This outreach event recap was provided by Ikpotokin O. Peace, FY20 SWE Global Ambassador, Nigeria.
On December 4th, 2019, SWE in collaboration with Milex Complete Auto Care hosted an outreach event for 16 female students and 5 teachers from Saint Mary’s Secondary School (Ikota Villa estate, Lekki, Lagos, Nigeria).
The students, facilitators and teachers were welcomed into the facility by the Managing Director Mr. Davic. The program began promptly at 10:00am with registration, name tagging, handing out SWENext flyers and a welcome to all attendees from Adewumi Olayinka from University of Lagos. Next was an introduction of the school representatives as well as the Milex staff, followed by a SWENext presentation led by SWE Ambassador Ikpotokin Peace.
The Chief Executive Officer, Mrs. Davic , started by encouraging the students to try to make a difference in whatever thing they do, and explained how a career in engineering propelled her into success. She said, “You can always be taught skills, but not good manners and ethics. It doesn’t matter how good you are, a bad attitude can hinder great opportunities.” She advised the students to never give up their integrity for anyone. She stated that for over 100 years, Mr. Transmission Milex has been a leader in general automotive repair and transmission repair. With each independently owned and operated franchise locations, they continuously strive for exceptional customer experience that results in satisfaction and loyalty. She further added that their quality, professionalism and warranty makes them a standout in the automotive industry.
The students were grouped in 4 different teams to allow for effective learning, namely: inventory, tour, automobile and AC unit. Each session was allocated 30 minutes for learning and questions.
- The Inventory/Software Unit: At the inventory unit the students were taught shop management tools, processing, payments and record keeping. They learned the concept of business control with inventory as well as managing orders.
- The warehouse: At the warehouse unit, the students explored the various car parts for replacement and maintenance of automobiles such as: alternators, control arms, rotors, brake equipments, water pumps, tyre knots, car-light bulbs, battery terminals, air filters, octane rating, as well as conventional and synthetic lubricants, to mention a few.
- A/C and cooling systems: The students were taken through the cooling processes for automobiles.
- Automated Fault Detection: Fault detector equipment was plugged in to scan the SUV vehicle, and the students also tried their hands on it; they were able to detect the fault with the equipment and see what needed to be fixed.
Hand-on activities, Certification and Closure
At 1:30 p.m., a 30-minute break was observed, and lunch was provided for all participants.
At 2 p.m., the students resumed activities, engaging in hands-on engineering challenges such as tire change and balancing. The students had the opportunity to interact with the two female technicians and other staff of the maintenance unit.
By 2:40 p.m. the students assembled to discuss what they had learned and how a career in engineering can be rewarding.
At the end of the event, a certificate of attendance was issued to all students by Florence Odegua, Ikpotokin Peace and Adewumi Olayinka. Souvenirs (books and bags with SWE logo on them) were also shared.
The students expressed excitement about the program and were very impressed with the experience.
A special thanks to:
- PROJECT MANAGER – Mulikat A. Lanre Idris (FY20 Global Ambassador)
- PROJECT COORDINATOR — Ikpotokin O. Peace (Rivers Affiliate Leader & FY20 Global Ambassador)
- OTHER SWE MEMBERS – Florence O. Odegua (Lagos Affiliate Leader) and Adewumi Olayinka (SWE Member)
- PROJECT SPONSORS — Milex Auto Care (CarQuest), Lanre Idris, Udoka Ezealor, Shola Otitoju, Abdulmalik Idris
