Outpouring of enthusiasm at mechanical festival

The annual mechanical festival "Mecceleration" at the Islamic University of Technology (IUT), Gazipur returned for the sixth time after experiencing tremendous success consecutively, with the tagline "Crank your brain, shift your ideas, accelerate your aptitudes" this year.

The daylong fest was organised by the Department of Mechanical and Chemical Engineering of the university on July 26, 2019 (Friday). Amir Farid Abu Hasan, acting high commissioner - Office of the High Commission of Malaysia was present as the chief guest while the acting Vice-Chancellor of the institution, Dr Omar Jah presided over the event.

The fest brought liveliness to the campus by bringing together over 700 enthusiastic participants from around twenty academic institutions from all over the country. Their energies contributed immensely to the success of the fest. Apart from the lucrative prize money, which stood at Tk 310,000, the fest comprised an array of nine well-picked events catered to all enthusiastic students. Project displaying and general knowledge contests were open to school and college students while the rest of the events were restricted to university students only.

This year, the fest introduced the participants to 'Robo Race'. An astounding racetrack was designed to accommodate five 'car bots' to race to the finish line. The track consisted of obstacles along the way that aided in judging the efficiency of the bots. Any interaction with the obstacles resulted in penalisation of the team. LUHunters from Leading University successfully led their 'car bot' to victory.

One of the most important events, 'Robo Riot', returned this year and remained one of the highlights of the fest. The battling bots in an iron net fenced arena captured the attention of a massive crowd of audience. The area was overwhelmed with excitement, thrill and wreckage of the bots. The sight created by this event alone was sufficient to declare 'Robo Riot', the best event of the fest. Team Algos from University of Science and Technology Chittagong took home the champion trophy for this event.

The next event tailored the experience for tech and soccer enthusiasts. It created an opportunity for robotics enthusiasts to introduce their bots to one of the most popular sports enjoyed by the vast majority of the population, soccer. A whopping fifty-nine teams competed against each other, with Team Igniters from BRAC University scoring the champion trophy.

The project showcasing event can be described in a single line using the tagline of the fest itself. It provided a platform for the students to unleash their creativity, apply their technical knowledge and express their ideas. The event was divided into two categories, namely, school/ college and university. The participants received a valuable response from the judges and recognition for their tremendous efforts. Team Brailly from Birshreshtha Noor Mohammad Public College became the champion for the school/college category while Team RMW360 from BRAC University was declared the champion in the university category.

Computer-Aided Design (CAD) skills are essential for most budding engineers to master these days. It allows them to carry out their tasks more efficiently. The CAD event is unmissable for product designing enthusiasts. The participants in this event competed with each other to create the best design based on the pre-defined criteria within a specified period.

Believing in the fact that technology and business go hand in hand, Mecceleration devoted an event to solve a business case. Participants were given a business challenge to solve and submit their solutions online for the preliminary round. Among them, six teams with the best solutions were selected to participate in the final round held on the fest day on campus.

The final two events of the fest were General Knowledge and Engineering Olympiad. The participants faced interesting yet challenging questions, which aided in answering the ultimate question: 'Who among them is the most erudite of all?'

Behind the success of this fest lies the collective efforts of the organisers. The fest attracted around 2,000 visitors and enlivened the campus.

"Speaking of the events, Robo Soccer was way too competitive. We had to compete against nearly 60 teams. Although we could not make it to the finale, we enjoyed the experience. The Robo Race track was not too tough, but it certainly was interesting. I would add that to the list of good events. As a spectator, we enjoyed the entire show, especially the Robo Riot finale," said Nehal, one of the participants.

Participants who seized this opportunity took home a considerable amount of prize money, a confidence boost along with invaluable feedback and experience. In addition to improving their technical skills, they had the opportunity to develop their soft skills crucial for their professional success.

The writer is a third year student at Islamic University of Technology (IUT). She can be reached at [email protected]