MIDA bridges academic-industrial collaboration between Panasonic, UM
18 Dec 2020
The Malaysian Investment Development Authority (MIDA) has helped to foster cooperation between Panasonic Appliances Air-conditioning Malaysia Sdn Bhd (PAPAMY) and Universiti Malaya (UM) to establish an academic-industrial collaboration.
The two parties today signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) and will establish a strong framework for strategic collaboration for Masters and PhD research projects, industrial training and job placements, as well as research between UM’s professors, researchers and PAPAMY.
The immediate scope of focus for this collaboration will be in the area of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (Industry 4.0) enhancement, particularly in the field of manufacturing and engineering excellence, the parties said in a joint statement.
MIDA deputy chief executive officer II Ahmad Khairuddin Abdul Rahim, who witnessed the signing ceremony, said Panasonic’s presence in Malaysia is the prime example of how business and technology evolve as the company has been continuously making necessary adjustments to reskill its talent and shift towards automation and robotics.
“While many companies are unwilling to spend for training during this turbulent time, PAPAMY has chosen to initiate an industry-academia collaboration with a reputable local university, UM, that looks to elevate our workforce with relevant digital skills, resilience and agility to face the challenges posed by the uncertain economic climate,” he said.
MIDA hoped that this MoU which taps into the wealth of expertise at PAPAMY and UM will be instrumental in building a talent pool that is industry-ready and dynamic for the future.
The investment promotion agency said as Malaysia is moving into the Industry 4.0 era that demands an increasing need for a combination of technical know-how, critical thinking, problem-solving capabilities, as well as soft skills, the workforce needs to be advanced in fields of Industry 4.0 technology drivers such as Internet of Things to meet the industries’ needs.
Source: Bernama
