Activities

King Mongkut’s University of Technology North Bangkok (KMUTNB), in  coordination with the British Council and the British Embassy in Bangkok, organized the Special Seminar on Education, Science, Research and Innovation: "Strengthening Thai - UK Relations” on 21 July 2025 at Room BA304, Faculty of Business Administration, KMUTNB Rayong Campus. The event was held to celebrate the 170th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Thailand and the United Kingdom in 2025.

The seminar was honored by the presence of Mr Mark Gooding OBE, British Ambassador to Thailand, who delivered a special keynote address. Also attending the event were high-ranking officials from the British Embassy. The British ambassador were warmly welcomed by the team of KMUTNB’s executive, including Prof. Dr. Somrerk Chandra-ambhorn, Vice President for Research, Prof. Dr. Saowanit Sukparungsee, Vice President for Academic Affairs, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Pichet Sriyanyong, Vice President for International Affairs, Asst. Prof. Dr. Nawaporn Wisitpongphan, Assistant to the President for Information Technology Development, Asst. Prof. Dr. Sarawut Suebyaem, Assistant to the President for Finance and General Affairs, and Asst. Prof. Dr. Thitirat Thawornsujaritkul, Assistant to the President for KMUTNB Rayong Campus.

KMUTNB always remains committed to developing international academic partnerships to enhance the quality of education and research. These cooperative efforts focused on a wide range of collaborations, covering curriculum development, joint research, and the exchange of students and staff. Especially, the academic ties between KMUTNB and UK has grown continually over the recent year.

Notably, since 2019, Prof. Dr. Unalome Wetwatana Hartley, faculty member of the Sirindhorn International Thai-German Graduate School of Engineering (TGGS), was awarded a reseach grant under the Industry-academia partnership program (IAPP), Transforming Systems through Partnership (TSP) and the International Science Partnerships Fund (ISPF) from the UK's Royal Academy of Engineering and British Council. This grant aims to strengthen science and innovation cooperation between the UK and partner countries, including Thailand. The seminar also showcased this research, along with other KMUTNB’s innovations in various fields, such as value-added products from the research on stingless bee cultivation and a rescue robot developed by the KMUTNB's iRAP Robot team, which won the championship in the World RoboCup Rescue competition for the 10th time in 2024.

Besides, KMUTNB is also participating in an international cooperation project focused on the development of digital railway technology, which is the cooperation project among leading universities in England, China, Croatia and Thailand. KMUTNB’s participation is coordinated by Asst. Prof. Dr. Ruslee Sutthaweekul, Assistant Dean for Information Technology, Faculty of Engineering. It is a part of the UK-China BRI Countries Education Partnerships Initiative, sponsored by the British Council and the National Natural Science Foundation of China. These collaborative efforts reflects KMUTNB’s commitment to upholding academic excellence, which has contributed to the university winning outstanding recognition for research quality in general engineering by the Times Higher Education World University Rankings by Subject 2025, a prestigious British ranking and one of the world's most authoritative source of information about higher education.

The UK Ambassador and delegation visited the exhibition booths, accompanied by the Deans from KMUTNB Rayong Campus, including Assoc. Prof. Dr. Sunee Wattanakomol, Dean of Faculty of Business Administration, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Thawatchai Wongchang, Dean of Faculty of Engineering and Technology, and Assoc. Prof. Dr. Aiya Chantarasiri, Dean of Faculty of Science, Energy and Environment. This special seminar not only celebrate the close academic collaboration between KMUTNB and the United Kingdom but also commemorate the meaningful bilateral educational cooperation and lasting friendship between the two nations.