language and Cultural Exhibition. These exhibitions were open throughout the event for all visitors.
After the opening ceremony, this event featured a forum titled “Japanese Core Values & the Reformation of Minds and Behaviours in Malaysia”. The panellists of the forum, who are leaders in their respective domains, represent the triple helix elements of strategic partnerships – government, industry, and academia. The forum was moderated by Dr Rahayu Tasnim (Special Project Manager of UTM-MJIIT), and the panellists were comprised of distinguished figures in academia, industry and community – Prof. Ts. Dr Ali bin Selamat (Dean of UTM-MJIIT), Prof. Dr Masafumi Goto (Deputy Dean Liaison and Internationalization of UTM-MJIIT), Mr Asha Abu Samah (Director of Service Delivery – APAC GIS Japan Offshore, DXC Technology), Dato’ Zulkifli Abdul Malek (Founder of Katana Circle), and Ustaz Muhamad Abdullah (IKIM Icon and Founder of Yayasan Al-Amin).
A series of industrial talks were held from 2:00 pm to 3:00 pm. The talks were held to expose the students and visitors to the companies’ businesses or products and technologies. The first speaker was Mr Takashi Wada from Nihon Denkei, who delivered his talk titled ‘Nihon Denkei’s Group Business: From Autonomous Vehicle & ADAS Test Solution to The Latest EMC Chamber Test & Reverbation Chamber’. The second speaker was Mr Ng Jim Pong from Cybernet Systems Sdn. Bhd, who delivered his talk ‘Overview of Cybernet Solutions – Solving Engineering Problems with Simulation. The third speaker, Mr Basharan Ariff Ali from Satake Multimix, gave his talk ‘Post Pandemic: Sustainable, Manufacturing and Business’. All speakers engaged with the audience during the Q&A session.
To showcase the uniqueness of UTM-MJIIT, one of the twelve faculties at UTM, the iKohza Open Exhibition was participated by more than ten iKohzas for which areas of research and expertise are diverse, encompassing engineering, science, technology, and management. At UTM-MJIIT, an iKohza is a research group, where ‘kohza’ is a Japanese word for ‘research laboratory’, and ‘i’ denotes ‘innovative’. This exhibition presented an opportunity for visitors to see research and innovation undertaken and produced by each iKohza and potentially encouraged networking among academics and participating industries.
During this event, visitors also had the chance to experience the beauty of Japanese culture through various activities such as Yukata wearing, Furoshiki and others, managed by the Japanese Language and Cultural Centre (JLCC) of UTM-MJIIT. Japanese cultural activities are incorporated into this event to demonstrate the Japanese elements and core values adopted in the education system of UTM-MJIIT. Since the students of UTM-MJIIT have the privilege to experience the Japanese culture and develop intercultural understanding through participation in cultural activities or programs organized by JLCC, visitors to this event had the benefit of acquiring similar experiences.
With the success of this event, the organising committee of MJIIT Japan Day 2022 expressed their gratitude to the Ambassador of Japan to Malaysia, His Excellency Takahashi Katsuhiko, and Prof. Ts. Dr Abd Latif bin Saleh, Pro-Vice-Chancellor of UTM Kuala Lumpur Campus, for their time and support. The success of this event was also attributed to the main sponsor of this event, DXC Technology and the three co-sponsors, Nihon Denkei (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., Hirose Electric (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd. and Centre for Community and Industry Network of Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM CCIN). Their gratitude was also dedicated to all participating companies, business entities, research groups and all visitors who participated in this prestigious event.
