Department of Mechanical Engineering organises TRIZ workshops

Miri – 27 May 2013 – The Department of Mechanical Engineering of Curtin University Sarawak Malaysia (Curtin Sarawak) recently organised TRIZ workshops for over 70 students of the university from the mechanical, chemical and petroleum, civil and construction and electrical and computer engineering departments.

The workshops followed a MyTRIZ Workshop jointly organised by Multimedia Development Corporation (MDeC) and Curtin Sarawak in February this year, which was attended by 40 academic and professional staff of the university.

TRIZ is the Russian acronym for ‘Theory of Inventive Problem Solving’ created by Genrich Altshuller in 1946 to systematise processes and procedures related to innovation and creativity in the solution of problems. It is an international science of creativity that relies on the study of the patterns of problems and solutions, and not just on the spontaneous creativity of individuals or groups.

The TRIZ methodology, used extensively in product development and innovation, has become very popular among many national and transnational companies in the world. It is applied by companies such as Boeing Corporation, Daimler Chrysler, Ford, Hitachi, IBM, Johnson & Johnson, Motorola, NASA, Nestlé, Samsung, Intel, Toyota, Xerox and Whirlpool.

According to workshop facilitator and head of the Mechanical Engineering Department in Curtin Sarawak’s School of Engineering and Science, Dr. Ulugbek Azimov, the purpose of the workshops were to share information and knowledge about TRIZ with the students.

Designed in an interactive way, the workshops highlighted how TRIZ is different from conventional problem-solving approaches. It also taught students how to apply TRIZ to solve various problems in engineering and technology.

Dr. Azimov said TRIZ can be used by breaking down the process of problem-solving into discrete elements, each of which is expanded through concrete techniques. TRIZ increases the creativity of problem solvers by providing them with guiding principles and a collection of techniques to come up with useful ideas that lead to many possible solution concepts.

“During the process of invention and problem-solving, engineers often reach the state of psychological inertia that prevents the human mind from reaching the full potential of its thinking and creative abilities. The tools of TRIZ are designed to change the way people think by bypassing this inertia so they can start to think outside the box,” he said.

Dr. Azimov hopes that the knowledge gained by the students during the workshops will inspire them to apply and practice TRIZ in their future careers.

One of the participants, Yun Reng Loh, a third-year mechanical engineering student, commented that TRIZ is extremely useful in solving complex problems in various fields.

“It not only promotes creativity but also logical and critical thinking skills. This methodology can help us a lot in our everyday lives and future careers,” said Yun.

Dr. Azimov (standing 5th from left) and the TRIZ workshop participants from the Department of Mechanical Engineering.

The workshop participants from the chemical and petroleum, civil and construction and electrical and computer engineering departments.