FEATURED NEWS

The annual general meeting of the Civil Engineering Society (CES) for the year 2022 was conducted on the 28th of April, 2022 from 5.00 pm onwards virtually via Zoom. New Office bearers of the CES were appointed from both the second- and third-year students. The appointed chief office bearers are Mr. Malith Pehesara (President), Mr. Dhyan Chandeepa (Secretary) and Mr.Sasith Anupama (Junior Treasurer).

Prof Jagath Manatunge from the Department of Civil Engineering, University of Moratuwa has received the prestigious “Most Outstanding Senior Researcher in the field of Technology and related Science including Engineering, Architecture, Quantity Surveying and Information Technology” offered by the Committee of Vice-Chancellors and Directors Sri Lanka (CVCD). CVCD awards are the most prestigious and once-in-a-lifetime awards given once in two years to the most prolific academics in Sri Lanka to honour their outstanding contributions. CVCD was established in 1979 under the Universities Act as an advisory body to the University Grants Commission and it comprises 17 Vice-Chancellors of State universities and three rectors of university campuses.

Dr. Ashani Ranathunga has won the OWSD - Elsevier Foundation Award for Early Career Women Scientists in the Developing World for her work at the Department of Civil Engineering, University of Moratuwa. This global award recognizesthe contributions to research that is helping to tackle climate change and advancing the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) including: SDG13 (Climate Action), SDG14 (Life Below Water) and SDG15 (Life on Land). The prize also acknowledges the scientists’ commitment to leadership, mentoring and engagement within their communities, including the use of innovative technologies in their research. Each award winner receives a prize of USD $5,000 and will have the opportunity to be recognized and participate in several high-profile international conferences and events on gender action and climate change.

Senior Professor A.K.W. Jayawardane from the Construction Engineering and Management Group, Department of Civil Engineering, has been appointed as Chairman, Commercial Bank of Ceylon PLC. Commercial Bank is the largest private bank in Sri Lanka and the only Sri Lankan bank to be ranked in the 'Top 1000 World Banks' announced annually by 'The Banker' magazine of the UK, for the 11th consecutive year in 2021.

Suhastha is annually organized by the undergradautes of the Department of Civil Engineering with the objective of uplifting the standards of the underprivileged schools in Sri Lanka while strengthening the bond among the students of the Civil Engineering Department. Suhastha is an opportunity for the emerging civil engineers from the department to give back and enlighten the school children.

The Department Industry Consultative Board (DICB) meeting was held at Cinnamon Grand Hotel, Colombo, on 9th February 2022 from 4:30 pm to 6:30 pm. DICB meeting aims to obtain insights from the industry on the performance of the graduates produced by the department. The industry Engineers and the department Academics discussed how best to improve students to become best of the class Engineers.

Prof. Mrs. Sujeeva Setunge, who is an alumna of the Department of Civil Engineering, University of Moratuwa, is a world-renowned academic and currently the Associate Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Research and Innovation at the STEM college of RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia. Prof Mrs. Sethunga visited the Department on the 19th January 2022 and, in parallel, conducted an interactive online session for the research students of the Department. She was welcomed to the Department by the Head, Department of Civil Engineering, Prof Mrs. Chintha Jayasinghe, on behalf of the university and the event was organized by Dr Chandana Siriwardana. Prof. Mrs. Sethunge pioneered in initiating RMIT-Sri Lanka Split PhD program.

Transport Research Forum (TRF) is an annual conference organized by the Transportation Engineering Division of the Department of Civil Engineering, University of Moratuwa. The prime objective of this conference is to create a platform for researchers in the transportation field to build up their research careers and to share their research findings with other colleagues and the industry. Practitioners, researchers, and academics, including a number of international experts in the areas of Highway Engineering, Transportation Engineering and Planning, are the participants for this event. In addition, representatives from the industry and the related government institutions are also invited every year.

The annual residential surveying camp of the Department of Civil Engineering was successfully held for the 17- batch at ‘KITI-IWM- Kothmale International Training Institute of Irrigation and Water Management’ from 16th-29th January 2022. This surveying camp was held in two slots for the final year undergraduates while maintaining health regulations with the support of the academic and non-academic staff of the Department.