The speakers of the webinar were the following: Amalia Adininggar Widyasanti, Ph.D. (Economy Deputy of the Ministry of National Development Planning of the Republic of Indonesia), Ir. Setyo Yanus Sasongko (Director of AIMTOPINDO Nuansa Kimia and Head of Fundraising of IATK ITB), and Dr. Ir. Tatang Hernas Soerawidjaja (Head of Indonesia Bioenergy Association and chemical engineering professor in ITB).

The first session was led by Amalia, who discussed the role of engineers in Indonesia’s future economy.

Amalia explained the many issues faced by Indonesia's economic sector. “Due to the pandemic, Indonesia has a low level of innovation and slow development. In terms of progress, our country might be surpassed by Vietnam in 2035,” Amalia described.

However, Indonesia is gifted with multitudes of opportunities to solve these issues. One of them is the Industrial Revolution 4.0. “The growth of Industry 4.0 is a huge prospect for Indonesian engineers to contribute to their country,” Amalia stated. On the other hand, the green economy and circular bioeconomy can be a huge opportunity for more efficient energy utilization in the future. Engineers are expected to develop creative, innovative breakthroughs that are responsive to changes.

As the next speaker, Dr. Tatang declared that a nation’s ability to innovate is the key to competing globally. He believed that Indonesia needs resourceful, progressive, and innovative graduates of chemical-processing engineering to enter the competition.

In spite of the positive outlook, Indonesia’s degree of innovation and creativity is still relatively low. “Indonesia is stuck in the bottom compared to other ASEAN countries despite having an abundance of natural resources,” Dr. Tatang affirmed. The situation is worsened with the reality that the majority of Indonesians follow a fixed mindset instead of a growth mindset.

The percentage of entrepreneurs in Indonesia is low compared to other countries like Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, South Korea, and the US. Moreover, most Indonesians who finished college have little to no interest in entrepreneurship. If most businessmen are only taught until high-school, how will industries support Indonesia to become a technology and knowledge-based society with a prospering economy?

Dr. Tatang emphasized the importance of innovation for engineering graduates and chemical-processing engineers. “Chemical-processing engineers are the key human resource for a better chemical-processing industry. The industry itself elevates the value of natural wealth via chemical processing.”
The discussion continued with Ir. Setyo, who delivered his topic about the strategies implemented in the development of technology. An example he mentioned is the Activated Carbon Plant at AIMTOPINDO Nuansa Kimia, which is the oldest unit owned by PT ANK since 1996.

Ir. Setyo illustrated the procedures in making a technology development concept, in which finding the existing challenges is done first. Engineers must be able to turn these challenges into opportunities that have high values. Next, engineers conduct studies to deepen their understanding and devise the subsequent steps in innovation.

Then, basic research is performed to get an idea of what will be analyzed in the future, followed by pilot plant and factory simulation. After that, a field trial is executed. The final procedure is to perform engineering procurement, construction, and implementation. Throughout the process, its operation and maintenance should be constantly checked. Furthermore, entrepreneurs and engineers can collaborate with chemical engineering professors to achieve the best result.

Reporter: Yoel Enrico Meiliano (Teknik Pangan, 2020)
Translator: Ruth Nathania (Teknik Lingkungan, 2019)