A water factory recently commissioned at the Yaba College of Technology (YABATECH) is set to boost the Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) of the institution.
This is following its recent opening to also provide hygienic and affordable water for the College community and its environment.
When it begins full operation, it is projected to produce about 31,000 sachets water (50cl) and 10,000 bottled water 75cl and or 50cl) per day.
The main product of the factory is named YABATECH Premium Table Water, according to YABATECH Consult, the commercial arm of the premier polytechnic.
Among state of the art equipment there include reverse osmosis, ozonator and superior micron filters for both the bottled and sachets water.
Director, YABATECH Consult, Mr Iyang Udoh revealed that the bottles for the water were produced there and there is equipment for the production of 66 big iced blocks per day with a cold room for storage.
YABATECH Chairman, Governing Council, Prince Lateef Fagbemi who conducted the commissioning of the project praised the Rector, Engineer Obafemi Omokungbe for his resilience, and his ability to undertake the “thought provoking project”.
He described him as a silent achiever who “God has put in charge to pilot the administration of this College to a greater height.”
Fagbemi, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, also thanked members of the Council for buying into the vision of the Rector.
“No matter what type of dream you have, if you don’t have the support of the governing council the dream will not come into reality, that is why I want to specially thank my colleagues for their understanding.”
“We all know the importance of water, no man on earth will wake up in a day and say that he is not going to drink water, if at all he is not drinking, he will use it to bath. I am happy that the dream of this water factory has come to pass; therefore I want to congratulate everybody that contributed to the project.
“I want to recommend this water for everybody, also encourage us to advertise this water because no matter how good your product is if you don’t advertise it nobody will do it for you. I want to advise that all the materials that will be needed for the production of the water should be sourced from within including the labelling, so that the money is retained here, nothing should go outside.”
Earlier in his opening remark, Omokungbe tagged the water factory “another landmark achievement” he was grateful had become a reality noting it importance to the university.
“Clean and safe water is required for a healthy living and as a responsible institution; we are concerned with the wellbeing of our staff and students. We want everybody to stay healthy, we want everybody to ensure that water in the College is safe for consumption and we want to produce water by our self since the source of water being sold by most vendors is unknown.”
“The College revenue is very poor, and it has become quite challenging to meet up with the maintenance of the existing facilities and provision of infrastructure for the College. It therefore become necessary for the College to urgently improve its internally generated revenue to be able to meet its obligations since the fund from government has become inadequate. It was on this basis that the Yabatech Consult was mandated to ensure completion of this project within the shortest possible time.
“I am pleased to inform you today, that the YABATECH Water Factory is a reality. The water factory is well equipped with the latest technology, machine and equipment. YABATECH water has been approved by National Agency for Food and Drug Administrative Control (NAFDAC), having met the required standard. It is worthy to note that the trademark for YABATECH Consult Water has also been approved.”
Omokungbe hinted that as from next week there would not be any water on the campus except Yabatech water, and in months to come Yabatech Bread Factory would also be commissioned; he therefore thanked the Director, Yabatech Consult, Mr. Iyang Udoh who has worked tirelessly with his team for the realization of the project.
EduCeleb.com reports that water factory was one of the uncompleted projects Omokungbe administration inherited from his predecessors in March 2018.
Aside the bottles being locally produced, the factory construction work was led by the Director, Physical Planning Unit, Engr. (Dr.) Kehinde Osifala, the Project Architect, Arc. Sheriff Ayodele-Oja, and the Quantity Surveyor, Mr. Joseph Ekhator.
Also, a student in the Graphic Design Department, Mr Moshood Ogunsanya designed the labels for the bottle and sachet water reportedly without making any demand of the polytechnic.
