The Programme Management Unit for Competitiveness (PMUC), a research funding unit, plans to showcase research work that supports the Thai economy and the country’s competitiveness at a two-day event later this month to mark four years of funding worth 7 billion baht.
Founded under the Office of National Higher Education Science Research and Innovation Policy Council in 2019, PMUC is preparing to organise the 2023 Research for Competitiveness event on April 26-27 to feature the outcomes of research projects across the bio-, circular and green (BCG) business sectors.
BCG, which was declared as a national agenda item by the Prayut Chan-o-cha government, promotes technology that can add value to products and reduce the impact from production processes on the environment.
The event is set to be held at Queen Sirikit National Convention Center.
“Researchers from academic institutions as well as the state and private sectors will join the event through which they can forge new cooperation,” said Siree Chaiseri, director of the PMUC.
Projects to be selected for the show include smart agriculture, modern healthcare and tourism, energy and biochemical development, as well as robotics, artificial intelligence (AI) and digital technology.
Among the highlights is the use of AI to better manage dairy businesses and improve productivity.
The project, led by Chaidet Inchaisri, an associate professor at Chulalongkorn University’s Faculty of Veterinary Science, applied algorithm know-how to design software that helps dairy farmers track the behaviour of their cattle.
A sensor is attached to each cow which monitors its daily routine.
According to the research team, this allows farm owners to predict animal behaviour in order to discover whether or not they are healthy as well as plan for artificial insemination and calving dates.
With the help of AI, operators will have more time to conduct marketing for dairy products and this would consequently generate more revenue.
The researchers behind the project have already applied for a patent for the tech they created.
The PMUC supports Panus Assembly, a company that plans to develop electric vehicles (EV) for commercial purposes such as electric buses and trucks.
“EV development is an S-curve project that can bring benefits to various sectors, ranging from academic and industrial to commercial sectors,” said Ms Siree.
Since its establishment four years ago, the PMUC has funded a total of 907 research projects. It provides financial support to 200-300 projects per year.