Prof. Dr. Ir Roosseno

Prof. Dr. Ir Roosseno

Prof. Dr. Ir Roosseno who was born on August 2, 1908 is a pioneer of concrete construction in Indonesia. The name Roosseno has always been associated with Indonesian civil engineering. He was the master translator of the drawings and designs of the building designers in the form and structure of his time.

Roosseno graduated from the Bandung Technische Hooge School (now the Bandung Technical Institute / ITB) which in 1932 was the only Indonesian among 12 people who graduated from the institute. He graduated with the highest score among 7 Dutch and 1 Chinese. He began his career with entrepreneurship in Bandung by establishing the Roosseno and Soekarno Engineer Bureau (RI's first President) on Jalan Banceuy in 1933. Although he was actually a civil engineer, Soekarno was better at designing buildings.

He is known to be good at counting as a student, good at building construction. After the bureau they had founded was disbanded in 1935-1939, Roosseno worked as an employee of Department van Verkeer en Waterstaat (Department of Roads and Irrigation) in Bandung). Here, he succeeded in convincing his superiors to prioritize the use of concrete in bridge construction in Indonesia. The reason is that basic concrete materials such as sand, broken stone, cement and scaffolding wood can be purchased in Indonesia alone, so the procurement costs will go into the people's pockets and contribute to the welfare of the people.

During the Japanese occupation, Roosseno turned to be a lecturer at Bandung Koogyo Daigaku (change from THS) until the beginning of independence. While still alive, he was known to be able to explain difficult sciences by means of simple delivery. With that, students are expected to be even more inspired, and increasingly love exploring civil engineering. During the Japanese occupation, exactly 1 April 1944, Roosseno was appointed as a professor (kyudju) in the field of concrete science in Bandung Kogyo Daigaku. Then, on March 26, 1949 he was appointed professor of extraordinary concrete science at Universiteit Van Indonesi, Faculteit van Technische Wetenschap in Bandung.

In 1948, Rooseno moved to Jakarta and established the Consulting Engineer Office. In 1954, Roosseno wrote the first concrete textbook in Indonesian. Then in 1949, he began introducing prestressed concrete through his lectures at ITB and through writings in the Indonesian Engineer Magazine in 1959. In addition he had served three times as minister, including the Minister of Public Works and Energy, the Minister of Transportation, and the Minister of Economy . During that time he remained active in education and became a professor of ITB and the Faculty of Engineering, University of Indonesia (UI) and also as Director of the National Technical College (STTN) in Jakarta. The name Roosseno began to be discussed in around 1960, when President Soekarno began to like large buildings. Then the Hotel Indonesia was built in Jakarta, the Ambarukmo Hotel in Yogyakarta, Samudera Beach Hotel in Pelabuhan Ratu, and the Bali Beach Hotel on Sanur Beach, Bali. Also the Welcome Monument and the National Monument. To welcome the Asian Games, the Senayan Sports Center complex was built, also called the Bung Karno Stadium.

Roosseno is one of the engineers who consistently introduced and developed concrete - both flexible and tensile - in building engineering in Indonesia. Therefore, he was dubbed the Father of Indonesian Concrete. As a reinforced concrete expert, Rooseno has handled many important projects, such as bridges, ports, buildings, and multi-storey hotels. Among international pavilion, Roosseno is a member of the International Association for Bridge and Structural Engineering (IBSE), Zurich and the Federation International de Precontreinte (FIP).

During President Soeharto's administration, Roosseno remained trusted to handle large projects such as the restoration of Borobudur Temple and the completion of the Istiqlal Mosque. When Jakarta was hit by the fever of a tall building, Roosseno was appointed to be part of the Building Construction Advisory Team formed by Governor Ali Sadikin in 1972. In addition, Rooseno also became a Director in three companies namely, the Exakta NV Engineer Bureau, Freyssinet Indonesia Ltd and the Roenteno Patent Bureau. In 1962, the Government of the Republic of Indonesia awarded Satya Badge for services to build the Senayan Asian Games Complex. Another award was Doctor Honoris Causa for engineering which he received from ITB in 1977. In July 1984, Roosseno received Bintang Mahaputra Utama from the government given directly by President Soeharto. The predicate of Mr Beton Indonesia was best given to Roosseno, who died on June 15, 1996. He has been involved in many important projects in Indonesia. Even though he is gone, his services and works will always be remembered.