This summer, the time has come: Ghent University students will take their self-built electric racing car to the Formula Student competition, a series of races for engineering students from all over the world. What started as a lockdown project by a few engineering students has now grown into an ambitious multidisciplinary undertaking.
Myrtilus' is the name of the UGent Racing racing car. It is already the third car of the Ghent University students in barely a year's time. Last summer they built a first prototype, and in the autumn they presented a second prototype. "We made this car in about four to five months. For the first time, with a self-built battery. But we are not there yet: our next model will be self-steering. We will race with it next summer," says Yarne De Munck, student of civil engineering and driving force behind the project. Although you could also call him 'CEO of the UGent Racing team'.
Like a real company
Because the team can easily be compared to a company, and not such a small one: today it has no less than 85 members. All of them are students with an incredible passion for racing cars and all of them were recruited through application rounds. "It's fantastic how many students are interested in joining us," says Yarne. "After all, we do sacrifice our free time for this."
Although it is more than that: Yarne and his team take a very professional approach to everything. This is also reflected in the composition of the team: they reflect the work floor of a real company. There are engineering students who help build the perfect race car, but also marketing and business management students who help create the necessary attention around the car.
Proximus, Belfius en Jaguar as sponsor
That works out pretty well, with sponsors like Proximus, Belfius and EY. "We call them our platinum partners," says Yarne. "In addition, we have many gold partners, such as Jaguar, Anglo Belgium Corporation or Unilin Group. Without them, we couldn't realise all this." Not only does this enable them to pay for the materials of their car, they now also live in a shed of no less than 700m². "Here we have separate office and work areas, and we can make noise to our heart's content," laughs Yarne.
Their sponsors not only provide them with financial resources, but also with the necessary advice for running a business. "It is a real school for us to learn about working life. For example, we were given the tip to include an extra application round, so that we can screen the students not only for motivation, but also, for example, for their problem-solving abilities.
Next model is self-steering
With the 'Myrtilus' they are now taking an important step. Today, their racing car reaches about 130 km/hour. In the summer, it will become clear whether this is sufficient, during the Formula Student races. There is no experienced pilot behind the wheel, the selection was done rather student-like. Yarne: "A while ago, we organised a kart race in Dok Noord. The winner is now allowed to race in the races."
Whatever it will be, Yarne is already looking further into the future: "This is just the beginning. Our ambition is to reach the top 3 within a few years. With a self-driving model."
A team of eighty Ghent University students is building an electric racing car that will compete in Formula Student competitions starting next year. In these competitions, universities worldwide compete with self-built cars. You can follow the team's progress on the UGent Racing website.
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