Shaham Zaki, a 32-year-old Pakistani expatriate, thought his life was over when he lost his right arm to a car accident in the Saudi capital of Riyadh 15 years ago. But a Karachi startup that has fitted him with an artificial intelligence-powered prosthetic arm has given him a second lease on life.
Zaki, who was born and raised in the Kingdom, underwent four surgeries in Riyadh but the doctors had to amputate his arm to prevent the infection from spreading further.
The expat said he tried to search for a prosthetic arm solution in Riyadh but it was very costly and hence he got it from the Karachi-based BIONIKS startup, which provides orthotics and prosthetics solutions, for around $7,000.
“I found about BIONIKS online and then visited their office during my vacation in Karachi this year and after seeing their products, I decided to use their bionic arm,” he was quoted as telling in a report.
“It took almost 40 days in preparation of the personalized arm and training with a physiotherapist to use it.”
The expat said the prosthetic arm eased his life a lot: “I am working as a junior accountant in Riyadh and it has also increased my confidence as earlier I was unable to meet people due to the stigma attached with disabilities,” he added.
Mechatronic grads, Anas Niaz and Ovais Hussain Qureshi, conceived the idea of establishing BIONIKS when the father of five-year-old Mir Bayyan Baloch asked them in 2016 to make a personalized prosthetic arm for his son who was born with the disability.
Niaz and Qureshi discovered during the project that AI-based prosthetic limbs were expensive and rarely available, which moved them to provide such solutions through BIONIKS. Since then, more than 300 people have benefitted from their services.
Niaz said the BIONIKS provided unique, AI-powered limbs to people with disabilities that could be remotely calibrated, maintained and improved through an application.
“BIONIKS is currently working on upper limbs, lower limbs and exo-glove for people with minimum mobility and the cost ranges from $2,000 to $5,000, depending upon amputation and advancement requirement,” he told Arab News.
“We started BIONIKS as a social enterprise where we provide free-of-cost products to those who cannot afford and charge those who can afford it.”
Niaz said similar prosthetics cost between $10,000 to $200,000 globally.
Irtaza Hassan, a Pakistani expatriate working as an electrical engineer in Jeddah since 2012, also feels relieved after finding a bionic limb for his six-year-old daughter Fatimah Hassan, who was born with a congenital amputation.
“I had approached many hospitals in Pakistan even the expensive ones, but could not get any solution,” he told Arab News over the phone.
“I found out about Niaz’s work through social media and during my visit to Pakistan in May this year, we found a bionic limb for my daughter.”
Hassan said his daughter has been doing her everyday chores easily for the last six months.
He said he paid $1,500 for the replacement of his daughter’s arm, which was almost half of the fee charged by European prosthetic firms.
According to the World Health Organization, around 15 percent of the world’s population, which is more than 1.2 billion, has a disability and over 90 million of these people are from Southeast Asia.
Saudi Arabia is home to more than 2.5 million Pakistani expatriates mostly laborers and low-skilled workers, who find it difficult to afford such an expensive solution in case of accidental amputation. – Courtesy AN n

In pulp and paper mills, refineries, and chemical factories, cogeneration is still prevalent. In this type of industrial cogeneration, heat is often recovered at higher temperatures—likely above 100 degrees Celsius—and put to use for drying or process steam.Compared to low-grade waste heat, this is more valuable and adaptable, although there is a minor loss in power generation. Industrial CHP is more appealing now that there is a greater emphasis on sustainability because it has a lower carbon footprint than on-site fuel burning or steam generation and grid electricity import. Smaller industrial co-generation units are a viable off-grid solution for a range of remote applications to cut carbon emissions. These units have an output capacity of 5 MW to 25 MW. The bigger scale power that utilities normally have compared to the industry helps to offset the higher capital expenditures of high pressure. Compared to industrial operations, which deal with shutting down or starting up units that may represent a sizable percentage of either steam or power demand, utilities are less prone to experience abrupt load swings. The bagasse leftover from sugar refining, which is burned to create steam, is used as fuel for cogeneration in the sugarcane sector. It is possible to pass some steam via a turbine, which turns a generator and generates electricity.
Following are some comparisons between a heat pump and a CHP unit. The lost electrical generation is equivalent to using a heat pump to provide the same heat by taking electrical power from the generator running at a lower output temperature and higher efficiency if the exhaust steam from the turbo-generator must be taken at a higher temperature to supply thermal energy than the system would produce the majority of electricity at. At about 90 °C (194 °F), approximately 6 units of heat are typically made available for every unit of electrical power lost. Micro cogeneration, also known as micro combined heat and power, is a type of so-called distributed energy resource. A home or small business installation is typically less than 5 kW. Some of the energy produced by burning fuel is instead transformed into electricity in addition to heat, rather than just heating either air or water. If the grid management approves, this electricity may be resold into the electrical grid or used inside the home or company. Microturbines, internal combustion engines, Stirling engines, closed-cycle steam engines, and fuel cells are among the five different technologies used in micro combined heat power installations. When it comes to reducing carbon emissions, one author said in 2008 that Micro combined heat power based on Stirling engines is the most affordable of the so-called microgeneration technologies. According to a 2013 UK analysis by Ecuity Consulting, the most economical way to use gas to generate electricity at the residential level is through micro-combined heat power. But improvements in reciprocating engine technology are making CHP facilities more effective, especially in the biogas sector. Because it has been demonstrated that CHP and mini-combined heat power both lower emissions.
A heat recovery steam generator is a type of steam boiler that produces steam by heating water using hot exhaust gases from gas turbines or reciprocating engines in a combined heat and power plant. The steam is then utilized to power a steam turbine or to heat up an industrial process. The bulk of industrialized nations sources their energy needs from huge, centralized facilities with large electrical power production capabilities. Although these plants take advantage of economies of scale, they might need to transmit electricity across large distances, which could result in transmission losses. Due to restrictions in the local demand, cogeneration or trigeneration production may occasionally need to be reduced (e.g., heat or cooling production to match the demand).
Along with the benefits to the environment, cogeneration utilizing sugarcane bagasse offers advantages in terms of efficiency when compared to thermoelectric generation, thanks to the use of the generated energy. While some of the heat generated during thermoelectric generation is lost, with cogeneration, this heat may be utilized in the manufacturing processes, improving the process’ overall efficiencyn

Engineering psychology is moving towards complexity as deprivation is prevailing day by day. Critical observations may reveal the core issues and reasons behind the lack of opportunities and biased behavior toward the engineers of Pakistan. The main factor responsible for the increase in unemployment is the unbalanced demand and supply of engineers, demand by the industry and other private/public engineering sector employers, and supply from the institutions. Most engineers are unemployed and a significant number of engineers are working underpaid. The other main issue is that our institutions produce engineers, majorly of which are unemployable and their knowledge lags practicality far behind. That is why most public and private employers abuse their powers against the prestige of young engineers of Pakistan and the Pakistan Engineering Council (PEC) is adding fuel to fire. Further, the expenses for study in any engineering field are beyond the limits of a common man. Even the dues for the government universities are not in the budget for a common man. Some of the bright students are not able to even afford the horrendous application fees of universities and this is a tragic moment for us that most of the students are out of competition as they cannot afford the entry-level examination. In other words, we are depicting that no matter what the talent is, the only thing that matters is just your financial background. After these hurdles, if someone is lucky enough to get through the admission protocols by sacrificing their last penny just for the sake of education, are getting a major disappointment after completing the four-year educational program.
Today we have to take a pause and rethink where we are heading. Now is the prime time when engineers have to be united just for the sake of this noble profession, we as an engineer should share our experiences and make an effective chain that will raise engineers’ prestige again. Every profession is united at some platform then what is the problem with engineers? This is the need of the hour to address the real and core issues of Young engineers in Pakistan. We should equip ourselves with the relevant knowledge that may help us to excel in our respective fields. Pakistan Engineering Council should take some decisive steps to regulate institutions, their fee structures, and all other engineering sectors accordingly as per their originality, hence on top priority, PEC by itself should be restored to its original functionality in order to initialize the whole process of rectification. But above all, we should start this process of rectification by ourselves. Unfortunately, we are lagging in the professional world and self-grooming, so we have to demolish this resistance through our marginal, ensuing, and constructive perspectives and should work sincerely and smartly for the growth and professional development of our young engineering community of Pakistan. Soon the Ray of Hope will make our helmets shine again, we just have to believe in ourselves and try to eliminate the polluted politics from the engineering community. Because we are here to serve humanity and this noble profession.
YES: We can take care of the profession we believe in!
(The writer is President Y-PEG Engineers Club)n

The largely-attended 40th Annual General Meeting of The Institution of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Pakistan (IEEEP) was held this month in Lahore.
Engr. Tauseef H. Farooqi, Chairman NEPRA graced the occasion as chief guest, and Engr. Saleem Arif, Former General Manager of NTDC/WAPDA attended the AGM as guests of Honor.
Large number of corporate members of the institution, and eminent engineers representing public sector organizations as well as the corporate sector attended the meeting besides many on-line.
In his inaugural address, the President of IEEEP Prof. Dr. Suhail Aftab Qureshi welcomed the Engineers and highlighted the aims of objectives and the Institution. He observed that the main object of this institution was to promote the dissemination of knowledge of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and thereby improve the professional standard of the community of engineers for the usefulness of society at large. This body aspires to promote Engineering knowledge, research, and a culture of invention.
He emphasized that the institution maintains close liaison with industry, academia, corporate entities of the Electrical power sector, and other stakeholders to facilitate them to effectively contribute to the development of Pakistan. He thanked the galaxy of Engineers for their presence in the AGM, in person as well as through the On-line system remotely.
Tauseef H. Farooqi, Chairman/NEPRA speaking on the occasion pointed out that the people of Pakistan have been bearing the brunt of the water and energy crisis in the country. He emphased that urgent attention was needed to be paid to ameliorate the condition of common Pakistanis by those at the helm of affairs as well as Professionals and the engineering community.
Engineers are the crucial pin for progress and prosperity in Pakistan and it is hoped that IEEEP will keep disseminating technical knowledge to upgrade the engineering resource of Pakistan. For a greater role to play, it is inevitable that engineers must equip themselves with the latest technical knowledge. They should also be privy to cutting-edge technologies that favor our country and lastly, they must garner the ability to claim their rightful place.
The Hony. Secretary General-IEEEP Engr. Salis Usman presented the annual report and the house was informed that IEEEP contributed significantly while disseminating technical knowledge in the form of symposia, workshops, seminars, conferences, and Lectures Publication of Research Journal “New Horizons” These seminars and workshops have educated professional engineers with the latest trends in modern technology. He extended his special thanks to all the participants/stakeholders and sponsors for their wholehearted patronage.
In the AGM, The matters relating to the budget, balance sheet, and other administrative issues were discussed in detail and approved.
Formal approval of the prevailing IEEEP Constitution and Byelaws was approved unanimously by the corporate members.
The house appreciated the progress made by IEEEP and the ambitious agenda of the Central Council as well as the Local Councils to be pursued during 2022 – 2023.
After the AGM, a seminar was conducted on “Competitive Trading Bilateral Contract Market (CTBCM)” while discussing the Scopes, Roles and Status and Challenges. Renowned Resource Persons Engr. Omer Haroon Malik, Head Market Operations & Development, CPPA-G, Engr. Bilal Aslam, Manager – Project Management Unit, NTDC, Mr. Irfan Rafique, Director General MIRAD, GEPCOand Mr. Gul Hassan Bhutto, Advisor CTBCM, NEPRAdelivered presentations on the related topics. Engr. Syed Mansoor Sarwar Vice Chancellor of UET Lahore graced the event as the Chief Guest. — PR