London,
07
December
2017
|
16:20
Europe/Amsterdam

Prince Henry’s Grammar School wins Premier Farnell Technology Challenge with top score from judges

Tech (10 of 203)

Students from Prince Henry’s Grammar School, Otley, Leeds, are celebrating after fending off tough competition from 10 other schools and colleges in Yorkshire to be named overall winners at the Premier Farnell Technology Challenge, which took place at Aspire, Leeds on Tuesday 5th December.

The challenge also crowned Shipley College as runners up, receiving the People’s Champion award, voted for by students from all the schools participating.

Competing against schools and colleges from Leeds, Bradford, Calderdale and Wakefield, students had to research, plan and create a working prototype of a piece of technology to meet the brief of helping someone with a physical or sensory impairment. Prince Henry’s showcased a pill dispenser for the visually impaired. The winning prototype was built using Raspberry Pi technology and coding to ensure the dispenser would release just the right number of pills when programmed by a user or carer. Shipley College were awarded the People’s Champion award for their Dementiaid prototype - a product that uses facial recognition to inform a person with dementia if a visitor is known or safe.

Ralf Buehler, SVP of Sales & Marketing for Premier Farnell says: “I am overwhelmed by the creativity and enthusiasm that these students brought to the challenge. It was a difficult decision to make and we chose Prince Henry’s because their entry was outstanding across all areas, from careful consideration of the users needs and practical application of the device to potential marketing and an excellent overall presentation. I would like to thank all the schools/colleges that took part in our Challenge. As a global technology business based in Leeds, we are committed to introducing the next generation to technology and the opportunities that it presents.”

Charlie Lyttle (17) a student from Prince Henry’s comments: “It was a close competition and we were so surprised when our name was read out as the overall winner. We are all very relieved as we have put so much work and effort into creating the prototype. This is something that we can celebrate now and talk about in the future.”

The Premier Farnell Technology Challenge aims to raise aspirations and help young people explore careers in the digital and tech industry, which is set to grow by 15% in this region over the next decade.

Judges from Premier Farnell, Leeds Beckett University, Jet2.com, Tunstall, Arris, Foundation for Digital Creativity, LightStart, Egton Digital, Disability Services Team at Leeds City Council, IHealthcare, Aspire CBS, O2, Ayup, PSI Volition, RNIB, Team17 and RabbIT were all involved in judging the school-based competitions and in crowning an overall regional winner.

If anyone missed the event, an exclusive video with footage of the designs and interview with the winners, will be available shortly on: https://www.element14.com/community/docs/DOC-88289/l/prince-henrys-grammar-school-win-the-premier-farnell-technology-challenge-2017

 

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Farnell Global is a fast and reliable distributor of products and technology for electronic and industrial system design, maintenance and repair.  From research and design through prototype to production, Farnell helps its customers access the products and services they need 24/7.  With more than 80 years of experience, 47 localised websites, and a dedicated team of over 3,500 employees, Farnell provides every component its customers need to build the technology of tomorrow.

Farnell Global trades as Farnell in Europe, Newark in North America, and element14 in Asia Pacific.  It also sells direct to consumers through its CPC business in the UK.

Farnell Global has been part of the established global technology distributor, Avnet (Nasdaq: AVT), since 2016. Today, this relationship allows the company to support its customers at every stage of the product life cycle, offering a truly unique distribution model, as well as expertise in end-to-end delivery and product design.

For more information, visit http://www.farnell.com/