Mechanical Lab and Formula Student Workshop
Explore our Mechanical Lab and Formula Student Workshop, including our Manufacturing Area and Beta Bays.
Formula Student Workshop
is the Formula Student team that represents Sussex at the annual Formula Student competitions. This brings together our Automotive and Mechanical Engineering students to build a Formula style racing car.
Building a Formula style racing car
- Video transcript
Pop music plays in the background as a montage of photos of the Formula Student Workshop is shown. A student enters the room and uses the driving simulator to train the Formula Student team drivers.
The Formula Student team members assemble car components and then use 3D printers. The group test and control the Quanser Aero and test materials in the tensile testing rigs.
They then work on the power electronics rigs and the 3D printers to print components for their projects.
Mechanical Lab
The Mechanical Lab is used by our first and second-year Mechanical Engineering students.
You can explore bridge building, static and dynamic balancing, thermodynamics and hardness testing of materials.
You’ll learn hands-on mechanical skills and write lab reports based off experimental data collected in the lab.
Composite/Manufacturing Area
This area is used by all our Engineering students.
Masters students carry out a project to manufacture/lay up carbon fibre and other materials here. You can also learn how to design and manufacture molds.
X2 Beta Bays
These areas have been recently updated for Engineering students, equipped with Beta benches and toolboxes.
The Beta Bays are mainly used for assembling vehicles and using hand tools. All students learn hands-on skills here, starting with a workshop induction that includes:
- the use of hand tools
- the use of power tools
- the use of compressed air tools
- safely lifting and propping vehicles.
Foundation Year Mechanical/Electrical Lab
We have a specialist area for Foundation Year Engineering students.
Here you’ll learn about mechanical experiments (such as the moment of inertia and Hooke’s law experiment) and electronics work (including operational amplifiers, programmable logic boards, breadboarding and programming Arduinos).