Another competition year has passed and Waterloo Hybrid has plenty to show for it. Returning in May from the international Formula SAE Competition held in Loudon, New Hampshire, the team brought back fourth place overall, having competed against 28 other teams. Despite being one of the youngest teams in the Sedra Student Design Centre, Waterloo Formula Hybrid has been one of the leaders in the Formula Hybrid International Competition. Since the team’s formation in 2012, they have since achieved a Top Ten finish in 2014 and an impressive first place overall in 2015. This year, the design team returns as Waterloo Formula Electric, having leveled up to expand their horizons to fully electrical vehicles.
In the 2015-2016 academic year, Waterloo Hybrid constructed a whole new electric vehicle from scratch, poured thousands of hours of design, fabrication and testing; fought through sweat and blood, night and day to complete the vehicle for the competition. “I can’t even count the number of days where we stayed at the bay all night to meet deliveries,” says Cole McCaughan, Waterloo Electric’s newest Team Lead.
The competition, hosted by the Society of Automotive Engineers, challenges undergraduate and graduate students to design, build and compete with their own open-wheel, single-seat race car. The Waterloo team competed in the Electric Drive class, receiving major accolades and 1st place in Design for multiple innovations in the powertrain system. The vehicle features two custom-made brushless DC hub motors sponsored by Allied Motion and a rack-and-pinion steering system, accumulator module, battery management system, and a steel tube chassis, all custom-designed by Formula Hybrid.
Aside from their great success in the competition, Waterloo Formula Hybrid has now fully transitioned to its identity as Waterloo Formula Electric. With a new name comes a new brand, new colours and a new logo. But, most importantly, Formula Electric will bring a whole new attitude by beginning an initiative to further increase its educational capabilities by hosting more workshops and seminars to teach students important skills in the industry. The team also aims to reach out to more faculties at the University of Waterloo create a well-rounded team of dedicated members.
“A student design team is a multidisciplinary effort,” says Natalia Godwinska, Waterloo Electric’s Business Lead. “With a diverse team of students from many educational backgrounds, we believe that we can execute our initiatives and ideas to take back first place as we did in 2014.”
Of course, none of this would be possible without the help of sponsors and the University of Waterloo staff and faculty members. Their guidance and assistance is crucial to the success and continuation of the team, and as such, Waterloo Formula Electric will continue to uphold their reputation as one of the top teams competing for Electric Drive. Waterloo Electric gives out a special thanks to the Sandford Fleming Foundation for providing the team with a travel sponsorship in May for the trip to New Hampshire. The sponsorship has helped pay for the expenses associated with shipping the team’s vehicle – an extremely vital task.
With the addition of Aerodynamics, Composites and Recruitment Teams, Waterloo Electric expects to compete in the 2017 Lincoln Competition with a whole new aerodynamics package, improved motor packaging, and high voltage accumulator design. Waterloo Formula Electric meets every Monday at 7:00 PM in E5 room 2001. The team is always welcoming new members, whether they are looking for a place to start their professional career or a place to find their passion.
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