UR-CST students meet Festo Didactic Company to experience latest industrial technology

26-05-2019

Students at the University of Rwanda College of Science and Technology were able to experience technologies and processes used in industrial production. The facility was made by Festo Didactic Company that reached out to the college to exhibit equipment for technical education that would allow students to acquire practical experience that they need to work independently in industry.

Among equipment at the exhibition include hydraulics machines that provide the best results of the process control in industries. They are used to control the level and flow rate while checking the liquid temperature monitored on a computer in control room. Those machines can be used during water treatment and manufacturing of beverages like juice and milk which requires accurate processing. Students were able to explore other electrical engineering and process control machines.

Students interacting with one of Festo Didactic Engineer on the latest industrial machines

Mutonji Mayanda is the Solution Engineer at Festo Didactic. He said that they brought hydraulic, electric and process control machines to students because those are the key areas that Africa needs to improve. According to him, the exhibition is crucial because students are trained on those machines in a class level and when they go into industry the find almost the same machine but in a bigger version. Mutonji also added that the move is one the mechanisms to bridge the gap between industries and universities in terms of required skills.

“The lack of machine and exposure to proper equipment or new technology often hinder students’ capacity to achieve what the industries need,” He said, adding that universities should work in conjunction with industries, collect the needs of industries and produce students who will respond to the need identified in industries.

Among students who attended the exhibition include Abel Ngendahayo, a level IV student in Mechanical Engineering. He states that the exhibition of that kind allows students to adapt to the latest technologies that would help them during their industrial career. He called for more partnership with companies that are in position to offer some technical solutions and hands on skills needed for better production.

Abel Ngendahayo, a level IV student in Mechanical Engineering during the exhibition

Festo Didactic products combine theoretical knowledge with practical experience in automation and technology. Intuitive and fast learning is achieved through practical learning systems and learning factories, which make the technologies and processes used in industrial production immediately tangible and illustrate them in an understandable way. People learning are able to use these systems to gather the real, practical experience that they need to work independently in industry and quickly contribute to a company’s productivity.