The interest among engineering students for Kitemill its technology is strongly increasing. During the last year, there was a large availability of students that took their master degree on Kitemill tasks. The students come not only from Norway, but from whole Europe. One of the reasons is that Kitemill was invited in a European project. Students are welcome:
Photo by Kitemill
Manoj Mandru, master student from TU Delft inspecting the 7,5 meter wingspan Spark kite during his stay at Lista, Norway. Here together with Sture Smidt, head of the kite discipline.
- This is pleasing. Our industry will need competent engineers that know about aerodynamics, plastics and composites, says Sture Smidt. He is Kitemills discipline leader for the kite, aerodynamics and structure.
Collaboration with EU-Projects
Kitemill was invited to join the EU-project AWESCO as a collaboration partner from the industry. Kitemill is offered Ph.D. students with a background in airborne wind energy to execute its research tasks on Kitemills prototype in Lista.
The students come from institutes in Germany, the Netherlands, Switserland and other European countries.
From Trondheim, Bergen and Danmark
One NTNU-student in Trondheim investigates now the structure of the fuselage and the tail surfaces of the kite, as a part of his master thesis. Last autumn he made a project on Kitemill its technology. Two other students at the High School in Bergen (HIB) now work with a bachelor-project within structural mechanics on the wing of Kitemills kites.
Photo by Kitemill
Master student Sigrid Moen from NTNU during her master thesis about composite structures. The thesis was a cooperation between Kongsberg Defence Systems and Kitemill. Here together with Jo Grini and Andrew Hogg from Kitemill.
Plastics and composits
- They look to plastics and composites in heavy loaded constructions, with special attention to weight and production, says Sture Smidt.
The civil engineer Sture Smidt has been employed in Kitemill since April 2015 and has a long experience as an aerodynamic and mechanical design developer, both for Kongsberg Gruppen within aeronautics and for Umoe Mandal with composites (fiber-reinforced plastics) in their totally new boats.
- It is very rewarding to work within my field of interest, being airspace products, with design, construction and calculations, says Sture.
In addition to NTNU and HIB-students, other students from the High School in Buskerud, UiB and the Danish Technical University took contact, with a request for student projects.
Open towards all students
It requires some resources from our side, but we investigate things that we wouldn’t otherwise have time to. We are busy to spread our competence, and therefore we believe it’s important to be open to student requests. The last years, the number of requests from different students environment took off. It is pleasing and it underlines the large and growing interest for this new climate friendly technology, says general manager Thomas Hårklau.
