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FIIRO, Mulifelong to produce brake pads from palm kernel

By Femi Ibirogba
03 June 2019   |   4:02 am
Driven by the need to use local material to manufacture made-in-Nigeria products, reduce wastage, and promote import substitution, the Federal Institute of Industrial Research Oshodi (FIIRO), and Mulifelong Motors Ltd.

Federal Institute of Industrial Research Oshodi (FIIRO)

Driven by the need to use local material to manufacture made-in-Nigeria products, reduce wastage, and promote import substitution, the Federal Institute of Industrial Research Oshodi (FIIRO), and Mulifelong Motors Ltd., have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for the production of brake pads for vehicles and motorcycles, using palm kernel shells.

Mulifelong Motors is interested in taking up the Institute’s research and development results in brake pad technologies, battery manufacturing, spare parts, and vehicular component manufacturing, spark plug refurbishing, ceramic component for transmitting electrical cables

Acting Director-General of FIIRO, Dr Chima Igwe, said the “synergy is a welcome development, and we are grateful to God Almighty that both organisations have taken the bold step today. It is no gainsaying that collaboration with Mulifelong Motors Limited is strategic at this point of our national development considering the role of the institute in rapid industrialisation of Nigeria.”

He bemoaned that Nigeria relies too much on other countries for basic needs and components needed for the effective use of industrial equipment and machinery for a number of services. Importation, he added, has become the order of the day and more often than not, vehicle owners have been forced to wait on some basic car spare parts to be imported into Nigeria before their vehicles can be properly fixed.

The collaboration between both organisations, he believed, would address some of the challenges, with particular emphasis on manufacturing of brake pads, and spare parts components as well as batteries. Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Mulifelong Motors, Princess Mulikat Sanni, said there is no economic sense in importing brake pads, batteries and ceramic products into the country because there are renewable natural resources that could be used to produce these, which, in turn, would generate more job opportunities, reduce importation and help industrialise the economy.

The effects of using the local contents for import substitution, she added, means that more farmers would plant more palm trees, crimes associated with joblessness would reduce, pressure on the naira as a result of demand for dollars for importation would reduce and the palm products would become more industrialised.She commended FIIRO for developing many technologies, saying, “We are ready to contribute to the economic development of the country through the use of renewable resources in the automobile industry.”

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