By: Cooper Coyle and Jordan Geerts
The fall 2023 semester marked the start of the Battery Workforce Challenge, a three-year competition sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy and Stellantis featuring student teams from 12 North American universities. McMaster University is one of the competing teams, and the university will collaborate with Mohawk College throughout the remainder of the competition to design, construct and test an electric vehicle battery system integrated into a Stellantis vehicle.
Students from the McMaster Automotive Research Centre are excited to learn more about electric vehicles and the future of automotives. These students are eager to apply their learned knowledge in this hands-on educational opportunity.
Battery pack hardware lead and automotive engineering student Adam Khalid is passionate about the competition and aims to answer the question, “How far can I take it?” This mindset defines the McMaster team as students not only seek to excel in the competition but also apply their findings to respond to real-world issues.
Excitement grew for the McMaster team after meeting fellow competitors at the challenge’s first workshop this past fall. The team was presented with new challenges and saw first-hand how the ability to work as a team could make or break a school’s success.
Vehicle and system integration lead and mechanical engineering student Sara Tufaha explained that it is her goal to provide the space for first-year students to get involved, ask questions and feel comfortable. McMaster’s team leads recognize that success is derived from coordination, and they aim to make the experience inclusive and welcoming for all who participate.
Looking ahead, the McMaster team is excited to continue working on this project. Battery pack software leader and mechatronics and biomedical engineering student Kailin Chu is excited to continue to get to know the software team while taking advantage of the resources that both the university and the competition are supplying.
Like many on the McMaster team, Chu is passionate about environmental sustainability and is excited to be working on a project that aims to make automotives more efficient and environmentally sustainable in the future.
Project leaders have also committed to creating a strong environment for collaboration in their team dynamic to better grow the knowledge and technical skills of first-year participants. Team leaders agreed that their goal is to prioritize effective communication and collective coordination of tasks to ensure all team members are aware of individual responsibilities as well as the resources and tools available to each department.
By promoting a culture where each individual is well equipped and supported through an open setting, the team hopes to foster a safe working environment where no one is afraid to ask questions or seek out beneficial collaboration.
McMaster University is grateful to be competing in the U.S. DOE’s latest Advanced Vehicle Technology Competition series and is excited to be participating with 11 other respected universities across North America. McMaster University would like to thank Stellantis for sponsoring the three-year program and for mentoring students.
