23 July, 2014

A pod designed to deliver critical medical supplies such as blood and organs over battlefields and the scene of natural disasters via aerial drone was the winning entry at this year’s Innovative Student Engineer of the Year Awards, sponsored by Siemens. Entitled ‘Drone Compatible Medical Transportation Pod’, 17 year-old CIT student James King’s project charts the conception and development of a transportation pod, christened ‘Medi-Pod’. King’s unique pod is designed to deliver critical medical supplies over large distances and to remote, inaccessible, natural disaster or war torn areas via aerial drone. There is currently no device like this on the market. Clear Demand for Engineers in Ireland “Engineering is not only at the heart of our day-to-day lives but it is clear to see from the diverse range of projects entered this year that engineers play a vital role in many existing and developing industries in Ireland - from agriculture and automotive to technology and biomedical,” Engineers Ireland director general John Power said at the awards. “Of the numerous job announcements over the past 12 months, many of these have been engineering opportunities. There continues to be real career options and demand for engineers of all backgrounds in Ireland. While there is an increase in the number of students opting for engineering at third level we still need more students choosing from the wide variety of engineering courses available to fulfil the employment needs of industry now and in the future,” Power added. Aiden Cawley of Siemens said the 2014 entries again showed students’ ability to develop innovative solutions to challenges faced by industry and people in everyday society. The Innovative Student of the Year Award requires students to think creatively and develop new and improved devices, techniques and procedures. Very often in CIT, this requires the student to engage with industry to assess what problems they are faced with and they then develop a relationship with the company and work towards providing a solution to the problem. This relationship sometimes starts through a work placement that developed over time or on a shorter term basis. If you are interested in finding a student to bring some fresh thinking into your organisation, get in touch and we can connect you with the right faculty in the college. extended.campus@cit.ie 021 4335302. Watch the RTE Interview with James King here