Bowers Group is pleased to announce that its very own UK Key Account Manager Dave Smith was lucky enough to be on the final judging panel of the Technology, Design and Innovation (TDI) Challenge, which took place on July 3rd 2019.
Applications for the competition were evaluated by a panel of judges who selected the top twenty projects to attend the TDI Challenge Final, hosted at Yamazaki Mazak's European Technology Centre in Worcester. The chosen finalists then displayed their portfolio of work in Mazak's atrium, and gave a brief presentation to the judging panel, who went on to decide on the overall prize winners.
This year’s final included overall winners in each age group, and prizes awarded for best use of Manufacturing Technology and Best Innovation. For the first time, the competition this year also included a People’s Vote prize awarded by a vote of all those attending the day. Prizes included iPads, GoPro cameras, Minirig speakers and drones, and £2000 of funding for their schools to spend on new Design and Technology equipment for the classroom. The full list of winners including more details about their projects can be found on the MTA website here.
Dave Smith, UK Key Account Manager for Bowers Group and TDI Challenge judge said:
“I was absolutely delighted to be on the judging panel for this fantastic competition. Our industry really depends on the innovative ideas of our future engineers and designers, so it was a great opportunity to see just how creative they could be. There were a selection of very worthy winners, and it ended up being a difficult choice to make as the standard was so high.”
Organised by the Manufacturing Technologies Association (MTA), the TDI Challenge aims to assist teachers and lecturers in promoting the great work of their Design and Technology, and Engineering students, and to celebrate the creativity and innovation taking place inside the curriculum. In addition to promoting STEM skills, the competition also strives to help the technology industry to better understand the challenges faced in education, and how the industry can help through collaboration.
Mike Falconer, Education and Development Manager at the MTA said
“The TDI gives students the opportunity to create something unique and demonstrate to the judges they have considered the whole manufacturing process, from design, to construction and how to market the product.”
All finalists also received a guided tour of the European Technology Centre, a presentation certificate and goodie bag to take home.