BRIEF HISTORY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF APPLIED SCIENCES, PNG UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY, LAE

David Timi
Lecturer, Department of Applied Sciences, PNG University of Technology, Lae 411

The University in Brief

Briefly, PNG University of Technology was established on 26th of May 1965 by an Act of House of Assembly under the name “Papua New Guinea Institute of Higher Technical Education”. It was situated on a piece of land that is now the Administrative College in Port Moresby.

However, according to Dr. John A. Sandover (First VC), the Institute was moved over to Lae for some political reasons. In 1967, it got established in Lae and first classes were held in the Lae Show Ground under tents and temporary buildings. Students were also accommodated there until June 1968 when they were moved into the current University campus as accommodations were made available.

The Institution had its name changed two different times. In March 1970, the name “PNG Institute of Higher Technical Education” was changed to “Papua New Guinea Institute of Technology” and in 1973 when the Institute was accorded its University status; the name was changed again to now “Papua New Guinea University of Technology”.

First courses offered then were Civil Engineering and Surveying (1967) followed by School of Accounting & Business Studies and Department of Mathematics (1968); Electrical and Mechanical Engineering Departments (1969) and Architecture (1970).

The Department of Applied Sciences

In 1973, after approval from the Governing Council the Chemical Technology Program was established as a degree course by the University. It was seen at the time by the University to educate and train professional people needed in industries that were inclined to involve Applied Chemistry – industries such as Mineral Processing, Food Technology, various aspects of Timber Technology and Brewing. Mineral Processing and Food Technology options were then approved for the degree courses.

When first established, Department of Applied Sciences was known as “Department of Chemical Technology”. First student intake was in 1974 – preliminary year. The actual degree program started in 1975. That was when first grade 12 students from National High Schools started to enroll into the Department programs.

 At the time of its inception, the Department of Chemical Technology comprised of Food Technology and Mineral Processing programs. The Applied Chemistry section was introduced in 1981 by Mr. John Mc Kenna after approval by the University Council. The Applied Chemistry Course was to meet industrial needs such as Quality Control, Environment Monitoring etc. Prior to this there were a lot of fly in/fly out of respective professionals mainly from Australia and it was decided then, those professionals in Analytical Chemistry are trained locally. At that time, office rooms, 112,113 and 114 were constructed from what was just open space of the current building.

First graduates of Food Technology and Mineral Processing passed out in 1978 that included Mrs. Rag Gubag-Sipou (Food Technology) while in 1984, the first batch of Applied Chemistry students graduated including Dr. Anthony Harakuwe. Both are now still serving the Department as academics. Dr. Harakuwe (PhD, University of Tasmania) went on to be the first Papua New Guinean PhD holder in the Department as well as Unitech. Additionally, according to the British Embassy record, he was the first from PNG to have won an Association of Commonwealth Universities Fellowship/Visiting Lecturer Award in 2002. Mrs Rag Sipou became the first Papua New Guinean female graduate in the Department and when she joined the Department in 1981, she became the first female academic in the Department as well as the University.

First Head of Department was Professor David Dale (PhD). Before moving to the current site, part of the top floor of the now SANDOVER BUILDING of PNG University of Technology housed the then Department of Chemical Technology. The current building housing the Department was completed in late 1974 and occupied before the degree programs started in 1975.  Due to financial constraints, office spaces were limited and fittings of some laboratories were not put in place including food processing laboratory. These were completed at later dates as financial aids were made available.

External Course Consultant

In October 1974, Professor L.E. Smythe of the University of New South Wales was engaged as the External Course Consultant to the Department.  He visited the University and had valuable input in the structure of the courses, external studies, research & development work and the operation of the Analysis Laboratory.

Pilot Plant

In 1983, the Pilot Plant (Food Processing Laboratory) was constructed, equipped and commissioned in 1984 under a joint arrangement between the Department of Applied Sciences and Department of Primary Industry (DPI) now Department of Agriculture and Livestock (DAL). Before the inclusion of the Pilot Plant, course component of Food Technology was mainly on Food Science that included topics such as Food Chemistry and Food Microbiology. Subjects in Food Processing and Engineering were taught after the commissioning of the Pilot Plant in 1984. Such course variation was evident from the skills shown by the graduates of Food technology within the two time periods.     

Change of Name

The change of name took place in 1990 from Department of Chemical Technology to now the Department of Applied Sciences. The name change took placed as a result of the transfer of the Mineral Processing section to the then newly established Department of Mining Engineering and the inclusion of the Department of Applied Physics under the Department of Applied Sciences. So in 1990, the Department of Applied Sciences included Food Technology, Applied Chemistry and Applied Physics.

Merging of the Applied Physics with Applied Sciences  

This arrangement with the Department of Applied Physics was only for one year (1990) before the Applied Physics was separated again as it is now. At that time, Department of Applied Physics was not running a Degree Program and was seen only as a service Department. Head of Department of Applied Sciences, Associate Prof. Geoff LeGrys proposed the merging of Applied Physics with the Department. The concept was trialed for one year before it was abandoned - reason being in terms of staff shortage on either side, neither is going to contribute staff to alleviate the problem. Couple with long distance, the merging was seen pointless after one year. Since then, the Department of Applied Sciences has consisted only of Food Technology and Applied Chemistry sections.

Change in First Year Foundation Program

From the earlier years up to 1989 (including Mineral Processing), and further up until 1993 (for Food Technology & Applied Chemistry) students took two common years before streaming into either Food Technology, Mineral processing or Applied Chemistry. First year was a common Science Foundation Year that also included Agriculture and Forestry Departments.  The second was the Department Common Year. Choice of streaming into any one of the three programs was left for a student to decide. It was in 1994 onwards, that students came in for one common year before branching into Food Technology or Applied Chemistry. By then, the Common Science Foundation Year was already abolished.  

National Analysis Testing & Services Laboratory

National Analysis Testing & Services Laboratory (NATSL) was formerly known as National Analysis Laboratory (NAL). It was part of the Department of Applied Science up until   December, 1994, when it was separated from the Department and was placed under the management of Unitech Development and Consultancy (UDC). NAL then had its beginning in 1967 at the Lae Show Ground as a different entity before the inception of the Department of Applied Sciences. When it was moved into Unitech, it came under the Department. Beside NAL, The Department of Applied Sciences also played a role in the establishment of the Environment Research and Management Center (ERMC).

National Food Testing & Monitoring Center

Currently, as of 2012, the National Fisheries Authority (NFA) of PNG together with the Department of Applied Sciences are engaged in establishing a food monitoring center at Unitech. This is to be known as the National Food Testing & Monitoring Center (NFTMC). The need for such a center was recognized after a series of industrial visits and consultation with the National Fisheries Authority and Fish Processing Industries by the staff of the Food Technology Section. The center once completed will monitor histamine, toxins and heavy metal contents of mainly fish products.

PNG is said to play a major role in the global tuna industry in the region. Lae and Madang are two coastal centers selected by the National Government to host this hive of activity. As such, it was agreed that the center to monitor fish quality be established here in Lae and the Department of Applied Sciences on technical grounds was selected by NFA to run and manage the Center. Work on it is now steadily in progress and is expected to come to an end by the end of the 2015 academic year.

Department Staff

1.0 Heads of Department

The Department has had ten Heads of Department (HODs) serving either as substantive or as Acting HOD. Following are the names of the different HODs/Acting HODs in the chronological order they served the Department.

  • Prof. David Dale (PhD)
  • Prof. Don Steward (PhD)
  • Associate Prof. Ken Gawne
  • Associate Prof. Geoff LeGrys
  • Associate Prof. John Willet (PhD) (Acting Head)
  • Mr. Michael Kiap (Acting Head)
  • Prof. M.R. Khan (PhD)
  • Prof. Samson Akoitai (PhD) (Acting Head)
  • Dr. Betty Amoa (Acting Head)
  • Prof. Samson Akoitai (PhD) (Acting Head; then Head)
  • Associate Prof. J. Gopalakrishnan (PhD) (Acting Head; then Head)

 

2.0 Department Staff of 2015

Food Technology - There are a total of 7 Academic Staffs comprising of 3 males and 4 females colleagues. One of the female staff holds a PhD. while the rest have Masters Degrees and all are Papua New Guineans. Of the support staff, there are 4 male Technical Officers.

Applied Chemistry – There are 7 Academic Staffs of whom one is a female colleague. Three of these hold PhD., two MPhil. and one BACH Degree.  Two of the PhD. holders are Associate Professors and both are expatriate staffs. The section has 4 male Technical Officers as well as 3 male and 1 female Part-time Staff (Practical Tutors).

The Department further has one Laboratory Manageress, two Office Secretaries and two Janitors. In November 2014, one of the longest serving Executive Secretary of the Department Mrs. Elsie Mobiha, while on duty, passed away.

Students from Pacific Nations

In earlier years, students from the Pacific Island Nations did undertake studies in the Department of Applied Sciences. Food Technology program is the only one of its kind in the Pacific apart from Australia and New Zealand. As such, any Australia or New Zealand Government sponsored Pacific students were directed this way. Because of continuous student unrest these Pacific Students (apart from Solomon Islands & Vanuatu) preferred other peaceful study destinations. 

Department Graduates

The Department over the years has produced graduates in Mineral Processing (up to 1989), Food Technology and Applied Chemistry (Table 1). These graduates are serving the nation in both public and private sectors in various capacities. Some of these graduates are currently serving the Department and few other sections of the University. Additionally, some graduates in both Food and Applied Chemistry have secured jobs overseas and are serving abroad.

Table 1:  Total Number of Graduates per Program since Inception to the Year 2014.          

 

Mineral Processing

Food Technology

Applied Chemistry

Department Total

No.

34

330

334

698

Post Graduate (PG) Program

In addition to the undergraduate programs, the Department also conducts research based PG programs (MPhil./PhD) depending on availability of resources. In 1988, the University gave approval for a one year Post Graduate Diploma program to be run at the Department and in 1989 first and only student graduated from the Diploma program.

Under Graduate Programs

The Department runs a four years Under Graduate Programs in both Food Technology and Applied Chemistry.

Future Vision

Department vision statement reads -

“To become a quality Department that produces intellectual manpower for Papua New Guinea’s development and sustenance”.

In line with the vision statement above, the Department has formed an Industrial Advisory Committee to consult with relevant Industries and review the existing curriculum and advice on possible change to meet current and future industrial needs.