Earlier this year Multicam CNC Routing Systems provided sponsorship to Mount View High School team Impro Racing, in support of their participation in the F1 in Schools STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) competition. Impro Racing is the only all-girl team in the competition and has already proven their talent and dedication in their bid to become victorious nationally.
Multicam has a long association with schools, colleges, universities and trade training facilities throughout Australia, and it was especially pleasing for them to see these talented young ladies taking on engineering and manufacturing subjects in what are primarily male-dominated vocations. During the sponsorship presentation, Stephen Heusz, from Multicam’s head office in Newcastle, New South Wales (NSW), was given an extensive tour of the Impro Racing team’s facilities and an in-depth explanation of the teams’ efforts and goals.
The F1 in Schools challenge is the world’s largest secondary school STEM competition where teams design, manufacture and race miniature F1 racing cars over a fixed distance. The cars are conceived and designed using industry standard CAD/CAM software and produced using CNC machinery.
Once designed and software tested to satisfaction, the students then machine the car body, 3D print some of the aerodynamic structures, assemble, paint and prove their creations in wind and smoke tunnels and on test tracks. The process gives the students an appreciation and feel for real-world manufacturing processes as well as an undersatnding of what is involved in completing a team-based mission.
As well as physically producing their race entries, competitors must also create a team identity (just as F1 racing teams do) including logo, branding and marketing, and set up a trade booth display showcasing the team and its F1 entry. At all stages, individual portfolios are maintained by the team members, the quality of which goes a long way to accruing competition points. It’s not all about the race.
As a result of their recent successes, Impro Racing has been selected to represent NSW at the F1 in Schools National Finals in Melbourne. If victorious, the next step will be to compete at the forthcoming international competition. Australia has a tradition of success on the global stage, with team Horizon from Adelaide claiming victory in 2018.
“The excitement among the girls for this competition is evident in every aspect of what they are doing to achieve success at the finals,” said Heusz. “In fact, the whole school is focused on providing every opportunity for success, with an emphasis on the learning process and what skills the team members will gain in participating and take to their future lives.
“The professionalism of Impro Racing is something of which they should be very proud. By drawing on the guidance of their F1 in Schools co-ordinator and being mentored by members of previous teams, the team realises that success can be achieved by recognising the value of utilising any resource at their disposal.”
Heusz added that Multicam CNC Routing Systems is proud to be associated with Mount View High School and the F1 in Schools Challenge: “We know that by providing support at the grassroots level in engineering and manufacturing, our country stands a better chance of remaining competitive in a global environment by encouraging talented people to develop the skills necessary in all aspects of manufacturing.
“Multicam CNC routing machines are manufactured in Australia and is a 100% Australian-owned company. We firmly believe that the unique approach and skills of our engineers and technicians have resulted in our world class machines that have grown to become a market leader of flatbed CNC routing machines. We also believe that, through encouragement and sponsorship, such as that of team Impro, we will be well placed in the future to continue to be successful.”
Multicam CNC Routing Systems will be exhibiting at Austech 2019 at stand 660.