Tony Wong in Hengqin
Yesterday’s Open Day of the public University of Macau (UM) included a fact-finding visit organised for media workers and other guests to its Zhuhai UM Science and Technology Research Institute (ZUMRI) on the neighbouring mainland city’s Hengqin island, an institute that aims to promote Macau’s industry-academia-research collaboration driven by the ongoing development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area (GBA).
During the one-hour visit, Prof. Chen Guokai, ZUMRI’s interim director, first briefed members of the delegation about the research institute, after which the members visited a number of R&D centres there, during which they were briefed by the respective researchers.
ZUMRI was jointly established by UM and the Hengqin authorities in March 2019, serving as UM first’s industry-academia-collaboration demonstration hub in the GBA.
ZUMRI comprises three buildings, namely Phases I, II and III. Phases I and III are situated in the Macau-Hengqin Youth Entrepreneur Valley, aka Inno Valley HQ, which is located near the Hengqin-Macau joint checkpoint, while Phase II is situated in the Traditional Chinese Medicine Science and Technology Industrial Park of Cooperation between Guangdong and Macau.
The delegation members visited Phase I yesterday.
ZUMRI’s industry-academia-research collaboration aims to promote the transformation from its research achievements to the production of newly developed hi-tech products.
During yesterday’s trip, Prof. Chen said that the setting-up of an industry-academia-research research institute in Hengqin, instead of the UM campus which is under Macau jurisdiction, aims to make it easier for representatives of mainland tech companies to discuss possible cooperation on industry-academia transformation with UM researchers. Prof. Chen said that they do not need to cross the mainland-Macau border by getting a travel permit first for their on-site trip to discuss cooperation with UM researchers.
The delegation members visited the Smart City R&D Centre and the Advanced Materials R&D Centre in ZUMRI’s Phase I yesterday.
The Advanced Materials R&D Centre’s research team told the delegation yesterday that their newly developed materials mixed with cement has enabled the production of a new type of lightweight building materials, which have been used for non-structural building components in certain construction projects such as an area of the Hengqin checkpoint building as well as the ongoing fourth Macau-Taipa bridge.
The research team said that the new type of building materials, which are only used for non-structural building components, are more cost-saving and eco-friendly.
The Smart City R&D Centre’s research team showed the delegation their project on managing Macau’s network of charging facilities for e-vehicles.
This photo taken during yesterday’s fact-finding trip shows the University of Macau’s (UM) Zhuhai UM Science and Technology Research Institute (ZUMRI) in Hengqin. – Photo: Tony Wong
