Energy Innovation Challenge

The fourth year of Energy Innovation Challenge (EIC) is jointly organised by the Institution of Engineers, Singapore (IES) and Science Centre Singapore with the support of the Ministry of Education and the National Research Foundation (NRF).

The latest updates for the competition, workshops details, photographs and videos of the all the activities can be found at the facebook page.

Timeline

Teachers' Briefing	6 Feb 2018
Challenge Announcement & Networking Party	24 Mar 2018
Workshops	Mar – May 2018
Camp	1st & 2nd week of Jun 2018
Submission of Abstracts for Preliminary Judging	1 Jun 2018
NED Set-Up	25 Jul 2018
Preliminary Judging	26 - 28 Jul 2018
Final Judging*	28 Jul 2018

Click here for the EIC 2018 Briefing Slides.

Click here for the EIC 2018 Registration Form.

Click here for the template of the write-up for the shortlisting round.

What is the competition about?

Building on past efforts, the Energy Innovation Challenge Competition first started in 2015. It aims to interest, excite and enable students to understand and experience how engineering plays a part in energy innovation. The challenge is an annual event that provides an opportunity for Innovation for students from Secondary Schools, Junior Colleges, Polytechnics and ITEs to work with professional engineering and business mentors to design or invent a product to solve and demonstrate the use of an alternative source of energy. Schools can field teams of individual or several students in a team to take part in high-intensity events and camps as a run-up to the challenge. Teams will be measured by the end product, the power of team strategy and collaboration, and the determination of the students. The competition will culminate in a Project Displays, Final Judging and Awards Presentation at the National Engineers Day (NED) in Singapore. The competition will take the format of multiple categories and levels.

Who can participate in this competition?

The competition involves 4 categories:

Secondary Schools
Junior Colleges
Polytechnics and ITEs
University, Singapore & International

Each team is made up of professional engineer mentors or teachers, and students from Secondary Schools, Junior Colleges, Polytechnics and ITEs. Teams can be made up of either individuals or a team of up to three students. There is no limit to the number of mentors. Schools may allow as many students as they wish to participate. Students have up to 4 months for the competition before NED, with all teams invited to take part and compete during the event itself. From these teams, a final selection of 18 teams, 9 from Secondary Schools and 9 from Junior Colleges, Polytechnics and ITEs, will be selected for the final judging.

Is prior experience or skills in Science, Technology, Engineering or Mathematics (STEM) required for participants?

The organisers invite all students who may or may not be predisposed to science, math or technology to participate in the competition. In fact, the competition aims to inspire, motivate and encourage students to acquire basic technical expertise while challenging the more experienced students. Participants will be given the opportunity and exposure to learn a range of skills, from design and building to finance, marketing, logistics management, arts, in order to research and build their product in this competition.

What resources are available to assist the teams in this challenge?

A series of workshops and camps aimed in building up project management and technical skills will be organised for participants. Participants will also have access to training videos, presentations and documents to assist them in building their projects.

Why involve a professional engineer? Why can't participants build the product on their own?

The competition creates powerful mentoring relationships between the students and professional engineers, mechanics or technicians. The pool of mentors includes professional engineers from some of the world’s most respected companies. Students get to work closely with and learn from these “stars” of the engineering world. Such meaningful involvement of adults in students' lives serves to developing young people’s potential.

How do I find a mentor for my team?

The organisers will assist the teams in finding mentors and both parties will be formally introduced to one another through the “Networking Party”, which is the kick-off event for the competition. Mentors are recruited from universities, polytechnics, research institutes as well as the business sector.

Participating mentors and organisations will benefit from recognition as pro-youth development and training, and hence as a desirable employer.

Engineers who wish to take on a role as a mentor are also welcome and can send an email to upstream@science.edu.sg for more information.

Are there other benefits to participating?

Throughout their journey in this competition, students “win” as they gain maturity, build self-confidence and appreciation of teamwork, and an understanding of professionalism. Students also have fun while building a network of friends and professional mentors who continue to enrich their lives. The experience aims to enrich students':

understanding about science, math, teamwork and the working world
attitudes about teamwork to be significantly more positive after than before participating in the competition season

Professional mentors are rewarded with renewed inspiration and a reminder as to why they chose engineering, science and technology as their careers. Volunteers are recognised as an integral and vital part of the way in which young people connect to the real world, in their own communities and in the world at large.