JCU Motorsports
Design, Analyse, Manufacture, Optimise, Compete.
The JCU Tec-NQ Racing team (JTR) represents James Cook University and Tec-NQ in the annual Formula SAE competition. JTR is the only Formula SAE team in Northern Australia and competes annually at the Formula SAE Australasia competition held at Calder Park Raceway in Melbourne. The team is comprised of JCU School of Engineering and Physical Sciences students and trades students from the Tec-NQ technical college who design and build a formula style, open wheeled racer to compete against other universities from around the Australia and the world. The 2015 competition involved more than 30 teams from all around the world. This provides the students with unique exposure to real world engineering problems and safe workshop practice in a meaningful team oriented project.
The car is judged on both design and performance such as acceleration, braking, reliability and fuel efficiency. The competition imposes strict restrictions on the performance and safety of the car, affording students the opportunity to think outside the box and take an innovative approach to design and manufacture. Students learn about design implementation and fabrication as well as team management and marketing to compliment the classroom theory. Much of the design of the JTR car is integrated into the curriculum of the Mechanical Engineering degree.