Path to Aeronautical or Automotive Engineering through Mechatronics Engineering at SAITM
South Asian Institute of Technology and Medicine (SAITM), is the first non-state sector higher educational institute in Sri Lanka. It is recognized by the University Grants Commission (UGC) of Sri Lanka as a degree awarding institute. SAITM campus, complete with all modern amenities and requirements, is located in a picturesque setting at Malabe.
Established in 2009, the Faculty of Engineering at SAITM is the pioneering and the leading nonstate sector institute of engineering in Sri Lanka. SAITM offers four year full-time B.Sc. in Eng. degree programmes affiliated with the prestigious Asian Institute of Technology (AIT), Thailand. Faculty of Engineering of SAITM has state-of-theart engineering laboratories and a team of top academics drawn, in addition to all the necessary infrastructure facilities for a world class engineering education. With the backing of the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT), SAITM engineering undergraduates can obtain a top quality internationally recognized honors degree in Engineering, leading to a rewarding career.
Students who enrol in the programme will be completing the first two years of the 4 year degree programme at SAITM in Sri Lanka before transferring to AIT for the final 2 years. The Faculty of Engineering has a proven track record in conducting high quality degree programmes since its inception at Malabe campus. This is evident from the perfor- mance of the first batch of engineering students, who graduated in the fields of Mechatronics Engineering and Civil and Infrastructure Engineering, with flying colours in May 2013.
Mechatronics is a relatively new branch of engineering that combines the principles of mechanical engineering, systems design engineering, electronic engineering, control engineering, and computer engineering. The combination of these engineering principles helps generate simpler, more cost-effective and dependable systems. As a result, Mechatronics Engineering is at the forefront of technological advancements, creating smarter products, devices and processes, across a variety of sectors.
Mechatronics Engineering degree programme at SAITM focuses on providing a sound fundamental understanding of the technical skills and principles of Mechatronics Engineering and their application to complex, open-ended engineering tasks and problems. In light of this commitment, the faculty has established well-equipped Electronics and Mechatronics laboratories with dedicated project areas for students, as well as a fully-functional Engineering workshop for prototype development. In addition, the programme strives to equip students with generic skills, including management, communication, problem-solving and design skills that are highly valued both in industry and academia. From the initial stages, students will get involved in mandatory design projects, which enable them to develop problem solving skills, while working on a real-life Engineering problem. The programme also provides opportunities for students to interact with industry professionals through guest lectures, industrial placements, field visits, and project work, paving way for a variety of career paths. As an integral part of the degree program, students should complete six months of industrial training, in two phases. Over the past years SAITM undergraduates have completed their industrial placements at reputed engineering organizations including Sri Lankan Airlines, Diesel and Motor Engineering PLC (DIMO), Micro Cars Ltd, Colombo Dockyard Ltd and Nikini Automation Systems.
In order to encourage undergraduate students to come forward with innovative engineering solutions, SAITM Faculty of Engineering annually organises an inter university robotics competition, the SAITM Robotics Challenge (SRC). Undergraduates from seven state universities and four non-state sector universities participated for SRC’13, which was held on 31st of May at SAITM premises and concluded with great success. Academics and professionals from state universities and industries, including Prof. Nimal Ekanayake, (University of Peradeniya) and Prof. Janaka Ekanayake (University of Peradeniya), contributed as Judges of the event. SRC’14 is to be held in May 2014.
A broad range of career opportunities exist for Mechatronics Engineering graduates in a range of sectors such as Aeronautics, Automotive, Biomechanics, Biomedical, Manufacturing, Minerals and Energy, Power Generation, Robotics and Automation. Students are given the option to select technical elective modules in their final year of study, with the guidance of their respective academic advisers, towards their chosen field of specialization.
Mechatronics Engineering Graduates can join the industry as design engineers, software engineers, project planners, product designers or project managers. Upon graduation, students also have the opportunity to enroll in postgraduate studies in a preferred specialization area, where best performing students from the undergraduate program are entitled to scholarships and financial support, towards their postgraduate studies at AIT.
As one of the newest branches of Engineering, and with its strong interdisciplinary approach involving mechanical, electronic and computer systems, Mechatronics Engineering is a fastgrowing profession, leading to a high demand for engineering graduates. This demand is expected to increase as more industries apply Mechatronics-related developments to improve their products, processes and services.