DZMJ Online Season 19 Episode 8 is at the Press Conference of the Disaster Movie “Every Second Counts” Mj Balaguer get to interview DOST USec Renato Solidum one of the consultants of the upcoming movie and he says that the movie should portray a realistic picture of disaster

DOST laboratories “spices” up for collaboration

To add flavors in promoting the testing laboratories of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), the Technology Application and Promotion Institute (DOST-TAPI) organized the launching of #SPICEStoDOSTLabS on 06 September 2019 at the Advanced Device and Materials Testing Laboratory (ADMATEL) Bldg., DOST Compound, Taguig City.

The DOST through DOST-TAPI launched the #SPICEStoDOSTLabS on 06 September 2019 at the ADMATEL Bldg., DOST Comp., Taguig City

The #SPICEStoDOSTLabS or the “Strategic Promotion through Integrating Collaboration and Engagement of Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) to Support the Technology Transfer and Commercialization of DOST-Developed Technologies including Testing Laboratories and Services” provides a venue for the DOST research and development institutes (RDI) and stakeholders for demonstration, orientation, and dissemination of DOST laboratories and services.

“With this launching, we are one with you in finding solutions to issues relative to your industry in improving productivity through an innovative ecosystem for your operations which improves quality of products or services and increases the quantity of outputs,” said Dr. Annabelle V. Briones, Director of the Industrial Technology Development Institute (DOST-ITDI).

Dir. Briones also emphasized the importance of collaborations in creating a harmonious relationship towards a unified goal. As a series of laboratory visits, #SPICEStoDOSTLabS plans to introduce the premier laboratories of the Department with ADMATEL as the first stop.

ADMATEL is a testing laboratory equipped with advanced analytical equipment for failure analysis and materials characterization including surface and thermal analysis, sample preparation, and external visual inspection.

Conceived from the conduct of DOST-TAPI’s Technology Transfer Day in 2016, the event opens and widens the scope of technology transfer and commercialization by tapping the special need of the stakeholders particularly the industry players in engaging in research and development (R&D).

“We came to realize that in order for our stakeholders to commercialize their technologies, they would need assistance to fulfill initial R&D first and that can materialize through the help of our RDI’s laboratory services,” said Engr. Edgar I. Garcia, Director of DOST-TAPI.

The activity also touches the component of accelerated R&D program for capacity building of RDIs through industrial competitiveness as part of one of the DOST’s banner program, Science for Change or S4C.

“As a loyal client of ADMATEL since 2013, I am thankful for their customer-oriented and competent services, high-quality output, and competitive pricing,” said Mr. Manuel Almonte, Jr. of Deca Technologies. ADMATEL’s services provide accurate results and short turnaround time at much lesser cost than commercial laboratories among private and government institutions.

“Professionalism, technical competitiveness, reliability, and integrity can be found in ADMATEL’s services,” said Dr. Julius L. Leaño, Chief of Philippine Textile Research Institute (DOST-PTRI)’s Research and Development Division.

He continued to emphasize that collaboration provides opportunities to corroborate data, maximize the use of resources, and integrate and harmonize to focus for an excellent R&D work. The next #SPICEStoDOSTLabS will feature the premier laboratories of DOST-PTRI in October 2019.

The launching was attended by at least 75 participants from the industry, academe, and government sectors. DOST-TAPI S&T Media Service Jund Rian A. Doringo

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PSFI, DOST, NBSFI partner for BOOKS program By: John Maico M. Hernandez, PSTC Batangas

To encourage students read and broaden their knowledge, Pilipinas Shell Foundation, Inc., (PSFI) in partnership with Department of Science and Technology (DOST) Batangas and National Bookstore Foundation, Inc. (NBSFI), led the implementation of the BOOKS (Building, Organizing and Operating Libraries and Knowledge-Based System) Program in benefit of Ambulong Elementary School (AES), Sept. 02.

DOST Batangas and NBSFI served as PSFI’s partners in the implementation of the BOOKS program. According to PSFI Program Manager, Ms. Olivia Sorio, BOOKS program aims to foster reading habit, instill constant learning to students of AES, and augment the insufficiency of the school in books. Being in the Shell Refinery community, it is very significant to cater the needs of AES and help improve the quality of their education, according to Ms. Sorio.

DOST, being the prime mover of innovations, has made possible the installation of the latest upgraded version of the Science and Technology Academic and Research-Based Openly Operated Kiosks (renamed as SuperSTARBOOKS) which is considered as the Philippine’s First Science Digital Library. It contains thousands of digitized science and technology resources in various formats (text and video/audio) placed in specially designed “pods” set in a user-friendly interface. As a standalone information kiosk, information access is possible even without internet connection. Being a compendium of S&T information gathered from all over the world, it is considered as a one stop S&T information source. Five system units, provided by PSFI, placed in the new AES reading facility were installed with SuperSTARBOOKS 2019.

Orientation-Training on SuperSTARBOOKS was also provided by DOST Batangas in benefit of the teachers and students of the school beneficiary on February 12 of this year. It was during this activity when DOST shared that tons of resources itemized as books, magazines, journals, scientific and research papers, disaster preparedness materials, interactive courseware, and K-12 supplement materials among others are contained in STARBOOKS. Moreover, it also includes full-length livelihood videos from the former Technology Resource Center, scientists’ profiles, DOST publications, Science: Cool Facts, significant dates in Philippine science history and new science articles.

On her message during the inauguration ceremony of the BOOKS program, Ms. Felina C. Malabanan, Provincial Director of DOST Batangas, said that about 3,935 schools across the country already has STARBOOKS as of July 2019. Moreover, to her, STARBOOKS is really suitable to modern-day teaching to help advance the Science and Technology performance of students.

Meanwhile, NBSFI provided 1,000 books to the school beneficiary as part of their Project Aklat and in support to PSFI’s BOOKS program. According to Ms. Bea Torres, Executive Director of NBSFI, they are in pursuit of books donation for almost 14 years now. It was actually NBSFI’s founder’s, Mr. Socorro Ramos, vision to donate books to those who are in need across the country, she mentioned. As referred to their records, they have already donated books to 50 schools in the province.

PSFI Executive Director, Mr. Sebastian Quinones, on the other hand, has mentioned his high hopes that this program would be relevant enough to the students of AES. “PSFI has mastered the art of project implementation and we figure out ways how things are done that’s why we make sure that all our projects give a big impact,” he added.

As the school beneficiary, AES is thankful enough for having been chosen as the recipient of the BOOKS program with DOST SuperSTARBOOKS and NBSFI’s books components. Ms. Darlene Eje, Principal of AES, stressed how these assistances from the three organizations could help their 628 student population. “We are very lucky and blessed to receive this kind of project,” she said in Filipino.

[Details from PIO Batangas City]

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