(From left) Dr Moamin A. Mahmoud, Assoc Prof Ts Dr Hazleen Aris, Ts Dr Saraswathy Shamini Gunasekaran, Prof Datuk Dr Halimah Badioze Zaman, Ts Dr Nazrita Ibrahim and Prof Ts Dr Salman Yussof – the core members of IICE.
THE establishment of the Tan Sri Leo Moggie Distinguished Chair in Energy Informatics has etched another important milestone for the Institute of Informatics and Computing in Energy (IICE), which is approaching its fifth anniversary this December.
The Chair, which is fully endowed by Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) in recognition of Tan Sri Leo Moggie's tremendous contribution to the development of the energy sector in Malaysia, aims to provide research leadership in energy informatics, create a pool of highly intellectual and skilful local talents and experts in the area and provide support to the Government in various forms such as through the development of a national blueprint for the digital transformation of the electricity supply industry in Malaysia.
On Sept 1, 2021, Prof Datuk Dr Halimah Badioze Zaman, a well-known figure in the field of computer science and information technology with enormous contribution and outstanding track record in academic and research, was appointed the first holder of the Chair, following a rigorous and stringent selection process.
With the establishment of the Chair, IICE continues to look forward to realise its aim to champion the energy informatics research and development activities in Malaysia, and to excel in doing so.
Backed by five core members and 13 associate members, the institute focuses on areas covering the intersections between information and communications technology (ICT) and the energy domain, known as energy informatics, which ultimate aim is to improve the efficiency of the energy industry through the advances in ICT.
"Even before the establishment of the Chair, IICE is already setting a high target of becoming an internationally renowned institute for research and consultancy that promotes the use of ICT solutions for the energy domain through its vision", said associate professor Ts Dr Hazleen Aris, the institute director who is also a senior lecturer with UNITEN's College of Computing and Informatics.
"We are honoured with the trust given by the management to become the secretariat of this Chair and we will carry this responsibility to the best of our ability," she added.
'The establishment of the Chair serves as a catalyst for IICE to achieve prominence in energy informatics research,' said Dr Hazleen Aris.
The establishment of the Chair also brings along plenty of opportunities for research and development in energy informatics, including research funding and sponsorship for postgraduate studies.
By enrolling as a research student at IICE now, you not only get to study energy informatics at the best place, but also at the right time with many research programmes and activities in the pipeline, not to mention the perk of getting the scroll from one of the leading private universities in Malaysia.
Apart from championing energy informatics research nationally, IICE also aspires to improve its regional visibility and strengthen its global presence.
Guided by three strategic research thrust areas, namely Intelligent and Secure Energy Systems, Energy Data Integration and Governance, and Energy Data Analytics and Visualisation, a number of regional and international collaborations are ventured.
One notable collaboration is the research project titled “Cost-effective large-scale IoT solutions for energy efficient medium- and large-sized buildings” funded by the Danish Energy Agency.
This kind of international collaboration is also another advantage that our research students and staff alike get to experience while at IICE.
The ongoing research collaboration project with the Centre for Energy Informatics, University of Southern Denmark, Elbek & Vejrup, and Develco products will turn the existing buildings into an IoT living lab that is highly energy efficient.
Besides external collaborations, there are also opportunities to collaborate with other research institutes in UNITEN on common research areas such as:
> Smart grid security with the Institute of Power Engineering
> Blockchain-based microgrid transactions with the Institute of Sustainable Energy
> Big data analytics for energy market with the Institute of Energy Policy and Research
> Image processing for remote infrastructure monitoring with the Institute of Energy Infrastructure.
Through such collaborations, research students will get to enjoy both the depth of energy informatics research provided by IICE and its breadth complemented by other research institutes.
A number of research activities have already been planned, some of which are targeted to be implemented before year end.
This includes the 7th International Visual Informatics Conference (IVIC'21) that takes place from Nov 23-25, 2021. For more information visit, iice.uniten.edu.my.
For more information on the Chair, the Institute and to be part of its initiatives or to contribute, email iice@uniten.edu.my
