Researchers at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) have come up with an invention that enables individuals to quickly escape from a building caught on fire.
The invention is a detachable window that holds glass louvres and metal bars together. An individual is able to move all the listed items at once without having to break the glass louvres in order to escape.
Professor Divine Ahadzie, the Head of the Centre for Settlements Studies at the Faculty of Built Environment says the invention is in response to clause 90 of the National Building Regulation (NBR) (L.I. 1630), enacted in 1996.
“The traditional window has been constructed over the years (in a way such that) there is no means of escape for opening.”
“We looked at it critically and saw that there is the need to be able to fabricate this window to be able to respond to that.”
The former Vice-Dean of the Faculty of Built Environment called on the stakeholders in private sector to invest and produce these windows on a large scale.
He spoke to Citinews on the sidelines of a 4-day science and technology exhibition as part of KNUST’s 70th anniversary.
Some inventions the school has come up with include a solar-powered traffic light, wireless quiz buzzer, self-driving car using computer vision devices.
The National Building Regulation (NBR) (L.I. 1630) was enacted in 1996 in Ghana to regulate the erection of buildings, alteration of building structures and execute works or install fittings in connection with any building.
Discussion about this post