Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) has organised a training programme called ‘How to Become an Innovator’ for 30 students from Al Maktoum Primary School in Dubai. In 16 workshops over 4 months, the students learned a number of engineering skills in theoretical and practical lessons. The training programme supports DEWA’s commitment to foster a culture of innovation in the next generation.
The topics that the workshops covered including the principles of innovation, organising brainstorming sessions, discussing innovative ideas, implementing and presenting prototypes, the basics of electricity and solar power, using woodworking tools and equipment, as well as security and safety. By the end of the training programme, the students successfully presented six innovations: Smart Traffic Signal, Smart Crossing for School Students, Smart Bus Seat, Smart Helmet, Smart Jacket, and Smart Gloves.
“At DEWA, we attach great importance to innovation and are committed to instilling this spirit and encouraging students to engage in scientific research. We believe in the potential of young people and their capabilities to innovate disruptive technologies. This achieves the vision of the wise leadership of the UAE to make it one of the most innovative countries in the world, and to strengthen the UAE’s position as a global hub for the Fourth Industrial Revolution, contributing to a knowledge-based competitive national economy,” said HE Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, MD & CEO of DEWA.
"This training programme for school students is part of our social responsibility to work with academic institutions to encourage students to study sciences and modern technologies and encourage them to be creative and innovative. We also aim to take learning to new levels, bring sciences and modern technologies closer to students, through practical experiments and applications that contribute to preparing the next generation of scientists, and creative and innovative minds. This will provide the job market with skilled UAE Nationals to help achieve the UAE Centennial 2071. This is a government strategy to prepare the UAE and young Emiratis for the future,” added Al Tayer.
“Through the ‘How to Become an Innovator’ programme, DEWA aims to provide students with advanced engineering skills and encourage them to innovate when meeting challenges by developing unconventional solutions and concepts, developing their passion for knowledge, and helping them to explore their capabilities and hobbies. This is done in a scientific manner that is based on best international practices and standards, taking into account their intelligence and age and requirements of the students to ensure they gain the knowledge and experience in the easiest and most appropriate way for them,” said Marwan Bin Haidar, Executive Vice President of Innovation and the Future at DEWA.
The innovations developed by Al Maktoum Primary School students focused on protecting students and people who work with electricity. The Smart Traffic signal contains a sensor to measure the distance of oncoming cars to allow pedestrians to cross and avoid waiting for long periods. The Smart Crossing for School Students innovation works with a sensor and a traffic signal to detect oncoming traffic to help students cross safely. The Smart Bus seat aims to turn school bus seats into smart seats by adding sensors to track a student’s status with a smart app.
The Smart Helmet is equipped with a camera to track project updates and detect a live current. The Smart Jacket operates on solar power and is also equipped with a camera to track project updates. The Smart Glove is equipped with a camera to monitor the maintenance of power cables and a live current detector to protect workers from electric shocks while performing maintenance tasks.
