(AGENPARL) – gio 21 novembre 2024 PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
20 November 2024
CUT Engineering Faculty Research Seminar encourages impactful research
The Central University of Technology, Free State (CUT) of Faculty of Engineering, Built Environment, and Information Technology (FEBIT) held its 27th annual research seminar under the theme: Advancing Sustainable Innovation: Interdisciplinary Strategies for Addressing Societal Challenges.
Topics included presentations on Ethics, Policy, and Technology; Sustainable Infrastructure and Smart Construction; Renewable Energy System and Climate Change; ICT Innovation for Societal Benefit; Water and Environmental Management and Smart Education and Technology – Enhanced Learning.
Dr Charity Mbileni-Morema, Managing Director of N. M. Envirotech and the former Chairperson of the?CUT Council delivered the keynote address which focused on Transitioning the innovation economy: from nanotechnology research to industrialisation. She highlighted that obtaining her PhD provided her with research skills and expertise and through employment she explored being innovative and how it could impact her career.
“I had been taught and skilled to be a professional, to be an employee. I had a bursary, so I was quite comfortable, I worked at SASOL as a researcher, but also SASOL contributed to this journey, because that’s where you understand innovation. I just wanted to make an impact, whatever it is, I sense myself, I can innovate, but when you start because you don’t have, facilities and resources, it’s easier for one to re-focus on other resources, but for as long as you understand the market, you understand who you are servicing and all of it, that’s how my career started. And in 2014, I did not look back, I left my job, decided I’m going to start this company, and it’s still up and running. I have raised significantly over 35 million rands in this company over the years, and I must say that my advice to a lot of entrepreneurs would be that the first thing is that you need to be present,” Advised Dr Mbileni-Morema.
Dean of the Faculty of Engineering, Built Environment, and Information Technology (FEBIT), Prof. Muthoni Masinde highlighted the need to not only increase research outputs, but to conduct research that has a meaningful impact in society.
“We have initiated a project where we brought the professors together within what they call professionalizing the commissariat. We would like to change how we teach research methodology so that we embed AI, artificial intelligence, virtual reality, so that they can know how to do their research methods and proposals faster. We also would like to train our students to enhance their master’s and doctoral studies because of the technologies. And in future, we would like these research seminar outputs to be published. Whatever research achievements we make, we would like to broadcast, because it’s by telling the world what we are doing that we would advance our data and attract more attention to ourselves,” said Prof. Masinde.
Caption: Dr Charity Mbileni-Morema, Managing Director of N. M. Envirotech and the former Chairperson of the?CUT Council delivered the keynote address at the CUT FEBIT 27th Annual Research Seminar.
About CUT
CUT is the foremost higher education institution in the heartland of South Africa, dedicated to quality education and training in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. CUT boasts pockets of excellence, including a premier Hotel School and leading research and innovation platforms, e.g. world-class medical product development through 3-D printing technology.
For more information about CUT, visit http://www.cut.ac.za.
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