Director's Message

Welcome Message from the Founder
Assalamualaikum w.b.t & Warm Greetings…

Selamat Datang and Welcome to UM Power Energy Dedicated Advanced Centre (UMPEDAC), the first centre of research recognised by the Ministry of Higher Education (MOHE) as the national Higher Institution Centre of Excellence (HICoE) in the niche of renewable energy (solar) on 30th October 2009.

Besides renewable energy, other niche areas of the centre are power electronics, motor and drives, power energy, automation and control, power quality and system protection, smart grid system, smart transportation system, and energy efficiency system; while its core businesses involve conducting research activities in various applied engineering fields, providing consultancies to local industry/private organization, conducting professional testing services to PV solar farm, providing specialized research facilities especially in renewable energy field (solar inverter and solar PV module), and offering postgraduate programs.

This centre is well-equipped with state-of-the-art equipment and research facilities (e.g. Electroluminescence-Measurement System, High Precision Solar Cell I-V Tester, RT-Opal Electrical System Simulation, up to 12kW Photovoltaic Array Simulator Testing, 2 units of 12kW permanent-magnet synchronous motor, dynamometer for motor testing) in our specialized laboratories (e.g. Inverter Testing and Research Lab., PV Module Testing Lab., Solar Cell Testing and Research Lab., Power Conversion Research Lab., Renewable Energy Research Lab., Smart Grid Research Lab., Motor Testing Lab., and Computer Lab.).

Being part of the reputable University of Malaya (UM) – the foremost and premier Research University (RU) in Malaysia, UMPEDAC is undoubtedly a suitable place for pursuing postgraduate studies and establishing research networking. Since its establishment, 60 postgraduate (33 PhD and 27 MEng.Sc) students have been produced by us, while another 63 students (consist of 46 PhD and 17 MPhil/MEng.Sc students) are presently pursuing their study. In terms of research productivity, UMPEDAC has licensed its locally developed prototype namely single-phase grid-connected PV inverter to be commercialized by a local industry partner, EXT Technologies Sdn Bhd, published over 400 ISI journals, filed 7 patents, and forging close collaborations with international and national universities (e.g. Kyoto University, Memorial University of Newfoundland, McGill University, Strathclyde University, King Mongkut’s University of Technology Thonburi, Austrian Institute of Technology, Malaysian Technical University Network, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Swinburne University of Technology, University College of Technology Sarawak).

The centre has also been conferred with numerous international and national level awards and recognitions. In 2014, Human Life Advancement Foundation (HLAF) awarded UMPEDAC the Lifetime Achievement Award, presented by HLAF’s Chairman, Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad. In the same year, our researchers placed second in the 2014 IEEE Industry Application Society (IAS) award for the paper entitled “Asymmetrical Transistor Clamped H Bridge Cascaded Multilevel Inverter”. Apart from that, we were also honoured with the 2008 AKSA (Anugerah Kualiti Sektor Awam) award bestowed by MAMPU (Modernisation of Administration and Management Planning Unit), for our collaboration with M. S. Elevators Sdn. Bhd.

I again welcome local and international students to further your studies in UMPEDAC, University of Malaya. We are located within the heart of Kuala Lumpur, having a strategic location nearby LRT Kerinchi – just mere minutes to the city centre. It is also my hope that more distinguished professors and engineering experts will visit us in the quest to further develop both parties’ knowledge and expertise.
Professor Ir. Dr. Nasrudin Abd Rahim
Founder and Director
UM Power Energy Dedicated Advanced Centre (UMPEDAC)