The Faculty of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering (FMAE)  Institut Teknologi Bandung (ITB) organized a Researcher Quality Improvement Workshop with the theme “Research Management” on Thursday (20/07/23). This workshop took place face-to-face at the CAS Building ITB and was attended by FMAE lecturers and master and doctoral students to increase their understanding of research management.

The workshop presented two main speakers, namely Afriyanti Sumboja, Ph.D, a lecturer from the Materials Science and Engineering Group, and Dr. Eng. Ferryanto, Lecturer of FMAE and member of the Biomechanics Research Team of FMAE. As the opening speaker, Dr. Eng. Ir. Firman Bagja Juangsa, S.T., M.Eng, also acted as moderator in the workshop.

The first speaker, Afriyanti Sumboja, Ph.D., shared her experience building the Materials Electrochemistry Laboratory (MEL), a laboratory in Materials Engineering ITB that focuses on research for developing lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries. In her presentation, she highlighted several important points that must be managed well in research management, such as the scope of research, schedule and time of research implementation, budget, administration, and composition of the research team.

Afriyanti Sumboja emphasized that effective research management is very important to achieve the expected targets and results per the time plan set. She also shared how to divide roles and tasks among each laboratory member who is a student of FMAE with the aim that each student feels responsible for achieving success in the research being carried out. The structure of the laboratory members is designed in a tiered manner, where doctoral students have a role as mentors for master students, master students become mentors for undergraduate students, and each undergraduate student has a mentor who teaches and supervises every activity in the laboratory.

Afriyanti Sumboja also highlighted the importance of adequate systems and resources to support the research. In addition, to facilitate administration, she has also developed Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) related to the administration and purchase of materials needed in research. The SOP is not only in the form of written rules but also includes several email templates that lab members can use to facilitate purchasing the required material resources.

Meanwhile, the second speaker, Dr. Eng. Ferryanto, started his presentation by explaining how the biomechanics research team was formed under Prof. Ir. Andi Isra Mahyuddin, Ph.D. The biomechanics research team is a multidisciplinary team consisting of various fields of science. An artificial prosthetic leg is an example of an engineering product that was successfully produced through multidisciplinary interaction and approach.

Dr. Eng. Ferryanto also shared how the biomechanics research team manages and recruits interested students to join their research team. The research team also actively conducts social activities outside of working hours to strengthen the bond between team members, such as group photos, dinners, and other activities. In addition, Dr. Eng. Ferryanto also explained the budget management used to support various research activities in his research team.

Before the event closed, participants were allowed to ask each speaker questions directly so that further interaction and discussion could occur to learn more about research management.

The Research Workshop with the theme “Research Management” organized by FMAE ITB is expected to provide useful insights and knowledge for the participants so that the quality of research in FMAE can continue to improve and positively impact society and industry.