What is the Ingenious Cardboard Regatta?
The inaugural Ingenious Cardboard Regatta is a maritime challenge designed to inspire the interest of young people in STEM.
Throughout the programme, engineers from the Belfast Maritime Consortium, along with W5's Learning and Engagement team, will promote marine engineering through interactive activities and conclude with a regatta race of cardboard boats powered by the student seafarers.
Over the last academic year, students from six participating schools have been undertaking theory and practical workshops to explore the fundamental concepts and develop their engineering knowledge. The build sessions of the programme are now in their final stages, with students applying the knowledge they have gathered over the last number of months, and creating a cardboard boat to race in the Regatta.
Build Sessions
Following the workshop sessions, the students' understanding of engineering is applied during hands-on build sessions.
Each member of the team will assume engineering roles and responsibilities, under the guidance of industry professionals and teachers. These roles consist of: communications, design engineer, materials engineer, manufacturing engineer and project manager.
Students construct their boat using a list of permitted items. The teams will also create material for the showcase which takes place in W5 LIFE on Thursday 22 June. Here, the six teams and their engineer crews will display their vessels and communicate their efforts before taking to uncharted waters in their cardboard boats at Queen's Boat Club on Friday 23 June.
Take a look at Fort Hill Integrated College in action during one of their build sessions
