APWEN Cautions Builders Against Use Sub-Standard Materials

The Association of Professional Women Engineers of Nigeria (APWEN), a division of the Nigeria Society of Engineers (NSE), has cautioned building contractors against using fake and Substandard materials to avert building collapse.

APWEN chairman of the Cross River State chapter, Engr Mrs Faith Itam, gave the warning while answering questions from LEADERSHIP on Wednesday in Càlabar.

The chairman, who spoke during a one-day public lecture, advocates for maintaining their integrity to avoid compromising the quality and standards of jobs executed by practitioners of the profession to avoid putting their seal on the line.

Itam attributed building collapse to awarding contracts to uncertified and unregistered engineers, stressing that the association is aware of instances where builders go against standards set by the engineering body, resulting in building collapse.

“It is only when the building has collapsed that they start running helter-skelter, looking for certified engineers’ structural engineers to handle the project for them.

Earlier, during a public lecture on Artificial Intelligence in Material Selection and Design, the Guest speaker and senior lecturer of the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Cross River (UNICROSS), Mrs Kaka Enoh, stated that artificial intelligence has the potential to replace humans or pose a threat to humanity.

An issue that Kaka averred was that Elon Musk had already expressed concern, stressing that artificial intelligence (AI) may not replace humans in specific jobs because artificial intelligence AI is data-driven.

The academic don urged Nigerians to expect a symbiotic relationship between artificial intelligence and humans.

“In specific tasks, routine or data-driven, unlikely to replace humans entirely. Expect a symbiotic relationship between AI and humans.