A group of BS Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering (ABE) students from the Mindanao State University (MSU)- General Santos City Campus visited the laboratories and other facilities of the UPLB Agricultural Machinery Testing and Evaluation Center (AMTEC) for their undergraduate seminar and field trip course on September 25, 2024. 

Led by the AMTEC’s resident test engineers, the students were able to tour around the various test setups in the Agricultural Machinery Testing and Studies (AMATS) Laboratory, formerly the Mechanical Testing Laboratory, and the Sample Analysis Laboratory (SAL). They were given a quick and informational orientation of the technologies and instruments used by the Center to test agri-fishery machinery.

The educational tour provides a peek to the aspiring engineers on the real-world practice of their academic pursuits, particularly on testing and evaluation of agri-fishery machinery based on the Philippine National Standards (PNS)/ Philippine Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering Standards (PABES). Both the technical operations and the standards are part of the major mandates of AMTEC and are very crucial in ABE practice, especially in the Philippine context. 

A total of 69 students plus their faculty members and chaperone visited the Center. With the goal of preparing the students for their future careers, the tour was also conducted to acquaint them with the modern innovations and sustainable practices in the field of ABE, in which AMTEC is consistently involved as the country’s premiere and reference testing center for agri-fishery machinery.

They also went to other units that directly practice ABE. These offices and laboratories were:  UPLB Plant Factory with Artificial Lighting (PFAL), UPLB National Agromet Station, and the Agribiosystems Machinery and Power Engineering Division’s (AMPED) machinery laboratory. 

As a knowledge-intensive and leading institution in the field, AMTEC has constantly opened its doors and extended its technical expertise not only for students but for all SUCs and institutions who want to benchmark and learn from the operations of the Center. AMTEC has already welcomed several organizations who expressed their interest in visiting the facilities since the year started and expects more in the remaining months of 2024 until next year.