When Geoplex Drillteq Limited began an upgrade and extension of the Mechanical, Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty office floors of the University of Lagos (UNILAG), it came from an inner feeling to impact learning in the institution.
Interestingly, this effort goes beyond boosting infrastructure and capacity in learning in the institution.
It will also boost economic growth.
Need For Adequate Office Facility
The commissioning of the extended floor facility held on Friday, July 28.
At the event, the CEO, Geoplex Drillteq Limited, Wole Ogunsanya, shared the reason his establishment chose the faculty.
For him, Geoplex Drillteq saw the need for adequate office facilities and resources to enhance research and knowledge for the lecturers and students.
Also, Mr Ogunsanya, who is an alumnus of the faculty, said the choice was a way of giving back to the institution.
“With the students’ population in the faculty more than three times what it was 36 years ago without major addition to the capacity of the available infrastructures, it is difficult not to imagine the impact on the quality of education delivered to these students of the faculty.
“Without adequate office facilities and resources available to the lecturers, the impact on the quality of education and knowledge for these teeming students of the faculty is even more affected,” he said.
Furthermore, he emphasised that there were many opportunities to support, give back and contribute to the institution that afforded many of the alumni to achieve great feat.
According to him, some foreign universities have endowments that run into tens of billions of dollars that enable them to deliver the best education in the world.
Ogunsanya, who linked his achievement to the knowledge he gained from the institution, said that many of the research products/services, models and prototypes that the lecturers and students of the engineering faculty had delivered over the years, could have significant economic potentials if adequately supported.
Applied Engineering
Also, he pledged his company’s commitment to working with and investing in the faculty.
One area his company will focus is sponsoring specific research with high potential to create economically viable products and services.
“As an engineer with huge interest in applied engineering that has made our company Geoplex, the leader in applied engineering oil and gas services, not only in Nigeria, but the rest of Sub Sahara Africa, we will commit to work and invest with the Faculty for the next three years to sponsor specific research with high potential to create economically viable products and services,” he said.
Ogunsanya encouraged the faculty and alumni leaderships to pay significant attention to these research opportunities and be bold in attracting applicable investments.
He said the potential to create products and services in the faculty and the university will enable them have multi-year revenue stream and create a lasting endowment.
Also, he appealed to the government to ensure provision of adequate infrastructure across Nigeria for economic growth.
Strengthen Academic Pursuit
In her remarks, the Vice Chancellor, University of Lagos (UNILAG), Professor Folasade Ogunsola, commended the company and the Alumni.
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“This infrastructure will add value to the students’ academic pursuit,” she said.
According to her, the alumni supporting the Engineering Faculty is vital to providing an enabling environment for students to thrive, especially as the course is essential to infrastructural development in the economy.
“The Alumni has done a lot to improve infrastructure in the institution.
“The current infrastructure caters for 10 times the number of students it used to caterer for.
“Funding from the government has dwindled a long time ago, the contribution of alumni is very essential in strengthen the education system,” the Vice Chancellor of UNILAG said.
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