STUDENTS at Huddersfield University are taking to the track at SIlverstone today.

The university is competing in the five-day international Formula Student Challenge, which is now under way at the famous circuit in Northamptonshire – home to Sunday’s F1 British Grand Prix.

The university’s team, named Team HARE, invited representatives from The Bloodhound Project – UK Education Director Jonathan Ellis and rocket engineer Daniel Jubb – to unveil this year’s vehicle, which bears the name HARE 13.

Bloodhound SSC is a supersonic car being developed by some of the world’s leading engineers – an initiative sponsored by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE).

The Formula Student competition is run by IMechE, which describes the project as a “testing ground for the next generation of young engineers”.

The event, which attracts universities from as far away as the USA and Australia, invites engineering students at universities to design and build a single-seat racing car to compete in static and dynamic events as well as to demonstrate their understanding and to test the performance of the vehicle.

The cars are judged on their speed, acceleration, handling and endurance, while the teams are tested on their design, costing and business presentation skills.

The university has competed in Formula Student since 1999 and has had a number of successes in the competition in recent years.

Team leader Luke Barron said: “It’s a fantastic project to work on as part of your degree because it gives you the opportunity to understand project management on a ‘live’ group project on quite a huge scale.

“Building a car from scratch is a massive task, particularly a vehicle that will finish all the events. Many teams struggle to do this.”

One of the hardest parts for the students is the time management, ensuring that everything is on target, said Luke.

“It’s very easy to slip behind schedule,” he said.

“Including myself, there were three other team leaders, all responsible for different aspects of the project, like the chassis, the powertrain, the suspension and then there’s other things like sponsorship, promotion and finances.

“Between the four of us we had to make sure that everything was covered and on track”.