Alexander Uelhoff, CEO of STEM Racing Germany, joined the World eX Bizz Talk ahead of Round 8 at Silverstone and shared his unique perspective on the championship and STEM Racing\u2019s impact on young engineers.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI\u2019m just right back from Singapore. Last week, we became vice champions with Germany. In 2023 and 2024, we won two times in a row,\u201d Uelhoff recounted, highlighting Germany\u2019s strong tradition and recent success in the World Finals of STEM Racing. He explained the close partnership with Formula One: \u201cInternationally, it\u2019s called STEM Racing, supported by Formula One, and formerly known as F1 in Schools. Now, after some discussions with Formula One, the headquarters and Formula One together decided it\u2019s better when we get our own name and logo. We are now the fourth NGO officially supported by Formula One at the World Finals, and ten of the 21 special awards are directly sponsored by Formula One teams.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On the size of the competition, Uelhoff stated, \u201cIt\u2019s the biggest STEM competition in the world. Nearly 2 million students compete every year in their original finals, and only the best from every national final goes to the World Finals.\u201d He provided insight into the technical complexity required: \u201cAt the world\u2019s highest level, you need to mill these cars. They are not that big; you construct them with CAD systems, and then you manufacture them. But you also need to build your own race team \u2013 for students aged 11 to 19, minimum three, maximum six people \u2013 and manage everything yourself.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Discussing the financial challenge, Uelhoff didn\u2019t mince words: \u201cIn Germany, we are talking about approximately 40 to 50,000 euro for a team that they need to raise via sponsors to go to the World Finals. They need to pay flights, hotel, food, everything you could imagine.\u201d He described his mentorship style: \u201cI called all my German teams every two weeks to say, \u2018What\u2019s your plan now, what\u2019s going on?\u2019 If a problem comes up that they can\u2019t solve, with their teachers or alone, then I can interact. But every team managed to get this budget by themselves.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He spoke about his own journey in STEM Racing: \u201cI competed in 2014, 2015, and 2016. After my A-levels, I was a judge in Germany for nearly four years. In summer 2023, I took over as CEO. My first World Finals was in Singapore, and I directly got one of my four German teams to first place, named as World Champion.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Teamwork and volunteer support were also emphasized: \u201cThe oldest volunteer has been with the competition in Germany since its start. My race director, Vince, travels with me to the World Finals and is my race director at nationals and regionals. One of our friends, Martin, produces videos and documentaries for us, uploading them to his website and Racing TV \u2013 he\u2019s been doing this since 2007.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Explaining the entry requirements, Uelhoff clarified, \u201cIt would be best if the school supports you, but you don\u2019t need a school in the background. Registration starts next week until the end of November. Students are between 11 and 19, with two other friends and one lead adult, 18 or older, to get involved.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He underlined the intent and educational value: \u201cWe are the top level of STEM competitions in Germany. You need to do everything yourself. There\u2019s a 25-page technical regulation you need to apply to the car \u2013 quite difficult, but it\u2019s a great pleasure to participate in regional or national finals, even if you don\u2019t win.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On the propulsion system, he explained, \u201cThere\u2019s a CO2<\/sub> cartridge in the back. You roll it back, and there\u2019s a needle; when the trigger is pushed, the needle puts a hole in the cartridge and the car goes forward. Safety is ensured by a tether line on the track.\u201d Technical advice was straightforward: \u201cTarget the minimum weight. In Germany, it\u2019s 55 grams for the whole construction. Get very good bearings, because good bearings roll best with the wheels.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n For testing, Uelhoff noted: \u201cSome schools can test on their own race track \u2013 if you want to buy one, it\u2019s about 15,000 euros. Otherwise, sometimes teams test their car for the first time at the championship, but many do CFD work and virtual wind tunnels.\u201d On career opportunities, he said, \u201cThe World Finals is a picking stage for the real F1 teams. Every year, F1 engineers look for their next team member. If STEM Racing is in your CV, you might skip two or three hiring stages and go straight to a factory visit.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Alexander Uelhoff, CEO of STEM Racing Germany, joined the World eX Bizz Talk ahead of Round 8 at Silverstone.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3213,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_crdt_document":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3212","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-world-ex"],"acf":[],"_wp_attached_file":null,"_wp_attachment_metadata":null,"_elementor_source_image_hash":null,"_wp_attachment_image_alt":null,"_elementor_is_screenshot":null,"elementor_font_files":null,"elementor_font_face":null,"_yoast_wpseo_title":null,"_yoast_wpseo_metadesc":null,"__elementor_forms_snapshot":null,"_wp_trash_meta_status":null,"_wp_trash_meta_time":null,"_wp_desired_post_slug":null,"_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":"12","_wp_old_date":null,"_oembed_47151242e000855220e5d4f5cf766260":null,"_oembed_time_47151242e000855220e5d4f5cf766260":null,"_":null,"_yoast_wpseo_focuskw":null,"_yoast_wpseo_linkdex":null,"_edit_last":"1","_edit_lock":"1762619042:1","_elementor_edit_mode":null,"_elementor_template_type":null,"_wp_page_template":null,"_elementor_page_settings":null,"_elementor_data":null,"_elementor_version":null,"_elementor_pro_version":null,"_elementor_css":null,"_elementor_conditions":null,"_elementor_page_assets":[],"_elementor_controls_usage":null,"_elementor_screenshot":null,"_wp_old_slug":null,"_elementor_template_sub_type":null,"_elementor_screenshot_failed":null,"_yoast_wpseo_estimated-reading-time-minutes":"4","_thumbnail_id":"3213","_yoast_wpseo_content_score":"30","_yoast_wpseo_wordproof_timestamp":null,"car":null,"_car":null,"ready_player_me":null,"_ready_player_me":null,"since":null,"_since":null,"startnumber":null,"_startnumber":null,"linkedin":null,"_linkedin":null,"instagram":null,"_instagram":null,"full_name":null,"_full_name":null,"profession":null,"_profession":null,"hobbies":null,"_hobbies":null,"victories":null,"_victories":null,"trees":null,"_trees":null,"team":null,"_team":null,"youtube":"","_youtube":"field_65b1674782d3a","footnotes":null,"origin":null,"yoast_head":"\n