Afonso Pinto and Sidnei Ferreira, Master’s students in Informatics and Computer Engineering, won the Merit Award given by Hitachi in Data Analysis and Integration 2023/2024.

On April 22, the 2nd Edition of the Hitachi Merit Award Ceremony in Data Analysis and Integration 2023/2024 took place at Técnico Oeiras. The event highlighted the exceptional work of the students in the Curricular Unit and reinforced the partnership between Técnico and the multinational company Hitachi.

The prize, worth 1,600 euros, was awarded to the group of students Afonso Pinto and Sidnei Teixeira, who stood out for their outstanding performance in the Data Analysis course. In addition, a donation of 1,070 euros was given to the Department of Computer Engineering (DEI), which aims to improve the quality of teaching of the respective course unit.

In her opening remarks, Professor Joana Mendonça, Vice-President for Técnico Oeiras, highlighted the importance of maintaining and strengthening relationships with companies, while Duarte Teixeira, Engineering Director at Hitachi Vantara and a Técnico alumnus, thanked the institution that shaped his professional path for the opportunity to contribute. “The aim of the award is to support teaching, enhance learning and promote the quality of student training,” he said. Duarte Teixeira added that “above all (the students should) consider this recognition not only as a merit award, in terms of the financial component, but as a very direct way of enriching their CV and having an outstanding experience”.

The winning students, Afonso Pinto and Sidnei Teixeira, recognized the value of the prize and the multinational company’s incentive. Both highlighted the extra motivation that the award provided during the course “I’ve enjoyed the Database course since I was an undergraduate, and this Data Analysis and Integration project has reinforced my idea,” said Afonso Pinto.

Professor Diogo Ferreira, responsible for the Data Analysis and Integration curricular unit, highlighted the importance of this initiative in the students’ training and the proximity to Hitachi, which developed the software, Pentaho, used in the project. “This software is developed by Hitachi, a multinational company with a development center in Portugal, particularly here at Taguspark. The close relationship and the creation of this award was the main motivation for many students to apply themselves to the subject.”

The Hitachi Merit Award ceremony in Data Analysis and Integration reinforced not only the excellence of the academic talent at Técnico, but also the relationship between the School and the business sector, driving development and innovation in the field of data analysis.