A DROITWICH Spa High School student is through to the final round of The Manufacturing Technologies Association’s schools competition, writes Sophie Hind.
It is the third time in a row pupils have been successful in The Technology, Design and Innovation Challenge competition which takes place at Yamakazi Mazak’s European headquarters in Worcester.
The TDI challenge, which has been running for 15 years, helps teachers and lecturers to promote the great work of their design and technology (D&T) and engineering students, celebrating creativity and innovation within the curriculum.
The challenge is aimed at GCSE and A Level students who submit coursework which is then judged by a panel of industry professionals to decide the winner.
This year Droitwich High School is being represented by year 13 student Dan Plumptre who has designed and built a Braille press that assistant head Andy Millicheap called ‘a magnificent piece of engineering’.
Mr Plumptre said his inspiration for the piece came from his friend who is category B1 blind meaning she can see nothing other than the faint light difference between shadows and sunlight.
Dan asked his friend if there was anything she would find useful he could design and create.
She explained plastic and card braille wore down making it difficult for her to understand.
He therefore created a press that would print braille into sheet metal.
He said he was overjoyed to be in the final but was horrified there was nothing already like this on the market.
The winning school will win £2,000 credit to spend with Technology Supplies Limited on new school D&T equipment.
The top three students in each category will be in with a chance of winning individual prizes, such as an Ipad, GoPro and many more.
