[DELIGHTED]: 450 first-year students sharing a light moment with the Vice-Chancellor and President of UCSI, Senior Prof Dato’ Dr Khalid Yusoff (middle) at the Showcase.

[MOTIVATED]: Students received praise from Dato’ Khalid on their creative innovation.

[PROUD INNOVATORS]: Team 21 showcasing their drone delivery system – DOTSYS.

[HUNCH NO MORE]: A team that came up with a foldable “Posture-Right” chair hopes to decrease back pain.

UALA LUMPUR: UCSI University recently held the University Life Showcase 2016 on campus grounds. The Showcase saw a participation of 450 first-year students. 

In line with the Showcase’s theme “Idea to Innovation”, each team impressed the guests and judges with their practical and creative innovation. 

Brandon Yap Chun Keat and nine other members from Team 21 spent nearly a month to come up with a drone-based delivery system called “DOTSYS”. 

According to the young lad, “DOTSYS” is an unmanned drone that is designed to deliver packages to any locations, which eliminate both waiting time and the cost of human labour. What inspired the team to come up with the system is the online shopping culture where customers often experienced delayed doorstep delivery. 

“Online shopping has become a culture now and it sometimes frustrate us to wait for the arrival of our purchased items. We believe frequent online shoppers will benefit greatly from DOTSYS because one thing is for sure – there will be no complaints about delayed deliveries,” said Brandon. 

The first-year financial economics student then spoke about the economic perspectives of the system. 

“The system is very economic. If you make a lot of deliveries over a short period of time or distance, the cost per delivery will be low. And if you drop off a lot of parcels at the same location, the cost per parcel will also be low," he said. 

Team number 4, on the other hand, had come up with a foldable “Posture-Right” chair. 

According to team leader Nurhaidiana Manap, the purpose of the chair is to maximise back support and maintain good posture while sitting. 

“Sitting down for long periods of time causes neck and back pain. This is because sitting, in general, is a static posture that increases stress in the back, shoulders, arms, and legs. It also pressurises the back muscles and spinal discs. We want to help decrease this problem especially among youths,” said the young lady who is currently reading the BSc (Hons) Nutrition with Wellness programme. 

The Showcase is a final year assessment for the subject University Life – a course offered by the Centre of Excellence for Learning & Teaching (CELT) for first-year students. It aims to integrate theoretical coursework with hands-on experience. 

This is in line with UCSI’s Praxis® approach that advocates the application of theory to practice, that which provides the students with skills such as identifying effective learning styles, study techniques, presentation skills, as well as communication and leadership skills that will bring them far in their careers. 

The Showcase was officiated by the Vice-Chancellor and President of UCSI, Senior Prof Dato’ Dr Khalid Yusoff. 

In his speech, Dato’ Khalid spoke about the importance of change and innovation and how the University serves as a platform to help students excel, realise their ambitions and achieve their aspirations of being a better person. 

“Innovation is the most vital factor in shaping a better future. It also implies change. And to shape a better future, we must be prepared to change and make the change,” said Dato’ Khalid. 

He also added that to have a better life, one needs to have an idea of the future and synergise with it. 

“In pursuit of a better life, we need to have an aspiration. But not just that, we must also have our aspiration challenged. Therefore, we must not stop asking this question – ‘how can I do better?’” 

The Showcase was also attended by Assoc Prof Dr Toh Kian Kok, the Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Quality Assurance and Enhancement and Vice-President of UCSI Group Human Resource; and Abu Bakar Bin Jalaluddin, Vice-President of UCSI Group Legal Office.