Suranaree University of Technology from Thailand Visits NCKU to Deepen Collaboration in Medicine and Biomedical Engineering
Written by NCKU Office of Internation Affairs. Image credit to NCKU News Center.
The Ministry of Education invited Suranaree University of Technology (SUT) of Thailand to visit Taiwan. The Rector of SUT, Associate Prof. Dr. Anan Tongraar, led a delegation of five people to visit National Cheng Kung University (NCKU) on June 5, 2025, to discuss potential cooperation in the medical field. After the meeting, they visited the College of Medicine and the Medical Device Innovation Center (MDIC) at NCKU.
Chair Prof. Yung-Chun Lee, Executive Vice President of NCKU presents a gift to Associate Prof. Dr. Anan Tongraar, Rector of Suranaree University of Technology.
Chair Professor Yung-Chun Lee, Executive Vice President of NCKU, warmly welcomed the delegation. He remarked on the positive collaborations that have taken place between NCKU and SUT in the past and expressed optimism about further strengthening the partnership through initiatives such as student exchanges and joint research projects. Additionally, he highlighted NCKU’s Innovation Headquarters, which actively promotes entrepreneurship among faculty and students to translate research outcomes into market-ready solutions. This focus on innovation may serve as a promising direction for future collaborative efforts.
Rector Anan Tongraar expressed his gratitude to NCKU for the warm reception. He reminisced about the previous visit to Thailand by Chair Professor Fong-Ching Su, Director of the Medical Device Innovation Center (MDIC), during which they discussed potential collaborations in the field of biomedical engineering. Rector Tongraar proposed the idea of small-scale pilot projects as a means for the two universities to collaborate. He cited Thailand's aging population as a pertinent issue and emphasized that by combining the medical and engineering expertise of SUT with NCKU's resources, the two institutions could develop more efficient and localized solutions to address this challenge.
Dr. Mullika Sungsanit, Vice Rector for Engagement, Innovation and Entrepreneurship of SUT, also noted that SUT is actively engaging in medical device research and expressed a desire to learn from NCKU’s expertise in this area. Furthermore, both Dr. Sungsanit and Assistant Prof. Dr. Wipawee Usaha, Director of the Center for International Affairs of SUT, mentioned that their institution is progressing towards becoming an Entrepreneurial University, with a focus on creating a significant impact through innovative initiatives.
During the meeting, Chair Prof. Sun-Yuan Hsieh, Vice President for International Affairs of NCKU, provided a brief overview of the university and recounted the history of exchanges between NCKU and SUT. He noted that a university-level Memorandum of Understanding and a student exchange agreement were signed in 2010, setting the foundation for ongoing collaboration. He also expressed appreciation for SUT’s recent participation in international events organized by MDIC, as well as involvement in the General Assembly of Presidents’ Forum of Southeast and South Asia and Taiwan Universities (SATU). Regarding talent cultivation, Vice President Hsieh proposed the establishment of a dual-degree program in biomedical engineering between the two universities. He also suggested initiating academic research collaborations through faculty exchange and visits.
Chair Prof. Fong-Ching Su also shared NCKU’s achievements in advanced medical innovation. He described how the center not only collaborates closely with NCKU Hospital and various colleges within the university, but also establishes connections with domestic and international industries to develop innovative digital healthcare solutions that serve societal needs. Regarding collaboration with Thailand, Chair Prof. Su highlighted that NCKU has signed four dual-degree programs in biomedical engineering with three Thai universities. He emphasized that if SUT is interested in pursuing opportunities in this area, talent cultivation should be prioritized as the initial step. After the meeting, Chair Prof. Su led the delegation on a site tour of the College of Medicine and MDIC, where they engaged in more in-depth discussions.
Group Photo of the delegation from SUT and representatives of NCKU.
The delegation from SUT included Associate Professor Dr. Anan Tongraar, Rector; Dr. Mullika Sungsanit, Vice Rector for Engagement, Innovation and Entrepreneurship; Assistant Professor Dr. Wipawee Usaha, Director, Center for International Affairs; Associate Professor Dr. Pornsiri Jongkol, Dean, Institute of Engineering; and Associate Professor Dr. Thara Angskun, Dean, Institute of Digital Arts and Science.
Ms. Tina Ou, Second Education Secretary, Department of International and Cross-strait Education, Ministry of Education visited NCKU with the delegation.
Representatives from NCKU included Chair Prof. Dr. Yung-Chun Lee, Executive Vice President; Chair Prof. Sun-Yuan Hsieh, Vice President for International Affairs; Chair Prof. Fong-Chin Su, Director of Medical Device Innovation Center; Prof. Kuo-Sheng Cheng, Department of Biomedical Engineering and International Institute of Medical Device Innovation; Prof. Chun Hei Antonio Cheung, Ph.D. MRSNZ, Vice Convener of the International Affairs Committee, College of Medicine; Deputy Director Ya-Tsui Ellen Hsueh, Manager Nina Fu, and Manager Kevin Chiu, from International Relations Division, Office of International Affairs.
SUT, located in Nakhon Ratchasima in northeastern Thailand, was founded in 1990 and officially started operations in 1993. The top three areas of SUT’s scholarly output from 2019 to 2025 are Energy (46.7%), Environmental Science (40.0%), Chemical Engineering (26.7%) and Chemistry (26.7%).
Provider:
NCKU News Center
Date:
2025-06-09
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