Leading materials and supply chain solutions provider to some of the biggest leaders in the aerospace, automotive and construction industries, thyssenkrupp Materials UK, are celebrating taking first place at the Wolverhampton Krazy Races, with a gravity race kart built by its apprentices.
With nine sites strategically placed across the UK and HQ in the West Midlands, the business brought together a team of four talented apprentices who were eager to get started with the gravity race kart build project and put all their learning and skills into action.
The project initiative aimed to contribute the company’s business objective of being One Team, building a network of apprentices, and develop a better understanding of the company’s UK-wide capabilities.
The cross-functional team represented thyssenkrupp Materials UK Centre of Excellence sites in the Midlands in Cradley Heath, South Yorkshire in Darton, and Preston.
The apprentices were able to complete the project and put their racing helmets on to celebrate their hard work, dedication and innovative spirit that carried them over the last year of this exciting initiative to an amazing weekend at Harewood Hill Climb in Leeds in late July 2024.
After creating an extensive list of lessons learned and improvements to be made on the karts, the apprentices were able to test out their own thyssenkrupp Materials UK branded kart on 1st September 2024 at the Wolverhampton Krazy Races.
The project was led and overseen by Maintenance Engineer, Martin Butler, at thyssenkrupp Materials UK who is based at the Centre of Excellence – Flat Product site.
Martin brings extensive experience to the project and having built a gravity kart himself, he was able to help and mentor the apprentices with any queries that they had. Martin commented: “I have to say what a fantastic day it was at the gravity kart race! I was truly impressed by the new generation of talent – seeing their dedication and skill development firsthand was inspiring. It’s remarkable how much work goes into projects like this, and how they help close the skills gap in our industry. Our apprentices picked up invaluable skills, from machine programming to CAD drawings and welding. We couldn’t have made it happen without the support of our project management, marketing, and learning & development teams. I’m hopeful that the next generation of apprentices will take this race to even greater heights and new adventures.”
The event was in partnership with Wolverhampton City Council for a second year running, and it allowed for thousands of spectators from across the Midlands and beyond to cheer on the “Krazy, Wacky and Outrageous” soapbox downhill races – including thyssenkrupp Materials UK’s very own kart!
Twenty teams participated in the award-winning soapbox derby and completed a total of three rounds with all karts or soapboxes starting the journey up on Lichfield Street, travelling past Queen Square and down Victoria Street with prizes given to the fastest, the most entertaining and the best designed. For the final round, the top seven teams went wheel-for-wheel in hopes to win the first place – an incredible achievement that was awarded to the thyssenkrupp Materials UK apprentices and project team by councillor Linda Leach, Mayor of Wolverhampton.
By engaging in the construction of gravity cars and soapbox cars, the apprentices were not only able to develop valuable skills, but they also sparked their creativity and gained valuable insights into various engineering and design aspects. The team look forward to taking part in other gravity race and soapbox kart events where they can show off thyssenkrupp Materials UK as a trusted partner of choice for leading manufacturers and inspire the next generation of engineering talent.