UTAR R&D Annual Report 2020

Centre Name:	Centre for Disaster Risk Reduction (CDRR) (http://cdrr.research.utar.edu.my/)
Chairperson:	Ir. Dr. Huang Yuk Feng
Description of Centre:	Centre for Disaster Risk Reduction (CDRR) was established at UTAR in March 2014. The centre aims at promoting building of safe & secure societies in Malaysia by carrying out a holistic and proactive disaster risk reduction (DRR) research on both natural and man-made disasters of complex urban societies. CDRR will carry out other activities that could achieve the objectives as stated below: To be a leading UTAR’s outreach centre based on multi-disciplinary DRR research activities, both at faculty staffs, undergraduate and postgraduate student levels. To form strategic links and collaboration with local communities and governments, universities, and private sectors for human resource development and for consultancy work in the areas of DRR. To inculcate a culture of societal contribution and creativity on the DRR. To provide Domestic & International hub function to develop human capacities of the faculty, the university community, and the related society well into the future UDRR.
Research area:	Followings are the research areas in CDRR: Risk Assessment Risk Management Risk Communication

No.	Name	Faculty	Member
1	Dr. Lim Bee Fong	DCI, LKC FES	Regular
2	Dr. Chong Siaw Yah	DCI, LKC FES	Regular
3	Ir. Dr. Lim Jee Hock	DCI, LKC FES	Regular
4	Dr. Woon Kai Siong	DCI, LKC FES	Regular
5	Dr. Yip Chun Chieh	DCI, LKC FES	Regular
6	Ir. Dr. Huang Yuk Feng	DCI, LKC FES	Regular
7	Dr. Tan Kok Weng	DEE, FEGT	Regular
8	Dr. Ling Lloyd	DCI, LKC FES	Regular
9	Dr. Leong Kah Hon	DEE, FEGT	Regular
10	Mr. Chin Kah Seng	DEE, FEGT	Regular
11	Ir. Dr. Koo Chai Hoon	DCI, LKC FES	Regular
12	Ts. Dr. Lee Khia Min	DCI, LKC FES	Regular
13	Dr. Lim Ming Han	DCI, LKC FES	Regular
14	Dr. Sim Lan Ching	DCL, LKC FES	Regular
15	Dr. Gan Chin Heng	DCI, LKC FES	Regular
16	Ir. Dr. Lim Siong Kang	DCI, LKC FES	Regular
17	Dr. Yew Ming Kun	DCI, LKC FES	Regular
18	Ir. Dr. Lee Wah Peng	DS, LKC FES	Regular
19	Dr. Lau See Hung	DCI, LKC FES	Regular
20	Ir. Dr. Kwong Kok Zee	DCI, LKC FES	Regular
21	Dr. Zafarullah Nizamani	DEE, FEGT	Regular
22	Dr. Ong Chuan Fang	DCI, LKC FES	Regular
23	Dr. Lee Yee Ling	DCI, LKC FES	Regular
24	Ir. Siao Wen Bin	DCI, LKC FES	Regular
25	Dr. Lee Foo Wei	DCI, LKC FES	Regular
26	Pn. Ibtisam Azwani Mat Ya'acob	DS, LKC FES	Regular
27	Dr. Wai Soon Han	DEE, FEGT	Regular
28	Ar. Quake Huay Tin	DASD, LKC FES	Regular
29	Ar. Ooi Aik Hooi	DASD, LKC FES	Regular
30	Sr. Zamharira Sulaiman	DS, LKC FES	Regular
31	Ms. Lam Foong Sin	DCI, LKC FES	Regular
32	Ts. Dr Tan Ooi Kuan	DCI, LKC FES	Regular
33	Ir. Woon Yoke Bee	DCI, LKC FES	Regular
34	Ms. Chong Bee Ling	DS, LKC FES	Regular
35	Ts. Dr. Toh Tien Choon	DS, LKC FES	Regular
36	Sr. Lim Cheng Sim	DS, LKC FES	Regular
37	Pn. Umi Kalsom Ariffin	DS, LKC FES	Regular
38	Nor Marina Rosli	DS, LKC FES	Regular
39	En. Azreen Ariff Zulkeflee	DS, LKC FES	Regular
40	Dr. Lew Yoke Lian	DS, LKC FES	Regular

NO.	NAME	FACULTY	MEMBER
1	Ir. Dr. Huang Yuk Feng	LKCFES/CI	Chairperson
2	Ir. Dr. Koo Chai Hoon	LKCFES/CI	Secretary
3	Ir. Woon Yoke Bee	LKCFES/CI	Treasurer
4	Dr. Chong Siaw Yah	LKCFES/CI	Webmaster
5	Ir. Dr. Lim Siong Kang	LKCFES/CI	Member
6	Ts. Dr. Tan Ooi Kuan	LKCFES/CI	Member
7	Dr. Gan Chin Heng	LKCFES/CI	Member
8	Dr. Lee Yee Ling	LKCFES/CI	Member
9	Ts. Dr. Yip Chun Chieh	LKCFES/CI	Member
10	Dr. Ling Lloyd	LKCFES/CI	Member
11	Dr. Lim Ming Han	LKCFES/CI	Member
12	Prof. Yasuo Tanaka	LKCFES/CI	Member
13	Dr. Chin Ren Jie	LKCFES/CI	Member
14	Dr. Yew Ming Kun	LKCFES/CI	Member
15	Dr. Lau See Hung	LKCFES/CI	Member
16	Ir. Dr. Lim Jee Hock	LKCFES/CI	Member
17	Ms. Lam Foong Sin	LKCFES/CI	Member
18	Ir. Dr. Kwong Kok Zee	LKCFES/CI	Member
19	Dr. Lee Foo Wei	LKCFES/CI	Member
20	Dr. Woon Kai Siong	LKCFES/CI	Member
21	Ts. Dr. Lee Khia Min	LKCFES/CI	Member
22	Dr. Ong Chuan Fang	LKCFES/CI	Member
23	Dr. Sim Lan Ching	LKCFES/CL	Member
24	Pn. Ibtisam Azwani Mat Ya'acob	LKCFES/QS	Member
25	Pn. Nor Marina Rosli	LKCFES/QS	Member
26	Ts. Dr. Toh Tien Choon	LKCFES/QS	Member
27	Ir. Dr. Lee Wah Peng	LKCFES/QS	Member
28	Mr. Azreen Ariff Bin Zulkeflee	LKCFES/QS	Member
29	Dr. Lew Yoke Lian	LKCFES/QS	Member
30	Sr. Nurdiana binti Azmi	LKCFES/QS	Member
31	Sr. Lim Cheng Sim	LKCFES/QS	Member
32	Ms. Chong Bee Ling	LKCFES/QS	Member
33	Sr. Zamharira Sulaiman	LKCFES/QS	Member
34	Pn. Umi Kalsom Binti Ariffin	LKCFES/QS	Member
35	Ar. Quake Huay Tin	LKCFES/AR	Member
36	Ar. Ooi Aik Hooi	LKCFES/AR	Member
37	Dr. Zafarullah Nizamani	FEGT/EV	Member
38	Ts. Dr. Leong Kah Hon	FEGT/EV	Member
39	Ts. Mr. Chin Kah Seng	FEGT/EV	Member
40	Dr. Wai Soon Han	FEGT/EV	Member
41	Dr. Tan Kok Weng	FEGT/EV	Member
42	Dr. Lim Fang Lee	FEGT/EV	Member

No.	Date	Event
1	9 February 2020	Structural Earthquake Stability VI Intra-University Competition
2	11 February 2020	Brief introduction of bridge-vessel collision
3	13 February 2020	Having Fun with BIM through the eyes of a main contractor
4	15 February 2020	Structural Earthquake Stability VI Inter-University Competition
5	29 February 2020	Fire Fighting System in Building Design
6	6 March 2020	NS Bluescope Lysaght Sdn Bhd Site Visit for Cold Formed Steel Production
7	3 September 2020	Talk on An Innovative Super Long Span Bridge Girder
8	10 September 2020	Virtual Talk on Non-vibration Controlled Demolition Method
9	14 September 2020	Virtual Talk on Insight into Property Industry
10	30 September 2020 - 1 October 2020	Virtual Kobe University UNESCO Chair Workshop 2020
11	2 November 2020	Virtual Talk: Industry 4.0 for Construction Industry
12	30 November 2020	Virtual Talk on Delivering Lighter & Greener IBS Solutions
13	3 December 2020	Virtual Talk: Foundation on Soft Ground
14	4 December 2020	Virtual Talk on Geosynthetics for Environmental Infrastructure

No.

Date

NS Bluescope Lysaght Sdn Bhd Site Visit for Cold Formed Steel Production 6th March 2020, Malaysia

This site visit was initiated by Dr. Yip Chun Chieh to create more awareness about the usage of cold formed steel products in construction industry for civil engineering students. On the 6th of March 2020, the ICE Student Chapter had taken leads in organizing the trip to NS BlueScope Lysaght Sdn Bhd to learn more about the cold-formed steel and its manufacturing processes. This site visit was aimed to provide a better understanding for the students who were taking the unit, UEMX 4313 (Advanced Structural Steel Design).

Besides, this trip was also beneficial for the junior civil engineering students who are going to take the Advanced Structural Steel Design in the near future; because it was an opportunity for them to get exposed to the technical details of the steel design in real construction industry. Students were required to gather at the bus stop at around 1:40pm. Every registered participant got on the bus and departed at around 2:00pm.

We arrived on site at 2:30pm and each member was given a safety vest to be recognized as a visitor to the site. We were then ushered to the main office where they would brief us through the details of the site visit, the safety information and precautions when entering the factory. The students were introduced to the background of the company and its branches across Malaysia which included having factories in east Malaysia. The stage was later passed on to the coordinator of the company, Ms. Santa Goh. She briefed the participants through the safety procedures and precautions of the site. She showed the basic PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) that should be equipped on at all times on site. Each student was given a set of PPE to be worn during the site visit. She had also briefed us through the safety lanes which consisted of different colors. The lecturer-in-charge, Dr. Yip Chun Chieh, then presented the token of appreciation and extra souvenirs to the Person-in-charge of the site visit to show gratitude towards its warm welcome and also to commemorate the company’s generous contribution to UTAR’s Structural Earthquake Stability (SES) event.

Due to the recent outbreak of the Coronavirus disease (COVID-19), every participant’s temperature had to be checked by using a digital infrared thermometer.

After the checking, the participants wore the given basic PPE and proceeded to the manufacturing areas. Two groups of 12 were led by different staff to different manufacturing areas. Unfortunately, no cameras or photo-takings were allowed so there were no pictures of the processes. However, the participants were able to learn about the manufacturing of BONDEK or DECKFORM steel products. After visiting the factories, the participants headed back to the main office where a staff made a recap of the things they had witnessed and answered their doubts. It was beneficial for the students taking ASSD as the information acquired would be useful in their assignments or Final Year Projects. At around 4:30pm, the site visit had officially ended. The participants returned the basic PPE to the Person-in-charge (PIC) of the site visit before gathering to enter the bus. The bus departed shortly after that and reached UTAR at approximately 5:00pm.

Through this site visit, students were able to acknowledge the manufacturing processes and the technical details of cold-formed steel. Students will be able to apply this piece of information in their structural steel design course and also in their future applications. They were able to see the differences between the cold and hot rolled steel.

The site visit was a success as its agendas were met. With the warm hospitality given by the staff of NS BlueScope Lysaght Malaysia Sdn Bhd and also the great cooperation by the students, the site visit was able to be conducted smoothly. Students were able to have their doubts answered on the spot through the Q&A session between the students and the staff. Although not all the registered participants were able to join the site visit, there would still be more site visits to come to cater the needs of other students to acquire such beneficial and educational experience.

The staff introducing the background BlueScope Lysaght.

Ms. Santa Goh briefing through the safety procedures.

Fire Fighting System in Building Design
29th February 2020, Malaysia

This talk is organized by Master of Architecture programme, Department of Architecture to provide research ideas for potential R&D in building architecture design, which is an important technical compliance of final year Architecture Design Thesis project for M. Arch programme. 25 no.s M. Arch students, five staffs have attended this talk; at the same time, we have invited the final year B. Arch students for extension of their knowledge in fire safety requirements/ compliance, which could be helpful in their final year design studio project. The talk was welcomed by the Head of Programme from M. Arch, Ar. Quake Huay Tin. It is an interactive session between the guest speaker and students esp from M. Arch related to their design studio project. Three main focus areas are emphasized in this talk:

1. Design principles on fire fighting access and evacuation
2. Architecture design consideration in relation to fire fighting system.
3. Fire fighting system spaces/ rooms allocation, fire staircase etc. for low rise and high rise buildings.

The talk ends at about 11.30am and is followed by Q&A session. For the purpose of future improvement, it would be good that the students are reminded to get ready with UBBL (which is overlooked this time) and provision of an allocated time for consultancy on each M. Arch student’s individual final year design thesis project.

Briefing on Fire Fighting System
Structural Earthquake Stability VI Intra-University Competition
9th February 2020, Malaysia

UTAR Structural Earthquake Stability Competition 6.0 (SES VI) is an inter-university competition organized by The Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) Student Chapter – UTAR together with Institution of Engineers, Malaysia (IEM) - Student Section – UTAR, CDRR and Department of Civil Engineering, Lee Kong Chian Faculty of Engineering and Science (LKCFES). The purpose of SES VI is to promote practical experience of earthquake engineering through small-scale structural model to the undergraduate by applying the knowledge and theory they have learnt before. Aim of this competition is to enhance students’ engineering knowledge, management skill, creativity and innovation in designing a cost-effective structure to resist seismic loading during construction phase. Below table shows the numbers of group and participants:

Particulars	No. of Group	No. of Participants
Intra competition	32	128

Most of the participants arrived on time, so the opening ceremony start precisely on 8am. Opening speech was given by organizing chairperson, Mr. Kong Ka Ming and Deputy Dean of LKC FES, Ts. Dr. Lee Kim Yee, Cik Suraya Johari, the representative from our sponsor NS BlueScope Lysaght Malaysia Sdn Bhd also involve in officiating the opening ceremony. Three and a half hours of competition start at 9.15am, the participants were required to build their own model within a given timeframe by utilizing the material provided, in compliance with the assigned rules and regulations. At 12.45pm, all participants have submitted their model and the committees were carrying out the first assessment check for any rules violation. The penalty group will be adding up some specific load for the further testing.

After the lunch, participants were taking their structure to the civil lab for second assessment, which is structural shaking table test with different frequency and displacement. On the other hand, other groups of participants were watching the live telecast of second assessment in the multipurpose hall before their turns. The constructed models were evaluated by the judges based on its earthquake sustainability and material efficiency after loaded and tested on an earthquake stimulationshaking table. The judges for the competition were Ir Tu Yong Eng, Ir Dr Lim Jee Hock, Ir Woon Yoke Bee and Dr Lee Yee Ling. After a series of explanation by competition judge, the competition award ceremony starts at 5.45pm, the winning team of champion and first runner up will be representing UTAR to join the Inter-University Competition in the following week again. Dr. Ling Lloyd, Head of Civil Engineering department was giving a closing speech after competition award ceremony. After a group photo session, the event ended at 6.15pm on time.

This event had created a good opportunity for Civil Engineering undergraduates and undergraduates from different courses to learn more about professional knowledge of seismic design and how to implement it by building a structural model for testing the sustainability. This competition has successful brought up the earthquake awareness of students as it does not only enhance the learning experience and also develop the innovation. This event is a success as everything was carried out smoothly and ended on time. Everyone enjoyed the competition and learned a lot of practical skills while building the structural model.

Organising committees and participants group photo

Structural Earthquake Stability VI Inter-University Competition
15th February 2020, Malaysia

UTAR Structural Earthquake Stability Competition 6.0 (SES VI) is an inter-university competition organized by The Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) Student Chapter – UTAR together with Institution of Engineers, Malaysia (IEM) - Student Section – UTAR and Department of Civil Engineering, Lee Kong Chian Faculty of Engineering and Science (LKCFES). The purpose of SES VI is to promote practical experience of earthquake engineering through small-scale structural model to the undergraduate by applying the knowledge and theory they have learnt before. Aim of this competition is to enhance students’ engineering knowledge, management skill, creativity and innovation in designing a cost-effective structure to resist seismic loading during construction phase. There were 14 universities and 3 politeknik with total of 31 teams joining this competition. SES VI successfully invited foreign University, which is Nanyang Technology University (NTU) from Singapore and also Swinburne University from Sarawak.

Particulars	No. of Group	No. of Participants
Intra competition	31	124

LIST OF PARTICIPATED UNIVERSITIES & POLYTECHNICS

1	Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Singapore
2	Swinburne University of Technology (Sarawak campus)
3	Polytechnic Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah
4	University of Nottingham Malaysia
5	Heriot Watt University Malaysia
6	Universiti Malaysia Perlis
7	Universiti Teknologi Malaysia
8	Politeknik Sultanazlan Shah
9	Politeknik Sultan Idris Shah
10	Universiti Malaysia Pahang
11	Universiti Putra Malaysia
12	University of Malaya
13	Universiti Sains Malaysia
14	Mahsa University
15	Manipal International University
16	Universiti Tenaga Nasional

Most of the participants and chaperons arrived on time, so the opening ceremony start precisely on 8am. Opening speech was given by organizing chairperson, Mr. Kong Ka Ming and Dean of LKC FES, Ir. Prof. Dr. Goi Bok Min, Ir. Tu Yong Eng (IEM representative), Ir. Dr. Tony Chan Tuck Leong (ICE representative), Prof. Dr. Yasuo Tanaka (founder of SES) also involve in officiating the opening ceremony. Three and a half hours of competition start at 9.15am, the participants were required to build their own model within a given timeframe by utilizing the material provided, in compliance with the assigned rules and regulations. At the same time, every group need to assign one member to do presentation in the front stage, three judges will be giving marks according to the presentation content and the eloquent to deliver the message on poster, which were prepared by participant themselves.

The judges for the event were Ms Raja Julaili Binti Raja Ali (representative of NS BlueScope Lysaght Malaysia Sdn Bhd), Ir. Dr. Tony Chan Tuck Leong (ICE representative) and Ir. Tu Yong Eng (IEM representative). At 12.45pm, all participants have submitted their model and the committees were carrying out the first assessment check for any rules violation. The penalty group will be adding up some specific load for the further testing. After the lunch, participants were taking their structure to the civil lab for second assessment, which is structural shaking table test with different frequency and displacement. On the other hand, other groups of participants were watching the live telecast of second assessment in the multipurpose hall before their turns. The constructed models were evaluated by the judges based on its earthquake sustainability and material efficiency after loaded and tested on an earthquake stimulation-shaking table. After briefing by competition judge, Ir. Tu Yong Eng, follow by the competition award ceremony and closing speech from Dr. Ling Lloyd, Head of Department of Civil Engineering. The champion was UTAR team. After a group photo session, the event ended at 6.30pm. Belows are the official results for UTAR SES VI Inter-Competition:

Main Category:
1) Champion Huaidanzzz - Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman

2) 1st Runner Up P.S.I.S.A - Politeknik Sultan Idris Shah

3) 2nd Runner Up The Second - Heriot-Watt University

4) Consolation Prize USM G-NOT - Universiti Sains Malaysia

5) Consolation Prize Team Mulan - Heriot-Watt University

Special Awards
1) Most Cost-Effective Putra Hexa - Universiti Putra Malaysia

2) Best Presentation
CEE Mantap - Nanyang Technological University

3) Tallest Tower Crane
MAHSA FEBE - Mahsa University

Participants erect the model with balsa woods

Brief introduction of bridge-vessel collision
11th February 2020, Malaysia

Prof. Dr. Lee is a professor at the Dept. of Ocean Civil Engineering, Mokpo National Maritime University, Korea. From 02/2001 to 02/2002, he was the Manager at the Bridge Inspection team, Korea Infrastructure Safety & Technology Corporation, Korea (Bridge inspections and analyses for various bridges). On 18 Apr 2008, Prof. Dr. Lee was awarded for the excellent research paper, The computational structural engineering institute of Korea. On 3 Apr 2018, he received 30th Anniversary Achievement Award, The computational structural engineering institute of Korea.

The talk started with types of bridge vessel collision introduction. He explained every single type of bridge vessel with different records of videos to students. Besides, he also introduced the analysis of bridges-vessel collision and some examples. Some of the simplified models of bridge vessel collision and analysis were shown during the talk as well. Before he continued with his talk regarding the cases, a question and answer section was conducted to ensure the students understood the basic concept of bridges. The talk was then continued with bridge vessel design. Some of the guide, standard, codes, calculations involved as well as the cross-sectional pictures of bridges were shown during the talk. Prof. Dr. Lee ended his talk with a recap of lessons learned.

He summarized the talk with some examples of bridge vessel collision and the number of workers death as well as the number of workers injured.

After the informative presentation, the talk proceeded with a Question and Answer section. Throughout the talk, students were able to have a deep understanding of some fundamentals of bridge vessel collision. Study notes were also handed out to everyone who attended the talk so that they would not miss a thing. The token of appreciation was handed over to Prof. Dr. Lee by DCI HOD, Dr. Ling LLoyd and PIC of the talk, Dr. Tan Ooi Kuan.

The talk lasted for 1 hour 30 minutes on 11th of February 2020 and it was really an honor to have Prof. Dr. Lee conducting a talk that is in within his specialization. After participating in the talk, the students are now able to have the fundamental knowledge of bridge-vessel collision which would be beneficial for them in the working field.

The talk has certainly helped the students in achieving their purpose of getting a deeper insight into the bridge vessel collision. This would not be possible without the works of the expert himself, Prof. Dr. Lee and his contribution is deeply appreciated. Students were able to acknowledge the importance of it and its wide functionality. Without a doubt, the sole objective of the talk has been achieved.

Group photo of the Students, Lecturer in Charge and Prof. Dr. Lee.

Having Fun with BIM through the eyes of a main contractor 13th February 2020, Malaysia

During the event day, the HR manager of Pesona Metro Sdn.Bhd started the session by introducing their team members and gave some brief introduction of the company. Then the first speaker, Mr. Derek Goh, the project manager started his part. He is also a Utar alumni student. He shared with the participants about his experiences from graduating from Utar until he managed to get the job and the ways he becomes the project manager of PM. Then the second speaker who is also the project manager, Mr. Wong Kim Yean talked about the job scope of his position and shared with us his working experiences as well. In his presentation slides, the participants grab the chance to explore more about the construction site environment, the safety attire and the rules which needed to take note when entering the site office.

Next, the BIM coordinators, Mr. Carlo Balderama Periarce and Mr. Alan P. Velarde shared more about the details and applications of BIM. They both graduated from the Camarines Sur Polytechnic Colleges Nabua, Camarines Sur, Philippines. From their slides show, participants can get to know how the BIM operates and the software needed to work with it.

At 1:45pm, four of the speakers finished their talk. PM team exchanged the souvenirs with Dr. Tan Ooi Kuan, the talk person in charge following the group photo session.

Derek Goh Chi Lun, project manager of PM presenting his talk.

Mr. Wong Kim Yean, project manager of PM presenting his talk.

BIM coordinators, Mr. Carlo Balderama Periarce presenting his talk

BIM coordinators, Mr. Alan P. Velarde presenting his talk.

PIC presenting the token of appreciation to the HR Manager of PM.

Talk on An Innovative Super Long Span Bridge Girder 3rd September 2020, Malaysia

Mr. Teoh Khai Keat is the Techinical Manager of Nehemiah Towoong Bridgetech Sdn Bhd and involved in the design of BH Girder and technical issues. He has more than 9 years of working experience in the field of construction. After graduation, he joined a C&S consulting firm and was involved in the infrastructure and RC structures design. Besides that, he also experiences in the design of Post-Tensioned Transfer Floor and Car Park Floor with 5 years of working experience in the Post-Tensioning Design.

The talk was started with introduction of bridge girder. He explained the shape of BH girder and introduce the basic design concept of bridge girder. Besides, he also introduced the analysis of bridge girder design and some examples. Some of the simplified model of bridge girder and analysis were shown during the talk as well. He also introduced the materials and material properties of bridge girder. Some of the guide, standard, codes, calculations involved as well as the cross-sectional pictures of bridges were shown during the talk. Before the he continued with his talk, a question and answer section was conducted to ensure the students understood the basic concept of bridges. The talk was then continued with the advantages of bridge girder. He also explained about the construction process including casting, stitching and launching of BH girder.

Mr. Teoh ended his talk with a recap of lessons learned. He also summarized the talk by showing us a video about the construction process of Rantau Panjang Bridge which is the project done by Nehemiah Towoong Bridgetech Sdn Bhd. After the informative presentation, the talk was proceeded with a Question and Answer section. Throughout the talk, students were able to have deep understanding of some fundamentals of bridge girder. Study notes were also handed out to everyone who attended the talk so that they would not miss a thing. The talk lasted for 1 hour 30 minutes on 3rd of September 2020 and it was really an honor to have Mr. Teoh Khai Keat conducting a talk that is in within his specialization. After participating in the talk, the students are now able to have the fundamental knowledge of bridge girder which would be beneficial for them in working field.

The talk has certainly helped the students in achieving their purpose of getting a deeper insight into bridge girder. This would not be possible without the works of the expert of Mr. Teoh Khai Keat and his contribution is deeply appreciated. Students were able to acknowledge the importance of bride girder and its wide functionality. Without a doubt, the sole objective of the talk has been achieved.

Mr. Teoh began his talk with the introduction of bridge girder.

Mr. Teoh explained the construction processes of BH girder to us

Virtual Talk on Non-vibration Controlled Demolition Method 10th September 2020, Malaysia

Mr. Tan Guan Han has over 8 years of experience in the business of concrete cutting, demolition, and surface prep industry. He is a proud recipient of the Enterprise 50 Award for year 2019. He is currently managing director and founder of Sonicon Construction Sdn Bhd. He has been invited by Google to share on Go Digital KL 2016 (Malaysia) and Grow with Google 2018 (Singapore) on how digital marketing has built Sonicon from zero to an established entity.

The talk was started with the introduction of Sonicon Construction Sdn Bhd. Sonicon Construction Sdn Bhd is an IOS 9001:2015 and OHSAS 18001:2007 certified construction service provider which specializes in non0vibration demolition by using diamond cutting and coring method in Malaysia. With 20 years of technical expertise in Controlled Demolition works, the company has been commissioned by reputable and well-known developers, main contractors, and main contractors and Interior Designers to work on the residential commercial, infrastructure, and utilizes projects around Malaysia. As the leading concrete coring and cutting company, the company also supply equipment tools and repair materials such as drill machines, diamond cutting tools. Mr. Tan explained about the term about non-vibration and how the demolition is delivered by showing the videos. Mr. Tan also answered to the inquiries from the participants about the structural integrity during the demolition. Mr. Tan showed the participants about the type of non-vibration-controlled demolition method available in the industry and its respective tools and equipment. Mr. Tan also shared the limitation currently with the demolition method and the relevant problems and pollution due to demolition method.

Mr. Tan ended his talk by sharing one of the projects involved in 8 Kia Peng, KL at year 2017. The project involved removing a hanging beam, demolish concrete spillage and remove all the steel bars without damaging the existing tendon. After the informative presentation and talk, the talk proceeded with Question and Answer section. Throughout the talk, participants were able to gain insights about the non-vibration-controlled demolition method and have a deeper understanding of the working experience about the latest demolition method in the industry.

The talk lasted for 2 hours on 10-9-2020 and it was really an honor to have Mr. Tan Guan Han conducting a talk that is within his specialization. After participating the talk, participants are now able to gain insights about the non-vibration-controlled demolition method and have a deeper understanding of the working experience about the latest demolition method in the industry. The talk has certainly helped the students in achieving their purposes of getting the insights about the non-vibration-controlled demolition method and have a deeper understanding of the working experience about the latest demolition method in the industry. These objectives are not going to happen without the contribution of Mr. Tan Guan Han and his involvements are appreciated. Participants were able to understand the latest demolition industry and career prospect of working in the industry. Therefore, the sole objective of the talk had been achieved.

Mr. Tan shared the application of non-vibration-controlled demolition method.

Mr. Tan answered inquiries from participants.

Virtual Talk on Insight into Property Industry 14th September 2020, Malaysia

Ms. Ooi Ee Sze has over 19 years of experience in property industry and project management. She graduated with bachelor’s degree in architecture from University of South Australia and worked as project architect for 8 years. Ms. Ooi currently is the senior general manager of project management in Paramount Property. The projects she involved including “the Ruma luxury service residence at KLCC”, “Utropolis Batu Kawan project”, “high-end condominium development “and more.

The talk was started with the introduction of Paramount Property. Paramount Property is an award-winning property developer in Malaysia. They developed many different types of property in Malaysia involved in many renowned big projects. Ms. Ooi then showed the participants some of the projects developed by Paramount Property such as residential house at Sungai Patani Jaya, semi-industrial building at Shah Alam, Utropolis Batu Kawan project at Penang and more. Ms. Ooi then continued on sharing with students the professional and practical skills required in the property industry. Ms. Ooi stated that students with technical skill such as graduate with civil engineering will be a good base to kickstart the property sector. She also shared that the critical skills required in property industry is good negotiating skill, management and problem-solving skill. Besides, Ms. Ooi provided students with the tasks and responsibilities as a property developer and the organizational structure of the development team.

Ms. Ooi ended her talk by sharing the career involvement in Paramount Property. They are truly welcome students from UTAR to engage with their company and their contact information is given to the students attended the talk.After the informative presentation, the talk proceeded with a Question and Answer section. Throughout the talk, students were able to have gained insights into property industry and have deeper understanding of the career prospect as a property developer.

The talk lasted for 1 hour 15 minutes on 14th of September 2020 and it was really an honor to have Ms. Ooi Ee Sze conducting a talk that is in within her specialization. After participating in the talk, the students are now able to gain insights into property industry and have deeper understanding the career prospect as a property developer.

The talk has certainly helped the students in achieving their purpose of getting a deeper insight into property industry. This would not be possible without the works of the expert of Ms. Ooi Ee Sze and her contribution is deeply appreciated. Students were able to understand the current state of property industry and career prospect of a property developer. Without a doubt, the sole objective of the talk has been achieved.

Ms. Ooi began her talk with the introduction of Paramount Property.

Ms. Ooi shared with us the professional and practical skills required in property industry.

Virtual Talk: Industry 4.0 for Construction Industry 2nd November 2020, Malaysia

Ir. Ts. Wong Chee Fui is a Specialist at Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR). He is a Professional Engineer (P.Eng) with Practising Certificate, Professional Technologist (P.Tech); Fellow of IEM (FIEM), Member of Technogical Association Malaysia (MTAM) and Member of Malaysian Institute of Management (MMIM). He holds a MSc Degree in Highway and Transport Engineering and a B.Eng. Degree in Civil Engineering, both from Universiti Putra Malaysia. He is registered as International Professional Engineer (IntPE), APEC Engineer; ASEAN Engineer and ASEAN Chartered Professional Engineer (ACPE). He has been involved in the design and project management of many construction projects in which he has gained extensive exposure in the construction sector.

The talk was started with introduction of Industry 4.0. He explained how the Industry 4.0 can be used and helped the construction industry by using new technologies. He introduced the technologies used in construction industry 4.0 such as Building Information Modelling (BIM), Industrialised Building System (IBS), drone technologies, green building and sustainable construction, 3D printing, and other new emerging technologies. Besides, he explained clearly how the technologies work and the advantages and disadvantages of the technologies. He has provided many pictures to let participants to gain more knowledge and have a better understanding. He has given some examples how construction industry 4.0 used in Malaysia or others country has speed up the construction time. Ir. Wong ended his talk with a recap of lessons learned. He also emphasized how important of Industry 4.0 for construction industry on the future or else will be eliminated by technological progress.

After the informative presentation, the talk was proceeded with a Question and Answer section. Throughout the talk, students were able to have deep understanding of the technologies in Construction Industry 4.0. The talk has been recorded and study notes were also handed out to everyone who attended the talk so that they would not miss a thing.

The talk lasted for 2 hours on 2nd of November 2020 and it was really an honor to have Ir. Ts. Wong Chee Fui conducting a talk that is in within his specialization. After participating in the talk, the students are now able to have the fundamental knowledge of technologies in Construction Industry 4.0 which would be beneficial for them in working field.

The talk has certainly helped the students in achieving their purpose of getting a deeper insight the technologies can be used in Construction Industry 4.0. This would not be possible without the works of the expert of Ir. Ts. Wong Chee Fui and his contribution is deeply appreciated. Students were able to acknowledge the importance of Industry 4.0 and its wide functionality. Without a doubt, the sole objective of the talk has been achieved.

Ir. Ts. Wong explained the function BIM to us.

Virtual Talk on Delivering Lighter & Greener IBS Solutions 30th November 2020, Malaysia

Mr. Asbar bin Sanusi is the speaker of the talk. Mr. Asbar is a General Manager, Technical in Starken AAC Sdn. Bhd.

The talk was started with the introduction of the internship opportunity for the students which conducted by Ms. Racheal who is the HR from Chin Hin Group Berhad. After that, Mr. Asbar took over from Ms. Racheal and presented the overview of the background of the Starken AAC Sdn. Bhd. He was then introducing the 10 benefits of the autoclaved aerated concrete wall system. He also mentioned his company products which are Starken Blocks, Starken Lintels and Starken Panels. The specific accessories and working tools were also discussed by him. Furthermore, he shared the panel installation process and the project site with the Starken Panels. He did mention also the laboratory test for AAC products and the standard code followed by the products. Last but not least, a series of project reference was shown during the end of the talk. After the knowledgeable sharing from Mr. Asbar, the virtual talk was continuing with the Question and Answer (Q&A) session. After the Q&A session, a photo taking session was done also.

The talk lasted for 2 hours on 30th November 2020 consists of 20 minutes of introduction to company and job opportunity, 1 hour and 20 minutes of informative sharing session and 20 minutes of the Q&A session. It was an honor to have Mr. Asbar bin Sanusi to conduct a talk whereby the product and content he done is contribute for the better development in environment. After participating the talk, the students are now able to have a clear idea regarding to greener and lighter building materials, autoclaved aerated concrete (AAC) and the its contribution to Green Building Index (GBI). The knowledge will be beneficial for students when they step into their career in construction sector. The talk is giving a chance for students expose to a building material which called AAC that is contributed in IBS solutions. Students can also have a deeper exposure on the AAC products which is greener and lighter IBS solutions and it does help minimize the wastage and protect the environment. With the contribution from Mr. Asbar bin Sanusi, the objective of the talk has been achieved without doubt.

Virtual Talk: Foundation on Soft Ground 3rd December 2020, Malaysia

Dato’ Ir. Dr. GUE See Sew is the speaker of the talk. Dato’ Ir. Dr. GUE is the Chief Executive Officer in G&P Professionals Sdn. Bhd. The talk was started with the introduction of the problems in the soft grounds. Dato’ Ir. Dr. GUE showing some examples of the problems that occurred in soft ground which are infrastructural failures and building failures. In the infrastructure failures, Dato’ GUE show us the embankment failure and the slip failure of the bridge. In the building failure, he shows us the example failures of house and school. Besides that, Dato’ GUE further explain the reason that cause the settlement occurred. He was then introducing the ways to identify the soft ground. The bearing capacity equation also involved in the explanation of Dato’ GUE. He also mentioned about the cracks between originals houses and extension. He mentions about the causes and the solution for this issue. Besides, he mentions how long needed for consolidation settlement and some examples relate to it. Furthermore, the conventional solution and non-conventional solution also mentioned by Dato’ GUE. He also mention about the construction sequence of foundation on soft ground. Dato’ GUE also mention the main consideration for the ground treatment. After the knowledgeable sharing from Dato’ Ir. Dr. GUE, the virtual talk was continuing with the Question and Answer (Q&A) session. After the Q&A session, a photo taking session was done also.

The talk lasted for 1 hour and 15 minutes on 3rd December 2020 consists of 1 hour of informative sharing session and 15 minutes of the Q&A session. It was an honor to have Dato’ Ir. Dr. GUE See Sew to conduct a talk about the information relate to the foundation of the structure on soft ground. After participating the talk, the students are now able to have a clear idea regarding to the problems occurred in soft ground, the solution to solve the problems and how to identify the soft ground. The knowledge will be beneficial for students when they step into their career in construction sector.

The talk is giving a chance for students expose to the problems occurred for a structures which construct on soft ground. Students can also have a deeper exposure on solutions to solve the problem and the considerations while dueling with the construction on soft ground. With the contribution from Dato’ Ir. Dr. GUE, the objective of the talk has been achieved without doubt.

Talk started by introducing the embankment failure.

Virtual Talk on Geosynthetics for Environmental Infrastructure 4th December 2020, Malaysia

D Mr. Tan Jun Yuen and Mr. Tony Tong Kwan Shen are both UTAR alumni who graduated with a Bachelor of Engineering (Hons) Civil Engineering. They work at TenCate Geosynthetics Asia Sdn Bhd with expertise and experience in geotechnical, geohydraulic and geosynthetic applications in Asia Pacific. Mr. Tan is a Senior Design Engineer while Mr. Tony is a Design Engineer. Mr. Tan specializes in applications marketing and technical services in the Water and Environment division. He has authored and presented some papers in international conferences. Mr. Tony specializes in product development and technical services in the Geotechnical division. He involved some design applications such as basal reinforcement, reinforced soil structure, prefabricated vertical drain and subgrade stabilization. The talk started with the introduction of TenCate Geosynthetics Company as well as the technology involved and the project awarded by Mr. Tony. He also introduced the geosynthetics materials and explained the functions of geosynthetics to the participants. In addition, Mr. Tony explained the geosynthetics for environmental landfill application, showing projects of Padang Sertik Landfill, Bluevalley Landfill and Jabor Landfill over Malaysia. Besides, Laogang Municipal Landfill in Shanghai, China also presented. After that, the sharing session was taken over by Mr. Tan. He covered the introduction to Geotube® Containment and Dewatering Technology. He also talked about the Geotube® Dewatering Design Consideration by explaining some tests introduced by TenCate such as polymer jar test, fabric cone test, pillow bag test and pilot trial tube test. The projects using Geotube®

Dewatering Technology are also provided which are Tianjin Eco-City Project and Titanium Based Pigment Plant. The talk was ended by sharing the contact infomation of TenCate Geosynthetics Asia Sdn Bhd to the participants. After the presentation from both speakers, a Question and Answer session was carried out to answer the questions from the students in order to enable a better understanding. Lastly, group photos have been taken as the end of the talk.

The talk lasted for 2 hours on 4th December 2020 and it was our honor to have Mr. Tan and Mr. Tony to conduct the talk. After participating in the talk, the students are now able to have a better understanding and extra knowledge related to the geosynthetics materials and geosynthetics for environmental landfill and dewatering applications.

The talk has provided an opportunity for the students to expose on the geosynthetics field. It has certainly helped the students to explode their interest regarding the geoengineering application. Geosynthtics Company are mostly related to the geoengineering applications such as geotechnical, geohydraulic and geoenvironmental. Hence, the objective of the talk has been achieved with the effort given by Mr. Tan and Mr. Tony from TenCate.

Functions of Geosynthetics Explained by Mr. Tony

Virtual Kobe University UNESCO Chair Workshop 2020 30 September – 1 October 2020, Malaysia

The main objectives of the workshop were to update the status of the book chapter from each panel country, and to discuss on future collaboration in education and research & development among the panel countries. A book on the disaster risk reduction and management will be produced from this workshop. The panels had a good discussion on the contents of the book during the workshop. On top of that, the workshop also discussed about the Covid-19 Conference in February 2021 and the 2021 Summer Program.

From UTAR, a book chapter entitled “Developing Indicators of Climate Hazard: Towards Climate Resilient Development and Management” will be prepared by Dr Tan Kok Weng and Ir Dr Huang Yuk Feng. The chapter will discuss about the climate hazards due to global warming which have brought different negative impacts to the economic, public health and environment. This chapter aims to demonstrate the climate hazard indicator development process which is fundamentally built based on the well-known drivers, pressures, state impact and response (DPSIR) model.

The workshop program:

There were 16 representatives from the panel countries, which included Japan, Taiwan, Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia, attended the workshop:

(1) Ronni Alexander – Japan
(2) Jin-Long Lu - Taiwan
(3) Ai Shoraku – Japan
(4) Hafiz Amirrol – Malaysia (Mercy Malaysia)
(5) Maya Dania – Thailand
(6) Melyza Perdana – Indonesia
(7) Reni Juwitasari – Thailand
(8) Siriporn Wajjwalku – Thailand
(9) Tan Kok Weng – Malaysia (UTAR)
(10) Huang Yuk Feng – Malaysia (UTAR)
(11) Thanikun Chantra – Thailand
(12) Uki Noviana – Indonesia
(13) Wanwalee Inpin – Thailand
(14) ariani arista putri pertiwi – Indonesia
(15) Kay, Huil ung YU - Taiwan
(16) Wen-Jui Tseng - Taiwan

Some of the photos captured during the workshop are shown on this table.

Centre for Disaster Risk Reduction