Shell ‘Make The Future 2018’ Held At MMRT

Shell’s long standing ‘Make the Future‘ festival was conducted for the first time in India from 6 December to 9 December, 2018, at the Madras Motor Race Track. While the event is an amalgamation of innovation and ideas for a better tomorrow, its major highlight was ‘Eco-marathon’, which was held for the first time ever. Eco-marathon is a hypermiling challenge that’s been held since 1939. It started on a friendly wager between two Shell employees on who could travel the longest on the same amount of fuel. Here, the participants’ ultimate aim is to clock the highest efficiency and they get to pick from a total of seven fuel derivatives. 

India’s obsession with the phrase “Kitna Deti Hai?” was pretty evident in the team turnout. Out of 20 teams that competed, 19 were from India, with just one entry from Oman. Here’s how the teams fared in the Eco-marathon event. 

The students were given a choice of choosing from these seven fuel types, including:

• Gasoline (Petrol)

• Diesel

• Ethanol

• CNG

• GTL (Gas to liquids)

• Hydrogen

• Battery-electric 

However, only three fuel types were picked by the drivers. Here are the three teams that took top honours in their particular categories. 

UrbanConcepts are the efficient four wheel city cars with lightweight construction for reduced drag and improved efficiency. The prototypes were specifically developed for conserving fuel efficiency through better aerodynamics and even features two wheels up front and one at the rear, similar to the ones seen on the Morgan 3-Wheeler and Polaris Slingshot.   

The competition was not just limited to fuel efficiency runs on the track but also off it. Here, students were recognised for their technical innovation, best design, safety and determination. Let’s take a look.

Safety Awards: Team AVERERA from Indian Institute of Technology – Banaras Hindu University had its second award of the day for its risk assessment and safe hygiene practices even in the garage. 

Jugaad Award: We Indians are well known for jugaad and the team from Government Engineering College, Barton Hill really earned this one. While fibreglass and carbon fibre inserts were the body panels of choice, this team used Bamboo for body panels. The eco-friendly material leaves lesser carbon footprint while meeting performance requirements.

Kahani Award: This is a communication award and was lapped up by Team Averera, its third award of the day. The team did the best job of creating awareness and support by utilising multiple channels of communication innovatively.  

The event was aimed to create awareness on sustainable future mobility solutions and to develop and prepare alternative energy sources for the future. However, the overall theme of the event was to find ways to limit carbon footprint. The final leg of the Eco-marathon will be conducted in Thailand next year. Stay tuned for more details.