Further entrenching its commitment to bridging the skills gap in the field of electrical engineering, Siemens has taken its Cyber Junkyard Challenge to schools in the Eastern Cape. This Junior Cyber Junkyard Challenge has been undertaken in partnership with Port Elizabeth’s Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (NMMU). Says Martin Taverner, BU manager motion control at Siemens: “In 2011, our aim is to establish a relationship between Siemens, NMMU and high schools and colleges in the area, hence the introduction of the challenge at a school level. Our hope is that these relationships will help to encourage learners at this level to consider electrical engineering as a career path after school.”
The winning entry from Daniel Pienaar High
In the Junior Cyber Junkyard Challenge, learners had to design, build and programme a fully functional water tank system. They needed to implement the principles of flow rate and volume calculation in addition to basic logic and the principles of level control. “By taking part in this project learners gain hands-on experience that will assist them when applying to universities, they learn about electrical design, mechanical manufacture, level control within a tank process, industrial automation programming and closed loop control systems – all at a junior level,” Taverner explains. “Nine schools entered the challenge and through our partnership with NMMU, each team was allocated R10 000 to design and manufacture its system.”
Final judging took place in October with the winning teams receiving a host of electrical equipment, as well as bursaries donated by NMMU. The Eastern Cape served as a pilot, Taverner’s ultimate objective is that the Junior Cyber Junkyard Challenge will be held annually and open to schools nationwide.
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