It was a welcome diversion from the weekly routine, including some tricky Brexit paperwork, to be virtually introduced to the four shortlisted candidates vying for the SPAL Automotive Scholarship 2021 in partnership with leading agricultural university Harper Adams.
How different it was from the 2020 format where everyone was able to meet face-to-face! Nonetheless SPAL MD Matthew Morris was impressed with the students, their enthusiasm in these sombre times and their intelligent questions.
Image shows: Max Finch attending a 4x4 Expo.
Great to exchange ideas with new engineering talent
With such a high calibre group the decision wasn’t easy but Matthew was given final say and was delighted to award the £2,500 scholarship to 2nd year engineering undergraduate Max Finch.
“Max came across as a confident, open and engaging candidate who I felt was well-rounded having earned his stripes working in the family builders merchants business and fitting kitchen units. He is also identified by the university as on track to achieve a strong degree.
“It was very enjoyable for me to meet this year’s candidates and a great opportunity to exchange ideas with the new generation of engineering talent. It is in difficult times that good engineers come to the fore and with current global situation accelerating the development of EVs and alternative fuels like hydrogen, it will be down to them to make these new technologies viable and sustainable.”
SPAL collaboration with Harper Adams goes from strength to strength
As a result of the discussions with candidates, Matthew Morris is preparing to present to other Harper Adams engineering students on SPAL’s involvement in engineering; how the organisation and its thermal management solutions is keeping pace with the massive transformation in automotive, away from ICE which has been the dominant technology for over a century.
Read more about the SPAL Scholarship with Harper Adams:
>> SPAL supports engineering talent
>> Harper Adams University launches exclusive SPAL scholarship 2nd year running
>> Harper Adams scholar in world record attempt
>> SPAL scholarship student determined to complete year on a high
At the 4x4 Expo featured in this blog racing teams from different off-road disciplines came to show off their vehicles and parts manufacturers showcase new products.
The Harper Adams Motorsport team (led by Max and a fellow student) were lucky enough to be invited to bring their vehicle along, the TD5 Tomcat, which they race as a student team in national events across the country.
The occasion marked the end of a racing season, and they had been invited to talk on the panel with some of the best names in the sport, as a young team talking about the future of off-road motorsport.
This is an example of the experiences Harper Adams makes happen for its students.
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Do you have a specific question for us that hasn’t been covered?
Drop us a line at sales@spalautomotive.co.uk or call Technical Sales Support on 01905 613 714.
