The General Manager, Renewable Energy, Niger Delta Power Holding Company (NDPHC), Mrs. Valerie Agberagba, has reiterated the urgency for a paradigm shift in engineering education to reposition graduates towards developing industry-relevant skills.
She noted that the traditional technical skills and old ways of doing things have become ineffective, hence, the need to embrace new norms to meet societal and environmental challenges of the increasingly complex connected world.
Agberagba made the call at the yearly Nigerian Institution of Mechanical Engineering (NIMECHE) symposium/lecture series entitled: ‘Managing Engineering Profession in Digital World: Developing and Exploring Value Chain’.
She lamented that engineering education is one area that is least invested in, and is inadequate for the digital world and suggested a decisive and more agile approach towards regulation with stakeholders’ collaboration.
Agberagba said the engineering profession is rapidly evolving, saying, to effectively survive, manage and succeed in this fourth industrial revolution era, engineers must clearly define a strategy for integrating digital technologies into all engineering processes.
For her, there was a need to review and realign engineering education and adopt new approaches to producing the future engineers, who will be relevant to the industries.
She suggested that barriers and policies that will hinder this, should be eliminated, adding that government policies should be aligned to engineering and technological advancement.
The general manager noted that engineering faculties must be poised for collaboration and retooling for a paradigm shift in engineering education by leveraging on digital technology.
This, she emphasised, will enhance production and manufacturing, as well as provide training to enable easy adaptability.
“We need to have a robust data management system that can capture, store, analyse, enhance an efficient work environment and address challenges of cyber-security, as well as enhance project performance monitoring and optimisation,” she said.
Agberagba explained that the digital revolution has brought about tools that have transformed the profession. These, she said, include computer aid design, simulation software, lnternet of things, artificial intelligence, robotics, computer aided manufacturing and block chain technology.
The National Chairman, NlMechE, Mrs. Funmilade Akingbagbohun, suggested that budding engineers need to develop relevant skills for easy absorption in industries. She reiterated the need for young engineers to develop soft skills besides the traditional knowledge to reposition themselves for industries.
On his part, immediate past president, Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria (COREN), Rabiu Ali, noted that to create an avenue for prosperous engineering practice, training of engineers is crucial to improve their services to the society. He, therefore, said engineering institutions, regulators and other stakeholders must collaborate to influence capacity development of engineers.
