University labs hit by funding cuts

The reduction in government funding for the university has made academics and staff feel like they have been shorn of their running shoes half way through a race, said the dean of the Faculty of Engineering while he was opening an exhibition of engineering projects by final year B.Eng (Hons) students.

Maurice Grech described the clipping of the budget as ill-timed considering the steep increase in the student population and the number of projects in the pipeline.

"We have major difficulties keeping the laboratories open. We have no money for purchasing consumables, and for paying software licences. As things stand, it is practically impossible to maintain and repair plant and equipment," Professor Grech held.

Advocating greater cooperation between the Faculty of Engineering and industry, Prof. Grech noted that such collaboration provided industry with the latest technologies and facilities.

The dean said the faculty was fully equipped with plant and facilities worth millions of liri, apart from trained staff and experts in various fields. Duplicating facilities in a country the size of Malta defied business sense.

"The faculty is eager to offer its services to a wider array of industrial organisations, thus making fuller use of its plant and human resources.

"We sincerely hope that this collaboration will continue to expand in order to generate more joint projects. Several joint projects had been awaiting government funding for the past two years. This is extremely embarrassing, particularly since local and foreign companies and research institutions had already committed funding for the projects."

The projects by the final year students, 55 in all, reflect the areas of development and research of the academic staff.

"The students take on their tutors' proposals, put in a lot of hard work and add a good measure of enthusiasm and ingenuity to complete the projects," Prof. Grech said.

Despite the lack of funding from the government, the staff at the faculty have succeeded in tapping funds from the EU and other sources. The six departments within the faculty have taken part, with great success, in an impressive number of projects, among them Marie Curie, Leonardo da Vinci and FP6.

"Even if new to the game called Europe and even if still rather unfamiliar with the rules, the Faculty of Engineering has proven itself where it matters," Prof. Grech said.

University rector Roger Ellul Micallef highlighted the fact that external examiners remarked year in year out on the high level of final year projects and the engineering courses in general.

Many of the engineering graduates over the past decades have distinguished themselves when furthering their studies in foreign seats of learning, Prof. Ellul Micallef said.