Also present on this agenda, was the Director General of Higher Education, Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology, Prof. Ir. Nizam, M.Sc., DIC, Ph.D., IPU, ASEAN.Eng., who was then welcomed by the Head of the Microelectronics Center of the Institut Teknologi Bandung (ITB), Ir. Adi Indrayanto, M.Sc., Ph.D.

The development of the Merah Putih Laptop is currently reaching the assembly process of the motherboard. The Merah Putih laptop is one of the Indonesian Government’s efforts to increase the Domestic Component Level (DCL).

"Since 2021, the government has been trying to proclaim education programs, especially in terms of the procurement of laptops for primary and secondary schools. As we know, laptops are one of the essentials needed to assist education," said Adi.

The main purpose of developing the Merah Putih Laptop aside from increasing the DCL, is to reduce dependence on foreign laptop imports to support the progress of the domestic Technology and Information (ICT) industry in Indonesia.

A consortium with 5 university members is responsible for the development of the Merah Putih Laptop, including Institut Teknologi Bandung (ITB), University of Indonesia (UI), Gadjah Mada University (UGM), Sepuluh November Institute of Technology (ITS) and Telkom University (Tel-U). This consortium collaborates with domestic ICT industries to design and produce Merah Putih Laptop that suits the academic necessities in Indonesia.

As an information, the Merah Putih Laptop is currently undergoing the motherboard manufacturing process.

Motherboards of the Merah Putih Laptop are assembled at the Printed Circuit Board + Assembly (PCBA) factory at PT XACTI, located in Depok City, West Java. PT XACTI is one of the industries specializing in PCBA assembly which is equipped with Surface Mount Technology (SMT) machines.

The assembly process includes the installation of various components, such as connectors and chips that are processed separately. After the components are installed, the motherboard will undergo a series of automatic and manual tests to ensure its function and stability. This includes electrical circuit testing, relationships between components testing, and system stability testing.

Even though it uses locally made components, the development of the Merah Putih Laptop still adapts to the latest technology. "Hopefully with locally made components, the DCL value will automatically increase. This is one of ITB's contributions to Indonesia, especially in the field of IT device technology industry," said Dr.Eng. Ir. Sarwono Sutikno from the Electronics Research Group from the School of Electrical Engineering and Informatics (SEEI) ITB.

On the other hand, Directorate General of Higher Education, Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology, Prof. Ir. Nizam, M.Sc., DIC, Ph.D., IPU, ASEAN.Eng., said the Merah Putih Laptop program has a great potential to enhance technology and education in Indonesia.

"We also encourage the industry to further develop TKDN using products and cooperation with local universities. One of them is through this Merah Putih Laptop," he said.

According to him, universities play an important role in the industry, in which they provide resources, and networks, collaborating and encouraging technology innovation through the Merah Putih Laptop.

"To make sure our products can compete at the international level, there needs to be an ecosystem, good governance, and collaboration from the government, universities, as well as the community, so that it can become an added value for this nation," he said.

Reporter: Anggun Nindita
Translator: Kezia Hosana