Articles

Signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the University of Moratuwa (UoM) & the Blue Lotus 360 (Pvt) Ltd

With the objective of allowing the Faculty of Business undergraduates to learn ERP systems as a part of the curriculum, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between the University of Moratuwa (UoM) and the Blue Lotus 360 (Pvt) Ltd on 28th July 2022. The MoU was signed by the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Moratuwa - Senior Prof. N. D. Gunawardena and the Chairman / CEO of the Blue Lotus 360 (Pvt) Ltd - Mr. Nadarajah Uthayakumar.

Progress meeting and workshop of EUSL Energy project held at University of Twente, Netherlands

Europe Sri Lanka Capacity Building in Energy Circular Economy (EUSL Energy) Project is funded by Erasmus+ Capacity Building in the field of higher education. The project partnership includes University of Moratuwa, University of Peradeniya, University of Ruhuna and Open University of Sri Lanka as local partner universities, and Royal Institute of Technology of Sweden, Centrale Supelec of France, and University of Twente of Netherlands as European partner universities, and “Learnify”, “Future Learn” and “Explore Energy” as other educational partners. The main objective of the project is to establish a new online joint MSc program ‘MSc in Energy for Circular Economy’ that gives its graduates the knowledge, skills, creativity, competences, and business-perspective to solve the future energy-related challenges in the country in an environmentally and financially sustainable manner.

The Renewable Energy Microgrid Pilot Project and the Smart Grid Research Laboratory

The LECO Microgrid Pilot Project is the first of its kind in Sri Lanka. It consists of a solar photovoltaic system, a lithium-ion battery energy storage system, and a diesel generator as the energy resources. The capacity of the solar photovoltaic system is 350 kW, and the battery energy storage system is 400 kWh. The backup diesel generator capacity is 630 kVA. In addition, the microgrid powers three buildings on the campus with integrated remote load control capability. With these distributed energy resources, the system can operate independently during power outages with the help of an automated control system. Apart from the microgrid pilot, this project established the LECO – UOM Smart Grid Research Lab, a research and development facility with state-of-the-art equipment from reputed manufacturers. The lab houses solar PV systems, battery energy storage systems, controllable loads, and measurement devices that can be used in cutting-edge research and development.

Prof. Jagath Manatunge wins CVCD Award for Most Outstanding Senior Researcher

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 Sciences, 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-alifetime awards given once in two years to the most prolific academics in Sri Lanka to honour their outstanding contributions.

Undergraduate Project Wins the Silver Award at the Annual Awards for the Most Outstanding Undergraduate Energy Research 2022 Organized by SLEMA

The undergraduate project titled “Torrefaction of Gliricidia and Rubberwood for Energy Applications” of the team, S.S. Senadheera, S.W. Abeysiriwardana, and U.M.A. Devaraja supervised by Dr. R.M.D.S. Gunarathne in the Department of Chemical and Process Engineering won the Silver Award at the Annual Awards for the Most Outstanding Undergraduate Energy Research 2022 during the annual sessions of Sri Lanka Energy Managers Association held on 29th July 2022. 

Community Garden at The University of Moratuwa: MORAGROW

The University of Moratuwa has taken initiatives to set up a model garden ecosystem named MoraGrow, within the University premises for the cultivation of vegetables and fruits.  As the first step, clearing and preparation of the locations identified for the garden was carried out with the participation of Prof. N.D. Gunawardena, Vice-Chancellor, Prof. P.K.S. Mahanama, Deputy Vice-Chancellor and other academic, administrative and non-academic staff members of the University on 16th June 2022.

CSE Team from UoM Wins First Place in the IntelliHack2 Competition Organized by IEEE CS UCSC

Mr. Primesh Pathirana and Mr. Thilina Senarath (Team Genesis),  final year undergraduates of the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, University of Moratuwa, were awarded the winning team of INTELLIHACK2. Intellihack2.0 is the first-ever Machine Learning hackathon in Sri Lanka. It is one of the year’s most anticipated, exciting, and electrifying events that innovative minds look forward to. The hackathon was conducted as a virtual event hosted by the IEEE Computer Society Student Branch Chapter of the University of Colombo School of Computing and sponsored by IFS, London Stock Exchange Group, Dialog Axiata, Global Market Technologies, and Google Developer Group Sri Lanka. This hackathon consisted of a preliminary round and a 01-day final round.

Dr. Ashani Ranathunga Wins OWSD - Elsevier Foundation Award for Early Career Women Scientists in the Developing World – 2022

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 recognizes the contributions to research 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 scientists’ commitment to leadership, mentoring and engagement within their communities, including the use of innovative technologies in their research.

Second-place Winner of the ComSoc “Internet for All” Competition in the Asia Pacific Region

Sandushan Ranaweera, and undergraduate of ENTC has emerged as the second-place winner in the Asia Pacific Region in the Internet for All Competition organized by IEEE Communications Society which is one of the world premier associations for communication engineers. In this competition the participating teams or individuals are required to submit a proposal outlining a plan to bring internet connectivity to an identified locality where a clear need of internet connectivity exists.  The proposals should explain how if implemented the performance of the infrastructure will be measured, detect technical failures, risk mitigation plan and how the infrastructure will be maintained after the project duration.