Raytheon UK invites schools to join Quadcopter Challenge
As part of its ongoing programme to promote Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) careers to students, Raytheon UK is expanding its quadcopter challenge to schools located near the company's sites across the UK with the aim of creating a national challenge in 2016.
“Studying STEM subjects unlocks a range of career opportunities for young people in the UK. We have to do our part to stimulate interest in these crucial subjects as a way to generate the next generation of STEM professionals,” said Suzanne Jude, head of strategy and STEM at Raytheon UK. “We wanted to inspire students with something fun, hands on and topical, so we launched our quadcopter challenge.”
Later this year, teams from four Essex schools will participate in the final challenge to build a fully operational four-bladed multi-rotor remotely piloted air system (commonly known as a quadcopter). Each team will create a unique quadcopter by tweaking the flight characteristics and customising various components such as the frame design, undercarriage and canopy.
The students will then put their creations through a series of challenges, designed by Raytheon UK, to test their designs for innovation, speed, agility and accuracy. The winning team will be invited to attend a presentation ceremony at the 2015 Royal International Air Tattoo.
Selected from a variety of backgrounds across the company, Raytheon’s STEM ambassadors haveskillsets in engineering, IT, project management, finance, commercial and business development. These ambassadors provide support to the challenge through attending after school clubs and lessons that will aid in the design of their quadcopter, including aerodynamics, autonomy, physics, microelectromechanical systems (MEMS), control systems and battery technology.
If you are a school or college located nearby to any of our sites in Harlow, Glenrothes, Gloucester, Waddington or Broughton, and you are interested in finding out more about the quadcopter challenge in 2016, please email Corporate.Communications@raytheon.co.uk for more information.
