Formula Student 2007... what you had to say about this year’s event at Silverstone...
Richard Burden MP
"Formula Student is one of the most exciting, innovational and educational projects around. Anything that encourages this project to grow should be welcomed. It is hands-on and academic all at the same time."
IMechE President and FREng, John Baxter
IMechE President John Baxter: "Formula Student is one of the most important educational engineering projects in the world and we challenge these young minds to give them an academic and practical learning experience that cannot be matched by any other project of its kind."
FS founder and Chairman and IMechE Fellow, John Wood
FS Steering Committee Chairman, John Wood: "We were becoming aware in industry that while universities were turning out young graduates with excellent academic qualifications, they were lacking the sort of essential practical skills that were really needed in industry to be successful engineers - and this is what Formula Student aims to do - deliver young engineers who have got those essential practical experiences and expertise.’’
FS Patron and IMechE Fellow Ross Brawn
The former Scuderia Ferrari Technical Director, said: "There were some exceptionally good teams and entrants this year. The variety and breadth of talent out there was what was so exciting about the event. If the FS cars were all pristine, perfect examples it would be a boring competition, which makes Formula 1 a little bit sterile. Seeing these sorts of things at FS is quite exciting.’’
FS Chief Judge and Flybrid Systems managing partner Jon Hilton
Jon Hilton, the former technical director of Renault F1, said: "Everyone has been blown away by the standard of competition at FS and we have all been left massively impressed and in awe of the students’ commitment.’’
Honda Racing
Honda Racing F1 Operations Director, and FS Partner, Professor Gary Savage: "As a team and a company we love to race and we love to compete, and that is why we we’re at Formula Student. For Honda, there is also an ulterior motive. We are always looking for the next generation of young engineers and young designers and in fact, 20 of our best young engineers have all been involved in FS.”
Race Tech Magazine Editor, William Kimberley “The Formula Student/SAE events are truly wonderful. They give the graduates real hands-on experience where project managing, working with others and thinking on your feet are all essential ingredients. You might be the best designer in the world, but if you do not know how to turn a spanner or are liable to freeze in an emergency, then you are probably not cut out to be in motorsport – and these events will highlight that.”
Oxford Brookes (Highest Ranking UK Team 2006)
Jenner Collins, Team Leader for Oxford Brookes (Class 1): "For young, aspiring engineers, being a part of Formula Student is essential. I have learnt a huge amount from entering. In Formula 1 you are one of 500 people in a team, but in FS you are one of circa 20, so it forces you to take on a lot more responsibility.”
Oxford Brookes Motorsport Design lecturer and Formula Student Faculty Advisor, Craig Dawson: "This is the only event where students experience what it is like to design, build and compete with their own racing car. This is something that the industry is really recognising the importance of as these students are the F1 designers of tomorrow.’’
Bath (Highest Ranking UK Team 2007)
Oliver Taylor, Class 1 Team Leader: "FS is the only competition of its kind in the world where you can design and build a racing car from the drawing board. The whole experience of FS teaches you how to develop your academic and practical skills together to make you a better engineer and our team is already looking forward to returning next year.”
FS 2007 Winner, Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT)
RMIT Faculty Advisor, Professor Simon Watkins: "I would certainly recommend FS as an event to enter. It teaches students the non-reversible nature of time and money plus they get valuable feedback from experienced international judges. Our students who entered have since been headhunted by the world’s top race car companies, including F1."
Hertfordshire (Highest Ranking UK Team 2005)
Hertfordshire University Head of Automotive and Design Engineering, and FS Committee member, Alan Combes: "With over 90 teams and 25 different countries represented, to come away with any prize at all at Formula Student is always a major achievement.’’