Celebrating Innovation and Excellence 

Asia Pacific University of Technology & Innovation (APU) proudly celebrates the success of its student, Kareshmen Maheswaran, who clinched a Gold Award at the prestigious Engineering Science and Technology Exhibition (ESTE 2025). Held on 13th August at MAHSA University, Malaysia, ESTE is a renowned platform that gathers students and researchers from across the nation and abroad to showcase groundbreaking projects in engineering and technology.

Competing on a National Stage

Representing APU in the Mechanical Engineering category, Kareshmen stood out among participants from prominent universities such as Sunway, UTHM, UKM, UCSI, and UTEM. His winning project, entitled “Smart Autonomous Wheel Drone for Cable Surveillance on Offshore Platforms”, secured him a spot as one of the three Gold Award recipients in his category.

This remarkable achievement is particularly significant as Kareshmen and his team were APU’s sole contestants at ESTE 2025, competing in one of four main categories: Mechanical, Electrical and Electronics, Civil, and Chemical Engineering.

Driving Real-World Impact through Industry Collaboration

The winning project was developed in collaboration with Nexus Neotech Sdn. Bhd., under the supervision of Ir Ts Dr Reena Sri Selvarajan, Senior Lecturer at APU’s School of Engineering. Supported by an Industry Grant worth RM3,000, Kareshmen engineered an autonomous wheel-drone prototype designed to improve offshore cable surveillance. He was also assisted by Chandramohan Akshayan, a Diploma in Mechatronic Engineering student, who helped design an impactful presentation poster.

Explaining the concept, Kareshmen shared:

“My final year project focused on developing a sustainable cable health monitoring and surveillance system tailored for offshore environments. The wheel-drone autonomously navigates along offshore cable trays, using thermal sensing and AI-powered visual inspection to detect overheating or physical damage at an early stage.”

Harnessing Advanced Technologies for Safer Inspections

The wheel-drone integrates cutting-edge tools such as Raspberry Pi, Arduino, LiDAR, and OpenCV. This allows it to perform continuous, non-invasive monitoring in confined spaces—an environment where manual inspection is hazardous and conventional aerial drones face limitations.

“This project not only improves safety and efficiency but also aligns with global sustainability goals by enabling preventive maintenance,” Kareshmen added.

The innovation directly addresses critical challenges in industries such as oil, gas, and renewable energy, where offshore cable inspection is labour-intensive, dangerous, and costly. By offering a tray-compatible solution that combines thermal and visual diagnostics, the wheel-drone presents a safer, more efficient, and highly accurate alternative.

Aligning with Global Sustainability Goals

Beyond technical excellence, the project contributes to societal impact by reducing industrial accidents, lowering operational costs, and supporting the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals—namely SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure) and SDG 13 (Climate Action).

Dr Reena highlighted the significance of the achievement, “The prototype successfully achieved Technology Readiness Level 6, proving its suitability for real-time deployment. This milestone reflects not only Kareshmen’s technical expertise but also APU’s commitment to cultivating industry-relevant solutions that benefit society.”

A Journey of Growth and Perseverance

Reflecting on his competition experience, Kareshmen shared, “I was inspired to participate to showcase my Final Year Project beyond the university and to highlight its industrial relevance. The preparation was intense but rewarding. I learnt to simplify complex engineering concepts for clearer communication, rework design aspects to optimise performance, and manage challenges under time constraints. These lessons taught me problem-solving, adaptability, and time management.”

Winning the Gold Award, he said, was a defining milestone in his journey as a Mechatronic Engineering student. It validated the industrial relevance of his innovation while boosting his confidence to take on professional challenges in robotics, automation, and offshore applications. Looking ahead, Kareshmen aspires to refine the autonomous wheel-drone for potential commercialisation, further advancing sustainable engineering innovation.

Nurturing Future Tech Leaders at APU

Commending her student’s success, Dr Reena remarked, “This victory underscores the power of academia-industry collaboration. By engaging students in solving real-world industrial challenges, we empower them to transform ideas into impactful innovations. I am immensely proud of Kareshmen’s commitment and the recognition his project has received.”

APU’s Commitment to Excellence

Kareshmen’s win at ESTE 2025 exemplifies APU’s role as a top technology-driven institution in Malaysia, consistently producing graduates equipped with both technical expertise and problem-solving capabilities. By encouraging industry collaborations, hands-on learning, and global exposure, APU continues to nurture the next generation of engineers and innovators.

This triumph reaffirms APU’s dedication to shaping tech talent that not only excels academically but also contributes to societal progress and sustainable development—hallmarks of an institution at the forefront of engineering and innovation.