Satellite Dishes Made By Students Sell Like Hot Cakes

[webfact]

LOCAL INNOVATION

Satellite dishes made by students sell like hot cakes

By Sutthiphong Saterangsee

The Nation on Sunday

Published on January 17, 2010

Improvising on an in-house attempt to find a cheaper way to view educational TV programmes, a primary school in Chaiyaphum is now making good income from selling portable, home-made satellite dishes made out of pot lids.

Wisit Suesat, a sixth-grade teacher at the Nong Kong Kaew public school in Nong Bua Rahew district, who "discovered" this technique, said it was difficult for teachers and technical staff to adjust existing equipment and the direction of large satellite dishes when the signal was weak or lost.

It regularly cost the school Bt2,900 to get someone to fine-tune the reception.

The teacher formed a team of five of his students to try utilising various materials such as dishes and found that aluminium pot and pan covers could substitute nicely for metal reflectors, after one year of trial and error.

Relying mainly on aluminium kitchen utensils donated by villagers, they start by hammering the materials into a parabolic shape, then assemble a stand from steel. The dish and stand are then attached to a receiver that can catch all KU band news and entertainment channels available in Thailand, besides free educational channels.

Each set costs Bt500-Bt2,500.

"The selling point of our satellite-receiver kit is its compact size, with a diameter of no more than 35 centimetres, besides the low price. They now sell like hot cakes," Wisit said.

Anucha Kulsiri, one of the students, said he would make his living making satellite-receiver kits when he grew up.

"It's not hard for me to make one now. You just lift the dish 35 degrees up and turn its direction to the southwest," he said.

Kittisak Theschaiyaphum, another team member, explained the "simple" steps in making the antennas.

"Pick a lid of a proper size. Remove the handle. Pound it into the right shape. Spray-paint it and drill holes that will be used for screws to attach it to a stand," he said.

Prasong Phornsophin, a |senior education officer, said he was expanding this home-made satellite-receiver-kit project to more than 300 schools, to |provide them with an extra source of income.

-- The Nation 2010-01-17

[newsfooter][/newsfooter]

[givenall]

An excellent innovation to stop the greed and greedy companies to charge too much for simple service

[Thailand]

Innovation from the kids-Brilliant

[hearditallbefore]

Yes, it's just a directional antenna, that can be bought cheap anywhere, not a satellite receiver.

Edited January 17, 2010 by hearditallbefore

[kenallday]

Imagine it now tower blocks with dish pan lids hanging of the balconies on every level - that will help resale value ha ha - what a lot of pish

[Foggy Bottom]

Prasong Phornsophin, a |senior education officer, said he was expanding this home-made satellite-receiver-kit project to more than 300 schools, to |provide them with an extra source of income.

Good to see child labour and sweatshop mentality is alive and kicking

Wonder who gets the extra income - the schools, the teachers, or the students (the last group, of course, already paying for the privilege of attending the school, and for being used as child labour). Also wonder if K. Prasong will become the next Shinawatra emulator?

It's one thing to do it to as a science project, an another to do it to better the service for your own school, but to turn it into a commercial enterprise goes against the ethos of compulsory education programs.

JMHO of course

Foggy

[Dap]

Bravo and I salute the students.

[Thakkar]

Yes, it's just a directional antenna, that can be bought cheap anywhere, not a satellite receiver.

You're right, calling it a 'satellite dish' is a bit much. Hopefully the teachers are using this as a teaching moment by explaining how and why it works as well as teaching some business skills.

[thairan]

U need a bit more than a pot lid to get a picture on ur tv.......let's see the REST of the story......

[thetravellingcat]

in time the kids will learn that compulsory education isn't required to succeed in life.

with a good business idea anything is possible. this isn't child labour, this is children doing what they should be!

[parryhandy]

No this is child labour. Teaching them to do it and giving them the knowledge is good.Turning a school into a business venture is not.

I think you will find most of the kids over the age of 10 know what they need to "succeed"in life in Thailand.

Which is to be lucky enough to be in the right family or have the right connections.

[citizen33]

No this is child labour. Teaching them to do it and giving them the knowledge is good.Turning a school into a business venture is not.

I think you will find most of the kids over the age of 10 know what they need to "succeed"in life in Thailand.

Which is to be lucky enough to be in the right family or have the right connections.

Sounds a tall story to me. No mention of LHBs, for example. It would be possible to make a KU band dish but shape is everything and not all pot lids are going to fit the bill.

[Texpatt]

The provincial government has withdrawn funding for the school when it was learned the headmaster has bought a new BMW.

[salty]

He must be spending his time watching the financial channels.

[astral]

This reminds me of the letters in the Bangkok Post some years ago, from Edith Clampton (Mrs)

suggesting that satellite dishes might be made from up turned umbrellas..................

I am not knocking the school project, very commendable,

but even the commercial dishes from True leave something to be desired

especially when it rains................

[Bottlerocket]

Prasong Phornsophin, a |senior education officer, said he was expanding this home-made satellite-receiver-kit project to more than 300 schools, to |provide them with an extra source of income.

Good to see child labour and sweatshop mentality is alive and kicking

Wonder who gets the extra income - the schools, the teachers, or the students (the last group, of course, already paying for the privilege of attending the school, and for being used as child labour). Also wonder if K. Prasong will become the next Shinawatra emulator?

It's one thing to do it to as a science project, an another to do it to better the service for your own school, but to turn it into a commercial enterprise goes against the ethos of compulsory education programs.

JMHO of course

Foggy

It's a bit early to be calling it a sweatshop, but there needs to be an evaluation of how much time students are spending "producing" these antennae, if it's interfering with their basic education, and where the money's going. And they need to do it precisely for the reasons you have given.