COMPETITION AWARDS INNOVATION AND EXCELLENCE IN ELECTRONIC AND MICROELECTRONIC DESIGN AND DEVELOPMENT
DUBLIN, Ireland – Microelectronics Week – Nov. 5th 2013 – MIDAS Ireland, the industry led organisation responsible for promoting the microelectronics industry, today announced the launch of their annual engineering competition for third level students aimed at driving innovation and excellence in electronic and microelectronic design and development. The annual competition, organised by MIDAS Ireland with the support of Analog Devices, was launched as part of Microelectronics Week, which aims to highlight the contribution of the sector to the Irish economy and its impact on the global market.
Open to all undergraduate students studying electrical, electronic or microelectronic engineering, entrants are being asked to submit a design and development project with a microelectronics or electronics hardware base. The project may be one which has been undertaken as part of the student’s programme of studies and previously submitted as part of their course. The winning project will receive a €1,000 prize and the opportunity to meet with the judging panel for mentor advice around a career in the sector.
Explaining the value of such an initiative and what the adjudication panel will be looking for from entrants, John Blake, Chairperson of MIDAS Ireland said: “As an industry led organisation that aims to support the development of the microelectronics industry in Ireland, cultivating the next generation of engineering talent is fundamental to ensuring the on-going sustained success of the sector. Working with our partners in the third level sector we are delighted to run this competition again this year. The response in 2013 was extremely positive. Our aim is to reward ingenuity and originality and this is reflected in our judging criteria which will look specifically at the quality and creativity of project objectives, the strength of visual impact and of course the precision of execution. This is a great opportunity for engineering students to display their skills and talents in their future profession and I would urge all undergraduates to get involved and participate.”
As well as a brief entry form, students are asked to submit a poster outlining the project title, targeted objectives, work completed and results achieved. The closing date for entries is April 11th 2014 after which time an adjudication panel will shortlist three projects to compete in a final. The three finalists will then be asked to present their projects in front of an audience of MIDAS members and a judging panel and participate in a Q&A, after which a winner will be announced and the presentation of an award made.
The winner of the 2013 competition was Nijun Wei from IT Tallaght with an excellent project submission. Runners up were Fearghal Kineavy from NUI Galway and David McCarthy from University College Cork. All three finalists presented at a MIDAS meeting hosted by NUI Galway in June, when the winner was announced.
Microelectronics Week started yesterday Monday the 4th November and will run until Friday the 8th of November. Scheduled highlights include the ‘Research in Action Forum’ on Wednesday, where leading panellists from industry and affiliated bodies will discuss how best to commercialise microelectronics research. The MIDAS Annual Conference will take place on Thursday, and will flesh out the theme of ‘Research in Action in the Microelectronics Sector.’
For further information about the MIDAS Ireland competition log onto www.midasireland.ie or contact Katherine Barry, MIDAS Co-ordinator on 021-4904375 or info@midasireland.ie
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