15 May 2019 (Wednesday) – Forest Research Institute Malaysia (FRIM) won four gold and one bronze medals at the SIRIM Invention, Innovation and Technology Expo (Si2TE) 2019 held on 18 April in Kulim, Kedah.

Mastura (far left) receiving the Green Invention Award from Ooi while Mohamad Jamil looks on.	Representatives of FRIM winning projects posing with their award certificates and medals.

Si2TE, organised by the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI) and SIRIM in collaboration with the National STEM Centre, was officiated by the Kedah Chinese and Siamese Community Affairs, Science and Technology, Climatic Change and Environmental Committee EXCO, YB Ooi Tze Min. Also present, SIRIM Industrial Research Vice President Ir Dr Mohamad Jamil Sulaiman.

There are several categories in the Si2TE competition such as primary school, secondary school, vocational, professional and international.

FRIM sent five entries for the professional category and all had won awards. FRIM’s innovation projects which received gold medals were:

• Elite ‘kacip fatimah’ (Labisiapumila) variety for wealth and women’s wellness led by Dr Farah Fazwa Md Ariff (Forestry Biotechnology Division);
• Sustainable supply of Eucalyptus planting material for commercial purposes (Dr Nor Hasnida Hassan, Forest Biotechnology Division);
• Ciera nature inspired eco-friendly multi actions surface care products (Dr Mastura Mohtar, Natural Products Division, BHS); and
• From Mangrove to Market: Jus Laris (Noor Rasyila Mohamed Noor, BHS).

The bronze medal went to the Novel synthetic gamma-lactams as efficacious & safer inhibitor agents against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) project led by Dr Saiful Azmi Johari, BHS.

Clockwise from the top: Members of projects led by Farah Fazwa, Nor Hasnida and Noor Rasyila at their respective exhibition booths.	Saiful Azmi (middle) explaining about his innovation project during the judging session.

In addition, the Ciera project also clinched the Green Invention Award.