Double win for local university
Multi-disciplinary team from APU to represent M’sia at international hackathon
A SEAMLESS visitor management system has led to the Asia Pacific University of Technology & Innovation (APU) team being crowned national champion of “Build On, Malaysia 2020”.
The winning multi-disciplinary Team AWSAPU comprising Victor Khoo Shien Yang, Chuan Yew Jian, Keith Lau Shuen Hong, Tan Zhe Wen and Fhan Jacson also won the Best Innovation Award.
The team took home prizes worth up to USD2,750 (RM11,434) last month.
The software engineering, mobile technology, information systems security, and data analytics students at APU created their winning system using Amazon Web Services (AWS) Cloud and Internet of Things (IoT) technologies.
AWSAPU’s Visitor Management System (V.M.S.) addressed the problem faced by hospitals in the effective management of visitors in the midst of the pandemic.
The solution proposed the use of wearable technologies and database systems to implement live visitor tracking, self-service registration processes, and visitation bookings, in line with the Covid-19 standard operating procedure (SOP).
The journey to success, said Khoo, was an exhilarating ride.
“It is an honor to have teammates from different specialisations who are cooperative, willing to collaborate and who have each other’s back.
“These are the fundamental qualities that helped us to persevere from the brainstorming sessions to the implementation of the system,” said the team leader.
Prior to the competition, which is part of the an international hackathon for students of Asean countries to demonstrate their talents, an online bootcamp and a two-day AWS workshop were held to expose young entrepreneurs to potential business plans and the value proposition of their cloud-hosted projects.
As a national finalist, AWSAPU will represent Malaysia to compete against teams from Thailand, Singapore, Indonesia, and the Philippines in upcoming “Build On, Asean 2020” competition.
The AWSAPU’s success in the national-level competition was built on strong teamwork, positive attitudes, innovative thinking, and a passion for technology, said APU School of Computing lecturer Amad Arshad.
“They’re highly-skilled and dedicated; I look forward to seeing them shine in the Asean-level competition,” said Amad, who is also the team’s academic mentor.
Aimed at encouraging young entrepreneurs exhibit their creativity, the competition was hosted by AWS, Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC) and Smart Selangor.
Five teams from APU were shortlisted for the preliminary round of the competition that comprised 40 teams from Malaysian public and private varsities.