Each team comes with its own tractor and is required to prove itself in several rounds. The competitive assignments include pulling and towing a cart (simulation of tractor work in the field), passing through difficult terrain conditions (potholes, muddy mud, etc.) and a maneuvering course in a maze
The "Quarter Tractor Technion 2016" group will participate in an international competition in the USA this coming June.
The competition has been organized by the American Society for Agricultural and Biological Engineering since 1998 and takes place once a year in Peoria, Illinois. About 50 student groups from the USA and Canada compete in the competition, where we are the only group representing Israel and the Technion in the competition and sending a blue and white tractor. Each team comes with its own tractor and is required to prove itself in several rounds. The competitive assignments include pulling and towing a cart (simulation of tractor work in the field), passing through difficult terrain conditions (potholes, muddy mud, etc.) and a maneuvering course in a maze. In addition, each group must present reports such as a financial report and a design report, as well as report in detail on work during the year to the judges. Each assignment is awarded a certain number of points when the goal is to accumulate a maximum number of points. The first places receive a cash prize.
In the USA, the competition is a gateway for students to desirable industrial companies such as Boeing, which come to recruit them into their ranks during the days of the competition. Among the main sponsors are giant companies such as Caterpillar, John Deere, New Holland, Briggs & Stratton, Solidworks and many others. Link to the competition website
In 2015, the Technion sent for the first time a tractor to the competition built by 7 civil engineering students, majoring in agricultural engineering. Out of about 50 teams we took the 5th and honorable place! For a group participating for the first time, the judges were very impressed with us and are looking forward to our performance this year!
This year we are 11 students (one of them a female student!), 9 mechanical engineering students and 2 civil engineering students. The project is accompanied by 3 supervisors: Prof. Yitzhak Shmolevich, Mr. Nachum Orlev and Dr. Amos Mizrah.
The entire project is financed by donations, from the gears to the flight tickets for the competition. The main sponsor is the energy program at the Technion, GTEP. Another sponsor is the truck importer, SCANIA. The sponsor of the machining works for us is the "Future Technological Center" Haifa branch. At the time of writing these lines, we are in the advanced stages of the production of the tractor, in order to meet the goals - to finish the production of the tractor on time, to send it to the USA as well as to fly the team members to the competition, we need donations in the amount of 150 thousand NIS. The time available to us is very short, only one month remains until the shipping date. We are working on establishing a circle of supportive donors who will accompany us throughout the project.
In exchange for support, we undertake to stay in continuous contact and update on our progress, display the logo on the tractor, on the project website and on the team members' shirts. Come support a blue and white tractor produced by students from the Technion!
to the project's Facebook page
For details, please contact Liza Shemliov, responsible for resource mobilization.
054-2099985
lizazom@gmail.com
