As a part of its social contribution activities, on March 9, 2020, Toray Industries (Thailand) Co., Ltd. (TTH) President Kazuaki Takabayashi, representing Toray Group companies in Thailand, donated a fund of 500,000 baht to the Faculty of Engineering of Chulalongkorn University for supporting research and innovation of dynamic prosthetic foot.
Chulalongkorn University is a member of a project called “A New Step with Research and Innovation” along with the Thai Ministry of Public Health, the National Research Council of Thailand and Mahidol University. The aim of the project is to produce prosthetic legs, through Thai research and innovation, for underprivileged amputees that will help them walk in a more natural manner and to improve their quality of life. The University’s Center of Excellence for Prosthetic and Orthopedic Implant, Department of Mechanical Engineering under the Faculty of Engineering, is in charge of not only developing the dynamic prosthetic foot but also enhancing the design of the existing model so that they will fit the leg size better and support the body weight of amputees.
Carbon Magic (Thailand) Co., Ltd. (CMTH), a Toray Group company in Thailand which manufactures carbon fiber reinforced plastic (CFRP) parts, also supports the university in producing dynamic prosthetic foot made of carbon fiber, which is strong but light. By using parts manufactured in Thailand, the total production cost would be reduced significantly compared to using parts imported from abroad, and this cost efficiency is attracting admiration from those concerned in the development of the prosthetic foot.
It is worth mentioning that the members of this project from Chulalongkorn University, namely Professor Supot Teachavorasinskun, Dean of Faculty of Engineering, Assistant Professor Pairat Tangpornprasert, and Assistant Professor Chanyaphan Virulsri, were recipients of the Science and Technology Research Grant given by Thailand Toray Science Foundation.
