For his outstanding achievements in geographic information science, remote sensing, urban informatics and smart cities, Prof. John Shi, Head of the Department of Land Surveying and Geo-Informatics (LSGI), has been elected to be an academician of the International Eurasian Academy of Sciences (IEAS), an organization established in 1996 to integrate the sciences, technology, and the economy for a harmonious society. Joining a worldwide community of renowned scientists and experts from the natural sciences, engineering, and social sciences, he will be honoured in a ceremony scheduled for 16 November in Beijing at the China Science Center of IEAS.

2 academics of the Faculty of Construction and Environment (FCE) have recently been selected for the Faculty Awards for Outstanding Performance/ Achievement 2018/19. Prof. Asif Usmani, Head of the Department of Building Services Engineering (BSE), was rewarded for his compelling record in getting a grant of more than HK$33 million in the 9th round of the RGC Theme-based Research Scheme at his first attempt, while his colleague Dr Joseph Lai was rewarded for his outstanding teaching. They will each receive a cash prize of $10,000. They will also be honoured at the Faculty Congregation and Prize Presentation Ceremony in November 2019.

The annual Faculty Awards were established to motivate staff members to excel in their work performance and give recognition to those with distinguished achievements in the categories of Teaching, Research and Scholarly Activities, and Services.

The following academics have been awarded funding from the FCE Start-up Fund for new recruits:

The province of Guangdong has plans to establish a hub for rail transit in Jiangmen. Spanning 6,132 acres, the hub will serve as a world-class industrial base for rail transport. Prof. Yiqing Ni of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) has been engaging in some pioneering studies with respect to the safety, punctuality, and comfort of rail transport. The government of Hong Kong has provided various funding support for such research. To promote the international application of rail research in the Greater Bay Area, his team has applied to set up a joint research centre for intelligent rail transport.

A signing ceremony for a Joint Low-voltage Innovation Laboratory between the Futian Power Supply Bureau (FPSB) and PolyU was held on 22 August 2019 in Shenzhen. Addressing local concerns for electricity safety and disaster prevention in electricity distribution and utilization, the laboratory will focus research on the key technologies of safety and reliability in the low-voltage power grid. Representing FPSB was its Director, Mr Linfu Jiang, who introduced the laboratory and its future plans at the signing ceremony. As a base for scientific research, product development, and development of industry standards, the laboratory will serve as a model of collaboration between Hong Kong and Shenzhen in production, education, and research.

Representing PolyU was Prof. Yaping Du of the Department of Building Services Engineering (BSE), who shared the experience and practice of low-voltage electrical installations in Hong Kong. He also talked about the future application of Internet of Things (IoT) in electricity safety and disaster prevention for the low-voltage power grid. In attendance were his colleague Prof. Mingli Chen and representatives from FPSB as well as the Shenzhen Power Supply Bureau, which awarded RMB2,750,000 for Prof. Du to undertake the initial phase of the lab development in July 2019.

At the signing ceremony

From 9 to 12 September 2019, the 13th International Conference of the Eastern Asia Society for Transportation Studies was held in Sri Lanka with a theme of redesigning transport and logistics for the rise of Asia. More than 500 researchers and academics were in attendance. Prof. William Lam of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) gave a keynote address on pedestrian planning in Hong Kong. He also received the Yasoshima Yoshinosuke Prize for a paper coauthored with his colleague Prof. Agachai Sumalee, CEE PhD students Mr Khoa Dang Vo and Ms Kun Qian. The paper was entitled “Modeling Joint Activity-Travel Patterns in Pedestrian Networks with Possibility of Using Wi-Fi Data.” The prize recognizes academic and/or practical contributions for realizing better mobility in East Asia and the world. It is given to the best paper presented at the conference.

A former Research Assistant Professor (RAP) of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE), Dr Zhe Wang, was appointed Assistant Professor of Atmospheric Chemistry in the Division of Environment and Sustainability of the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST). He began his new job there in September 2019. Prior to that, he was a RAP at PolyU for 5 years, receiving a Dean’s Award for Outstanding Achievement in Research Funding in 2017.

A first-year research postgraduate student from Pakistan, Mr Muhammad Tauseef Nasir, has been awarded the Belt and Road Scholarship from the Education Bureau of the Hong Kong Government to continue his studies in the Department of Building Services Engineering. Mr Nasir has a BSc in mechanical engineering from the Ghulam Ishaq Khan Institute of Engineering Sciences and Technology in Pakistan and an MSc in the same field from Pusan National University in South Korea.

At an annual dinner on 6 September 2019, 3 graduates of the Faculty of Construction and Environment (FCE) joined the ranks of PolyU’s alumni ambassadors to represent their alma mater in various functions and activities. 2 of them just graduated this year: Fanny Fung (BSc in Environment & Sustainable Development) and Lai Ting Lam (BSc in Property Management), while the third one, Paul Tsui, graduated earlier with a Higher Diploma in Land Surveying. Pleased to have the opportunity to support their alma mater, they joined the following alumni ambassadors from FCE who have contributed actively to university initiatives and alumni events:

• Hau Yin Chau (BSc (Hons) in Geomatics (Utility Management & Surveying)
• Vivian Cheng (BSc (Hons) in Property Management)
• Ir Johnny Fan (Higher Diploma in Structural Engineering)
• Alex Fung (BEng (Hons) in Building Services Engineering)
• George Fung (BEng (Hons) in Civil Engineering)
• Robert Lam (BSc (Hons) in Surveying)
• Karen Mak (BSc (Hons) in Property Management)
• Lok Hei Wong (BSc (Hons) in Surveying)

Newly appointed alumni ambassadors of PolyU