Formula 1 in Schools Technology Challenge
I was watching the 2006 F1 race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway from ITV1 , a UK station, and they had a great side story about this school program called "F1 in Schools" which gives kids a chance to learn about engineering and project management. "It's a competition for teams of 3-6 school children to design and manufacture miniature CO2-powered racing cars and then race them at regional, national and international level." Ferrari’s Ross Brawn, Sam Michael of Williams and Toyota’s Mike Gascoyne are all supporting the F1 in Schools racing projects.
From a design and manufacturing perspective, students use CAD (computer-aided design) software to create virtual 3-D models of their cars and translate their designs into reality by means of CNC milling machines. Students are provided access to advanced CNC manufacturing centers and 3D design software. UGS, suppliers of Solid Edge, and Denford, suppliers of QuickCAM, provide copies of their 3D CAD software to give to schools who participate in the F1 racing challenge.
Student teams then compete against each other in a national championship to determine the fastest car and best engineered car in the UK. It's just like being in a real Formula One team.
The Bloomsburg High School from Bloomsburg, PA was the 2004 1st place winner. Their Harley Davidson emblazed car is shown below.
The UK F1 in Schools website provides a variety of links to European events. A US based program is also available for students on this side of the Pond. Local events can be found on the F1 in School US website .
This is a great idea that many businesses should emulate. It gives young minds a unique opportunity that traditionally is not available to them, while at the same time giving the industry (or in this case the F1 motor sport) incredible publicity.
