SIBU: University of Technology Sarawak (UTS) has been urged to fully utilise its infrastructure for intellectual content, especially in its research.
Its Vice-Chancellor, Prof Datuk Dr Khairuddin Abdul Hamid made the call when officiating at the opening of the Research, Technology, and Creative Exhibition (ReTEx) at UTS today (June 27).
According to Khairuddin, UTS was among the universities that has the best facilities and infrastructure in their lab.
However, he expressed concern over the possibility of the infrastructure not being fully utilised by the lecturers and students.
“We have among the best facilities in our labs, my worry is if you don’t utilise it and if the content is not up to mark, you can have the best building but zero content.
“I visited many not so developed countries. Their campus looks like third-world infrastructure. But if you talk to them about their research it is world-class research,” he said.
Thus, Khairuddin hoped UTS will be a world-class campus not only in terms of its beauty but also in its intellectual content.
Apart from that, Khairuddin also pointed out that UTS has been working hard to create a research culture among its lecturers.
“This is the beginning of a research culture, to create a research culture is not easy. For the last four years, we have been working very hard to inculcate a research culture among our lecturers.
“We established a new research centre, we get grants, all types of grants for our lecturers to help with their research projects,” he said.
However, Khairuddin emphasised that the research should have a bearing on the community.
“There is no point if the research product is just for you to present in international conferences and you get promotions but nobody benefits from your research.
“Research today is all about how your research will benefit people around you,” he stressed.
Khairuddin also revealed that UTS has been participating in numerous exhibitions and competitions.
“Within the last four to five years we have participated and we have won 14 gold medals, 10 silver medals and 18 bronze medals.
Hence, he stressed that being in a small town like Sibu is not a disadvantage.
“There are a lot of things around us that we can turn into a research topic,” he noted.
