REPORT ON STUDENT INDUSTRIAL WORK EXPERIENCE SCHEME (SIWES)

TRAINING PROGRAMME (MAY 2021 – OCTOBER 2021)

AT

NATCOM DEVELOPMENT & INVESTMENT LTD (TRADING AS NTEL)

NECOM HOUSE 17TH FLOOR, 15 MARINA, LAGOS

BY

LOYE OLAWUMI TOMIWA

17CK022700

INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION ENGINEERING

SUBMITTED TO

DEPARTMENT OF ELECTRICAL AND INFORMATION ENGINEERING,

COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING.

IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE AWARD OF DEGREE OF BACHELOR OF

ENGINEERING (B.Eng), INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION
ENGINEERING

COVENANT UNIVERSITY,

OTA, OGUN STATE.

OCTOBER 2021

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DEDICATION

I dedicate this report to God for His unending grace and strength. To my parents, my support

system, for their constant encouragements and advice. I also dedicate this report to The Data

Center Manager at NatCom Development & Investment Ltd, Mr. Leonard Eghosa-Igunbor,

and all the staff at NatCom Development & Investment Ltd who have contributed immensely

to my learning and supported me throughout this internship period. May God reward you

greatly.

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I acknowledge God, the giver of strength who favoured me and saw me through my stay at

NatCom Development & Investment Ltd. I also acknowledge my parents for their constant

support and guidance. I am grateful to the Data Centre Manager, Mr. Leonard Eghosa-Igunbor

who was always there to supervise and train me in the execution of my assignments and helped

me to develop my skills as an engineer throughout this internship period; Mr Seyi and Mr

Daniel who took me through the preliminary lessons to develop my skills. I am grateful to the

entire staff and faculty of the Department of Electrical and Information Engineering for the

knowledge they have impacted in me. Lastly, I acknowledge my Level Adviser, Engr. Abidemi

Orimogunje who constantly advised on how to go about our documentation and diagramming

for my internship.

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ABSTRACT

This is a detailed technical report on the six months Student Industrial Work Experience

Scheme (SIWES) I engaged in between May and October 2021. The SIWES program is a

mandatory industrial training program for institutions by the Federal Government of Nigeria

in 1974 for students in the fields of engineering and the sciences; I carried out my SIWES

program at NatCom Development Ltd. (Trading as Ntel), which is Nigeria’s most advanced

4G/LTE mobile broadband network. My industrial training was quite rewarding as I served in

the Network Services Department. I gained a vast set of skills ranging from Data Centre

Management to Customer Relationship Management in the IT Service Desk. I greatly believe

the SIWES has gone a long way in preparing me for the industry and as such, should be

implemented across all platforms of learning.

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Table of Contents
DEDICATION .......................................................................................................................... 2
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ....................................................................................................... 3
ABSTRACT .............................................................................................................................. 4
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................... 7
1.1 INFORMATION ON SIWES PLACEMENT ............................................................. 7
1.2 NATCOM DEVELOPMENT AND INVESTMENT LTD. (TRADING AS
NTEL) ................................................................................................................................. 12
1.3 SUBMISSION OF ACCEPTANCE LETTER ..................................................... 12
1.4 COMMENCEMENT OF INTERNSHIP .............................................................. 12
1.4.1 PARTICIPATION IN THE NETWORK SERVICES ...................................... 12
CHAPTER 2: FACILITIES .................................................................................................. 13
2.1 FACILITIES AVAILABLE ........................................................................................ 13
2.1.1 THE DATA CENTRE MANAGEMENT TEAM .............................................. 13
2.1.2 THE IT SERVICE DESK TEAM ....................................................................... 15
2.2 QUALITY OF SUPERVISION FROM COMPANY-BASED SUPERVISORS ... 16
2.3 KNOWLEDGE GAINED............................................................................................ 16
2.3.1 DATA CENTRE MANAGEMENT TEAM ....................................................... 16
2.3.2 IT SERVICE DESK TEAM ................................................................................. 22
CHAPTER 3: CONTRIBUTIONS ....................................................................................... 24
3.1 APPLICATION OF GAINED KNOWLEDGE ........................................................ 24
3.1.1 FIELD OF STUDY AND EDUCATIONAL CAREER ..................................... 24
3.1.2 THE GOALS OF THE COMPANY OF ENGAGEMENT .............................. 24
3.1.3 THE LARGER SOCIETY ................................................................................... 24
3.2 PRACTICAL KNOWLEDGE WITH THEORETICAL KNOWLEDGE............. 24
3.3 CULTURE AND CULTURE SHOCK EXPERIENCES ......................................... 25
CHAPTER 4: CHALLENGES ............................................................................................. 26
4.1 CHALLENGES ENCOUNTERED ............................................................................ 26
4.1.1 CHALLENGES ENCOUNTERED BY STUDENT .......................................... 26
4.2 PROJECTS IDENTIFIED AND CONTRIBUTIONS ............................................. 26
CONCLUSION....................................................................................................................... 28
RECOMMENDATIONS ....................................................................................................... 29
REFERENCES ....................................................................................................................... 30

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List of Figures
Figure 1: Siwes Letter ................................................................................................................ 8
Figure 2: Internship Offer Letter page 1 .................................................................................... 9
Figure 3: Internship Offer Letter page 2 .................................................................................. 10
Figure 4: Internship Offer Letter page 3 .................................................................................. 11
Figure 5: Data Centre Physical Infrastructure .......................................................................... 13
Figure 6: Daily walk-around reporting sheet page 1................................................................ 17
Figure 7: Daily walk-around reporting sheet page 2................................................................ 17
Figure 8: Sensor 1 reading temperature ................................................................................... 18
Figure 9: Sensor 1 reading humidity ........................................................................................ 18
Figure 10: Sensor 2 reading temperature ................................................................................. 19
Figure 11: Sensor 2 reading humidity ...................................................................................... 19
Figure 12: Oracle storage library ............................................................................................. 21
Figure 13: Oracle storage library showing the cartridges ........................................................ 21
Figure 14: Home screen of the CRM Software........................................................................ 22
Figure 15: Screenshot of Customer balance details ................................................................. 23
Figure 16: WinSCP software home screen .............................................................................. 23

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CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

INFORMATION ON STUDENTS INDUSTRIAL WORKSHOP EXPERIENCE

SCHEME

In a bid to bridge the gap between theoretical classroom knowledge and the industry the

Federal Government of Nigeria introduced the Student Industrial Work Experience

Scheme (SIWES) in 1974 under the ministry of education via the Industrial Training Fund.

This program ensures that students in tertiary institutions who are undertaking programs

in the field of science, agriculture, medicine, engineering, etc. would have the opportunity

to apply the knowledge they have gained in their classroom to their respective industries

and inform them on challenges faced by the industry, work culture expected of them, and

industrial tools and equipment used in their response.

AIM AND OBJECTIVES OF SIWES

The aims and objectives of the SIWES are:

1. To provide students with industrial skills and needed experience during the study.

2. Expose students to the work methods and techniques including equipment and machinery

that they may not otherwise have access to.

3. To give students the ability to try and apply the given knowledge.

4. To teach students the techniques and methods of working with facilities and equipment

that may not be available within the walls of an educational institution. [1]

1.1 INFORMATION ON SIWES PLACEMENT

Before the end of my 400 level Alpha Semester, I sent out my CV and SIWES Letter to

companies in relation to my course such as IpNX, MTN Nigeria and NatCom Development

& Investment Ltd (Trading as Ntel). I got a response from NatCom Development &

Investment Ltd. on the 5th of May 2021, and I was asked to resume on the 10th of May 2021.

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Figure 1: Siwes Letter

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Figure 2: Internship Offer Letter page 1

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Figure 3: Internship Offer Letter page 2

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Figure 4: Internship Offer Letter page 3

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1.2 NATCOM DEVELOPMENT AND INVESTMENT LTD. (TRADING AS NTEL)

NatCom Development & Investment Ltd (trading as Ntel) was founded on the 11th of October

2015. It operates in the telecom industry, focusing on mobile telecommunication services.

NatCom has its headquarters in Nigeria. It is under the Technology Sector; its industry is Tech

Hardware and Semiconductors, and its sub-industry is Technology and Hardware. [2]

Ntel is Nigeria’s most revolutionary telecommunications company which provides 4G LTE

Advanced network that delivers superfast call-connect times, crystal clear Voiceover LTE and

extraordinarily high internet speed. [3]

1.3 SUBMISSION OF ACCEPTANCE LETTER

I submitted my SCAF Form to the nearest ITF Office after my first week of commencement.

I also sent an email to the SIWES Office attaching the acceptance letter.

1.4 COMMENCEMENT OF INTERNSHIP

I started my internship on 10th May 2021 till 8th October 2021 which was a total of 22 weeks.

1.4.1 PARTICIPATION IN THE NETWORK SERVICES

I worked in the Data Center Management and the IT Service Desk Team.

The data center covers environmental management and control, physical access control, fire

suppression, and hardware management. It forms the basis of governance and management of

the DC infrastructure and provides a basis for effective management of the Data Centre,

equipment, guaranteed levels of uptime, power, and service availability as standard.

The IT Service Desk is basically for customer relationship management. In this team, customer

complaints are resolved and documented using different software.

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CHAPTER 2: FACILITIES

2.1 FACILITIES AVAILABLE

2.1.1 THE DATA CENTRE MANAGEMENT TEAM

The Data Centre Physical Infrastructure is the pyramid upon which all computing, network,

and storage resources rest. There are seven (7) different aspects in the Data Centre as shown

below.

Management
and Services
Racks and
Fire and
Physical
Security
Structure
DATA
CENTER

Power Cooling

Cabling

Figure 5: Data Centre Physical Infrastructure

1. Management and Services: This involves incident management, change management,

capacity, and availability management. It also describes the consulting and design

services, installation, monitoring, decommissioning, maintenance, and repair services

in the data centre.

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 2. Fire and Security: This describes the physical security devices such as biometric

devices, keys, codes, access cards; Also, the fire suppression systems like linear heat

detention, smoke detectors.

3. Cooling: This is required to successfully remove heat from the data centre. This

includes the Air Conditioner and the HVAC

4. Cabling: This is for the proper design and implementation of core components in the

data centre.

5. Power: This is a solid infrastructure for the data centre which includes UPS Systems,

Generators, Batteries, Transformers, Distribution Panels, Circuit Breakers among

others.

6. Racks and Physical Structure: This involves the IT Racks where the connections are

made and the physical room elements.

FUNCTIONS OF DATA CENTRE MANAGEMENT TEAM.

• Safety Requirement

• Cooling and Humidity Specifications

• Authorization and Access Requirements

• Modifications and Changes

• Decommissioned Equipment

• Facility – Electrical Power Requirements

• Documentation and Labelling

• Equipment and Cables

• Environmental Cleanliness

• Conduct of Authorized Users

• Information Security

• Acceptable use of Infrastructure and Information Resources

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 • Information Classification

• Crisis Management

• Service Asset and Configuration Management

2.1.2 THE IT SERVICE DESK TEAM

The IT Service Desk Team acts as intermediary between customer and resolution department

for escalated queries with the use of essential applications like CRM, BRM and PRM that are

considered advanced technologies for an effective and reputable telecommunication company.

FUNCTIONS OF THE IT SERVICE DESK.

• Resolve all customer complaints routed via email, SMS and other channels assigned

by the Team Lead.

• Ensure proper follow-up with customers on queries.

• Querying customers’ balance

• Retrieving of MSISDN and Serial Number

• Unbarring of lines (Grace and Suspension State)

• Bundle Activation

• Password Reset (KUCHIO)

• Treating inactive line

• Raising and assigning trouble ticket

• Treating of line that cannot browse due to down-time

• Checking status of orders on the network

• Documentation of all requests and queries

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2.2 QUALITY OF SUPERVISION FROM COMPANY-BASED SUPERVISORS

The company-based supervisor that I was assigned to was very welcoming on my first day, he

showed me the different departments in the data centre. He had excellent communication skills

which helped him speak with impact and clarity.

He also took initiative while also providing support, motivation, and accountability to other

team members. He was also able to identify our strengths and weaknesses, which of us would

be best to handle certain tasks and find useful ways for every team member to contribute to a

project or program.

2.3 KNOWLEDGE GAINED

2.3.1 DATA CENTRE MANAGEMENT TEAM

• Daily Inspection of the Data Centre: I learned how to do the daily walk-around in the

data centre, this process was done 4 times at different time intervals; 8 am, 12 pm, 3

pm, and 5 pm respectively. This was done to ensure there were no faults with any of

the systems in use in the data centre. This was also done to prevent any future incidents.

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Figure 6: Daily walk-around reporting sheet page 1

Figure 7: Daily walk-around reporting sheet page 2

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• Sensor Reading: I learned how to take the sensor reading which shows the temperature

and humidity. When the temperature is above 26 degrees Celsius, it means that there

is some form of overheating at the location of that sensor.

Figure 8: Sensor 1 reading temperature

Figure 9: Sensor 1 reading humidity

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Figure 10: Sensor 2 reading temperature

Figure 11: Sensor 2 reading humidity

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• System Configuration: This is the settings arrangement and how each device and

software interact with each other based on a system setting automatically created by

the system or by the user

• Network Troubleshooting: This is a process used to identify, diagnose, and solve

problems within a computer network. The steps are.

- Check the hardware

- Use ipconfig

- Perform a DNS Check

- Contact ISP

- Check on virus and malware protection

- Review Database logs

• Cable Crimping: I learned how to crimp cables and the two different types of crimping

which are straight-through and crossover rules.

• Types of Internet Cable: I learned about the different kinds of cable and their uses

which are

- Fibre Optic: This consists of a bundle of glass threads capable of sending messages

modulated onto light waves

- Twisted pair cable: There is shielded and unshielded twisted pair cable. An

example of the application of shielded twisted pairs is token ring networks.

Examples of the unshielded twisted pair cable are ethernet networks, Cat5e, 6a, 7

cables.

- Coaxial cable: This is a high-frequency transmission cable that has inner conductor

surrounded by insulation wrapped by a metal shield. Applications are radio

transmitters, distributing cable television signals.

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• Data Storage: I learned and assisted in the change of cartridges used to store data in the

data centre. The oracle tape library is used to store data used in billing, servers, etc.

Figure 12: Oracle storage library

Figure 13: Oracle storage library showing the cartridges

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2.3.2 IT SERVICE DESK TEAM

The IT Service Desk acts as intermediary between customer and resolution department for

escalated queries. They also ensure proper follow-up with customers on queries. They resolve

all customer complaints routed via email, SMS and other channels as assigned by the Team

Lead.

• Below are screenshots of the CRM Software used for the following

- Check balance details of a customer

- Check if the customer’s line is active or in a grace state (a state of inactivity)

- To assign trouble ticket (this is done to escalate queries to another team)

- Retrieve MSISDN (Phone Number) and Serial Number

- Checking status of orders on the network (Complete, Open, and Failed orders)

Figure 14: Home screen of the CRM Software

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 Figure 15: Screenshot of Customer balance details

• WinSCP Software: This is the software used to change a customer’s line from grace

state (inactivity) to active state.

Figure 16: WinSCP software home screen

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CHAPTER 3: CONTRIBUTIONS

3.1 APPLICATION OF GAINED KNOWLEDGE

3.1.1 FIELD OF STUDY AND EDUCATIONAL CAREER

As an Information and Communication Engineering student, I learned about how wide my

field of study is and how I can work in different departments in the technology industry. I also

learned about customer relationship management. I was also able to understand the different

majors in my field of study, one of which is Cybersecurity and Ethical Hacking. My supervisor

gave me a few online learning platforms to start educating myself on that field.

3.1.2 THE GOALS OF THE COMPANY OF ENGAGEMENT

NatCom Development & Investment Ltd (Trading as Ntel) is a company that values the

confidentiality of its staff and users of its network. I learned how to protect the information of

the firm. At Ntel, it is compulsory for every staff to take online courses to grow in their field

of study. This made me understand that one cannot know it all and I also understood there is

always room for improvement.

3.1.3 THE LARGER SOCIETY

Nigeria’s technological prowess is still abysmally low and not as developed as it should be.

Many technological issues in Nigeria can be solved. For instance, the Nigerian stock market

can be manipulated due to a weak firewall system. I can continue in my study in Cybersecurity,

to assist in the building a strong firewall, not just for the Nigeria Stock Exchange but for the

society at large. [4]

3.2 PRACTICAL KNOWLEDGE WITH THEORETICAL KNOWLEDGE

During my stay at Ntel, I was able to apply the theoretical knowledge of some courses I was

taught in my 300 and 400 Level while in school. Such as:

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 • EIE312 (Communication Principles): I was taught about the different types of internet

cables such as fibre optic cable, twisted pair cable, coaxial cable. At work, I learned

how these cables are connected in the server room to ensure proper connection to the

network. [5]

• EIE414 (Design and Installation of Electrical and ICT Services): In this course, I

learned about telecommunication design and installation. I learned the importance of

proper planning, lifecycle costs, availability, maintenance, and manageability. At Ntel,

I understood the importance of the above before deciding to build a data centre. [6]

• ICE414 (Internet Technology and Programming): I understood the application of the

Internet architecture, routing, and routing protocols. I also understood the importance

of internet security and how it can be achieved. [7]

3.3 CULTURE AND CULTURE SHOCK EXPERIENCES

At Ntel, there is a culture of addressing everyone by their first name. This was done to remove

barriers and make communication easier amongst staff members. I found this difficult at first

because I was coming from an environment where older people like lecturers are addressed

by their title which was either Mr. or Mrs. or Dr. or Professor but later I adapted and started

following the culture. This made it easier for me to approach anyone in the firm to ask for help

or easily communicate with them. So, I grew to love the culture. At Ntel, there is also a strict

laptop security policy. When I first got to the firm, I found it hard to cope with some of the

laptop security rules which involved never leaving your laptop open on your work desk while

you aren’t there and the constant changing of passwords. I later got used to this because I

understood that the reason for this policy is for information security.

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CHAPTER 4: CHALLENGES

4.1 CHALLENGES ENCOUNTERED

4.1.1 CHALLENGES ENCOUNTERED BY STUDENT

• PLACEMENT ACQUISITION: Getting placement for my internship was a bit

stressful for me because it was my first time applying to companies for a job.

• ISSUES WITH TIME MANAGEMENT: This was my first job kind of experience and

at first, I had a hard time keeping to time of taking the daily readings. But I adopted a

more organized process to manage my time and with time, I got a hang of the situation

• NOT ENOUGH WORK: When I started, I didn’t have enough work assigned to me

because I was new to the job. As time went by, I started asking questions about the

equipment in my environment which showed that I was ready and willing to learn. I

also showed how observant I was which made my supervisor to engage me in more

work.

4.2 PROJECTS IDENTIFIED AND CONTRIBUTIONS

• After my second month at Ntel, 2 interns from other universities were assigned to learn

from me. I was given the chance to handle their onboarding process.

• I also researched and found a learning platform that will help them understand the

fundamentals of the data centre. I made inquiries with my direct supervisor, and I was

given the go-ahead to share the platform with them.

• The platform is https://www.schneideruniversities.com/

On this website, you get the opportunity to take certified short-term courses about the

data centre.

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Figure 17: Online learning platform home screen

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CONCLUSION

In conclusion, this internship has been a very useful experience for me. I can safely say that

my understanding of the job environment has increased greatly. However, I do think that there

are some aspects of the job that I could have done better and that I need to work on. I would

love to continue and develop my learning on Cybersecurity and Ethical Hacking, this is

because I now understand the importance of having more than just one skill or a degree, it

exposes one to more opportunities. The two main things that I also learned after my experience

in this firm are the importance of time management and being self-motivated.

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RECOMMENDATIONS

• More opportunities for students to do intern in the organization: I would also

recommend the organization to continue giving internship placements to as many

students as they can because some miss this experience which is also an important

requirement of the University because they failed to get placements.

• Allowances: The organization should give allowances to interns most especially

transport allowances to cater for transport costs most students stay far from the

internship places, hence increasing my expenses. Therefore, the intern recommends

the organization to put that into action to motivate interns and boost their productivity

levels in performing their tasks during the field attachment.

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REFERENCES

[1] “Aims and Objectives of SIWES,” [Online]. Available: https://www/naija.ng/1143857-

aims-objectivessiwes-nigeria.html#1143857.
[2] “About NatCom Development & Investment Ltd.,” [Online]. Available:
https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/ntel.
[3] “Information about NatCom Development & Investment Ltd.,” [Online]. Available:
https://www.bloomberg.com/profile/company/1394638D:NL.
[4] “Efficiency of Nigeria Stock Exchange,” [Online]. Available:
https://www.jstor.org/stable/23026297.
[5] Prof. Idachaba F.E, Communication Principles, EIE312.
[6] Dr. Hope E. Orovwode and Mrs. Temitope. M. Adeyemi-Kayode, Design and Installation
of Electrical ICT Services, EIE414.
[7] Prof. Idachaba F.E and Engr. Noma-Osaghae, E., Internet Technology and Programming,
ICE414.

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