A new batch of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineers (ABE) underwent an AMTEC-facilitated Refresher Course Training on Testing and Evaluation of Agricultural and Fisheries Machinery to be certified as test engineers (CTE) in Region IV-B (MiMaRoPa) last September 9-13, 2024, at Vencio’s Garden Hotel and Restaurant, Calapan City, Oriental Mindoro. 

The week-long training was organized by the DA RFO- MiMaRoPa’s Regional Agricultural Engineering Division- Standards Regulation and Enforcement Section (RAED-SRES), in collaboration with the DA Bureau of Agricultural and Fisheries Engineering (BAFE) and the UPLB AMTEC.

AMTEC resident test engineers served as lead facilitators in the training proper for both the lecture and assessment activities. They were Engr. Rhey Marc C. Albalos, Engr. Paul John S. Dizon, and Engr. Romulo E. Eusebio. Specifically, the training focuses on certifying test engineers for Rice Machinery-Category F: rice combine harvester, rotary tiller, and mechanical rice transplanter. 

In accordance with the country’s mechanization programs, the training aimed to equip and enhance the technical capability of ABEs in the region for the improved delivery of technical services in the testing and evaluation of agri-fishery machinery based on the Philippine National Standards (PNS)/ Philippine Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering Standards (PABES). 

More than twenty participants from the region joined the training, including ABEs from local government units (LGU), state universities and colleges (SUC), and selected staff from RAED. These offices are crucial in the vital implementation of the country’s mechanization programs that would genuinely benefit the agricultural sector in MiMaRoPa, by supporting the proper implementation of the procurement and distribution of machines in the communities.

The five-day educational activities involved comprehensive lectures on the conduct of test and evaluation for the specified machines, and the necessary legal policies that are essential for the future CTEs. Additionally, the participants were also given opportunities to have actual field experience in machine testing and the creation of corresponding test reports. It culminated through written and practical examinations that assessed their capability to become official TEs, through a certification to be provided by the DA-BAFE. 

As part of the continuous national goal to increase the number of test engineers for the acceleration and holistic implementation of the government’s agricultural mechanization program, AMTEC pledges to constantly extend technical expertise in these types of capability-building activities. 

With a few months before the end of the year, more CTE trainings are expected to be held in the remaining regions and provinces across the country.