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| One of the machines made by UMM students that is useful for MSMEs (Photo: Faqih PR). |
Several mechanical engineering devices developed by the students of the University of Muhammadiyah Malang (UMM) were exhibited at the Mechanical Engineering Expo (MEXPO), last July 4th. There are more than 30 devices that can be seen and observed. It will even be very useful for the development of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).
"The students are encouraged to create supporting tools for the needs of MSMEs. For example, potato cutting tools, orange sorting tools, and so on," said the Chairperson of the Mechanical Engineering Study Program, Ir. Iis Siti Aisyah, ST, MT, Ph.D..
The student-made devices are also quite various. Starting from a flour dough mixer, coffee grinder, to a fruit ripeness sorter. These various innovations are also a real contribution from the White Campus, UMM, to create graduates who can implement the knowledge gained during lectures.
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"We intentionally showcase the results of the mechanical engineering students' work in order to let MSME owners know what kind of innovations they need. Thus, we can also help the community. The knowledge gained by students will not just disappear, but it can really be utilized by others," she said.
Iis expects that through this Mexpo, students can interact directly with MSME owners and help them understand their needs. It is also a program to implement UMM's tagline "From Muhammadiyah for the Nation". It is not just about the campus, but it really engages with the problems in community.
One of the most interesting devices is the fruit ripeness sorter. The device uses a color sensor to determine the ripeness level of the fruit. The mechanism starts with the fruit going through the color sensor in the device. Then, it will automatically be grouped with the classification of unripe, less ripe, and ripe fruits. This makes it easier for farmers or MSMEs to sort fruit without hassle.
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On the other hand, one of the MSME owners that came in, Ifa Fardiyah, appreciated the various devices that had been made. In fact, she has been using tools made by UMM engineering students since two years ago, which is a potato peeler and cutter. If peeled and cut manually, she and her employees take more than three hours. However, with the help of machine tools from UMM, it only takes one hour.
"Besides, it's tiresome if you have to process it manually. So these two tools can really expedite the production process efficiently. I am sure, other tools will also be useful for other MSMEs. It depends on what is needed and desired," she said. (faq/wil/put)
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