School powerboat designs are put through their paces

QinetiQ’s Ocean Basin in Haslar, Gosport, was descended upon by 13 schools and two sea cadet groups.

Teams were invited to design model powerboats, which were then subjected to a grilling from the judges.

Part of the competition includes the creation of a poster describing their design process and explaining why they chose certain elements.

The judges examined the teams’ concepts before deciding on a winner.

The overall winner on the day was Carisbrooke College from the Isle of Wight.

QinetiQ senior programme manager Andy Dinsdale said: ‘This event is a great way to get youngsters xcited and inspired about Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics.

‘They use and gain a variety of skills when researching and building their model powerboat, in subjects such as naval architecture, physics and electronics.’