(9/9) Semarang – Universitas Diponegoro cooperated with PT Toyota Motor Manufacturing Indonesia (TMMIN) through the Link and Match Program for Higher Education and Industry. The signing of MoU was held in the 4th Floor Theater Room, Dean Building, Faculty of Engineering, Undip. Present at this event Undip Chancellor, Prof. Dr. Yos Johan Utama and the Vice Chancellor for Research and Innovation Prof. Ambariyanto, Dean of the Faculty of Engineering Prof. Ir. Moch. Agung Wibowo, TMMIN President Director Warih Andang Tjahjono and Director of Corporate Affairs Bob Azam and Central Java Provincial Government Representative Muhammad Arif Sambodo, M.Sc.

The first remark was delivered by the Dean of the Faculty of Engineering, in his speech, “he feels grateful to be able to work with a giant automotive company such as Toyota which is an outstanding first step to bridge the needs of the industrial world for the expertise of Higher Education graduates. He added that so far there has been a gap between the speed of industrial innovation and education with which industry is always up-to-date with modernization, while education tends to be slow and maintains a conservative curriculum. Therefore, there must be a link and match to synchronize these two things so that they can push the wheels of the Indonesian economy in the 4.0 era more significantly.

Similarly, with the Dean of FT, the Undip Chancellor also welcomed the initiation of this collaboration. He explained that Universities must have a broad impact on community life, one of which was committing the service by Lecturers, Staff, and Students. By cooperating with industries such as Toyota, he hoped that the benefits to society will be much greater in order for innovations can be more massive and on target.

Andang Warih Tjahjono as the President Director of TMIIN in his speech said that cooperation between the world of education and the world of industry is a necessity. “People Development” is the focal point of this collaboration. In the future, at least Undip and Toyota will carry out joint projects such as developing Small and Micro Bussiness in several areas in Central Java such as Jepara and Purbalingga, then research related to the Semarang Smart City development plan and updating tools and infrastructure at Undip Integrated Laboratory. In addition, Toyota also opened the widest opportunity for all Undip students, especially the Faculty of Engineering, to be able to do internships at their companies. (Mardian)