Universitas Gadjah Mada and General Electric (GE) Operations Indonesia have agreed to establish a cooperation in innovative research in the area of health equipment technology, aviation, transportation, and energy generator in Indonesia. This was put into an agreement, signed by Rector of UGM, Prof. Ir. Dwikorita Karnawati, M.Sc., Ph.D., and CEO of GE Indonesia, Handry Satriago, on Tuesday (10/5) at UGM Main Office.
The Rector said that the cooperation with GE Indonesia would open opportunities for UGM researchers who focus on research development in energy, health and engineering. “We want to increase the relevance of our research to the industrial need. For that matter, we need to go hand in hand with the industry,” she said.
The Rector further asked GE Indonesia to collaborate in teaching industry development that has been initiated by UGM for the regency of Kulon Progo. This area will be the location for technology development, partnering with many of the industry sector.
“We have been granted a plot of land by the Governor for teaching industry use, similar to Silicon Valley, with the infrastructure funding coming from JICA. We’re looking for partners to have joint investment there,” she said.
Handry Satriago said the cooperation with UGM aimed at enhancing human resource capacity of GE Indonesia as well as opening research collaboration in various areas. “We want to enhance our capacity building and reverse innovation,” he said.
He explained there were already many researches being done by GE Indonesia and other local products. Through cooperation with UGM, ideas for research can be applied for society, involving universities, industry, and government. “I hope this cooperation will produce new ideas from the campus that eventually can respond to realities among society,” he concluded.