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2003 Competition
FutureTruck 2003 was part of the many events held in Dearborn to celebrate Ford Motor Company’s 100th anniversary. The theme for Ford’s Centennial Celebration was “The Road is Ours,” and at the FutureTruck awards ceremony, that could not have been more evident. We had our own road, right in the ballroom of the Hyatt Regency Dearborn, ramping from the audience up onto the stage. And there was a lot of traffic up and down that road as sponsors and team members came up to present and receive awards. The set was surrounded with realistic-looking rocks and boulders, reminding us that the Ford Explorer’s rugged sport utility heritage wasn’t lost in the effort to make modifications to give the vehicle higher fuel efficiency and lower emissions.
After dinner and opening remarks from Al Kammerer, an Executive Director for Ford, and David Garman, Assistant Secretary of Energy, we began handing out the awards to the student teams across a wide range of categories.
FutureTruck Awards
The University of Wisconsin-Madison took first place honors, for the second year in a row, scoring 841 out of 1,000 possible points. David Garman, Assistant Secretary for the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy at the U.S. Department of Energy, presented the Wisconsin team with the first-place trophy and a check for $6,000. And of course, the team took Bessie, their cow mascot, up to the stage with them to help collect their award.
The University of California, Davis took home the award for second place, with a check for $5,000, for a score of 787 of 1,000 points. Phil Martens, Vice President of Product Creation for Ford, presented the honor.
FutureTruck sponsors also had their share of the spotlight, with several sponsors giving out awards of their own. The National Science Foundation Outstanding Faculty Advisor Award was presented to Dr. David Holloway of the University of Maryland. The award includes $20,000 in funding in a university account to be used to enhance the integration of the student engineering competition experience into the undergraduate curriculum for the benefit of the students.
Ford Centennial
The Ford Centennial celebration was an unforgettable experience, with displays from all the Ford brands, concerts, and fireworks, and FutureTruck was right in the middle of it all. The FutureTrucks from all 15 schools were on display and some of the students were on hand to talk about their design strategies and system configurations with reporters and visitors throughout the extended Centennial weekend.
News Releases
- April 1, 2003: Students Predict Improved SUV Fuel Economy/Emissions Reduction - FutureTruck Nearing Final Stage of Competition (html, pdf)
- January 9, 2003: Ford, U.S. Department of Energy, National Instruments Highlight Latest Technology for Designing Next-Generation SUVs (more...)
- June 24, 2002: University of Wisconsin Students Win Competition to Improve SUV Fuel Economy and Lower Emissions (html, pdf)
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