Despite The Lack Of Support These Nigerians Managed to Build Their Own Machines

By Kemi Mobuse - Monday, May 09, 2016


Despite their lack of material, training and money, these determined Nigerians have managed to build their own machines. These machines were all made in Nigeria by Nigerians without government support.

In any society, there’s always a subset of individuals with an interest in tinkering, fabricating, mimicking, inventing.


At the very fundamental level, what drives them is curiosity. On top of that, it’s problem solving, or addressing gaps they see in society but with all these qualities and potentials, there are no structures or resources to bring most of their creations to life.

Let us take a look a few success stories.
Helicopter From Scraps

Mubarak Abdullahi, 24, stands next to the helicopter he constructed in Kano, Nigeria, in 2007

24 years old physics student, Mubarak Muhammed Abdullahi spent nearly a year building a 12-metre (39ft) long helicopter out of spare parts sourced from old cars, motorcycles, and even a crashed Boeing 747. He used money he saved from repairing cell phones and computers.

His bright yellow contraption with a salvaged Honda Civic engine was completed in 2007 and could actually reach heights of seven ft. His invention helped secure him a scholarship to study aircraft maintenance in the UK.

A Mini Excavator
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Fintech Mini Excavator (made in Nigeria-2013)
This excavator was made by Fidelis Nwachukwu, the CEO of Final Tech Engineering in 2013. He is a secondary school dropout with a natural skill to build machinery and complex engines. Like normal excavator, the arm of this machine can make a 360 turn.
But even with his innovation, Fidelis was treated like a criminal when he solicited for government support.
“At my first visit to the House of Assembly to get my work viewed, I was accused of being a Boko Haram member and sent away. The government is supposed to see my work, especially the president, the president is like our father and I believe one day I would get the support I need.”
Mr. Fidelis Nwachukwu disclosed that he spent N200,000 on the prototype excavator and he needed N12,550,000 to buy the necessary equipment to launch full production.
 An Electric Excavator
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An electric excavator made by Echezona in 2013
This excavator was made by Echezona in 2013. Then he was in his 3rd year in a Senior Secondary School (SS3). He wanted to be a mechanical engineer.
A Starwar-like Helicopter
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A Starwar-like helicopter
This made in Mbaise (a small town in eastern Nigeria) helicopter has an out of the ordinary body design. Though the craft can’t fly but the innovation put into the design of the body of the craft is commendable.
The Z600 Automobile
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The Z-600, is the first ever all-African car, reports the BBC’s correspondent in Lagos, Hilary Andersson.
Dr Izuogu, an electrical-electronics engineer was a former lecturer in Communications and electronics engineering, Federal Polytechnic, Owerri, Nigeria. His major breakthrough in his engineering endeavor was the design and construction of the first ever locally made car: the Z-600 in 1997.
It was designed and made in Nigeria for the family market and has a top speed of 140km (86m) an hour. Ninety per cent of its parts are locally produced – it has a doorbell for a horn.
Optimism surrounded the car until March 11, 2006, when armed robbers raided the factory of Izuogu Motors taking with them the molds for the engine blocks and crank shaft, mudguards and other components. This was a big setback for the project. Since then not much is known on the status of the car.
Drone (Unmanned Aircraft)
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Drone
Adebanjo Olajide from Epe, Lagos is into unmanned aircraft system construction. most of his airframes are hand launch and are designed to work with RC autopilot system. The radio distance range is around 1km.
Maximum speed: 50km/h
Maximum altitude: 90feet
Endurance: 10minutes
Aircraft weight: 1kg.
Autobully Van Made by Autozik Group
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Autobully van
This year 2016, a group of students from Nnamdi Azikiwe University, known as the Autozik Group, made a mini bus using mere hand tools. This means we did all of the constructions and folding, with our hands, since the university could not provide ground equipment, as used in most automobile companies.
The mini bus which took about five months to complete and was named Autobully
Eco-friendly  Car
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Tuke-tuke
Nigeria recorded a major feat in automotive technology innovation in 2014 with this energy-efficient car called “Tuke-Tuke”.  Students of the University of Benin made this eco-friendly car that passed international technical evaluation in Rotterdam, Netherlands. This qualified them to race at the 2014 Eco Marathon in Netherlands with cars from 25 countries, mostly advanced countries.
Tuke-Tuke was a group work and enjoy some institutional support from Shell Petroleum.
Credit: scitechafrica.wordpress.com



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