Newsletter No. 72

CUHK Newsletter No. 72 19th June 1995 3 THE COLOURFUL TECHNICAL SERVICES UNIT T h e Technical Services Unit (TSU) plays an important role in the University's teaching and research activities: it provides technical support to various academic departments in the four main areas of mechanical, electronic, carpentry and glass- blowing services. The unit was founded in 1985 to coordinate the Mechanical and Carpentry Workshops of the Physics Department, the Glass-blowing Workshop of the Chemistry Department, and the then newly established Electronic Workshop. As the unit developed and expanded, it also took up responsibility for the management and maintenance of audio-visual equipment, and the supply of liquid nitrogen. Unique and Made-to-Order Equipment Teachers and researchers have a continuous need for specially made equipment for their lectures and research activities. Many of the items they require are not easily obtainable in the market, and even when a specific equipment can indeed be found the price tends to be prohibitively high. Hence, following the example of many other institutions of higher education, the University runs its own technical services unit to meet faculty requirements. The unit's four workshops are capable of producing the unique apparatuses required for teaching and research, as also replacements for commercially available items at much lower costs. A fine example is a set oflightweight, easy- to-carry measuring tools made by the Mechanical Workshop for Dr. Sophie S. F. Leung of the Department of Paediatrics. This set of tools enables Dr. Leung to measure efficiently and accurately the weight, height and head circumference of children wherever she goes in connection with her studies in the growth ofchildren ofChinese origin. Another example is a number of measuring instruments jointly produced by the Mechanical and the Electronic Workshops. These instruments help facilitate research in the state of the human mind in sleep, an essential aspect of the sleep study programme of the Psychiatry Department. The Electronic Workshop has also installed over 20 of its electronic locks in the laboratories and some offices in the Science Centre. These digital locks eliminate the security loopholes so often caused by misplaced keys. Under normal circumstances, the TSU would search the market for the suitable item once an order is received. It is only when the unit is satisfied that no such item can be found, or when the cost is too high, that it will initiate action for in-house production, or the modification of a purchased item. As a matter of practice, the actual manufacture of an item comes only second in importance. The TSU deems it essential that the academic who places the order clearly states his or her needs. As academics generally start their research only with vague concepts, they are not necessarily in a position to describe what they need with exactitude and precision. On the other hand, TSU staff, while very willing to help, lack the expert knowledge of the academics. Thus, detailed briefing of TSU workers by their academic colleagues is often required, and frequent consultation during the course of manufacture is also important; it helps to ensure that the finished product will serve the purpose forwhich it has been intended. Medicine and Science: the Major Clients Medicine and Science are the two principal clients of the TSU, but the needs of these two faculties are very different. Departments of the Faculty of Medicine make extensive use of electronic and computerized technology and corresponding equipment to support teaching activities. This explains why over 70 per cent of the orders received by the Electronic Workshop come from the Faculty of Medicine. Departments of the Faculty of Science tend to rely more on the Mechanical Workshop, which receives over 50 per cent of its orders from that faculty. The Chemistry Department has an exceptional appetite for laboratory equipment, and with over 60 per cent of all the orders, tops the client list of the Glass- blowing Workshop. Glass Products Known Far and Wide for Their Quality There were originally two technicians in the Glass-blowing Workshop, but one resigned and the other retired. As a result the workshop had to cease production for a while, and it took the University the better part of a year to find even one replacement. One technician, however, cannot possibly give the output of two. The problem was eventually solved when the University signed an agreement with the Shanghai Institute of Organic Chemistry, which would send its technicians to The Chinese University on short-term secondment as part of a cooperation programme. While the TSU is basically an internal service unit, the Glass-blowing Workshop often receives requests from outside organizations. It is pleasantly surprising that the quality of glass apparatus prepared at the CUHK workshop has attracted the attention of other institutions of higher education in Hong Kong, and requests for assistance have been numerous. The University helps where it can and a fee is usually charged, but such requests are not entertained when the workshop is inundated with internal orders. Liquid Nitrogen Supply and Audio-Visual Aids The Liquid Nitrogen Plant and the Audio-Visual Technical Services Section are more recent establishments and function somewhat differently from the four workshops. As its name implies, the Liquid Nitrogen Plant was set up to produce nitrogen for various purposes on campus. The machine in this plant, which was purchased many years ago, has broken down because ofintensive use and is beyond repair. Nitrogen is now obtained from commercial suppliers, put in storage and then distributed to the relevant units. A new nitrogen-manufacturing machine would be far too expensive and the maintenance cost would be high, hence the University's decision to rely on commercial sources, and to invest on a large storage tank. It would appear that the plant has to be renamed the Nitrogen Supply Unit soon. The Audio-Visual Technical Services Section is responsible for the installation, maintenance and renewal of audio-visual equipment in various language laboratories and lecture rooms. It also takes care of the audio-visual needs of seminars and ceremonials. Unlike the workshops, the Audio- Visual Section supplies equipment on loan; it does not manufacture it. At present the section is devoting much time and resources to replacing antiquated equipment in classrooms with newer models. It also provides a technical consultancy service and helps other units in selecting, testing and purchasing audio-visual equipment. Operational Costs The operational costs of the workshops are shared by the Faculty of Medicine and the Faculty of Science. Thus for an item made in a workshop, the science or medical department concerned will only be billed for the cost of the material. The Audio-Visual Technical Services Section is funded by the University Administration and, from 1995-96, will be taken out from the TSU and put under the supervision of the Director of Administrative Services. O NEW from the University Press Medi-Vision Medi-Vision is a series of medical education video programmes by Prof David Anderson and Robert D. A. Mitchell, produced by the Chinese University Press and the University of Manchester. The first series consists of 15 programmes. The second series has 11 programmes. They cover various topics in medicine: paediatrics, obstetrics and gynaecology, cardiac cases, respiratory physical signs, the modern management of prostatic disease, and the insertion and care of the central venous pressure line. Each programme is accompanied by a set of summary notes. The series is a valuable contribution to medical education and should be of interest to medical educators and students involved with undergraduate and graduate training. Each programme costs HK$500. The whole set of 26 programmes costs HK$10,000. Proceedings of the International Conference on Control and Information 1995 Edited by Wong Wing Shing of the University's Department of Information Engineering, the proceedings contain over 80 papers on latest research and development in control theory and information engineering that were presented during a conference held at the University from 5th-9th June 1995. 448 pages, paperback, HK$280 The above products are available at the University Bookshop, John Fulton Centre, and will be sold at a 20 per cent discount to University staff and students. Service to the Community and International Organizations • Dr. Jack C. Y. Cheng, reader in orthopaedics and traumatology, has been appointed as president of the Hong Kong Orthopaedic Association for one year from 1st January 1995. Dr. Cheng was also elected as Corresponding Fellow of the Scoliosis Research Society (USA) from March 1995. • Prof. C. N. Chen of the Department of Psychiatry has been re-appointed by HE the Governor as a member of the Mental Health Review Tribunal for two years from 15th April 1995. • Dr. Leslie Lo, dean of education, and Dr. Wong Hin-wah, lecturer in curriculum and instruction, have been appointed by HE the Governor as members of the Advisory Committee on Teacher Education and Qualifications for two years from 1st May. • Dr. Chan Wing-wah, senior lecturer in music, has been appointed by the Secretary for Home Affairs as trustee of the Hong Kong Jockey Club Music and Dance Fund for two years from 1st April 1995. Dr. Chan has also been appointed by HE the Governor as a member of the Hong Kong Arts Development Council for the period 1 st June to 31st December 1995. He conducted children's choirs from Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Hong Kong in a performance at Tuen Mun Town Hall on 16th April 1995. • Dr. Eva W. Y. Hung, director of Research Centre for Translation, has been reappointed as a member of Hong Kong Baptist University's Translation Course Advisory Committee for the period 1st May 1995 to 31st August 1997. • Dr. Ignatius T. S. Yu, lecturer in community and family medicine, has been appointed by the Secretary for Education and Manpower as a member of the Occupational Deafness Medical Committee for three yeas from 1st June 1995. • Prof. Joseph W. Y. Lau of the Department of Surgery has been invited to serve as honorary professor of hepatobiliary surgery for the Military Postgraduate Medical School and Chinese PLA General Hospital. (Allinformation in this section is provided by the Information and Public Relations Office. Contributions should be sent direct to that office for registration and verification before publication.)