ILIGAN CITY (PIA)--Senator Joel Villanueva commended Mindanao State University-Iligan Institute of Technology (MSU-IIT) for being at the forefront of technological innovation amidst the worldwide pandemic.

Speaking during the virtual ceremony for MSU-IIT's 53rd Charter Day celebration on Monday, July 12, Villanueva cited the university as a center of technological innovation for designing a low-cost ventilator prototype.

"One recent proof is your rapid development of a medical ventilator as effective as the one in the hospitals but far cheaper and faster to build," he said.

The easy-to-build emergency ventilator was devised by Prof. Sherwin A. Guirnaldo and his BS Mechanical Engineering students - Diether Cabahug, Vince Pulmones, and Karl Leo Gustillo to help Covid-19 patients.

The senator said the development of the Open Source Easy Ventilator or MOSEV is a testament to the resilience of the MSU-IIT community.

While noting the crucial role of research and development (R&D) in the country's economic development and post-Covid recovery, Villanueva said MSU-IIT can be a front liner in R&D especially for the Mindanao regions. (APB/PIA-ICIC)