My Engineers Blog

Contents of Nigeria’s new national petroleum policy recently approved by the Federal Executive Council (FEC) and obtained by THISDAY has revealed that the country would be seeking to significantly reduce the cost of producing a barrel of crude oil in her fields to $10 from the current $27, which it considers not quite competitive. By doing that, Nigeria would be seeking to reduce her current production cost per barrel by about $17, and this could effectively make her one of the cheapest oil-producing destinations within the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) group. At the moment within OPEC, records indicate that Saudi Arabia and Kuwait have the lowest production costs at $10 and $8.50 per barrel respectively, while Nigeria, Libya, and Venezuela reportedly have the highest at $27; $23.80; and $23.50 per barrel, respectively. Nigeria is however, behind the likes of the United Kingdom and Brazil in the production cost analysis. Both countries, according to a

On Saturday, July 29 the Engineering Community would be officially welcoming a New Branch into the existing Branches of the Nigerian Society of Engineers. The Event is also expected to serve as the Investiture of its First Chairman, Engr Chidozie John Okereke.  Scheduled for 10 am at Eastern park Hotel, Amaifeke Orlu Local Government, in Imo state, the event is expected to have the President of the Nigerian Society of Engineers, Otis Anyaeji in attendance. While Prof. Okechukwu Ukwuoma of National Centre for Technology Management, will deliver the inaugural address. Orlu Branch, A long Road to actualisation Nigerian society of Engineers Orlu Branch was initiated under the inspiration of Engr Sir Chukwuemeka Celestine Ugoanyanwu, of NSE Owerri Branch who campaigned for the establishment of additional two Branches of the NSE in Orlu and Okigwe, to ease off congested Owerri Branch and create more opportunities for Engineering graduates and practitioners in these cities who have not b

IBM in collaboration with Lonadek has embarked on an initiative which aims to train and empower IT/ICT enthusiasts on IBM processes, systems and software to enable them become solution providers in their own right. The pilot program IBM Bluemix is a platform that enables developers create and deploy applications quickly saving developers from the complexities of the infrastructure side of application development. We believe that participants who are Coders, IT geeks, Developers, Programmers, Graphic Designers, Creative Curators, Content Writers, Illustrators, and any other digital enthusiasts will be the best candidates to gain the most from the IBM Information Communication Technology courses Venue: The Cedar Center, 12 Jibowu Street, Yaba, Lagos Why attend the IBM Bluemix Workshop Exposure to IBM cutting edge Technology such as cloud computing, AI Mobile Technology, Big Data and Analytics, Internet of Things (IoT) Access to tools and expertise beyond the programme Suppo

The Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Okechuwu Enelamah recently embarked on an industry tour of some select companies in the southwest to gain firsthand experience of what their challenges are and how government can intervene to keep them afloat. Jonathan Eze The two-day industry tour of Ogun and Lagos state was an eye-opener, a revealing and worthwhile adventure and it afforded the dynamic Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Okechukwu Enelamah, a unique opportunity to interact and interface with local manufacturers. The organisations visited were Fidson pharmaceutical Plc, May & Baker, Kimberly Clark Nigeria, PROFORCE and Standard Metallurgical Company Limited. The tour climaxed with a town hall meeting with the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) in Ikeja, Lagos. Fidson Healthcare Fidson Healthcare Plc is a Nigeria-based pharmaceutical manufacturing company. The principal activities of the Company are the manufacture and distribution of

The Lagos State Government, on Monday gave 48 hours to people trading or living under and around Obalende flyover to quit. The Chairman of Lagos State Taskforce on Environment, SP Olayinka Egbeyemi, gave the order when he visited the area to intimate the people of the government’s plan to demolish illegal structures within the vicinity.

Exactly three years ago, the Federal Government of Nigeria appointed the then Head of Motor Vehicle Administration of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Dr Boboye Olayemi Oyeyemi to head the nation’s road safety lead agency. The choice of this hardworking, committed and dogged Nigerian was not by accident, but a reaffirmation that FRSC had come of age and gotten to a level where a capable insider could be trusted with the responsibility of taking the Corps to greater heights. Oyeyemi who was one of the pioneer officers of the Corps had prior to the appointment distinguished himself as one that was prepared for leadership challenges, having exhibited excellence in all his assignments as Zonal Commanding Officer and Head of the departments he supervised. His appointment was therefore, aimed at sustaining the ideals of road safety lead agency model, which Nigeria pioneered in Africa in 1988 with the establishment of the FRSC by the Federal Government.

Governor Umaru Al-Makura of Nasarawa State on Friday urged the Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria (COREN) to check the menace of fake engineers and building collapse. The governor gave the advice when the leaders of COREN paid him a courtesy visit in Lafia. He said that the task before the council was challenging in view of the incessant cases of collapse of buildings and bridges in some parts of the country. Al-Makura, however, blamed the development on the use of substandard materials for constructions and the activities of fake engineers. “COREN as a regulatory body for professionals in the industry should take the issue of quacks seriously in order to resolve cases of building collapse and protect the reputation of the engineering profession,’’ he said. The governor noted that the engineering profession had been providing an enabling environment for all other professions to thrive. Al-Makura said that his administration would continue to support an

Former President of Nigeria, Engr. Olusegun Obasanjo has challenged Fellows of various engineering body to ensure that competent professionals from public and private sectors dominated the profession. He stated this in Abuja at an event organised by the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE) in commemoration of his 80th birthday celebration. According to him, “Fellows should ensure that the professional body consist of people who are professionally competent, able but men and women of character both in public and private aspects of engineering profession”. This he said would lead to optimal performance in engineering based projects in the country adding that he was really overwhelmed and greatly touched by the honour. Responding to eulogies on his numerous achievements while in office, he said, “All these things you said that I did, I did not do them alone; so, if I accept the credit, I accept it on behalf of men who helped me in achieving these things you talked about”. “There

The Future of the Countries development lies in the youths who are mainly with raw talents begging for supports. They need our help.  This was the conclusion of Engr Mrs Funmi Akingbagbohun at the recently concluded Energy Forum Conference in Lagos. She stated this while presentation a paper titled: “NIMechE Innovation Challenge: Bridging the gap between Ideas and Execution” during the plenary session. Akingbagbohun, who is the Chairperson Nigerian Institution of Mechanical Engineers, Lagos State Chapter also noted that  Opportunity doesn’t translate into reality unless it meets preparation and that both institution and the individuals must be prepared for opportunity so that they can tap into it. “The Future of the Countries development lies in the youths who are mainly with raw talents begging for supports. They need our help”- Engr Funmi Akingbagbohun Speaking on NIMechE Innovation Challenge, sponsored by the Royal Academy of Engineering, UK, she noted that “talents abound

Yesterday the GMD NNPC, Dr. Maikanti Kacalla Baru, FNSE received the Nigerian Institution of Mechanical Engineers (NiMechE) at the NNPC Towers. Led by the National Chairman, Engr. Ugochukwu Nzurumike, the NIMechE is the Mechanical Division of The Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE). During the visit, the GMD, himself a mechanical engineer by profession, expressed NNPC's commitment to collaborate with professional bodies towards moving the nation's Oil & Gas Industry forward. Other members of the engineering community In attendance are;  Deputy National Chairman Dr Ejilah Robinson, , General Secretary, Engr Lucas Omotosho, Corporate Resources Secretary Engr Hailah Adeniran, Research and Monitoring Secretary, Engr George Iluno, Former NSE ES (Engr. K Amshi, FNIMechE, Engr. Banagana Ibrahim, FNIMechE, Engr. Mchelia Yusufu Hamman, FNIMechE and Assistant Manager On NIMechE side while The GMD, 5 directors and numerous other principals. Also during the meeting where a lot o

The Executive Secretary, Local Content Development Agency, Mr. Kesiye Wabote, has said that about $380 billion capital flight was saved by the Federal Government from the beginning of the Local Content Act in 2010. Wabote disclosed this yesterday during the public hearing organised by the Senate Committee on Petroleum (Upstream) and Gas titled, “Implementation of Local Content and compliance with Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development Act by industry operators and investigation into the utilisation of the Nigerian Content Development Fund.” The scribe, who also represented Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Ibe Kachikwu, said before the Act was enacted, fabrication of equipment for the oil and gas industry was done abroad leading to millions of job losses. Wabote further pointed out that about $15 billion had been ploughed back into the Nigerian economy while about 56 per cent of fabrication works are now being done in the country. He said Nigeria now handles

Former President of Nigeria, Engr. Olusegun Obasanjo has challenged Fellows of various engineering body to ensure that competent professionals from public and private sectors dominated the profession. He stated this in Abuja at an event organised by the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE) in commemoration of his 80th birthday celebration. According to him, “Fellows should ensure that the professional body consist of people who are professionally competent, able but men and women of character both in public and private aspects of engineering profession”. This he said would lead to optimal performance in engineering based projects in the country adding that he was really overwhelmed and greatly touched by the honour. Responding to eulogies on his numerous achievements while in office, he said, “All these things you said that I did, I did not do them alone; so, if I accept the credit, I accept it on behalf of men who helped me in achieving these things you talked about”. “Ther

Senior Minister, Yaw Osafo-Maafo, has commended the Ghana Institution of Engineers (GhIE) for launching the first ever Ghana Infrastructure Report Card. Osafo-Maafo, himself an Engineer in good standing, lauded the GhIE on Thursday, July 13, 2017 when he delivered a speech as the Guest of Honour at the Launch of Ghana Infrastructure Report Card 2016 at the Engineers Centre, Roman Ridge, Accra. The 2016 Infrastructure Report Card covers three sectors, namely, Roads & Bridges – which was rated D3; Potable Water also rated D3 and Electric Power was giving a rating of D2. The overall cumulative score for the three infrastructure sectors was rated D3. D3 is the least mark in the three tier marking scheme. It represents a score of between 2.52 to 2.93 out of 5. While D2 represents a score of 3.08 out of 5. D1 is the highest score. The Senior Minister challenged the Engineers in the Power sector to address the issue of huge losses in power transmission. The Senior Minister ad

ENGINEERING IS DEVELOPMENT (Serialised) No 3 Modern Engineering Arrives In this edition, we connect the history of engineering to modern times. At the peak of the industrial revolution, Britain was considered to be at least a hundred years ahead of the rest of Europe. Throughout the 19th century, science thrived and inventions abound in Britain which arrived on the shores of Nigeria (as in several other colonies) with great pride. What did Nigeria have to offer? At best, the locals were only engaged in craftsmanship with artisans without the basic understanding of the forces that control trades. Of course, the new arrivals were disdainful of the little technology available. The British failed to introduce modern engineering into Nigeria at the time of their arrival. There was no formal western schooling, and therefore people did not read and write western science. All learning was oral and by apprenticeship. The early period of colonization marked the beginning of modern engi

Again, Federal Government endorses Engr. Mustafa B. Shehu FNSE, FSESN for the position of President, World Federation of Engineering Organisations (WFEO).  The government’s nod of approval was communicated by the Honourable Minister, Science & Technology, Engr. Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu, FNSE, FAEng during the NSE – AU STRC Courtesy Call on him. The Honourable Minister, who enthused on the suitability of Engr. Shehu for President WFEO, remarked that the opportunity has presented itself to further prove to the world that Nigeria and Africa possesses men of integrity, professionalism, and proven track records,who can take the Federation to greater, enviable heights. In his note of appreciation, Engr. M.B. Shehu, FNSE said he was honoured and humbled by his unveiling in the presence of the Hon. Minister. He noted that in the history of WFEO, Sub-saharan Africa has not produced President of the world body. His motivation to run for President WFEO stemmed from the prompting of President

Where were you born and how was your early life? I was born in Ile Ife to Canon and Mrs. Emmanuel Ajibola. I grew up in the church yard until I had a stint with my father’s friend in Ibadan before I finished my primary school. I attended Christ School, Ado Ekiti from 1960 to 1964. I returned to the school in 1965 for higher school certificate and completed it in 1966. In 1967, I proceeded to the United Kingdom where I attended the University of London, now North-East London Polytechnic. I graduated in 1970 with a degree in civil engineering and got a job at the Urban District Council of Basildon in Essex, UK. It was a new town at the time that was meant to be a satellite to London. The idea was to get people move out of London to get a better life. I was indentured to work as pupil engineer for two years under strict training of engineer mentors. That was one of the foundations of my successful career as an engineer. The terms of the agreements were adhered to properly. They tr

I recently marked the end of my first thirty days as an IBM Early Professional Seller. From our first week we were told to make a 30-day plan for ourselves. We needed to outline our expectations and what we wanted to achieve in this first month to maximise our time here. During this month, I’ve learned a number of things, and I think these tips would be valuable to anyone who want to make the most of their first 30 days at work.