FACULTY AWARDS & RECOGNITION
CDE community members honoured at 60th National Day Awards
Members of the CDE community have been recognised this year for their outstanding contributions to Singapore.
Among them are:
- Adjunct Professor Tan Gee Paw (Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering), recipient of the Order of Nila Utama; and
- Professor Pao Chuen Lui (Temasek Defence Science Institute and Department of Industrial Systems Engineering and Management), awarded the Distinguished Service Order.
Cited under College of Design and Engineering, NUS are:
- Mdm He Jian (Department of Materials Science and Engineering), recipient of the Commendation Medal; and
- Mr Tan Chee Siong (Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering), honoured with the Efficiency Medal and Long Service Medal.
They are joined by 13 dedicated colleagues who have each received the Long Service Medal for over 25 years of exemplary service, representing departments across our College.
- Mdm Tan Xiaolan, NUS Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering
- Mr Chun See Chong, NUS Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
- Ms Lum Mei Peng Sharon, Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
- Mdm Ng Ai Mei, Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
- Mdm Umah Mageshwary d/o G Pillai, Dean’s Office
- Ms Ang Mei Ling, Dean’s Office
- Mr Cheah Kok Keong, PBM, Dean’s Office
- Mdm Loh Fong Leong, NUS Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
- Mdm Leena d/o Nakulan, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
- Assoc Prof Gurusamy Mohan, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
- Assoc Prof Ng Kien Ming, Department of Industrial Systems Engineering and Management, NUS
- Assoc Prof Chen Peter Chao Yu, NUS Mechanical Engineering
- Mr Chen Qun, NUS Materials Science and Engineering
From national leadership and innovation to decades of steadfast dedication, each of these individuals has played a vital role in shaping CDE and building a better Singapore. Congratulations to all our awardees! Your commitment inspires us every day.
Read more about the CDE award recipients here.
CDE alumni and staff who have also been recognised in this year's list in other capacities are:
The Meritorious Service Medal
Mr Tan Chong Meng (Engineering '83, MSc ISE '87)
Chairman, National University Health System
Past Group CEO, PSA International
Past Chairman, JTC Corporation
The Public Service Star
Mr John Ng Peng Wah (Engineering '85, MSc ISE '90)
Former Board Member, PUB, Singapore's National Water Agency
Mr Cheah Kok Keong (Arts & Social Sciences ’91, Senior Manager, Advanced Robotics Centre, College of Design and Engineering)
Assistant Secretary, C2E Council EXCO
Assoc Prof Bina Rai wins Best Overall Poster at ACCOP 2025
Associate Professor Bina Rai received the Best Overall Poster Award at the Asian Conference on Criminal and Operations Psychology (ACCOP). ACCOP is a conference that features the latest innovations, evidence-based practices, and cross-disciplinary strategies shaping the future of safety and justice in Asia.
Assoc Prof Rai's poster titled "Evaluating Decision-Making Skills in SCDF Officers Using a Virtual Reality Firefighting Scenario" consisted of research carried out by her final-year project student Thura Soe, and was done in collaboration with LTC Lee Soon Huat and Maj V Nisha from the Civil Defence Academy and Mr Chia Yi Xuan and Ms Eunice Tan from the Emergency Behavioural Sciences and Care branch of the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF).
The research proposes using a Virtual Reality (VR) platform to train firefighter preparedness, situational awareness, and decision-making during high-rise firefighting scenarios. The training simulation was built on expert-validated fire strategies and tested through key performance metrics, demonstrating strong alignment with training goals.
Assoc Prof Raye Yeow elected to Administrative Council of IFMBE
Associate Professor Raye Yeow has been elected to the Administrative Council of the International Federation for Medical and Biological Engineering (IFMBE), the leading global organisation uniting biomedical engineers, scientists, and clinicians to advance healthcare through innovation and collaboration.
IFMBE plays a pivotal role in shaping policy, supporting education, and fostering technological breakthroughs in medical and biological engineering. The Administrative Council serves as the strategic leadership body of IFMBE, guiding its vision, strengthening international partnerships, and ensuring the federation remains responsive to the evolving needs of the global biomedical community.
Assoc Prof Raymond Ong and PhD Student Wisely Ong win Best Presentation Award at PFDM2025
Associate Professor Ong Ghim Ping, Raymond, and PhD student Wisely Jun Heng Ong received the Best Presentation Award for their paper Cycling Infrastructure Condition Monitoring and Assessment through Novel Instrumented Probe Bicycle at the 3rd International Symposium on Pavement Functional Design and Management (PFDM2025), held from 2–4 July 2025 in Delft, Netherlands.
Their work was recognised as one of the top 6 presentations out of 79 papers (top 7.5%) presented at the conference. PFDM2025 brought together researchers and professionals from around the world, including participants from Europe, Asia, North America, and Africa.
Dr Zhang Bo wins Student Paper Award at IEEE APCAP
Congratulations to Dr Zhang Bo (Research Fellow) for clinching the Student Paper Award – First Prize at the IEEE Asia-Pacific Conference on Antennas and Propagation (APCAP) 2025!
Co-authored with Professor Chen Zhi Ning, their award-winning paper introduces a metamaterial-based cover inspired by the Drude model that significantly improves antenna performance — boosting coverage efficiency from 42.4% to 84.7% and enhancing radiation pattern control across a wide bandwidth.
Read more here: https://cde.nus.edu.sg/ece/news-detail/congratulations-to-dr-zhang-bo-on-winning-the-student-paper-award-first-prize-at-ieee-apcap-2025/
Prof Marcelo Ang appointed as Academic Supervisor to Singapore’s new Autonomous Driving Committee
Singapore has established a 17-member committee, chaired by Acting Transport Minister Jeffrey Siow, to guide the safe integration of autonomous vehicles (AVs) into the nation’s land transport system. Professor Marcelo H Ang Jr, from the Department of Mechanical Engineering, has been appointed as the Academic Supervisor, bringing with him extensive expertise in robotics, artificial intelligence, and autonomous systems. He is also a Principal Investigator at the Advanced Robotics Centre based in CDE.
Prof Ang will provide academic oversight, innovation, and urban mobility, leveraging his experience in the development and research in the field of autonomous vehicles. His involvement reflects Singapore’s commitment to advancing AV technology responsibly, with a focus on interdisciplinary collaboration and public benefit.