The semester is in full swing and our team has been working hard on the University of Minnesota’s tenth solar vehicle. The Solar Vehicle Project team is looking for bright and talented students that are looking to gain valuable experience and build their resume. Not only are there openings for engineers to work on the car, but there are also opportunities on the business team in areas like public relations and finance.
The Solar Vehicle Project was founded and is run by undergraduates in a variety of fields. In addition to constructing the car and putting together a business plan, the SVP team races in both the American Solar Challenge and the Veolia World Solar Challenge held in Australia. In recent years, the University of Minnesota has finished in the top three in the American race. Our team also participates in solar power education at schools in the area.
We have a world class team in the making, so if you’re ready to learn, meet new people, and work hard, send an e-mail to svp@umn.edu for more information. We have informational meetings approaching on Tuesday, January 31st at 5 p.m in Tate 170. and Wednesday, February 1st at 6 p.m. in Fraser 101. Also, don’t forget to “Like” us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter!
We received a new, safe table saw this weekend! We would like to thank Mike Maurer, a Public Health Specialist from the U of M, for finding a source of funding though the Office of Risk Management to purchase it!
We recently received a generous product donation from 3M! 3M products are invaluable to the operation of the project, and we have always been able to count on their support with adhesives, zip ties, and an assortment of support products. This is a picture of the recent donation and shows their support in a big way.
3M Product Donation
We finished the layups last week and they turned out superbly. We have the makings of a very polished car in the shop right now, so we are hard at work putting it all together.
A huge thanks to Delta Airlines, specifically Randy, Jay, and the staff at the composite shop for all the help to make this happen.
We’ll be posting pictures of the car once the whole thing is done, but we’re keeping it under lock and key until then.
The fall semester has started, and the project is in full swing as we begin constructing our tenth vehicle.
With the influx of new students, SVP is ramping up its recruiting efforts.
If you are interested in joining the team, visit one of our informational meetings. Join us on either Monday, September 12 or Tuesday, September 13 in Tate 170. (Map)
On August 24th, UMNSVP participated in an annual festival that celebrates the University of Minnesota and the accomplishments done throughout the campus. The highlight of the event was a speech by our new president, Kaler. Though, for the solar car team, our highlight was having the new president arrive to the grounds in Centaurus II!
More photos from the event can be seen here.
To celebrate the team’s 20th year, last weekend we held our annual Sponsor and Alumni cookout at the St. Paul shop. Thank you everyone who was able to attend. We had a great time showing off the new molds and chatting about anything solar car related!
Also a special thanks to Jonathan Olson for making the first donation into our “Alumni Sponsor Fund.” This fund is a way for alumni to help make solar car possible so that future generations of students can get the same benefit they did from the project. When handing his check over to Jonathan Nutzmann, Jonathan emphasized the positive impact the project had on his success in college and the workforce that no other group would have been able to provide.
Check out these photos from the event!
We spent the weekend at Cirrus again and had plenty to celebrate when we got to head home. We hit up Grandma’s for lunch after a long day of sun at the beach. No sand castles for us engineers: yes, that is Centaurus One in the sand… complete with a small array.
Yep, It's a solar car
Mark Newcomb showing off the air gun at Cirrus
This is about the best public preview of C3 you'll get until unveiling. Unless of course we're feeling particularily nice. :)
We’re back up at Cirrus this weekend shaping out the new car. It’s all going well thanks to Jerry, Rob and Bernie; they all helped to get the tool path perfected and have generously donated their time to make a very clean finish.
Rough Cut at Cirrus going over night
We’ll be up at Delta this week to finish the Aero design. Adem put in the footwork for a shell that really sets the stage for a sleek Raycer. The stakes have been raised and the bar has been set for ASC 2012 and for WSC 2013.
As the summer has heated up, so has the rate of progress in the UMNSVP shop.
First up, EMJ Metals has made a generous donation of aluminum for C3′s new wheels. Nick LaMoore is already off doing design and analysis; hopefully we’ll be able to mill a test wheel soon.
Next, the boards and components for first revisions of the new electrical system are in! Jonathan Nutzmann unboxed the parts for sorting; it was like watching a kid opening presents at Christmas.
Meanwhile, the aerodynamics team has purchased a new tool…
