Children on the kinetic energy dance floor on day one of Shell Make The Future Singapore at the Changi Exhibition Centre, Thursday, March 8, 2018 in Singapore. (Edwin Koo/AP Images for Shell)
Children joining on the kinetic dancefloor on day one of Shell Make The Future Singapore at the Changi Exhibition Centre

Day 1 of Shell‘s Make the Future Singapore 2018 welcomes thousands

What are the type of energies that power our world today, and what could the future of energy look like? These are topics that visitors at today’s Make the Future Singapore experienced, along with exploring bright energy ideas from around the world.

On Day 1 of the festival, hundreds of school children and other visitors generated electricity on the kinectic dancefloor with their dance moves, and were thrilled to build and race their own cars powered by nothing but saltwater. Visitors were also able to explore bright ideas from around Asia, see what is happening now to power our world and get a glimpse of what the future of energy might look like.

The Starship Initiative – a co-engineering project by Shell Lubricants and AirFlow Truck Company – showcased the development of an ultra-energy efficient truck which aims to reduce carbon emissions produced by road freight transportation. Through augmented reality, visitors learnt how this new truck design would be able to save 1% in fuel economy – equivalent to removing 23,000 trucks from the road.

More than 120 student teams from Asia Pacific and the Middle East to battle for efficiency

Today, teams put their self-built vehicles through a detailed technical and safety inspection before they will be allowed on the track to compete in Shell Eco-marathon Asia, part of a global programme that challenges bright young minds to design and build ultra-energy-efficient cars. There are two key competitions this year – the Mileage Challenge where teams compete to travel the farthest on the least amount of fuel, and Drivers’ World Championship Asia. The latter challenges the best UrbanConcept teams to combine the proven energy efficiency of their car with the speed and skill of their driver, in a race to see who can cross the finish line first on the least amount of fuel. Student teams will compete in three different categories based on their selected energy source: internal combustion engine (gasoline, diesel, ethanol), battery-electric power and hydrogen fuel cell.

Singapore will again be participating in the competition, with a contingent of 10 cars from 7 tertiary institutions competing to be the most energy-efficient. This year’s contenders from Singapore include a first-time entrant in newcomer Temasek Polytechnic, new cars from institutions like Ngee Ann Polytechnic, as well as returning teams from universities such as Nanyang Technological University and Singapore University of Technology and Design.

New kid on the block, Temasek Polytechnic’s TP ECO FLASH, developed and designed their hydrogen fuel cell in-house for their prototype car at Shell Eco-marathon Asia. A fan favourite, Nanyang Technological University’s NTU 3D Printed Car returns this year with a new energy source – hydrogen. Watch these teams compete for efficiency on the track.

Powering the future

More than 150 bright minds representing diverse sectors gathered in Singapore to discuss ideas around the topic “Energy for Better Living” at this year’s Powering Progress Together forum. Dialogue centred around Asian growth aspirations and the imminent energy challenge facing the region, and underlined the importance of multi-sector collaboration in driving effective policy and cultural change to drive low-carbon business and consumer choices and opportunities.

Turning talk into action, the business forum also showcased promising Singapore start-ups selected in the inaugural Shell #IdeaRefinery accelerator programme by Shell Singapore, ImpacTech and NUS Enterprise that are developing new energy solutions in support of Singapore’s ambition to be a sustainable and smart nation. The start-ups are billionBricks, EnergyNova, Solarite, Tripledot Technologies, and Xnergy.

Tomorrow’s highlights

  • Shell Eco-marathon Flag-off: The regional competition will officially be launched tomorrow in a ceremony that will flag-off more than 120 teams from 18 countries around Asia Pacific and the Middle East.
  • The Bright Ideas Challenge Award Ceremony: Find out who will be crowned the winner of this Singapore schools competition that challenges students to invent their own bright energy ideas.
  • Make the Future Singapore Lates: At this specially curated evening event for those 18 years and older, adults will have the opportunity to explore the Festival at night, participate in discussions around the energy future in a “Let’s Talk“ open chat forum, whilst enjoying live performances and unique food and drinks offerings.

Due to overwhelming response and space constraints, new registrations to Make the Future Lates is now closed.

Information and Tickets

For more information on Make the Future Singapore and to register for free priority tickets, please visit Tickets.

Download photos & videos

To access event images, visit: https://www.flickr.com/photos/shell_eco-marathon/albums

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