Torch, Fall/Winter 2009

34 TORCH | Fall–Winter 2009 C edarville proves once again that even small universities can make big impressions. Over the past several months, students from the Elmer W. Engstrom Department of Engineering and Computer Science have seen success at several competitions. At the Solar Splash Competition in Arkansas, Cedarville out-maneuvered 14 other schools and sailed away with its fifth world championship and this year’s Outstanding Drive Train Design Award. The goal of the competition is for student engineers to create the fastest, most maneuverable, and most energy-efficient solar boat. Fifteen schools from three countries competed, including Carnegie Mellon University, the University of Arkansas, and the University of Southampton (UK). The win positioned Cedarville as the record-holder for the most world championships. Designed for fuel efficiency, the University’s one-man Supermileage cars competed in two international events. At the Shell Eco-Marathon in California, Cedarville achieved its best-ever performance of 1,257.5 mpg, earning fifth place among 34 teams and beating out schools like UCLA, California State, and the Rochester Institute of Technology. In June, the cars competed in Michigan, where Gold Lightning took fourth place with 1,077 mpg and Slipstream took seventh with 1,038 mpg. In April, five female engineering students earned second place in the Games 4 Girls Competition in Champaign, Illinois. Teams designed computer games geared toward and judged by middle school and high school girls. Other participating schools included Cornell University, the University of Southern California, and the University of Virginia. With tougher requirements, the 2009 Formula SAE competition in Michigan proved taxing, but Cedarville’s team faced the challenges with ingenuity and teamwork. For this competition, students design race cars that are evaluated for production potential and then tested in four events for acceleration, turning capability, handling, endurance, and fuel economy. Competing against schools like Purdue University, Cornell University, Universidad Simón Bolívar (Venezuela), and Graz University of Technology (Austria), Cedarville placed 45th out of 119 schools and was one of only 33 teams to finish all the events. T www.cedarville.edu/engineering Campus News Engineering Success PHOTO BY LARRY ZAVODNEY