Low pay forces LIPI researchers to moonlight

Sari P. Setiogi, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

For Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) researcher Sugiono invention comes from extra determination and dedication, sometimes removing financial gain from the consideration.

Sugiono said he spent most of his free time rather than working time, used part of his small salary, used his own facilities and involved his wife and children as assistants en route to his inventions.

One of his inventions, dark windshield film to provide guidance to drivers, has been patented, although he said he had earned nothing so far from his hard work.

Sugiono, who now heads the standards, quality system and training division at LIPI's Center for Standards and Quality Systems, was one of only four LIPI researchers whose inventions have been patented.

"My invention started when I encountered a problem measuring the safe distance from other cars when driving on toll roads," he recalled.

On toll roads, a driver should stay 60 meters from the vehicle in front when traveling at 60 kilometers per hour.

"At present, people only use their instincts to estimate a safe distance. Also, when they drive their cars through a gateway, they merely estimate the space between the car and the gateway by using the door mirrors," said Sugiono.

Thanks to his background as an optical designer, he used trigonometric calculations to make things easier while driving.

"Using tangent calculations and with dark sheets of film I can avoid accidents," Sugiono said.

His invention involves lines of one-millimeter, dark sheets of film fixed to the windshield of a car, which provide guidance for safe driving.

A friend of his, who had just returned from a workshop on patent rights, suggested he apply for a patent.

It took Sugiono about five years to obtain the patent, in 1997.

"I was called seven times for a substantive examination," he said of the long and winding road to getting the patent.

Sugiono said some obstacles came from the Patent Rights Office at the Ministry of Justice and Human Rights, which examines inventions before granting patents.

Similar criticism was also raised by Rudi Subagja, another LIPI researcher whose invention, nickel laterite, has been patented.

He said he had visited the patent office several times because the examiner was not able to understand the basic metallurgy and other information on his invention.

"Writing a patent proposal appears to be one of the obstacles," he said.

"Many researchers have been reluctant to patent their inventions as they think the invention must be something spectacular."

Rudi, now head of LIPI's research center on metallurgy, patented his invention because he realized that Indonesia has the world's second-largest source of laterite after Caledonia.

Laterite is tropical soil in which seasonal fluctuations of groundwater have concentrated aluminum and iron oxide, forming a thick, hard, reddish layer.

He said the processing of nickel laterite into nickel was not yet complete, therefore he was thinking of a new and more effective way to process nickel laterite.

"There are two ways to process nickel laterite: filometallurgy using high temperature and hydrometalurgy using liquids as a solvent," said Rudi.

He was using the combination of both technique, using sulfate acid as the solvent.

Both Sugiono and Rudi said they had not yet enjoyed any benefit from registering their inventions for patents.

"Metallurgy involves big investment. Particularly for nickel, to meet the minimum capacity of 20,000 tons to 25,000 tons annually, might require an investment of about US$ 1 million. If it is below the minimum capacity, it will not be profitable," said Rudi.

Given that the country's economy has not yet recovered, Rudi said he was a bit skeptical that the private sector would invest in the nickel industry. Foreigners are unlikely to invest due to security instability here.

Sugiono once tried to take his invention to the market, but it was not really a viable business proposition. "I am an inventor, a researcher -- not a marketing person. I'm not good in that field," he said.

He expected to invent more but had no time as his daily work took up most of his time.

"The only time left to do research is when I'm at home. My daily work as head of standards, quality system and training has nothing to do with research. I have no time to carry out any research at LIPI," he said.

Another basic complaint mentioned by Sugiono was salary.

"Some researchers are paid even less than a security guard. How can we survive, with all our family and living needs?" he asked.

This state of affairs has forced researchers to seek side jobs and do research for those who are willing to pay more than LIPI.