Engineering students compete in Ontario competition

Aspiring engineers from across the province gathered at the University of Waterloo (UW) on Jan. 29 and 30 to test their skills in the Ontario Engineering Competition (OEC).

“Our theme is redefining engineering,” said Yuree Sung, vice-president of sponsorship for the OEC. “We’re trying to extend the definition of engineering from the technical aspect to the self-skills and really incorporate the business and economical impacts of the design and everything else.”

Students from 14 accredited engineering programs in the province competed in one of six categories: junior design, senior design, engineering communications, innovative design, parliamentary debate and consulting engineering.

The consulting and senior design sections were overnight competitions, with competitors receiving their challenges at 8 p.m.

“They had a couple of hours to sleep in the morning then started the presentations [for the judges],” explained Sung.

Nearly 40 judges, comprised of industry professionals and sponsors, evaluated the students’ presentations.

“This was initially started to provide a networking opportunity for the students and the industry professionals,” said Sung.

UW placed first in the parliamentary debates and second or third in all other categories.