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News Year 2023

NSTDA and the National Health Security Office (NHSO) entered an MOU to create innovations for the universal health coverage (UHC) – Thailand’s tax-financed scheme that provides essential health services at all life stages. In its initial stage, the collaboration will focus on 5 issues: 1) e-claim gateway, 2) complaint management system (Traffy Fondue) and matching medical needs to hospitals, 3) cloud computing design, 4) an application of big data & AI and dashboard for administrative management, 5) a roadmap for the research and development of medical devices and artificial organs covered by UHC.

On 23 March 2023, NSTDA hosted an event launching Uplift Thai’s Service Robots and Internet of Things (IoT) to ASEAN. The project - a cooperation between the Broadcasting and Telecommunications Research and Development Fund for Public Interest of NBTC, Software Park Thailand of NSTDA, Electrical and Electronic Products Testing Center (PTEC) of NSTDA, and Software Quality Testing Laboratory (SQUAT) of NECTEC - aims at building capacity of Thai robotic and IoT industries.

The price of pork in Thailand has been escalating since 2021 due to the outbreaks of African swine fever (ASF). Though humans are not susceptible, the disease is usually deadly for pigs and therefore has serious socio-economic impacts. The outbreaks significantly reduce the domestic pork supply, resulting in the price hike.

On 10 March 2023, NSTDA and the Digital Economy Promotion Agency (depa) teamed up to launch Thailand Science Park & depa Acceleration Center, or TD-X Center.  The celebration was attended by executives of both organizations, including NSTDA President Prof. Dr. Sukit Limpijumnong, depa President Assist. Prof. Dr. Nuttapon Nimmanphatcharin, depa Senior Executive Vice President Mr. Chatchai Khunpitiluck, depa Executive Vice President Dr. Chinawut Chinaprayoon, NSTDA Executive Vice President Dr. Janekrishna Kanatharana, and NSTDA Vice President Asst. Prof. Dr. Weerachai Arjharn.

NSTDA celebrated the opening of BIOTEC Bioprocessing Facility on 8 March 2023 at Thailand Science Park. BIOTEC Bioprocessing Facility, or BBF, is a key infrastructure for microbial utilization research. It is a pilot-scale production infrastructure to assess the feasibility of the technology, ensuring smooth transition from lab-scale to industrial scale. The facility is designed to comply with international standards, including Codex Good Hygiene Practices (GHPs) and the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP), and thereby enabling BBF to perform joint research with and provide services to its industry partners. Overall, BBF will accelerate the commercialization of microbial research and drive the growth of the Bio-Circular-Green Economy (BCG).

In the past four years, Thai orchid farms have been severely hit by the outbreak of beet armyworm. Its resistance to pesticides causes damages to the tune of millions of baht.  Thanks to an NPV product developed by BIOTEC-NSTDA, several orchid farms have recently been saved.

On 14 February 2023, an agreement signing ceremony was held between NSTDA, the Department of Rail Transport and the Rail Technology Research and Development Agency to promote research, standard development and quality testing of rail parts and components. The signing was executed by Prof. Dr. Sukit Limpijumnong, NSTDA President, Dr. Pichet Kunadhamraks, Rail Transport Department Director General, and Dr. Santi Charoenpornpattana, President of Rail Technology Research and Development Agency.

More than 95% of dairy farms in Thailand house cows in tie stall barns, in which each animal is tied up in a stall for resting, feeding, milking, and watering. Typical stall barns have concrete floor for easy maintenance and cleaning. However, concrete flooring can negatively affect cow health. Hard and abrasive concrete floors can lead to the development of leg fatigue and lameness due to increased pressure on cow's legs and other diseases that affect milk production. Accumulation of moisture due to frequent washing also promotes algal growth on the concrete floor, resulting in a slippery surface and thus increasing risk of slip and fall injuries. Cows suffering acute injuries have low milk production and therefore are prematurely slaughtered.

On 4 February 2023, HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn graciously presided over an opening ceremony of Thailand Inventors’ Day 2023 - an event hosted by the National Research Council of Thailand to celebrate and promote research and invention. During the event, an award presentation ceremony was held for recipients of NRCT Awards 2023 in various categories.

On 7 February 2023, NSTDA Executive Vice President Dr. Janekrishna Kanatharana welcomed the delegation of the Department of Entrepreneurship and Innovative Development of the city of Moscow to the Eastern Economic Corridor of Innovation (EECi) in Wangchan Valley, Rayong. The delegation was led by the department head Mr. Alexey Anatolievich Fursin. The department is responsible for applying innovation to promote SMEs, develop human resource capacity and strengthen infrastructure.

On 26 January 2023, NSTDA and Prachinburi Provincial Administrative Organization announced a collaboration on digital healthcare platform. Under this collaboration, A-MED Home Ward, developed by NSTDA, will be implemented to provide home-based healthcare for citizens of Prachinburi. The pilot project will be launched in sub-district health promoting hospitals located in Ban Sang, Si Mahosot and Si Maha Phot districts.

NANOTEC-NSTDA has developed a nano coating for PV panels with a property to reduce deposition of dust and water. It is the first product launched by Nano Coating Tech, a new NSTDA startup company.

Solar photovoltaic (PV) systems generate electricity from sunlight, thus providing sustainable and clean energy. In Thailand, the PV systems should reach their highest performance during the dry season, from November to April, allowing users to recover their investment. However, during this period, Thailand is usually hit with massive particulate matters suspended in the air. This air pollution can reduce the PV performance by 6-8% over the course of two months. Regular cleaning can resolve this problem but also increases the operation cost substantially if serviced by licensed operators, or causes damages to the system due to inexperienced cleaners.

Glutinous rice is widely grown in the north and northeast of Thailand as a main staple food. It is therefore considered culturally vital to the life of people in the north and northeast. Despite its significant economic and social impact, glutinous rice farmers are faced with low earnings due to production loss and market instability. To ease the pain of glutinous rice growers, BCG-NAGA Belt Road project was initiated to introduce proper technologies and innovations to help farmers reduce production cost, improve productivity, and cut greenhouse gas emissions. One of the promising, yet simple technology is the incorporation of azolla in rice cultivation.

An agreement signing between NSTDA and Energy Absolute Public Company Limited (EA) took place on 23 January 2023 at Thailand Science Park.  The agreement aims to support collaboration in industrial research to underpin the Bio-Circular-Green Economy (BCG) model. Guests of honor at the ceremony included Prof. Dr. Anek Laothamatas, Minister of Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation (MHESI) and MHESI Permanent Secretary Prof. Sirirurg Songsivilai, M.D.

Manganese ion (Mn2+) is an essential element for humans. However, if present at high levels, it can impart undesirable taste and color to water, and have neurological effects in children. To address this problem, NANOTEC-NSTDA developed Mn Sense, a test kit for the determination of Mn2+ in water samples.

This development is part of a project to develop tools for chemical risk assessment of water supply. The project was funded by the National Research Council of Thailand (NRCT), with the Provincial Waterworks Authority (PWA) providing support on field testing.

Two Thai students recently travelled to Tsukuba Space Centre in Japan to witness the live broadcast of the experiment performed by Japanese astronauts based on their proposed experiments. Ms. Jinna Waiwattana from Mahidol Wittayanusorn School and Ms. Intirapon Chaodee from Thammasat University were among students from the Asia-Pacific region whose proposals were selected for Asian Try Zero-G 2022.

French Ambassador to Thailand, His Excellency Thierry Mathou paid a visit to NSTDA Headquarters at Thailand Science Park on 19 January 2023. He was accompanied by Dr. Xavier Grosmaitre, Attaché for Scientific and Higher Education Cooperation, Ms. Wanpen Sirapat, Scholarship Coordinator, and Ms. Jutaporn Kanjanakuha, Assistant of the Attaché for Scientific and Higher Education Cooperation.

“NSTDA Meets the Press” event was held on 18 January 2023 for NSTDA President Prof. Dr. Sukit Limpijumnong to announce NSTDA 6.0 policy. Prof. Sukit took the helm of NSTDA in August of last year, becoming the 6th person to lead the premier scientific organization. He set a vision for NSTDA to “function as the national powerhouse in science, technology, and innovation (STI) for the government, private and public sectors to improve and strengthen research and innovation ecosystem that can eradicate major obstacles leading to a great leap in nation development”.

There are a myriad of building materials currently available on the market, including materials derived from natural resources and waste. To help consumers make conscious decisions by choosing materials that are cost effective and environmentally friendly, the Technology and Informatics Institute for Sustainability (TIIS) of MTEC-NSTDA has developed a tool to determine environmental impact and material circularity indicator (MCI) of building materials according to the Bio-Circular-Green Economy (BCG) model. The data are presented in a 3D simulation model that is convenient to use and simple to understand. The project was funded by the Program Management Unit for Competitiveness (PMUC).

NSTDA in collaboration with the Healthcare Accreditation Institute (Public Organization), or HAI, organized 2P Safety Tech Hackathon Camp on 11-13 January 2023. The camp is a kick-off event for 2P Safety Tech and attended by members of 3P Safety Hospital, previous 2P Safety Tech participants, and hospitals with keen interest to develop and employ technology and innovation to enhance patient and personnel safety (2P Safety).

Every year, significant amount of shell waste is generated by food and jewelry industries. As shells are composed of 95% calcium carbonate, this waste represents an interesting source of calcium carbonate that has a wide range of industrial applications.

A researcher of NANOTEC-NSTDA has developed a low-energy, green process to transform shell waste into bio-calcium carbonate for cosmeceutical application, with research funding obtained from the National Research Council of Thailand (NRCT).