The Industrial Cadets Project, run by the Engineering Development Trust, is an initiative which enables young people to take part in a structured programme of STEM activities including project work, site visits, presentations, hands-on team tasks, workshops and role model interaction.
For this year’s Project, six of our Lower Sixth Students will be working with two engineer mentors from Ultra PCS on a brief set by the company. The challenge set for our students is that Ultra PCS needs a device that can help frontline personnel (military, police, fire services) to make real time decisions on environmental conditions that could be harmful to their teams’ health. Over the next six months, our students will work together to come up with a solution, working closely with their mentors who will guide them through the process.
In their very first meeting with their mentors, the students were tasked with researching different elements of the Project such as environmental hazards, to market research. It was a really useful introduction to the Project, providing an opportunity for members of the group to better understand the brief, ask direct questions and gain an insight into how devices are created – from the initial research stage to completion. Over the next six months, they will continue to meet on a weekly basis to work on their device design, share knowledge and speak with their mentors.
We very much look forward to seeing how their device develops!
