Portrait of Wirotaman Village residents and Engineers in Action 2022 participants at the inauguration and launch of earthquake monitoring equipment at the Jawi Wetan Christian Church (GKJW) Wirotaman Village, Malang Regency

ITS Campus, ITS News – Institut Teknologi Sepuluh Nopember (ITS), together with the National Taiwan University of Science and Technology (NTUST) held a collaboration program titled Engineers in Action 2022. This program focuses on using technology to solve environmental issues in Surabaya and Malang.

IDAA Warmadewanthi ST MT PhD, explained that Engineers in Action 2022 is an annual International Real Work Lecture (KKN) program in which local and international students collaborate to solve problems in the surrounding environment. “As engineers, we have to be part of the solution,” she explained.

This program itself carries the topic of project-based learning. The first project carried out was the installation of an earthquake monitoring system at the ITS Research Center Building and the Jawi Wetan Christian Church (GKJW) in Wirotaman Village, Malang Regency. “The earthquake monitoring device installed in GKJW is the only one in Wirotaman Village, Malang Regency,” she described.

Engineers in Action 2022 participants install air quality monitoring equipment at Surabaya City Hall

The ITS Research Center building was chosen because it fits the equipment specifications and has an Infrastructure and Environmentally Sustainable Research Center. Meanwhile, GKJW in Wirotaman Village was selected due to its sturdy building structure and earthquake-prone location. “Wirotaman Village was also significantly hit by the tectonic earthquake in 2021,” this ITS Environmental Engineering Department lecturer explained.

The installation of the monitoring device allows early warning of earthquakes by displaying the current earthquake’s magnitude and the probability of aftershocks. “That way, we can minimize material losses caused by earthquakes,” Wawa, this NTUST alumnus’s familiarly called, continued.

During their activities in Wirotaman Village, the participants of this program live together with local residents. They must interact with local residents and empathize with the conditions of people living in earthquake-prone areas. “They also enjoy being together with local elementary school students through interesting educational games,” she continued.

 The Engineers in Action 2022 team’s camaraderie entertains elementary school students in Wirotaman Village through interesting educational games

Another project carried out in this program is installing an air quality monitoring system at the Surabaya City Hall and Kaliasin 1 Public Elementary School Surabaya. The choice of the two places was based on their location in the center of Surabaya. The air quality monitor can measure parameters such as carbon dioxide, Particulate Matter (PM) 2.5, PM 10, temperature, humidity, and air pressure.

This initiative, in which ITS and NTUST students are involved, will be observed and assessed throughout the following year. This phase is on the agenda because participants in the 2022 program were also given the opportunity to visit the Engineers in Action project site the previous year, which focused on rejuvenating sanitation in many primary schools in Bulak District, Surabaya City.

Wawa also hopes that this program can be helpful for the wider community. Young prospective engineers are also expected to continue contributing their knowledge and be able to implement it directly in the community. “In addition, it is hoped that this program can build and strengthen relationships with NTUST and other partner universities,” she concluded. (*)

Reporter: Tyara Novia Andhin
Redaktur: Septian Chandra Susanto