• It was a dream come true - The 7 aspiring engineers
By Obialunamma Nwadiogbu
EKWULOBIA-VICE Chancellor, Nnamdi Azikiwe University Awka , Prof.
Joseph Ahaneku is a happy man now following the feat achieved by his
students.This was because the Department of Mechanical Engineering of
the university had again proved that it was not just good in theory but also
in the practical aspect of their studies. Seven graduating students from
the department constructed a "made in Nigeria" mini bus to the
satisfaction of the university community.
The journey into car manufacturing in the university started last year,
when a group of five students from the same department produced a
Formula 1 car called AutoZIK. The seven students include Ezeigwe Chitoo,
Obinani Victor, Ezeanolue Ifeanyi, Okoro Chinaza, Ominigbo Fidelis,
Nwobodo Nnamdi and Ogbu Thaddeus.
They were supervised by the Head of the department, Dr. C.H.
Achebe. South East Voice learned that the group, which is known as
‘AUTOZIK II,’ spent over five months constructing the mini bus for shuttles
within and around the university with locally sourced materials.
Like the popular saying, "What a man can do, a woman can do even
better," the conspicuous presence of a female, 'Okoro Chinaza' in the team
spoke volumes. On how she was able to surmount the challenges as the
only female in the midst of her male counterparts with respect to the
stress associated with such herculean tasks, she said: "I had always been
in their midst right from my first year in school, so it was not really a big
deal."
She disclosed that she had always followed her passion regardless of what
people around said or thought. Narrating the success story, one of the
engineers, Ezeigwe Chitoo, said that the project was a dream come true.
"The Autozik group made the design using CAD software, and all
necessary simulation softwares for the analysis, putting the environment
into critical consideration. The bus has good seating positions, better fuel
conservation, good passenger view and very good aesthetics. It was built
to suit the topography of our environment and the weather condition we
have in this part of the world," he said.
According to him, the bus was constructed from start to finish, inside the
mechanical workshop of the university. He disclosed that the project was
aimed at advancing the ergonomic standard of existing shuttle buses. The
bus can be compared to other foreign produced ones and it is outstanding.
Also speaking, a member of the team, Ifeanyi said: "The AUTOZIK team
had gone through a whole lot before arriving at this platform. When we
started, many thought we will not come this far, but today they have come
to rejoice with us.
"We thank God, who has brought us this far, we also thank our supervisor
and the Head of Department Dr. C.H. Achebe, for his fatherly advice and
support throughout the duration of the project," he happily said.The bus
was test-driven within and outside the university to prove that it was
movable, durable and above all, fully made in Nigeria.Some of the
students of the department, in an interview, commended the efforts of Dr.
Achebe and his team of lecturers, who, according to them, were doing
great job, by igniting the spirit and the zeal of invention and innovation in
Nigeria.
They also commended the Dean of the Faculty, Prof. Ihueze Toochukwu, who, they said, had brought huge improvement
to the Faculty of Engineering and re-branding the system.The team further praised the Vice Chancellor, Prof. Ahaneku,
who according to them, had changed the face of the institution, wiped out examination malpractice and improved the
standard of learning.According to Chitoo, Ahaneku's support for the Faculty of Engineering had increased the zeal for
invention and ingenuity in the faculty.

nice development guys. u did well

dey really tried

E move?

ametu166:
E move?

only God knw oo

WOW!!! THE MADE IN NAIJA MINI BUS BY UNIZIK ENGINEERS, LOOKING BETTER THAN EVER

The thought that this mini bus was designed and constructed in Nigeria, by Nigerian Engineers and not foreign Engineers, working here as expatriates; is indeed a hard one to believe, as it is looking more foreign than home made.

The thought that it was produced inside the University workshop of Nnamdi Azikiwe University Awka, by 7 Graduate Engineers of Mechanical Engineering Department, of the Faculty of Engineering, is certainly a hard bone to swallow.

These lads have given in their best, to put up this gigantic project within a very short frame of time, and thus, it has become the talk of the town.

One will wonder how undergraduates, who know they have got very limited time to stay in the University and so, should enjoy their last days within the 4-walls of the University, still gave in to stressful and strenuous nights at the workshop, just to write their names on the sands of time.

These guys are worth all the laurels and awards in this country at this particular point in time and thus, be given immediate employment, so that their brains and zeal towards invention are kept in line.

They are:
EZEIGWE CALLISTUS CHITOO
OBINANI VICTOR CHIMDIKE
NWOBODO NNAMDI MIRACLE
OGBU THADDEUS IKENNA
OMINIGBO FIDELIS IGHO
EZEANOLUE IFEANYI EMMA
OKORO CHINAZA


Worthy of note, is the fact that they have got a female Engineer in their midst, one very fragile from the outside and has got the necessary doggedness to pull through and be outstanding.

Obliviously, these students are geniuses, as it is only people in that category that can put up something like this, using crude equipment and 100% local content. They improvised for barely everything that can be found in that mini bus, from the chassis to its roofing.

The bus was even test driven in front of the Minister of state for Education, Prof Anthony Onwuka and other top dignitaries present during the National Universities Commission Exhibition (NUC), held in UNIZIK. This goes a long way to tell the world out there that, this is Naija's giant invention, its has been tested, and its indeed it can be trusted.

A warm kudoz! to these guys, for it is certain that a bright future awaits them. A big congratulations to their supervisor and the Head of Department at that time, Dr. C.H Achebe, for giving his boys every necessary vigor they needed to carry out this work, and above all, for being leading by example.

It will be a dream come true, if we have other indigenous Automobile companies springing up, joining forces with The Innoson Motors (IVM), such that we can someday have our country flooded with made in Nigeria vehicles.

If we must succeed in diversifying the economy of this country, we must start with them, to help boost our Automobile sector.

We wish them the best in their field of specialization, as we look forward to bringing our country on the top list of Innovators in the world.

We are very close to getting there

Unizik is a very good sch

Nigerians are very intelligent

Big ups

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