Building Images of Department of Marine Transportation, ITS, Surabaya

It is started with this question:

How can we become the most respected ‘maritime’ university in ASEAN to work for in 2023?

On the path to become the most respected ‘maritime’ university in ASEAN ten years from now, building images of Department of Marine Transportation, ITS from several perspectives i.e. students, junior staff, senior staff and management/ project partners could be an imaginative leap into the future.

What would you like to accomplish with your study at ITS?

Students explored what would they like to accomplish study at ITS. As a result, knowledge improvement in the field of maritime transportation is the most common opinion came from this category. The more knowledge, the more they can contribute in maritime sector, especially in Indonesia. To support this intention, good facilities, make relationship with student’s union from foreign university, students exchange programme and scholarship are necessary needed.

What would you like your class to accomplish this year?

From junior staff perspectives which cope with student’s point of view, facilities improvement for both research and educating activities such as classes, hardware and software are need to be achieved, because they intend students aware of latest issues related to maritime transportation. Number of research title from students, in addition, has to be increase due to lab-based education programme in ITS. Considering the rising number of new students in Department of Marine Transportation, adding number of teaching staff is expected to fulfill the scarcity of lecturers this year.

What would you like your education program to accomplish this year?

Education programme to accomplish this year from senior staff’s view are improve research relevance to industry and publications (lab-based education), teaching methods improvements and better scheduled teaching activities as well, internship at ASEAN countries, joint supervision of student’s final project and the rest is powerful administrative staff and less bureaucratic. In this category, building images of ITS become more general than other perspectives. Thus, these lead into what would department to accomplish this year at management/ project partners level.

What would you like your department to accomplish this year?

Management considers public awareness about the education of marine transportation and curriculum improvements as important issues. Associated with project partners plan, for instance, advise on laboratory’s equipment, establish relationship with ITS, and linking or integrating maritime development/ policy with logistics, ports, hinterland connection and intermodal, the education of marine transportation would be expanded. Since Department of Marine Transportation is still a new in maritime sector, recognition at level of either International or National (accreditation) is essential to come by in order to sustain the objective to become the most respected ‘maritime’ university in ASEAN.

NLP

On The Path to Institut Teknologi Sepuluh Nopember (ITS) Surabaya, International Recognition

Institut Teknologi Sepuluh Nopember (ITS), Surabaya, was built to support national development in several industries through creating competent professionals from any disciplines related to technology and art. The five faculties which play significant role in Indonesian improvement are faculty of mathematics and science, faculty of industry, faculty of civil and planning, faculty of marine technology, and faculty of informatics. In 2012, over four thousand applicants at ITS, approximately only 50% of total applicants are accepted, and about three thousand number of students are graduated from ITS each year (http://www.its.ac.id/). This circumstance illustrates how either widely known ITS as a choice in further education or huge contribution in generating experts in Indonesia.

In accordance with a vision to be an innovative international reputable university, ITS enhances its performance to be considered in a global competition. Achievements such as winning several international competitions concerning science, innovation and arts, broaden its existence in education. My point of view about fast-track program at ITS is that the curriculum surely could develop education level with the increasing number of masters and doctors in Indonesia. Moreover, by becoming member of AUN/SEED-NET (ASEAN University Network/Southeast Asia Engineering Education Development Network), and two preceding examples have advantages which I divide into two categories, internal and external. First, for internal ITS, those latest achievements and programs would give improvement particularly in quality of education including teaching, research, service, experiences and so forth. Secondly, for external ITS, those condition could attract students either local or international to study at ITS.

To be an international reputable university means that civitas academica and all committees in the campus organizational structure altogether are globally aware of being involved in international activities. In my opinion, several ways to be worldwide recognized are expands our understanding and make contribution to the world. As a result, ITS was ranked 583^rd of world university ranking and was on the top 100 Asian universities, and placed at the fourth rank in Indonesia (http://www.webometrics.info/en/world). According to this fact, Indonesian universities need more development. As a reputable institute of technology in Indonesia, ITS could be the pioneer of website development. In the information age, internet as a universal network makes information become easily accessible through computer technology. Thus, with the purpose of goes global, I believe that university improvement in term of education, research along with innovation, and participation in international competition, would be a reliable strategy.

Globalize educational services offered by ITS is the beginning step towards world class university. Curriculum adjustments with current needs are important, because I think that knowledge is always expanding due to problems. Exploring problems which Indonesia is currently facing together with learning modern technology from developing countries, would be good basis in building syllabus that expected to provide solutions. Bilateral relationship with international universities supposed to become main concern. The connections between ITS and each universities uphold globally linked one and another. Then, Indonesia gradually gets international recognition. I desire an international program at ITS, by considering its competency and network, I am in no doubt this program would come true. Begin with one department or faculty which is supported by capable lecturers and administration committees especially in their English proficiency.

Focus research on problems that are global interest encourages ITS to become an international research university. Research issues are not only global interest, but also could be useful especially to society. Laboratory Based Education (LBE), one of presently programs that support self-learning (Beranda ITS-Edisi 07, 2012), facilitates students to study independently which aims to increase productivity in research and innovation. Students and their supervisor are accustomed to research habit and hopefully increase their responsiveness of crisis. I assume that several rules in each department related to LBE are needed. For example, a rule for students who work on their undergraduate thesis have to be a member of laboratory. As a result, students could use facilities of laboratory such as computer, internet, book references and so forth. Government, in this case is ministry of national education, has important role as well, by launching an e-journal that provide articles from ITS students. This policy stimulates them to produce well qualified articles in technology, science and arts. Hence, people from both inside and outside ITS can access.

Participation in international activities, including research and some competitions, has to be well managed. Related to number of research published in international journal, I consider that ITS needs to create internal research consortium which focus on managing research from each faculty and propose them into international journal. This consortium consists of experts or lecturers from any disciplines who represent their faculty. On the other hand, an approach to increase participation in international competitions is educates lecturers and trainers about the important of join those challenge both academic and non-academic activities. Therefore, I believe they could supervise students and would create a mental foundation of each student to be a winner.

In term of “ITS goes global”, it associates all necessary aspect includes students, lecturers, committees, network, affiliation, facilities, etc. Rector and government as policy maker are expected to support this term by initiating policies such as advisory board or managing alumni groups in order to enlarge global network. Current achievements ought to use as modal to go international and strengthen ITS competency. Internal potential development is a basis which needs motivation from each individual. All in all, national recognition drives ITS to international recognition.

NLP

Tips Merawat Ban Mobil

Bagi anda yang menggunakan mobil sebagai sarana transportasi sehari-hari, pernahkah anda memikirkan bagaimana kinerja ban mobil anda?

Kondisi ban mobil menentukan kenyamanan dan keselamatan berkendara, bahkan berpengaruh pada operasional.

Kebetulan saya menggunakan mobil tua tetapi memiliki jiwa muda. Mobil warisan kedua orang tua saya yaitu super jimny 4x4 1982 (padahal saya lahir pada tahun 1987). Saya akan membagi pengalaman saya dalam merawat ban mobil secara singkat dan sederhana.

Hal pertama yang mudah dilakukan adalah memeriksa batiknya ban (begitulah istilah di dunia perbengkelan untuk alur/corak ban). Karena alur/corak ban inilah yang menentukan ban tersebut masih aman atau perlu diganti. Ban gundul (ban yang sudah hilang alur/coraknya) sangat berisiko mengalami selip, apalagi pada cuaca di sebagian besar daerah di Indonesia yang terus-menerus mengalami hujan. Jika ban anda sudah gundul, segeralah pergi ke toko/bengkel ban untuk membeli yang baru.

Saya ada beberapa tips bagi yang akan membeli ban baru (sebenarnya adalah tips dari bapak saya):

• Usahakan mengganti ban anda secara bersamaan, atau membelinya sepaket. Maksudnya, anda membeli sejumlah 5 ban sekaligus bersamaan (sudah termasuk ban cadangan) dengan merk yang sama. Karena masing-masing merk ban memiliki ketebalan dan beberapa karakteristik lainnya yang berbeda-beda (sesuaikanlah dengan kebutuhan). Memang terkadang membeli ban sejumlah 5 sekaligus terasa berat, tetapi dijamin anda akan merasakan kenikmatan berkendara yang terpuaskan. J

Pengalaman pribadi: saya pernah membeli ban mobil 1 per 1, merknya pun berbeda. Alhasil, kekenyalan ban berbeda, ketebalan ban tidak rata, ada yang masih tebal sementara lainnya sudah tipis. Ibarat kaki orang yang panjang sebelah. Sigh.

• Sesuikanlah dengan ukuran standar pabrik, dengan alasan sudah dilakukan berbagai penelitian. Tidak jarang beberapa orang ingin terlihat lebih ini dan itu menggunakan ban lebih besar atau lebih kecil dari ukuran yang seharusnya. Penambahan/pengurangan ukuran ban mempengaruhi beban mobil. Selain itu juga berpengaruh pada banyaknya bidang kontak yang nempel di aspal.

Kalo masih tetap ingin menggunakan ban diluar ukuran standar pabrik, saran saya: berkonsultasilah dengan para ahli ban.

• Selagi masih baru, gantilah ban belakang dengan ban cadangan setiap 3 bulan sekali (atau kalo ingin repot bisa dilakukan setiap hari. Hehe.). Selain siswa di sekolah dan pegawai di pabrik, ban juga membutuhkan rotasi à rotasi ban. Ini bertujuan untuk menjaga ketebalan ban agar tetap sama.

Untuk perawatan ban sehari-hari, tipsnya sebagai berikut:

• Sesuaikanlah tekanan angin ban depan dan ban belakang dengan ketentuan dari pabriknya. Pada beberapa mobil modern, ketentuan tersebut tercantum pada pintu pengemudi mobil. Jika tidak ada, konsultasikan kepada para ahli ban atau googling di internet. J Oleh karena itu, periksalah tekanan angin ban anda secara rutin. (frekuensi waktunya silahkan ditentukan sendiri)

Ban kempes mempengaruhi laju kendaraan karena peforma mesin menjadi bertambah. Hal tersebut berpengaruh pada konsumsi BBM.

• Berkemudilah dengan wajar. Hindari mengebut, karena kecepatan tinggi akan mempercepat ban menjadi aus. Selain itu, hindarilah mengerem secara mendadak.
• Hindarilah lubang-lubang di jalan. :P
• Pastikan penutup pentil pada tempatnya, karena dapat menyebabkan kebocoran udara.
• Memeriksa keseimbangan ban mobil secara berkala, lakukan spooring and balancing secara periodik