"They nailed it on their first try. Everything went flawlessly and they got a perfect score."
A team of 12 Mechanical Engineering students from BYU earned first place overall at a national collegiate floating wind turbine competition held in Boulder, Colorado. Demonstrating exceptional skill, teamwork, and resilience, the team overcame early setbacks and ultimately rose to the top.
By phase two of the competition, 35 teams had been selected to continue, each receiving $2,000 to further develop their turbine designs. Only 12 teams advanced to the final phase and were invited to the in-person competition in Boulder.
The event consisted of four contests, each contributing to the team’s overall score. The students were challenged to design, build, test, and present a floating offshore wind turbine system. BYU’s team excelled across all categories:
- 1st place in Turbine Testing (with a perfect score)
- 2nd place in Turbine Design
- 2rd place in Turbine Development (narrowly missing 1st)
- 5th place in Connection Creation
These placements secured BYU the overall 1st place title.
Despite their final success, the journey began with unexpected challenges.
“We got off to a rough start,” said faculty advisor Dr. Ning. “We had a tech inspection late in the afternoon and failed with five different issues.”
One major issue involved a fabricated metal part that was 1mm too large. With all UC fabrication shops closed until the next day, the team reached out for help. A local bishop connected them to a ward member with a small home metal shop. Lacking ideal tools like a lathe, the team improvised with a portable bandsaw and rigged-up jig - successfully modifying the part to spec late that night.
The next morning brought new technical hurdles.
“I got a call early the next day to help locate electronic parts they were struggling to find," Dr. Ning recalled. The team needed a new power supply that met both voltage and amperage requirements. After sourcing a suitable option, and while some team members rehearsed their presentations, Dr. Ning delivered the part - helping them pass their second tech inspection that afternoon.
With just one remaining practice slot that evening, the team tuned their controller to match the conditions in Boulder. By the next morning, they had three official testing slots - but only needed one.
“They nailed it on the first try,” Dr. Ning said. “Everything went flawlessly, and they got a perfect score.”
In addition to their technical success, judges praised the clarity and professionalism of the team’s presentations.
“I was really impressed with this group,” Dr. Ning said. “The team was extremely dedicated, and after a rocky start, every aspect of the competition went as well as we could have hoped.”
This team exemplifies the excellence, resourcefulness, and drive of BYU engineering students. We are incredibly proud of their achievements - and excited to see what they’ll accomplish next.