The department has been in existence since 1968. It currently runs various programmes including HND in Agricultural Engineering. The HND programme consist of Soil and Water Conservation, Engineering, Farm Power and Machinery options. The academic staff strength is about 60 with a student enrolment of about 500. There are new facilities like the Farm Machinery Workshop, Machine Shop, Diesel Engine Shop, Fabrication Workshop, Hydraulics, Hydrology and Soil Laboratories as well as a Meteorological Station. There are also two farm lands for students' demonstration and commercial farming purposes.
Three additional options shall soon be introduced at the HND level. These include Crop Processing and Storage, Farm Structures and Environmental Control as well as Irrigation and Drainage Engineering. Two Kaduna Polytechnic Diploma Programmes are also about to be introduced. These are Diplomas in Irrigation Engineering as well and Agricultural Mechanization. The department also plans to mount Post HND and Degree programmes in the future. The department has enough manpower to run all the programmes.
With so much resources at its disposal, the department is known to sometimes lease plots to the Polytechnic community as well as other farmers in within neighbouring community.
CHALLENGES AND OBSTACLES
Among the challenges that confront the department are the quests for rendering the required services, as well as producing crop processing and farm machinery on commercial basis. The prospects of the Agricultural department are not known to the public. Therefore there is need to create some awareness by providing some basic and relevant technological services that are of socio-economic importance to the public. This will be a practical way of educating the public on the prospects.
PRIDE AND ACHIEVEMENTS
The department is proud of having graduated a number of persons who are now holding highly esteemed positions in the public and private sectors. The department also has a team of inter-disciplinary professionals who can and have been involved in a compendium of consultancy services Some of its achievements include the production of trained professionals on the fields, producing crop processing machinery that were tested and won prizes at various expositions. These machinery are maize thresher, manual boom sprayer, egg candler, etc.
COOPERATION WITH ORGANISATIONS AND EXTERNAL AGENCIES
The department has in the past recieved support from Bank of the North (in Nigeria) and external agencies namely Canadian, French and British governments. These agencies gave support in cash, machinery and equipment as well as exchange programmes of training between the department's staff and those from the agencies in which the department benefitted immensely.
Services rendered to the community by the department include tractor hiring, leasing of farm plots, land preparation and threshing of maize for farmers. The department also carries out servicing of diesel injection pumps and nozzles.
PROPOSED AREAS OF CONSULTANCY
The Agricultural Engineering Department has a team of agricultral, irrigation/civil, environmental, geotechnical and water engineers with some agronomists, soil scientists and economists who can and have been involved in among others:
1. Preliminary and final analysis of agricultural project viability
2. Site selection-geography, water, accessibility, climate
3. Feasibility studies-soil tests, productivity, surveys, costs, income, profitability
4. Financial structures analysis
5. Project implementation-planning, design,construction start-up
6. Project management on-site, experienced registered engineers
7. Creating designs for terraces, dams, ponds, and water control structures, irrigation and drainage systems, reclamation of unused lands, flood control, rural water supplies and conservation of natural resources.
8. Design and construction of specialized buildings needed in rural areas, grain storage structures, farm machinery shed, commercial structures for processing and sale of farm products etc.
9. Development of maintenance schedules for agricultural water resources and allied products
10. Training programmes for craftsmen, technicians, agricultural superintendents, organising workshops for state and federal ministries of agricultural and water resources etc.
11. Selection and installation of Intro- Tech. equipment for secondary schools.
12. Feasibility studies on livestock mechanization-size, housing machinery and equipment, feeds market potential, cost analysis
13. Fabrication of farm machinery equipment for small scale farmers, tillage, planting
14. Fabrication of livestock mechanization equipment- feeders, waterers, incubators, candlers, spraying and dipping tank.
15. Maintenance of farm tractors and implements
16. Refurbishing of farm tractors and implements
17. Calibration and servicing of fuel injector pumps
18. Maintenance of hyraulic engines/systems
19. Forging and moulding of agricultural equipment components
20.Turning and machining of machine elements gears, shafts, keys and couplings.
Agricultural production at a profit is the department's challenge.
COE - College of Engineering
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