Two students from Sheffield Springs Academy have won the second annual Master Cutler's Made in Sheffield Innovation Competition.
The competition, which is supported by heavy engineering company DavyMarkham, involved the design of a station to organise the safe storage of tools in the workshop.
Students from schools in Sheffield have spent three months working on challenges set by local businesses. This culminated in a finals day at Kelham Island Museum recently, as part of the Regional Big Bang celebration of engineering event.
Each team had to present their design and manufacturing process on the day to a panel of judges headed by James Newman, The Master Cutler and including Dr Mike Lowden representing Made in Sheffield and Jackie Freeborn, chief executive of Business & Education South Yorkshire.
All the teams responded magnificently to the challenges set, but students Jonathan Simpson and Zakaria Rob stood out for the judges on the day, not just for their design, but also the business case they had prepared and the quality of their presentation. They also displayed a full scale version of their design, which was produced for them by DavyMarkham.
The annual competition – which is run as a partnership between MIS, the Cutlers’ Company and Business & Education South Yorkshire (b&e) and is supported by Sheffield City Council – provides students between the ages of 13 and 16 with an insight into the world of engineering and manufacturing by enabling them to tackle a real-life product development challenge.
Master Cutler James Newman said: “I am delighted to be supporting the competition for the second year, the region needs more engineers and manufacturers and this collaborative approach between real business and education is a great way of introducing and enthusing young people about future careers in the sector.”
To find out how to get involved and help inspire our next generation of engineers and manufacturers contact John Barber at b&e on 01709 336700 or [email protected]
