The 3rd edition of the Hitachi Rail GTS Merit Award in Digital Systems recognised the academic work of Rodrigo Esgueira, an undergraduate student of Engineering Physics at Instituto Superior Técnico, who achieved a grade of 19.75 in the Digital Systems curricular unit. The award, worth 1350 euros, was presented at a ceremony held on 20 March in the Meeting Room of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering (DEEC), at Técnico – Alameda campus.
The opening session was led by Pedro Amaral, Vice President of Técnico for Corporate Interface, Innovation and Entrepreneurship, who emphasised the long-lasting and valuable partnership between Técnico and Hitachi Rail GTS. ‘It’s a privilege to partner with a multinational of great importance in its sector. These merit awards are crucial. Moments like this allow us to recognise and celebrate the success of our students’, he stressed.
João Araújo, CEO of Hitachi Rail GTS, also praised the talent of Técnico students: ‘It is gratifying to see the future of Portugal represented here. Curiosity, a willingness to learn, and the desire to explore further are essential, and this award marks the beginning of your journey’, he said.
Rodrigo Esgueira expressed his gratitude for the award. ‘I’d like to thank Hitachi and Técnico for the honour of receiving this award, as well as my colleagues and professors in the lab and my family for their support throughout my academic career. These initiatives are an excellent way of motivating us to continue learning and deepening our knowledge of engineering’, said the student.
Honourable mentions were also awarded to four students enrolled in different undergraduate programmes who stood out in the curricular unit: Rodrigo Marques (Aerospace Engineering), Duarte Oliveira (Electrical and Computer Engineering), Joana dos Santos (Telecommunications and Informatics Engineering) and Lourenço Sequeira (Electronics Engineering).
Hitachi Rail GTS made a donation of 900 euros to the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering (DEEC) to improve teaching quality. Nuno Horta, the Head of DEEC, thanked the company for its support and emphasised the importance of this contribution. ‘This donation will enable us to upgrade our laboratory equipment and enhance the quality of our students’ teaching and learning’, he explained.
Paulo Lopes, senior lecturer of the Digital Systems curricular unit, expressed his gratitude: ‘On behalf of the curricular unit professors, I would like to thank Hitachi for their sponsorship and congratulate all students on their excellent performance.’
