Esteco and Cummins have announced the launch of the Esteco Academy Design Competition 2018, inviting students of engineering and applied sciences from around the world to participate. This year’s challenge is to design the most cost and energy-efficient hybrid microgrid to supply energy to a Cummins campus in India.

“Our objective is to provide future engineers with our best-in-class technology and hands on experience to enhance their future career,” said Enrico Nobile, Scientific Advisor at Esteco and professor of thermal fluids at the University of Trieste, Italy.

“The Esteco Academy Design Competition is an excellent opportunity for engineering students worldwide to apply their knowledge and test optimization skills on a real-world problem using Esteco technology integrated with leading simulation tools,” he added.

The competing student teams will be able to use modeFrontier, the Esteco  solution for process automation and multidisciplinary optimization. Thanks to the collaboration with ANSYS and Gamma Technologies, the teams will be able to run some of the top simulation tools through the modeFrontier platform.

“The use of optimisation tools is becoming more and more critical when it comes to doing world-class design through simulation,” said Kevin Brittain, MDO Group Leader at Cummins. “We wanted to challenge the students with this really interesting optimisation problem, where you have to consider how to deliver reliable energy utilising internal combustion engines in generator sets, storage systems, and renewables.”

The international jury will favour the most innovative designs that lead to significant improvements in energy usage and sustainability. The winning teams will receive a cash prize and a one-year  Esteco Academy membership for each team member. Curricula of the members of the top three teams will also be considered for an internship at a Cummins site worldwide. 

The deadline for team registrations is December 7, 2018, while final projects should be submitted no later than May 30, 2019. The winners will be announced in September 2019.

For more information: academy.esteco.com/competition.