MTConnect Student Challenge
In addition to cash prizes, the competition offers many benefits for participating students that are studying IT, software, mechanical or electrical engineering.
Posted: June 24, 2015
The submission period has opened for the MTConnect Student Challenge, marking the official start of the competition for student ideas and applications utilizing MTConnect. The idea creation competition is open for submissions through September 18, 2015, while the application competition is accepting submissions through January 31, 2016.
In addition to cash prizes for winning submissions, the competition offers many benefits for participating students. It is ideal as a thesis, internship, or capstone project, and students are also provided with the opportunity to network with companies as a means to develop their professional contacts. The competition is open to enrolled college students, and those studying IT, software, mechanical, or electrical engineering are especially encouraged to apply.
MTConnect is an open source XML- and HTTP-based communications standard that helps foster improved connectivity between manufacturing equipment and devices, allowing for data collection and monitoring. It is a key enabler for allowing manufacturers to take advantage of digital manufacturing to optimize processes and functions on the shop floor. The Student Challenge stems from a prior successful competition that solicited ideas and applications from industry professionals and the general public.
“Manufacturers in all industries are looking to leverage the opportunities offered by big data and the Industrial Internet of Things,” said Douglas K. Woods, the president of the MTConnect Institute and president of AMT – The Association For Manufacturing Technology (McLean, VA). “The MTConnect Student Challenge is an ideal competition to bring forth student-led innovation for real-world manufacturing solutions. We feel that students have the kind of creative thinking and ideas that are critical to advancing our industry, and we look forward to finding the next visionaries who can generate new approaches to digital manufacturing.”
The MTConnect Student Challenge encompasses two competitions: Idea Creation and Application Development. For the Idea Creation competition, students will be required to interview manufacturers to identify their challenges; describe potential solutions to that challenge; and create a conceptual mockup for a solution. The prizes for this competition are $5,000 for first place, $2,500 for second place, and three $1,000 prizes for runners up. The Submission period opened on June 11, 2015, and closes on September 18, 2015. Winners will be announced October 15, 2015.
Full rules and submission details, please click here.
For the Application development competition, students will be required to develop an application that demonstrates innovation and the use of manufacturing intelligence breakthroughs. Submissions will be rated based on their potential to create achievable and measurable benefits to manufacturing operations, improving efficiencies, minimizing waste, reducing costs, etc.
The prizes for this competition are $10,000 for first place, $7,500 for second place, and $5,000 for third place. The submission period is June 11, 2015, through January 31, 2016. Winners will be selected and announced on April 20, 2016, at the [MC]2 Conference in Dallas, TX.
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