Top teamwork from the 'Meldrum Mechs'
James Fisher Offshore (JFO) has been working closely with a school in Aberdeenshire to help inspire young people considering a future in the marine and offshore industry by supporting them in the building and racing of an electric car.
The move comes as part of a national project, backed by a charity called 'Greenpower Education' which has been set up to inspire young people in the fields of science, technology and engineering as part of a STEM initiative. School children aged 11-16 are encouraged to buy a single-seater kit car, then design , build and customise the car with the end goal of racing it at special Greenpower events at top motor circuits around the country.
This year, JFO has teamed up with Meldrum Academy which is based close to its HQ at Inverurie in Scotland, and is working closely with the school on the project. A dedicated area in the JFO workshop has been set aside to build and store the electric car and the 20 Meldrum pupils have been kitted out in JFO sponsored boiler suits. They work in two teams of ten visiting the JFO workshop on alternate Tuesdays under the guidance and support of experienced JFO technicians.
Jack Davidson, Managing Director of JFO says:
"It is a pleasure to support the local school by providing a real workshop environment and having experienced engineering staff on hand to support the pupils - their enthusiasm is inspiring and it is a real pleasure to be involved."
Mrs Donna-Marie Stewart, who is design and technology teacher at Meldrum Academy says:
"I've never seen our children so motivated to work through a project before. They have been learning skills which are helping them gain self-confidence and we're getting a lot of positive feedback from parents too.'
The group plan to race their car alongside other local engineering groups at a Greenpower event at the Grampian Transport museum in June.
The children recently completed the first stage of the build and tested the car at the school.
