The The Institution was pleased to launch the HKIE Innovation Awards for Young Members which was in its fourth consecutive year with the generous support of the family of the late Ir Kenneth Au-yeung. The Awards aim at encouraging our young members to develop their creativity through innovative application of engineering knowledge, as well as inspiring upon them to develop their intellectual and career interests in engineering. There were two main categories, namely Category I - An Invention and Category II – An Innovative Application of Engineering Theories. The entries could focus on any areas of engineering disciplines within the context of the HKIE. The innovativeness of the design was assessed based on its originality and creativity. This year, Miss Argoon T C Chuang (Category I) and Mr Lawrence K F Chan (Category II) won the Grand Prizes.

Category I - An Invention

A GIS Based Analysis Tool for Blasting Assessment by Miss Argoon T C CHUANG

When performing blasting assessment in highly urbanised areas such as Hong Kong, the sensitive receivers used are of high complexity and often result in very large datasets – too large to be processed efficiently with conventional analytical methods.

Miss Argoon Chuang's award-winning invention utilises geographic information system (GIS) technology to cut through the complexity. By integrating all the analytical steps into one single platform, the software tool helps to streamline the workflow, thus knocking months off the time taken for a project to get the government's green light – thereby achieving considerable savings for both the consultant and client. The integrated approach also minimises errors and ensures a greater degree of safety for the public during construction.

Miss Chuang received her BSc in Civil Engineering from National Taiwan University and an MSc in Sustainable Infrastructure from the Royal Institute of Technology in Sweden. She is currently a geotechnical engineer at Ove Arup & Partners Hong Kong Ltd.

Category II – An Innovative Application of Engineering Theories

Mucell Co-injection Technology for Producing High Quality and Value-added Plastic Automotive Parts by Mr Lawrence K F CHAN

Mr Lawrence Chan's award-winning entry demonstrates an original and innovative technology called "Mucell Co-injection technology" for the manufacturing industry.

In the past, high-end automotive components were costly and complex and generally supplied by western companies. Local manufacturers could only work with low-end products. With the successful development of Mucell Co-injection technology, the situation may be reversed.

The core of this technology is a patented design that allows the production of high quality automotive components with a significant reduction in weight and energy consumption while improving part qualities and productivity in a one-step process. Local auto parts and plastic machinery manufacturers will directly benefit from acquiring this technology to strengthen their technological capabilities and competitiveness in the global market.

Mr Chan is currently an Associate Consultant of the Hong Kong Productivity Council's Manufacturing Technology Division.

This year, Certificates of Merit of Category I were presented to Mr Patrick K P Lee, Mr Xu Jin and Dr Albert Y S Lam, and Certificates of Merit of Category II were presented to Ir Stuart William Millis and Ir Tang Siu-cheung.

Miss Argoon T C Chuang (R) receiving the HKIE Innovation Awards for Young Members – Category I from President Ir Prof Reuben Chu

Mr Lawrence K F Chan (R) receiving the HKIE Innovation Awards for Young Members – Category II from President Ir Prof Reuben Chu

The President presenting Certificate of Merit – Category I to Mr Patrick K P Lee (R)

The President presenting Certificate of Merit – Category I to Mr Xu Jin (R)

The President presenting Certificate of Merit – Category II to Ir Stuart William Millis (R)

The President presenting Certificate of Merit – Category II to Ir Tang Siu-cheung (R)