A new machine, known as Multi-Functional Platform (MFP), designed and built by the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), has been out-doored in Kumasi.

The device, which comprises a diesel engine, corn-mill, cassava grater and an electric alternator for charging batteries and generating light, was manufactured at a cost of about 40 million cedis.

All the components of the machine except the engine, which was procured from an open market, were manufactured by the University.

Professor Abeeku Brew-Hammond, Head of the Mechanical Engineering Department of the KNUST who said this at the out-dooring ceremony on Monday, made it clear that the device was built through the collaborative efforts of the Mechanical, Electrical and Agricultural Engineering Departments of the KNUST.

He said it took the various departments two weeks to complete work on the machine.

Professor Brew-Hammond indicated that the manufacture and showcasing of the MFP machine was the first step towards the implementation of a nation-wide project being championed by the Kumasi Institute of Technology Education (KITE) and the Ministry of Energy.

He said under the project, the UNDP plans funding the building of 200 of the MFP machines by the KNUST, for some rural communities in the country.

"The rationale behind the MFP project, is to complement efforts of the government at providing employment and social services in the rural areas with the view to alleviating poverty there", he added.

Professor Kwesi Andam, Vice-Chancellor of the KNUST, commended the various departments of the KNUST, KITE, the Ministry of Energy and the UNDP for their collective efforts and developing the device.

He urged the KNUST to come out with more innovative and creative work that will help make the University more relevant to the needs of the local communities and the nation as a whole.