Latest news from Loughborough University
| 2 July 2003 | PR 03/52 |
Students' inventive
designs win industry praise and prizes
Toys, textiles and tables were
just some of the thirty student projects on display at Loughborough University
on 25 June at the first-ever Celebration Day – a brand new initiative
designed to recognise the excellent design, technology and manufacturing
work being carried out by Leicestershire’s GCSE and A Level students.
Run by Loughborough’s Faculty of Engineering, Celebration Day provides
an opportunity for students throughout the region to showcase the projects
and prototype models they have been working on for their GCSEs and A levels.
The best work from six local schools was selected for display at the University,
with prizes awarded for the best overall engineering design, the best
prototype, the best design concept, and the best research and development.
Winners in the GCSE category were:
- Faculty of Engineering prize
for best overall engineering design – Lauren Hubert
(King Edward VII School) for her travel game
- Reeves Oilfield Services
prize for best prototype – Richard Morton (King
Edward VII School) for his wooden crocodile toy
- Systems Engineering Innovation
Centre prize for best design concept – Stephen Wilson
(King Edward VII School) for his golf meter that indicates the accuracy
of a swing
- Engineering Education Centre prize for best research and development – Simone Matthews (Beaumont Leys School) for her ‘one-shouldered top’ textiles design
The A level winners were:
- Faculty of Engineering prize
for best overall engineering design – Daniel Marshall
(Burleigh Community College) for his car side carrier
- Reeves Oilfield Services
prize for best prototype – Hitesh Patel (Burleigh
Community College) for his hockey net
- Systems Engineering Innovation
Centre prize for best design concept – Richard Ward
(De Lisle Catholic School) for his champagne bottle opener
- Engineering Education Centre
prize for best research and development – Steven Gilchrist
(King Edward VII School) for his wall-fixed bench
Each of the prize winners was presented with a trophy, with the overall winners, Lauren Hubert and Daniel Marshall, also receiving a £50 gift token and the others a voucher for £25 each.
David Wilson, Head of Design and Technology at King Edward VII School in Melton Mowbray, which scooped four of the eight prizes, said: “The students work really hard on their design projects during their CGSE and A level years. Celebration Day has allowed them the opportunity to show off their achievements, and gain recognition of their talent from University academics, leaders in industry and their peers.”
One of the judges, Matt Mapleston, from the recently established Systems Engineering Innovation Centre (SEIC), was very impressed by the standard and quality of the students’ work. “The SEIC was one of the sponsors of Celebration Day and we were asked to select the winners in the Best Design Concept category. Despite the overall high standard in the GCSE section, Stephen Wilson’s golf toy stood out. The A-level projects were very difficult to judge, but Richard Ward’s champagne bottle opener was really impressive,” he said.
Every student who took part in Celebration Day received a certificate that can be added to their National Record of Achievement.– Ends –
For further information contact:- Kerry Baker, Engineering Education Centre, Loughborough University, T: 01509 227191 or
- Hannah Baldwin, Head of PR, T: 01509 222239, E: H.E.Baldwin@lboro.ac.uk
Notes to editors
- The schools taking part
in the Celebration Day were:
- Beaumont Leys School, Leicester
- Burleigh Community College, Loughborough
- Crown Hills Community College, Leicester
- De Lisle Catholic School, Loughborough
- King Edward VII School, Melton Mowbray
- The Robert Smyth School, Market Harborough
- The Systems Engineering
Innovation Centre (SEIC) is a collaborative venture involving BAE
SYSTEMS, East Midlands Development Agency (emda) and Loughborough
University, and is set to become the national focus for systems
engineering capability. Housed at Holywell Park on the Loughborough
University campus, the dedicated, state-of-the-art Centre will attract
top research scientists and engineers from academia and industry
who are keen to work together on the latest innovations in products,
processes and services. The SEIC became fully operational during
the first half of 2003 and will soon be host to over 40 researchers,
chosen from the Business Units and Loughborough University, all
working on funded projects specific to the field of systems engineering.
- Loughborough has an
established reputation for excellence in teaching and research,
strong links with industry, and unrivalled sporting achievement.
Assessments of teaching quality by the Quality Assurance Agency
place Loughborough in the top flight of UK universities, and industry
highlights Loughborough in its top five for graduate recruitment.
Around 30% of the University’s income is for research. The
University has been awarded four Queen’s Anniversary Prizes:
for its collaboration with aerospace and automotive companies such
as BAE Systems, Ford and Rolls Royce; for its work in developing
countries; for pioneering research in optical engineering; and for
its world-leading role in sports research, education and development.