A university exchange between students from the UK and Uganda has created a success story for one Ugandan company and its energy conservation practices. The Africa Knowledge Transfer Partnerships (AKTP) is helping Ugandan students learn energy conservation techniques for businesses.
Makerere University alumnus and mechanical engineer, Joseph Kawombe began working on alternative fuel options for clay baking. “I was recruited after topping interviews from a panel of representatives of Makerere, British Council and Uganda Clays. My specific task was to find ways of improving the company’s production and operating capacity without increasing energy usage,” he told Daily Monitor.
With research collaboration with University of Edinburgh’s Dr. Collin Pritchard, Kawombe has helped the Ugandan clay company maintain high quality while producing at a higher capacity. “AKTP motivated me to stay in Uganda as a young graduate engineer instead of seeking employment in the UK,’’ Kawombe added. The results of the research partnership allowed Uganda Clays to reduce the drying time for artificial dryers from 10 to three days; increase stock of fired products by 5%, reduce customer complaints by 70% and improve order fulfillment from 10 weeks to less than a week.
“Makerere University can now use the data collected on biomass resources and energy efficiency issues as reference materials for teaching and has one post graduate project as a result of this partnership. In addition they have gained expertise in energy efficiency issues especially in heat transfer systems through their link with the University of Edinburgh,” Pritchard said.
“The research increased the sales turnover from Shs9.9b in 2006, before the commencement of the AKTP to Shs14b by end of 2008 alone. We were even able to start exports,” Kawombe said.
Dr. Samuel Baker Kucel, the knowledge base supervisor from the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Makerere University, said partnerships with the private sector can yield progress for this country. “The project has demonstrated that when the university and the private sector come together, they can achieve a lot especially in addressing the challenges that affect the private sector,” he said.
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