Pushing Boundaries of Fuel Efficiency and Go the Distance at the final Kuala Lumpur Shell Eco-Marathon® Asia 2013

Twenty-five teams made up of varsity students will be flying the Malaysian flag at the Shell Eco-Marathon^® Asia 2013 ; a unique competition that challenges students to build a vehicle that can travel the furthest using the least amount of energy.

Malaysia will send the largest number of teams in the competition with 25, out of the 150 teams from 16 Asian countries.  

In the run up to the race at Sepang from July 4th to 7th, a ceremonial send-off event was held at Monash University Sunway Campus, Bandar Sunway in Selangor for the Malaysian contingent recently, with student teams showcasing their innovations and sharing stories of their aspirations.

This year’s line-up boasts of a range of new and improvised vehicles running on a variety of energy sources such as diesel, hydrogen, batteries, plug-in electricity, and solar.

The Malaysian contingent is made up of teams from Selangor, Wilayah Persekutuan, Penang, Perak, Pahang, Johor, Malacca and Sarawak. They include University of Malaya, International Islamic University Malaysia, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM Shah Alam and Penang Campus), Universiti Malaysia Pahang, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, UNITEN (Universiti Tenaga Nasional), Universiti Sains Malaysia, Universiti Teknologi Petronas, Multimedia University Melaka Campus, Curtin University of Technology (Sarawak Campus), Asia Pacific University, German-Malaysian Institute, Monash University Malaysia, Politeknik Seberang Perai and University College of Technology and Innovation.

Designed specifically to inspire the participants to develop new approaches to sustainable mobility, the Shell Eco-marathon encourages innovation and reinforces conservation amongst the teams as they strive to come up with the most energy efficient vehicle.

Returning teams have honed their design ideas since last year’s competition, and found new ways to improve their energy efficiency and focus on sustainability, but there are a few brand new teams, all excited to be here for the first time.

Altogether there are 18 teams attending this real-world engineering challenge for their second or third year and have put their experience from past events to good use.

Azman Ismail Managing Director of Shell Malaysia Trading Sdn Bhd and Shell Timur Sdn Bhd said: “Shell Eco-marathon is an inspiring element of Shell's "Smarter Mobility" approach to speed up the global shift to cleaner, more energy-efficient road transport”.

“The Shell-Eco-Marathon is an educational project that encourages and fosters innovation in exploring potential solutions to both current and future transport and energy challenges.

“Shell aims to be the most competitive and innovative energy company.  We want to develop innovative technology solutions to deliver the energy that our customers need.  We recognise that technology can help us remain competitive, raise our operational efficiency and in doing so, reduce costs,” he added.

“Shell is acutely aware of the growing demand for energy worldwide, and is working hard to address it in a responsible way. The Eco-Marathon is our way of inviting others to do the same.”

Congratulating Shell Malaysia for bringing the international event to our shore, Professor Anthony Guo; the Monash University Head of School for Engineering said the event was an avenue for students to put to use what they learned in the classroom in a practical, challenging and competitive way.

“I applaud the students participating in Shell Eco-Marathon, as this competition is a valuable platform to develop practical hands-on engineering skills through a real-life mobility challenge by designing and building fuel efficient vehicles for the future”.    

These young engineering talents will run the vehicles they have designed and built from scratch. In addition to prizes for vehicles which can go furthest using the least amount of energy, awards are also provided for off-track performance including innovation, design and more.

The Malaysian team will also stand a chance of winning an additional award; the Best Malaysia Team Award comprising a challenge trophy and RM10, 000. The award is determined by the team’s overall achievement in safety and technical performance, and marketing and communication competence.

Previous winners include Team UiTM Eco-Planet Urban Concept from Universiti Teknologi MARA, Clean Vehicle Team from Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (International Campus) and SAE-UMP Chapter from Universiti Pahang Malaysia.

Malaysia hosts the annual Shell Eco-Marathon Asia from 2010 till 2013. Thereafter it will be brought to another Asian country to host for the subsequent three (3) years.

Note to Editor :

For further editorial information, photos, contact info for all the teams for exclusive interviews, please contact:

Norhayati Sulaiman-Adzhar, Media Relations

N.Sulaiman@shell.com

Tel : +603 23851307

For further information, please contact:

Ms Norhayati Sulaiman-Adzhar

Media Relations

Shell Malaysia

T: +603-2091 3795

Email:  N.Sulaiman@shell.com