Innovations in Tinkering Lab at The NorthCap University

Tinkering Lab in The NorthCap University was inaugurated by Prof B K Kuthiala, Chairperson Haryana Higher Education Council, Govt of Haryana, on 21st July 2018. The EECE dept. maintains the Tinkering Lab for the usage of all members of the university to promote innovative and interdisciplinary project work. The primary objective of the Tinkering lab is to spur the spark of creativity, foster curiosity and imagination in young minds, which go beyond regular curriculum and textbook learning. It is equipped with facilities such as Soldering station, PCB designing kit, equipment/components for Electronics development, Robotics, Internet of Things and Sensors, Electrical and measurement tools, Power supplies, Consumables, Computers, Printer, etc. Students of any discipline with a bend for invention and innovation can come together under one roof to give shape to their new ideas. Students can design, create and engineer prototypes, new products, etc. Moreover, the Tinkering lab is also used for fostering entrepreneurship and utilized by the students as incubators and accelerators for business start-ups.

Tinkering lab provides support in terms of manpower and resources. The dedicated technical staff and faculty members provide hands-on different emerging areas such as IoT, Big data, cloud computing, Robotics, etc. The in-charge of the Tinkering lab is an expert in making all kinds of electronic projects and is always ready to guide students. Students are motivated by the faculty members to work in the Tinkering lab; thus, students are making full use of the lab. Students of all disciplines such as ECE, CSE, ME, CE, Law, and Management work in this lab on different electronics based and mechanical projects using electronic circuits, Arduino boards, other microcontrollers, different types of sensors, motors, ICs and control circuit modules. Students work in the Tinkering lab by making groups, which enhances their peer to peer interaction with students of other streams as well, and this promotes interdisciplinary projects.

Some of the projects on which students have worked in the tinkering lab are Hydraulic bridge, Electronic quiz, Automatic gas stove controller, Air purifier, Automatic street light, Automatic emergency light, Floor cleaner, Automatic curtains, Home automation, Earthquake resistance building, Drone delivery system, Smart classroom with automatic room lock, light On-off system, Gesture controlled Car, Automatic smart parking system, Secret coded door lock, Portable emergency light, Musical alarm and many more. Approximately hundreds of projects are worked upon the tinkering lab. The lab is always open during the university timing. Students of all years are welcomed to work on basic to advanced levels of projects.

Project exhibitions and competitions are organized towards the end of each semester, and good projects are awarded through cash prizes and appreciation certificates to motivate students of the university to work on innovative and interdisciplinary projects. During the Student Project Exhibition conducted in the Tinkering Lab in December 2019, Automatic gas stove controller, Smart dine-in system, Home automation system using Google assistant and NodeMCU projects received cash prizes and certificates of appreciation.

Automatic car management system (with features of automatic type puncture detection in types of the car and automatic lifting of a car by lowering the jacks already attached the car body) project sponsored by the university under VC innovation fund was designed and given shape in the tinkering lab only.  Law students also visit tinkering lab to give shape to interdisciplinary projects. One of the projects included a bakery model representing Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs) such as Patent, Copyright, Trademark, and Designs act, with the help of a small electronic circuit.

For any queries connect at vandanakhanna@ncuindia.edu

Written by 

Dr. Vandana Khanna, 

Assistant Professor, 

EECE Department 

at The NorthCap University, Gurugram.

Why Bachelor of Commerce is an evergreen course?

Nowadays, students have a plethora of professional and advanced career opportunities available after finishing their schools. Various universities and colleges are offering updated curriculum and unconventional courses to maintain a competitive edge in the education industry. However, Bachelor of Commerce has emerged as one of the evergreen courses aiming at shaping the managerial acumen of students in disciplines associated with commerce. 

The comprehensive insights provided by the course into diverse areas such as accounting, taxation, auditing, finance, and general management facilitate a student attaining analytical skills for facing challenges of a vibrant business environment. 

Unlike other undergraduate courses leading to a defined career path, Bachelor of Commerce prepares a student to sustain as a successful corporate employee or as an entrepreneur. A student holding an undergraduate degree in commerce, with an in-depth knowledge of global market-relevant aspects, can expect greater employment prospects in banking, insurance, and security market. 

The interdisciplinary domains present in the curriculum can provide excellent job options as a Tax auditor, finance analyst, portfolio manager, auditor, or tax consultant apart from prevalent domains of Chartered Accountancy and Company Secretary. The Indian financial sector with significant contribution in the job market has provided a competitive advantage to commerce studies and assured students of not experiencing job crisis in India and overseas.

CSI Event: Code-O-Fiesta

The CSI Student Chapter of The NorthCap University, Gurugram organized a coding competition, Code-O-Fiesta, on 17th February 2020 at 11.30 am. More than 100 students participated in the competition. It comprised of two rounds. The first round was the Elimination Round where the students were given Multiple Choice Questions related to basic programming knowledge. The students who cleared the first round were advanced to the second and final round, which was the Coding Round, where the students were given three problem statements to solve in the language of their preference.

These questions were set up by Kaushal Kishore (17CSU090).The questions were of varying difficulty where each question was tougher than the last. The student who solved the three problems correctly in the least time was declared the winner. The following students emerged successful as they secured the top positions: Shubham Drolia (19CSU302) secured the first position;Satvik Nagpal (19CSU280) secured the second position, followed by Hritik Kapil (18CSU088) in the third position.The students got an opportunity to experience the thrill of competitive programming.

ISHRAE Installation Ceremony

The Department of Mechanical Engineering invited Mr. Deepak Dhamija, President of ISHRAE Sub-Chapter Gurugram, & Mr. Ravi Shankar, Member ISHRAE Sub-Chapter Gurugram at ISHRAE for Re-Installation of its Student Chapter at NCU on 4th February 2020.

ISHRAE is an international associate of ASHRAE (American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air Conditioning Engineers). The Indian Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air Conditioning Engineers (ISHRAE), was founded in 1981 at New Delhi by a group of eminent HVAC&R professionals. ISHRAE today has more than 14,000 HVAC&R professionals as members and additionally there are 10,000 Student-members. ISHRAE operates from 41 Chapters and sub Chapters spread all over India, with HQ in Delhi.

During the Installation Ceremony, Mr. Ravi Shankar identified NCU as a potential partner in Gurgaon Sub-Chapter, amongst other ongoing partnerships with premier institutes. Mr. Shankar then proceeded to call upon each successfully elected student to take the Oathfor holding the Office of student President, Secretary, Treasurer and 5 Core Working Committee members. NCU Chapter has 27 student members with the steering committee constituting eight members from final and pre-final year batches.

Re-Installation of the ISHRAE Chapter is expected to give a boost to the industry-institute interaction in Mechanical Engineering. The event was coordinated by the Society faculty advisor & coordinator, Dr. Akanksha Mathur.(MED2020O005) 

Office bearers

R. NO.	Nominations for Positions	NAME	ENROLLMENT NO.
1	PRESIDENT	Abhijit Kumar	16MEU036
2	SECRETARY	Harshit Gupta	17MEU006
3	TREASURER	Jatin Kumar	17MEU009
4	CWC Member	Mihir Inglay	17MEU039
5	CWC Member	Varnit Mittal	17MEU029
6	CWC Member	Himank Taneja	17MEU008
7	CWC Member	Deepanshu	17MEU004
8	CWC Member	AkshitManocha	17MEU002

Student success story at The NorthCap University

Meenakshi Sharma

16CSU206

Class of 2020

Placed with: Nagarro Software

We all are equal with different opportunities. 

I am one of those fortunate students who got a great opportunity by my college for opening doors to success, which got me an internship at a prestigious organization during summer break in 2019 at Nagarro Bootcamp.

Though Bootcamp duration was less than a month, it was engaging and challenging, which lead us to a ginormous learning experience. As a selection process for PPO, we were given dozen of assignments, which followed with a final interview.

Now, I am part of Nagarro, and want to convey the most significant aspect of my journey is always to be aware of your surroundings and do not be afraid to ask anything.

I’d recommend everyone to look for internships of their interest; if you never try, you will never know how the industry works and what kind of work you will fall in love with. I would like to thank my university for constant support.

“Success is where preparation and opportunity meet.” Bobby Unser

Proud to be part of ECE family at NCU

With the motto of Skill Up, Move Up, The NorthCap University (NCU) has proved to be a life-changing institution for my personality growth. Initially, I was reluctant to join NCU because it is an autonomous university, which made me think that personality development and exposure may be low here. However, when I got admission and started my B.Tech in Electronics and Communication, within a few months, I was clear about where I want to see myself after I graduate from this University.

●        Attractive facilities: There were numerous factors, which made me think of NCU as the best engineering institution in the Delhi-NCR region. The Learning Management System (LMS), ERP, WebOpac for library services and individual MATLAB licenses for students are a few of them. The well-equipped laboratories, experienced faculty, and helpful & skilled lab staff add to the glory of the institution.

●        Adhering to timetable and calendar: The NorthCap University has made me learn punctuality. The strict rules for attendance and effective following of the academic calendar have made me punctual. During these 8 semesters of graduation, I have never seen NCU disobeying the academic calendar. This imparts the values of being organized and planning effectively in the students. Punctuality, regularity and system planning are the main pillars when you work for an organization and keep the will to succeed.

●        Active professional and cultural societies: Apart from curricular activities, the timely planning of co-curricular and extra-curricular activities also takes place. Professional societies & Cultural societies are actively taken care of. I was associated with a few professional societies and even headed one of them. I am currently serving as the president of SPIE NCU Chapter which is a professional society for optoelectronics engineers. The association with professional societies has helped me groom my overall personality.

●        Clean & disciplined campus premises: The infrastructure of the university has always been an attraction for the students and even the regulatory authorities. The well-disciplined and clean campus is always a requirement for a student looking forward to a great future. The NorthCap University has the cleanest campus and the best administrative staff. Discipline is always a priority for the university authorities and this makes it the best engineering university in Delhi NCR.

●        Placement support and preparedness: Talking about the campus placements, NCU has a tracked record of more than 90% placements every year. With the best recruiters visiting the campus, students receive the best exposure and opportunities to establish themselves inright places in the corporate world. Timely organized Pre-placement talks and pre-placement interviews, the recruitment cell (SPA) prepares the students well for campus placement drives.

The involvement of the SPA from the very beginning has helped me bag placement at Tata Consultancy Services Ltd. TCS was one of the first to start the placement process for 2020 pass-outs and I was overwhelmed to be placed at the starting of the placements session.

In a nutshell, The NorthCap University is a perfect institution for students who look up to experienced & helpful faculty, disciplined campus, and good campus placements.

Gungun Saini, 

B.Tech ECE Final Year, 

2016-2020 Batch

Placed with TCS as Assistant System Engineer

VC Innovation fund and its contribution to developing the future of the students

The NorthCap University provides a broad curriculum for students to acquire knowledge and guides to develop skills for the corporate world. The Vice Chancellor’s Innovation Fund Scheme is one such initiative from the university to encourage the shaping of innovative ideas and to carry out basic research. Ten million Indian rupees fund is offered under this scheme aiming to encourage innovative ideas amongst research workers, faculty members, and students to seed research activity. The funding from the VC Innovation Fund acts as an initial grant to nurture ideas, passion & convert products into startups. The funded projects may also attract industries for commercialization of the product so made. The outcome of the scheme will be the nucleation of new ideas that can be transformed into commercial applications which are beneficial to society. 

The scheme benefits students get to jump-start their career. The project ideas that students develop over the duration, sharpens the essential technical skills that students require in corporations. Furthermore, the scheme also promotes students to learn communication and management skills as the projects are regularly monitored. This opportunity also initiates the filing of a patent based on the idea/prototype made, provides support in participating in various National or International competitions and other methods of interacting with the outside world. The university not only provides financial support to realize the idea but also provides space to incubate and technical support to design and implement the idea to come up with a product of social cause and other related thrust areas. 

EECE Dept. is one of the Dept. in The NorthCap University, which aims to earn a maximum of the funds under this scheme wherein the projects are mainly an amalgamation of hardware and software aiming to deliver a product for further commercialization. Some of the sanctioned projects under this scheme include power generation using speed breaker, smart car management system, Navigation with Indian Constellation (NavIC) Disciplined Oscillator, Security box, Design and Development of low power WSN Mote, etc. 

In conclusion, the VC innovation scheme has provided all the appropriate opportunities for a student to gain practical knowledge and thus helping them shape their careers. 

Written by: 

Dr. Anjali Garg, Associate Professor-EECE Department 

Ms. Ritika Sharma, Student-EECE Department