Our Sintang Paaralan has been proactive to contributing to pandemic-led innovations. In addition to generating its own alcohol with virgin coconut oil, it is now fabricating an Ultraviolet (UV) Disinfection Conveyor Machine to help in the fight to contain the virus.
The project was initiated by the Office of the Vice President for Research, Planning, and Development (OVPREPD) in collaboration with the Intellectual Property Management Office (IPMO). The UV disinfection machines were developed specifically to sterilize documents. These machines will be distributed to offices that consume and use significant amount of paper.
“We plan to distribute the machines to crowded areas [in the university], like the accounting office, registrar’s office, and those areas that are receiving a lot of documents. Kasi madami pa ding opisina na gumagamit ng maraming papel at hindi pa naman tayo paperless. The main beneficiary of project is the PUP community [sic]” said Engr. Ginno Andres, project head and IPMO director.
The idea for disinfectant machines came from a thesis paper written by mechanical engineering students who maximized the use of ultraviolet rays as disinfectants. The IPMO, with the assistance of its engineers and technical experts, built on this concept and designed machines to benefit the university. Engr. Andres said that the machines are user-friendly: each one comes with a manual to guide users through the settings.
“Our mechanical engineering students kumbaga naboost ang kanilang morale with these innovations. Sila talaga ang nagfabricate nito; but my team, my engineers, and technical experts—Engr. Mark Manlapaz, and Engr. Helarch Anthony, were the ones who designed the machines.” said Engr. Andres.
A total of 100,000.00 pesos served as the seed fund to design the machines. Currently, IPMO has produced seven units as a baseline for the project. The IPMO also plans to commercialize and mass produce the machines after more specifications are developed to make the machines more effective. A turn-over ceremony will also take place in the coming months to formally transfer ownership of the machines to the PUP Community.