The College of Engineering (CoE) has attracted six additional industrial partners to the existing ones. Odebrecht, Amec Foster Wheeler, Wood Group, Santinos Fine Meat and Sausages, Asamoa and Yamoa Farms and Premium Foods are the latest additions. The University signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with each of the six industrial partners during the past year. Professor Stephen Innocent Ampadu, Provost of CoE made this known at the congregation ceremony of the College as part of the 49th Congregation ceremony of KNUST.
Odebrecht, a Brazilian firm in construction, Amec Forster Wheeler an oil and gas service provider and the Wood Group which provides engineering and construction solutions will among other things provide positions for students to conduct their vacation training. They would also participate in career fairs and provide scholarships for outstanding students.
The College would offer technological assistance to Santinos Fine Meat and Sausages Ltd., Asamoa and Yamoa Farms, dealers in poultry feed and products and Premium Foods which deals with grain processing for the breweries. These three are indigenous Ghanaian firms.
Professor Ampadu stated the partnership fits into the University’s third core function of offering extension services. He also revealed the implementation of the protective clothing programme as part of efforts to mainstream occupational health and safety issues in engineering education. Under this initiative, students have been supplied protective clothing for laboratory work during field trips and vacation training. He used the occasion to advise the students to increase their knowledge in a broad range of fields for effective solution as societal problems were increasingly becoming more complex.
He tasked them to come out with solutions to the various problems that faced society. He also advised them not to join the moral decadence of society in order to earn a decent living, telling them to “maintain a high level of moral uprightness and professional independence and hold high your professional ethics”.
The CoE presented 953 fresh engineers from 15 programmes for graduation, out of which a total of 91 students representing 8% graduated with First Class degrees, 391 constituting 33% graduated with Second Class Upper division, 414 or 35% with Second Class Lower division and 57 or 5% with passes.