HKMU received a grant worth over HK$37 million from the EDB to establish an Industrial Centre for new industrialisation and develop related programmes

School of Science and Technology HKMU received a grant worth over HK$37 million from the EDB to establish an Industrial Centre for new industrialisation and develop related programmes

HKMU received a grant worth over HK$37 million from the EDB to establish an Industrial Centre for new industrialisation and develop related programmes

Date: 18 December 2023

Hong Kong Metropolitan University (HKMU) was awarded a grant worth over HK$37 million from the “Enhancement and Start-up Grant Scheme for Self-financing Post-secondary Education” (ESGS) of the Education Bureau (EDB) to set up an Industrial Centre for new industrialisation, develop a new programme and enhance the existing programmes. HKMU President Prof. Paul Lam Kwan-sing said he believed that the establishment of the Industrial Centre would complement the Government’s policy of promoting “New Industrialisation” and help nurture talent for industry. 

In the past two years, HKMU received substantial funding from the EDB to develop new programmes, including a total of HK$73 million in 2021/22 to launch the Bachelor of Science with Honours in Construction Management and Quantity Surveying and the Bachelor of Arts with Honours in New Music and Interactive Entertainment; and another HK$40 million in 2020/21 to launch the Bachelor of Science with Honours in Medical Laboratory Science. Prof. Lam said, “Three consecutive years of being granted Government funding demonstrates the Government’s support for and affirmation of the University’s progress in offering programmes with strong demand and distinctive features.” He said that the funding received this year would help promote new industrialisation and competitiveness in Hong Kong.

HKMU’s School of Science and Technology offers a wide range of engineering and information technology programmes, with venues provided by partner organisations and institutions for related industry training. In view of the increasing demand for related training, HKMU will leverage the grant to establish an Industrial Centre equipped with market-standard facilities to provide quality training for students.

HKMU will launch a brand-new programme on the Bachelor of Engineering with Honours in Building Engineering to train building engineers. It will emphasise teaching the technology of intelligent construction, and will equip students with skills for applying innovative and advanced building technologies in construction projects.

To support the development of the new programme, the Industrial Centre will feature an Intelligent Construction Technologies Facility to provide students with hands-on experience and help them acquire knowledge about advanced intelligent building technologies. The facility will strengthen the existing training for programmes Bachelor of Engineering with Honours Building Services Engineering and Sustainable Development, and Bachelor of Engineering with Honours Civil Engineering.

The Industrial Centre will set up an Internet of Things (IoT) and Web3 Facility to support the teaching of new industrialisation concepts, such as IoT, wireless sensor networks, cyber security, artificial intelligence and data analytics. The Centre will also have a Robotics and Automation Facility to meet demand for robotic technologies in the new industrialisation. These facilities will substantially enhance the training for programmes in Electronic and Computer Engineering, Cyber and Computer Security, and Data Science and Artificial Intelligence. The completion of the Industrial Centre is expected to help facilitate training for students from HKMU and other self-financing institutions in Hong Kong, thus catering for the needs of industry.

There are also plans to establish a Makerspace in the Industrial Centre to offer a conducive environment for students to transform their creative ideas into prototypes, thus fostering their problem-solving skills and entrepreneurship mindset.

News reports on on EDB's grant for establishment of Industrial Centre and development of programmes have been published on 18 Dec 2023.

1. 都大獲撥逾3700萬 成立新型工業中心 (星島頭條網頭條日報網)

2. 都大獲3700萬建工業中心辦課程 (on.cc 東網東方日報網, Line Today)

3. 都大獲教育局撥款逾3700萬 成立工業中心 [大公文匯網] 

4. 都大獲教育局撥款逾3700萬 成立工業中心 [點新聞] 

5. 都大獲教育局撥款逾3700萬 成立工業中心及發展相關課程 [香港商報網] 

6. 香港都會大學獲撥款逾3700萬港元成立工業中心 [香港新聞網] 

Jonathan Chiu
Marketing Director
3DP Technology Limited

Jonathan handles all external affairs include business development, patents write up and public relations. He is frequently interviewed by media and is considered a pioneer in 3D printing products.

Krutz Cheuk
Biomedical Engineer
Hong Kong Sanatorium & Hospital

After graduating from OUHK, Krutz obtained an M.Sc. in Engineering Management from CityU. He is now completing his second master degree, M.Sc. in Biomedical Engineering, at CUHK. Krutz has a wide range of working experience. He has been with Siemens, VTech, and PCCW.

Hugo Leung
Software and Hardware Engineer
Innovation Team Company Limited

Hugo Leung Wai-yin, who graduated from his four-year programme in 2015, won the Best Paper Award for his ‘intelligent pill-dispenser’ design at the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineering’s International Conference on Consumer Electronics – China 2015.

The pill-dispenser alerts patients via sound and LED flashes to pre-set dosage and time intervals. Unlike units currently on the market, Hugo’s design connects to any mobile phone globally. In explaining how it works, he said: ‘There are three layers in the portable pillbox. The lowest level is a controller with various devices which can be connected to mobile phones in remote locations. Patients are alerted by a sound alarm and flashes. Should they fail to follow their prescribed regime, data can be sent via SMS to relatives and friends for follow up.’ The pill-dispenser has four medicine slots, plus a back-up with a LED alert, topped by a 500ml water bottle. It took Hugo three months of research and coding to complete his design, but he feels it was worth all his time and effort.

Hugo’s public examination results were disappointing and he was at a loss about his future before enrolling at the OUHK, which he now realizes was a major turning point in his life. He is grateful for the OUHK’s learning environment, its industry links and the positive guidance and encouragement from his teachers. The University is now exploring the commercial potential of his design with a pharmaceutical company. He hopes that this will benefit the elderly and chronically ill, as well as the society at large.

Soon after completing his studies, Hugo joined an automation technology company as an assistant engineer. He is responsible for the design and development of automation devices. The target is to minimize human labor and increase the quality of products. He is developing products which are used in various sections, including healthcare, manufacturing and consumer electronics.

Course Code Title Credits
  COMP S321F Advanced Database and Data Warehousing 5
  COMP S333F Advanced Programming and AI Algorithms 5
  COMP S351F Software Project Management 5
  COMP S362F Concurrent and Network Programming 5
  COMP S363F Distributed Systems and Parallel Computing 5
  COMP S382F Data Mining and Analytics 5
  COMP S390F Creative Programming for Games 5
  COMP S492F Machine Learning 5
  ELEC S305F Computer Networking 5
  ELEC S348F IOT Security 5
  ELEC S371F Digital Forensics 5
  ELEC S431F Blockchain Technologies 5
  ELEC S425F Computer and Network Security 5
 Course CodeTitleCredits
 ELEC S201FBasic Electronics5
 IT S290FHuman Computer Interaction & User Experience Design5
 STAT S251FStatistical Data Analysis5
 Course CodeTitleCredits
 COMPS333FAdvanced Programming and AI Algorithms5
 COMPS362FConcurrent and Network Programming5
 COMPS363FDistributed Systems and Parallel Computing5
 COMPS380FWeb Applications: Design and Development5
 COMPS381FServer-side Technologies and Cloud Computing5
 COMPS382FData Mining and Analytics5
 COMPS390FCreative Programming for Games5
 COMPS413FApplication Design and Development for Mobile Devices5
 COMPS492FMachine Learning5
 ELECS305FComputer Networking5
 ELECS363FAdvanced Computer Design5
 ELECS425FComputer and Network Security5