Who

Groups of young engineers can participate in the challenge. Different options for entering the competition are:

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• It could be integrated as part of a problem solving and design course at a university, where a group of students work on a specific topic (e.g. KU Leuven has such group courses in 1st and 2nd year of engineering that run over one semester and are about 4 ECTS).

• Groups of university or high school students can sign up for the challenge as part of extra curricular activities. We advise to have supervision from e.g. a PhD student or an industry professional in the offshore wind industry to help guide the group in the competition.

• Young engineers at a company can build a floating structure. In this case, a financial contribution will be expected to enter the competition.

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What

 

The groups have to design and build a floating wind turbine structure. In the 2023 edition, the structure needs to support a Vevor 400W wind turbine and is tested during a concluding competition at Scheveningen beach in the Netherlands. The structure is evaluated using the following criteria: 

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• Power generation efficiency (Efficiency losses caused by dynamic wind/wave interaction) - 20pts

• Structural integrity (Support structure design) - 20pts

• Foundation stability (FOU - Foundations/anchors and moorings) - 20pts

• Practicality of construction (T&I - Transport and Installation) - 20pts

• Cost efficiency at full scale (Materials & fabrication cost) - 20pts

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A panel, consisting of industry and academic experts in offshore wind, evaluates the criteria at the competition event.

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When

The  second edition of the challenge runs in the academic year of 2022 to 2023. The indicative timeline for next year is:

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• 5 September 2022: start of the registration for the competition

• 31 December 2022: abstract deadline - 1 page A4 flyer containing:

  • Sketch or 3D drawing of the floating concept

  • Details of the participants (photo, name, university/company, year of study/position ..)​​

  • Explanation about standout features of your concept​

• 23 January 2023: Abstract feedback from evaluation committee

  • Selected student teams​ are eligible for a budget of 1000€ or 1500€ for fabrication and travel cost

• 28 April 2023: Report deadline (page limit: 40 pages)

  • Note: international groups must reserve sufficient time to ship their structures if they do not attend in person

• 12 May 2023: Competition event​​​

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Where

This is a global competition and groups of young engineers from across the world can participate in it. The concluding competition is held at Scheveningen beach in The Netherlands.

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Prize

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There are two separate prizes of 1000€ for the competition based on the performance of the structure in the field and the written report.