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The Vice-Chancellor of the Federal Polytechnic, Ilaro, Ogun State, Dr. Mukele Akinde, on Friday said the institution plans to set up a small assembly plant to produce its newly invented electric auto-tricycle.
Akinde also called on the Federal Government and corporate organisations, especially in the manufacturing sector, to help drive the polytechnic’s efforts towards commercial production of the invention.
The president said the success of commercial production of the tricycles would help reduce imports, “reduce our foreign exchange pressure and provide employment opportunities for a large number of our young people.”
Ajinde disclosed this while speaking when Alhaji Garba Gashua, Chairman, Governing Council of Indian Automobile Manufacturers and a delegation from National Automotive Design and Development Council visited the innovation centre of the organization to inspect the newly invented electric autorickshaw.
The polytechnic is said to be the first institution to produce the brand’s three-wheeler, which is manufactured and assembled at the institute’s innovation centre.
The chancellor called on the federal government to pump more money into the institution to drive more innovation, research and development.
He said: “My expectation now is to see how we can market the three-wheeler to the industry. I will also tell you that this is just a prototype and the main design will accommodate three people; the rider and two more people at the back.
“It will also contain a solar panel for charging the three-wheeler. This is already designed, but we are looking for a partner like Innoson, or anyone who can help us bring our innovation to industry for commercial production.
“If we cannot mass produce this three-wheeler, it means we have to import it, which will put more pressure on our exchange rate. So we are asking the institution to support us and fund this polytechnic so that we can do better.
“We are hoping to set up a small assembly plant here so that we can produce 10 or more three-wheelers. I want to assure you that by the next quarter, we will have produced three such three-wheelers for our use on campus.”
He explained that the tricycle “can carry three people and has solar panels to charge it. Another unique thing about this tricycle is that it can be reversed, unlike other tricycles out there.”
In response, the Chairman of the Polytechnic’s Governing Council, Alhaji Garba Gashua, said he was excited and proud of the outstanding innovation of the Polytechnic and would certainly rally support to ensure that the dream is fully realised.
“I was very impressed by the tricycle produced by the Polytechnic. I rode it from the Innovation Center to the Administration Building. I was also pleased that almost everything used in the Polytechnic’s production was sourced locally,” Gashua said.
“However, we suggest that next time they build a tricycle that can seat three people at the back and one person at the front, just like our normal tricycles.
“The National Automotive Centre representative who inspected the three-wheeler with us said he was impressed by the innovation.
“We really need federal assistance for this polytechnic so that they can expand the use of this machine. We don’t have the funds but we will go and beg the federal government to give us help.”
Praising the move, Ayinde Abdullahi, director of the automotive electrification department at the National Automotive Design and Development Council, said the completion of so many raw material companies being set up by the federal government will greatly help in promoting local production in the automobile industry.
Director of the Innovation Centre, Jide Soyemi, said the centre was established three years ago to provide students with cutting-edge technologies that are not in the curriculum but are in the industry.
Soyemi said the innovation center exposed students to areas such as artificial intelligence, robotics, drone manufacturing and flying, especially drones for agricultural purposes, and portable inverters for micro-enterprises.
He said the latest invention is the tricycle and students contribute more than 80 percent in everything the center does.
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