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Some of the country’s top young engineering talent raced mini drag-racers built entirely from scrap at the Institution of Mechanical Engineers’ Apprentice Challenge last month. The event was held at the Imperial War Museum Duxford in Cambridgeshire.
The teams had just two hours to design and build their racers which then had to cover a distance of 2m in the quickest time possible while carrying increasingly heavy weights. The competitors were competing not just for the honour of showing off their engineering expertise, but also for monetary prizes and software from NT CADCAM.
The team from Felixstowe Ports won the overall prize, with CLS Offshore taking second. Marshall Aerospace won the Most Innovative Design Award, which was presented by local MP and health secretary Andrew Lansley.
Lansley said: “It was a delight to attend the challenge here at Duxford and see each of the teams in action, and I was especially proud to be able to present the award for the most innovative design to the team from Marshall Aerospace in Cambridge.
“Engineering is one of Britain’s most important industries, and it was heartening to see our next generation of engineers taking to the challenge with such innovation and enthusiasm.”
Terry Spall, vice-president of the IMechE, who attended the event, said: “We will all rely on the next generation of engineers in the coming decades to solve some of the greatest problems facing society, from climate change to overpopulation. That’s why it’s so encouraging to see Britain’s young apprentices showing such talent and enthusiasm at an event like this.”
Dan Purnell, a member of the winning Felixstowe Ports team, said: “We really didn’t think we’d win. It’s been a great day and a good laugh, but we’ve also learnt things that will be useful to our future careers.”
The event was designed to showcase the best young engineering apprentices in the Eastern region and promote engineering as a career. The line-up of 15 sets of competitors included an all-female team from MBDA.
The team from Lotus Engineering brought along the Norfolk-built Lotus Exige 270E – a green supercar that can run on petrol, methanol or ethanol.
The apprentices were drawn from companies and colleges including Bedford College (with Vauxhall); Carl Zeiss; Cambridge Regional College; ODE with E-Tech, Perenco and Goodchild Marine; West Suffolk College; MBDA; Samuel Whitbread Community College; Delphi Diesel; Hutchinson Ports UK, Port of Felixstowe; Sulzer; Lotus Engineering; CLS Offshore; City College Norwich; Marshall Aerospace and North Hertfordshire College with EADS Astrium.