RS Components inspire London’s children to become engineers
06 July 2018
RS Components took its 35-tonne innovation truck, Titan II, to King’s Cross in London in support of the government’s Year of Engineering (YoE) campaign.
Over 500 students, as well as local businesses, engaged in fascinating activities in and around the truck, helping to celebrate the world of engineering and inspire young people to enter the profession.
The week-long event took place from 2 July, where Titan II offered visitors the chance to interact with numerous technologies used by engineers across industry, including the RS DesignSpark platform, Raspberry Pi, 3D printing, robotics, Internet of Things, virtual reality and augmented reality.
Pupils from King’s Cross Academy, Parliament Hill School and Christ Church School also had the chance to meet some of the engineers from the BrightSparks class of 2018 – the Electronics Weekly-RS initiative to celebrate the most talented electronic design engineers in the UK.
Mike England, Managing Director at RS said: “We, at RS Components, have a responsibility to help inspire the next generation of engineers. There was a time when engineers would walk out of colleges and universities with the RS catalogue under their arm. Now, with everything moving online, it’s becoming harder to inspire engineers. The more you go down the digital route, the more you become invisible to the customer – so it’s important we place ourselves in the market, and what better way than by being at the centre of STEM initiatives.
“The Year of Engineering is a truly commendable campaign that aims to help address the significant engineering skills shortage in the UK. At RS we are committed to promoting engineering to the young and so were delighted to use our innovation truck to support this campaign and help inspire the next generation of engineers.”
Government Envoy for the Year of Engineering, Stephen Metcalfe, said: “Engineering is a chance to innovate and shape the world around us, but not enough young people are aware of the opportunities a career in the industry could offer. The Year of Engineering sets out to change this, giving young people inspiring, interactive experiences of this exciting career path and showing them what they could achieve as engineers.
“I was delighted to join students this week, alongside the Institute of Engineering and Technology, Camden Council, and local organisations and businesses, in visiting RS Components monster truck, packed with inspirational activities for the students. What a fantastic and original way for them to join us in celebrating the Year of Engineering, and capturing the imaginations of future engineers,” he added.
England concluded: “The event was a huge success, and all of those who boarded the truck were excited by the technology. We ran competitions offering students the opportunity to win a Raspberry Pi starter kit, and schools the chance to win tickets to attend the New Scientist Live show in September. In addition, our DesignSpark team ran interactive activities and showcased the recently launched platform DesignSpark Marketplace, which supports the buying and selling of maker-created products.”
The Institute of Engineering and Technology (IET) attended the event and ran the First Lego League demonstrations to encourage young people to enter the ultimate science and technology challenge. Camden Council was also in attendance to highlight its STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Maths) campaign, which aims to give local young people the best skills and opportunities so they can play a full part in the borough’s thriving creative, scientific and digital economy. Another key supporter of the event was Argent, UK property developer and part of the King’s Cross Central Limited Partnership overseeing the regeneration project of King’s Cross.
For further information about the Year of Engineering, visit www.yearofengineering.gov.uk.
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