EKWULOBI
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 aFormula 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.
Source: vanguard
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