Two teams from the University of Strathclyde have reached the final of BP’s Ultimate Field Trip Competition. The winner will be announced tonight at a ceremony held at the Royal Institution of Great Britain, hosted by comedian and science buff Dara O’Briain.
Of the four finalists, Strathclyde is represented in two teams: Team Hydra, comprised of third year Naval Architecture and Ocean Engineering students Hugh McQueen, Theo Scott, and Eric Brown, and Team HUNgineers, which includes Strathclyde student Gabor Piukovics, a second year Civil and Environmental engineering student, and Andras Kovach and Tamas Lukacs of Glasgow University.
The Ultimate Field Trip is the UK’s flagship STEM competition, which asks UK university undergraduates and postgraduates to come up with a technological innovation designed to tackle a real world problem whilst acknowledging he environmental implications.
This year’s challenge focuses on the world’s growing energy demands. By 2030, the world will require 50% more energy than it does today as the world’s population continues to increase. As such, the cost of Passenger Kilometres Travelled (PKT) will increase. Each team in the competition has therefore been challenged to come up with a single, original technical innovation which as the potential to significantly reduce the PKT per capita in their country by 2030.
On reaching the final, Hugh McQueen of Team Hydra said: “We’re excited and a little nervous about the grand final, however, we haven’t taken our eyes off the prize! The competition has been a great experience and we’re really pleased to have made it this far.”
The winning team will receive a two-week international field trip with BP and will travel to Norway, the Shetland Isles, and finally London, where they will complete their internship at the city’s International Centre of Business and Technology.
Emma Judge, Head of Graduate Resourcing at BP Talking offered her congratulations to both of the Glasgow teams: “Submissions for this year’s UFT have been better than ever and it’s great to see Strathclyde making it though to the Grand Final.
“We wish the teams the very best of luck and we’re looking forward to seeing them again on the 8th March in London. It’s going to be a great night, and they have the extra bonus this year of meeting the science man of the moment, Dara O’Briain!”
