Our students have done it again! The World Ferry Safety Association’s Safe Affordable Ferry competition is the third win this year for UBC Mechanical Engineering students in the field of naval architecture and marine engineering. Here is the story originally from APSC News:
A team of UBC Engineering students has won the World Ferry Safety Association international student competition for their Safe Affordable Ferry design. Mechanical Engineering students Brenden Oke,Matthew Allan, Daniel Greig, Byron Roehrl and Hadrian D’Souza, and Integrated Engineering students Kristoffer Vik Hansen and Chandandeep Deol will receive a $5000 prize for their winning concept.
Electronic model rendering of the award-winning monohull vessel design submitted by the UBC team
The annual student competition was launched by the World Ferry Safety Association in response to the record number of ferry fatalities in parts of the developing world. The competition elicits designs for safe, affordable ferries to serve developing nations. Guidelines vary each year according to specifications of a particular nation; for 2013, the nation was Bangladesh.
Student teams from countries around the world including Turkey, Greece, Germany, India and the U.S. submitted their designs for a ferry capable of safely transporting 500 passengers along Bangladesh’s inland river system between Dhaka and Barisal, a distance of 250km. Entries were evaluated on the affordability to construct, acquire, operate, maintain and repair the ship.
The UBC team designed a monohull vessel with exceptional stability characteristics. Their entry was recognized for its thoroughness in terms of cost and fuel analysis and design features including compressed natural gas (CNG) fueled engines, modular cabins and access for those with physical disabilities.
“The team has effectively designed a safe, affordable craft that could drastically reduce the number of ferry-related fatalities in the developing world,” says team advisor and Professor of Teaching Jon Mikkelsen. “We are delighted by the continuing accomplishments of our marine engineering students—this award marks their ‘triple crown’ victory.”
Mikkelsen refers to two previous victories for the team this year. Earlier this fall, Allan, Greig, Oke and Roehrl won the Lisnyk Ship Design Competition in Arlington, Virginia. The Society of Naval Architects & Marine Engineers (SNAME) recognized the students’ concept design of a multi-purpose shallow draft buoy tender for the Canadian Coast Guard with a $1500 grand prize. The UBC team beat defending champion Norwegian University of Science and Technology and the State University of New York.
In June, Vik Hansen, along with teammates Sirous Soltanolketabi, Josh Andrews, Yasmeen Akbari, David Lee, Alex Kroitzschand James Lee, led UBC SailBot to victory in the 2013 International Robotics Sailing Regatta in Gloucester, MA, U.S., attaining the first perfect score on record. The UBC SailBot team defended their 2012 title, when they dethroned the reigning US Naval Academy.
