Tognum fosters engineers of the future

• Main sponsor of Formula Student Germany design competition
• Company employees produce components for racing cars

Friedrichshafen, June 6, 2013. Tognum, the specialist for propulsion and power solutions is to be the main sponsor of the Formula Student Germany international design competition at Hockenheim for the sixth time. From 30 July to 4 August 2013, 115 higher education teams will be competing against each other with racing cars they have designed themselves. Among them are several teams sponsored by Tognum. Tognum provides financial support for the university teams. Tognum staff also produce components and provide input in the form of practical advice. Tognum also sponsors the “Most Innovative Power Train”   award.

Two of the teams supported by Tognum – Ravensburg University of Cooperative Education, Friedrichshafen Campus, and Ravensburg-Weingarten University – are from the Lake Constance region. Further afield in Germany, the group sponsors the teams from Munich Technical University, Stuttgart University, the Karlsruhe Institute for Technology, the University of Erlangen-Nürnberg and Brunswick Technical University. But sponsorship does not stop at national boundaries, as Graz Technical University and Oregon State University are also beneficiaries. The last named takes part in the Formula Student competition in cooperation with Ravensburg University of Cooperative Education.

“We want to continue offering our clients the best solutions. That is why we are always looking for upcoming engineers with a passion for technology and international teamwork. The students who take part in Formula Student are distinguished by precisely those qualities. With their knowledge and experience, they are the sort of young people we are keen to recruit,” explains Jörg Schwitalla, HR and Integrity Director at Tognum AG.

The Tognum Group's core operation, MTU Friedrichshafen, has been developing and producing highly durable, low-emission engines and complete propulsion and energy systems for applications such as ships, trains and hospitals for over 100 years. Its developers are also working on alternative propulsion technologies such as gas engines and hybrid systems.

“As distinct from other motor-sport competitions, Formula Student is not necessarily won by the fastest car but the team with the best overall score in the areas of design, vehicle handling, energy efficiency, financial planning and marketing,” elucidates Tim Hannig, Chairman of Formula Student Germany. “In other words, precisely the aspects that will be called upon in the students' subsequent professional lives,” Hannig expands. The international university teams in Formula Student compete against each other in various disciplines with vehicles powered either by internal combustion engines or electric motors.
  
The design competition has its origins in the USA. But there are now competitions in Italy, Japan, Brazil, the UK, Hungary and Austria as well. As the rules are virtually identical apart from some very minor differences, the teams can take part in races all over the world.