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Semta’s RoleSemta is an organisation led by employers, our job is to transform the skills and productivity of the people who power our engineering and advanced manufacturing technologies sectors, enabling UK industry to compete on the global stage. We bring together employers and education to focus action on skills.

Semta is the organising partner for a number of WorldSkills UK engineering and manufacturing competitions including this one. Semta manage the design and delivery of the competitions bringing together a partnership of industry employers and educators to ensure the competitions reflect current industry practices and training.

About WorldSkills UKWorldSkills UK is a set of dynamic skills competitions for young people and adults, designed and delivered by industry experts annually in over 70 skills.

Many WorldSkills UK competitions lead into WorldSkills International competitions which are biennial global events.

Competitor Manual

Manufacturing Team Challenge

For further details, please visit: www.worldskillsuk.org/worldskills-uk-competitions

Manufacturing Team ChallengeIntroductionThe aim of this manual is to help competitors prepare for the Manufacturing Team Challenge competition at regional and national level. We hope this will help competitors to perform to the best of their ability during the competitions. The guide contains general advice, technical tips and a more in depth overview of the competition structure and its content.

Using the tips and advice throughout the guide will help you focus on the competition areas with a higher level of accuracy, read, look at and review tasks thoroughly before beginning and teach you to step back occasionally to see if you are achieving your goal.

Remember it’s not a race, you are competing against a standard, a very high standard, but one that is achievable.

Competition OverviewManufacturing Team Challenge covers designing and manufacturing equipment assemblies. Comprehensive project documentation must also be produced as part of the competition. Each Team must be able to demonstrate innovative thinking, multi-disciplinary skills and team spirit. The competition involves a variety of skills including design at draft and computerised levels and applying manufacturing skills such as manual and computer-aided machining, welding, installing and assembling, automation and electronics. This kind of multi-skilled professionalism is also required in real life mechanical workshop environments.

Core Competencies

Core competencies and standards for WorldSkills UK Skills Competitions activities H

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Competency Design – Knowledge and understanding of design:• Understand design processes such as selection of materials and meeting

performance specifications requiredY Y Y

Standards Competitors shall be able to:• Design a project that can be manufactured within the time limits of the

Competition• Design a project that best meets the Competition and performance specifications• Design a project that can be built with the equipment provided or brought to the

Competition by the team.

Competency Drawing – Knowledge and understanding of drawing:• Interpretation of drawings/setting-out according to ISO standards• Understanding of 3D and 2D modelling software.• Understanding of CAM software

Y Y Y

Standards Competitors shall be able to:• Create workshop drawings to ISO standards. • Create and modify 3D models• Create CNC programs using a CAM package and a suitable postprocessor.• Ability to interpret, construct and modify engineering CAD drawings, to work with

3D modelling, and to convert both to CAM.

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Core competencies and standards for WorldSkills UK Skills Competitions activities H

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Competency Machining – Knowledge and understanding of machining:• Understand and practice safe work procedures for all machine tools• Understand Feeds and Speeds for different cutting tools and materials• Be familiar with the set up, loading and running of a CNC machine• A good knowledge of machining to drawings including the ability to modify that

tool path manually to meet the specification of the finished product.• It is expected that knowledge be required for machining steel (400-550 N/sq. mm.)

or aluminium, plastics or whatever material it is made of.

Y Y Y

Standards Competitors shall be able to:• Machine components to drawings on conventional machine tools and setting up,

loading, and running CNC machines from a CAM generated tool path• Safely Operate conventional machine tools e.g. Lathe, Mill, Drill press• Safely Operate a CNC machining centre

Competency Sheet Metal – Knowledge and understanding of sheet metal:• Understand and practice safe work procedures for working with sheet metal• Understand the process to be used to bend and cut sheet metal.

Y Y Y

Standards Competitors shall be able to:• Bend and cut sheet metal components to drawings• Fit sheet metal components to an assembly

Competency Electronics – Knowledge and understanding of electronics:• Understand and practice safe work with solder stations and electronic equipment• Understand working with PCBs and able to solder PCBs• Understand working with electronic software for programming electronic

programs• A sound knowledge of Mechatronics and robotics as required by the design of the

project.

Y Y Y

Standards Competitors shall be able to:• Assemble and commission electronics from a drawing• Design control circuits

Competency Fitting – Knowledge and understanding of fitting:• Understand the assembly of jigs and fixtures• Understand project assembly and fastening methods

Y Y Y

Standards Competitors shall be able to:• Design any jigs, fixtures or accessory needed to complete the project• Create jigs, fixtures and accessories to drawing specifications.• Assemble and commission project to competition specifications

Competency Competition administration process – Knowledge and understanding of competition administration process• Understand the rules of competing in WorldSkills• Understand the timekeeping process for Competition• Understand how to use basic Word and Excel computer programs

Y Y Y

Standards Competitors shall be able to:• Follow the rules of the Competition• Document costings, materials and other relevant items in the portfolio.

Note: Core Competencies are tested, identified and measured as recognition of the competition level and duration. The severity of the marking schedule is regulated in relation to WorldSkills international standards.

Heats/Regionals Circa 50%National Circa 75%Team UK 100%

Required skillsPractical skills to use a variety of tools and equipment, communication, numeracy, critical thinking, mathematics, computer science, analytical skills, creativity, the ability to work on a team.

The competition is suitable to teams from a wide range of manufacturing and engineering sectors including for example automotive, steel, paper and utilities.

What the Competitors do at the CompetitionEach team comprises three competitors who are expected to: • Carry out a CAD/CAM exercise in preparation for the manufacturing task• Design and make any jigs, fixtures, adaptors, and attachments required for the task.• Set up and machine all components required for the project.• Carry out an assembly process required by the project.• Work as a team in optimising the manufacturing process so that cycle times and costs are minimised.

This involves looking at design, tool paths, assembly procedures, as well as jigs, fixtures, and machining techniques.

General Instructions1. Maximum working time is 6 hours at regional heats and 11 hours at the National Final.2. At the start of the competition an allotted time will be allocated for work planning. This time is not part of

the working time.3. The competition will consist of a number modules, which are marked individually and then as a complete

project. 4. All supplied equipment and materials must be accurately checked by the competitor upon commencing

the competition.5. All materials and equipment must be marked out/used in the most economical method. 6. Competitors will lose marks for any misplaced, lost or spoiled materials and/or equipment, where this is

the result of competitor error. 7. Minimum marks will not be awarded for dimensional accuracy or technical perfection where instructions

have been disobeyed.8. Competitors will lose marks for each minor breach of the Health & Safety rules. Where a competitor

puts themselves or any other person at risk as a result of a Health & Safety breach, the task will be stopped. Where a task is stopped due to a Health & Safety risk, the judge will decide if the task can be continued safely.

PracticeDepending on the level of project your focus should be on;• Studying the drawings and marking schedule• Planning the time for the test project and each module• Identifying the equipment you have available or could use if you had training.• Practicing parts of the projects to establish the time to develop patterns, form and weld parts.• Inspecting the parts and complete test project against the Marking schedule and balancing your time

where marks can be gained or lost.• Challenge yourself to improve your marks.

• Enjoy improving your skills and the challenge of competitions.

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Time ManagementThe following eight aspects are neither exhaustive nor prescriptive and not a ‘magic’ formula to success. However, these are tips based on being involved with competitions for many years and we hope these will help you in future competition participation.

1. Pressure. You will be nervous but you will need to keep nerves under control and not let the pressure overtake you. But managed pressure can be good, increasing energy and performance potential.

How to handle nerves;a. Listen to the Judge’s brief and ask questions – what sort of questions depends on you,

i.e. repeating an aspect of their brief; gives you a chance to understand more.

b. Importantly, understand at what point your allotted time actually starts, i.e. normally after the Judge’s brief.

c. Read your competitors’ brief; everything you need to know for the task is in that brief. Allow yourself 2 to 3 minutes to read it. Read it at least twice as your first reading will be too fast.

d. Take a deep breath and start the task. You are against the clock and so you will need to work with focus.

e. Task going wrong? Take a moment, think. If necessary, quickly re-read that part of the instructions and then refocus. You may need to move on from that particular aspect of the task.

2. Time Management. The tasks are all against the clock. So once you have had your task brief and know how long you have, then quickly plan your workload. Section the aspects of the task into time blocks.

3. Remember, it is a competition and so practically everything you do within the task is marked and worth points; so focus on gathering points. Leave some time to put tools away at the end (that is worth points), clean up the working area (again, worth points). If you are stuck on a particular aspect then accept you may or may not get points for that particular part and in order to move onto the next part of the task, ask the Judge for assistance. Remember, there are other points to be earned.

4. Think outside of the task. Where are the Risk Assessments? If using any POL, where is the COSHH? If in doubt, then ask the Judge where these items are. Remember, you have a limited time to display your technical skill to the Judge and so you must be smart with your actions and work levels.

5. Practice before the competition at working under pressure and with someone watching you; perhaps your works’ supervisor or college lecturer. Get them to be super critical on your work quality, methods of work and approach.

6. Understand the advantage of selecting the right tool for the job.

7. Sleep. Get plenty of sleep the night before. If offered, take advantage of accommodation for the night before the competition. Resist the temptation to consume alcohol the night before and have a good breakfast on the day of the competition; these actions will assist in preparing your mind and body.

8. Arithmetic. Practice mental arithmetic. It will sharpen your mind. Perhaps try Sudoku; aim to achieve at least medium level (start at mild or easy). Do mental arithmetic whenever the opportunity arises, e.g. just filled your car or motorbike, how many litres did you put in the tank. Mentally (without the aid of calculator convert Litres to Imperial Gallons - divide Litres by 4.5 to give Imperial Gallons or multiply Litres by 0.22). Understand the relationship between imperial and metric. Remember some datums. e.g. 25.4mm to 1 inch and so, 12.7mm is ½ inch and 6.35mm is ¼ inch. 1 Imperial Gallon is 4.5 Litres (to 1 decimal place - it is actually 1 Imperial Gallon = 4.5461 Litres).

The Project Brief This brief specifies the requirement for the design and production of a remotely operated recovery vehicle. The vehicle should be designed and built to recover objects from hostile environments.

This vehicle could be used to recover or investigate dangerous land-based situations which could involve areas populated with land mines or potential bomb site incidents in a built up area. It could also be adapted for recovery of samples during outer space exploration.

Description of Project• The vehicle will be battery powered and will be remotely operated by cable connection. The operator will

be at least 2 metres from the vehicle when carrying out a series of operational tasks.

• The vehicle should be capable of a speed of 10m/min.

• The vehicle will be capable of: -

– Manoeuvring on both forward and reverse directions.

– A 360° turn within a radius of its own length.

– Climb an incline of 20°.

– Moving over surface obstacles of 10mm high.

• The vehicle will recover objects of uniform shape and size up to 50mm x 50mm x 50mm to a maximum weight of 250 grams. The recovered objects to be placed into recovery area.

• The vehicle and all support equipment must be lightweight for transportation and fit into a transport enclosure 60mm x 300mm x 300mm.

• Battery power should be such to enable the vehicle to operate for 2 hours on a single battery charge.

The remote control unit will have displays/functions to: -

• Isolate the power when not in operation.

• Show initial and progressive battery conditions.

• An audible and visual warning when battery power is lost

• It must also be fully sealed with no exposed electrical connections.

• The vehicle should be quick to remove from its transportation means and set up ready for operation.

Safety• As the battery discharges, a warning light or ‘low battery’ message should engage at which time the

recovery vehicle must cease to perform all operational functions.

• The unit can only operate when initiated with a ‘secret key’, i.e. a removable stop/start mechanism.

• The control box must have an EMERGENCY STOP button.

• All elements of the recovery vehicle must be protected whilst in motion.

• Guarding must be in place to prevent any crush/trapping injuries.

• All electrically conductive parts must be guarded.

• No sharp edges should be evident.

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MaintenanceThe following components should have ease of access for removal and replacement: -

• The recovery mechanism.

• The battery.

• The means of traction.

Marking Criteria

Section Criteria Marks

AMain project performances (Inc. Section B of portfolio)

40 10

50

B

Main project costs: Manufacturing Time Materials Machining Time

7.5 2.5 5

15

C Portfolio (Section A only) 20 20

D Surprise project 30 30

E Overall Project Assessment 10 10

Total Marks 125

A. Main Project (40 Marks)The vehicle should be capable of: -

• Being remotely operated at a minimum range of 2 metres from the operator. (2 marks)

• Operating by battery power. (1 mark)

• Manoeuvring in both forward and reverse directions. (1 mark)

• A 360° (degree) turn within a radius of its own length. (2 marks)

• Climbing an incline of 20°. (2 marks)

• Moving over surface obstacles up to 10mm high. (2 marks)

• Recovering uniform items up to a size of 50mm cube to a maximum weight of 250 grams. (3 marks)

• Operating continually for a period of 2 hours on one battery charge. (3 marks)

A wise man can learn more from a foolish question than a fool can learn from a wise answer.Bruce Lee

The control unit should display: -

• Initial and progressive battery conditions. (2 marks)

• A visual warning when the battery power runs low. (2 marks)

• A means of isolating the power when it is not in use. (2 marks)

• An emergency stop button. (2 marks)

The vehicle and support equipment should be: -

• Sealed with no exposed electrical connections. (2 marks)

• Free of sharp corners and edges for safe handling. (2 marks)

• Lightweight for transportation. (3 marks)

• Easy to transport and if necessary, fold down to fit within a carrying case enclosure of 600mm x 300mm x 300mm. (3 marks)

• Readily assembled and dis-assembled for and following operated tasks. (2 marks)

• Easily maintained or repaired with modular items requiring minimum skill and time to replace, e.g. battery, traction unit etc. (4 marks)

Portfolio B – to be done during the competition (10 Marks)During the competition the participants will carry out the following I.T. related tasks, rough sketches can be brought to the competition:-

• Manufacturing drawings for all components to be made.

• 3D Assembly drawing(s).

• Electronic diagrams/drawings.

• Operation instructions.

B. Manufacturing Costs (15 Marks)Working hours (7.5 Marks)

For every 10% more expensive than the team with the lowest calculated working hour cost (see note below). 0.5 Mark will be deducted proportionally.

Additional cost for using equipment (5 Marks)

For every 10% more expensive than the team with the lowest additional equipment cost (see note below). 0.5 Mark will be deducted proportionally.

Raw materials (2.5 Marks)

For every 10% more expensive than the team with the lowest additional equipment cost (see note below). 0.5 Mark will be deducted proportionally.

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C. Portfolio A (20 Marks)A portfolio is to be presented prior to the competition. This portfolio is to be assessed as a component of this project. The portfolio is to be in electronic format but presented in both hard copy and electronic form and to include: -

• Team member details.

• Team preparation.

• Design calculations and sketches.

• List of materials and components used with catalogue prices.

• Evidence of material and component costs.

• Computer generated 3 day competition manufacturing schedule.

• A poster display 1000mm x 600mm (minimum size) detailing each team member’s details and their employers, a description of the project solution including a 3D model of their vehicle, which will be presented prior to the competition and displaying during the competition.

D. Surprise Project (30 Marks)

E. Overall Project Assessment (10 Marks)

Technical GuidanceThe Test projects are all designed around the skills required for level 2-4 Technical Certificates and NVQ’s in the engineering and manufacturing iIndustry and therefore cover the Core Competences required for these qualifications. However, demonstrating these skills in competition and with time constraints often puts the Core Technical skills under considerable pressure. Your tutors or mentors should be able to advise you on the ways to channel you Technical skills and become better under pressure.

Task BreakdownWhen you take part in Regional, National or International competition the Tasks and work schedules for Test project Modules are broken down into easily understandable sections. On the day you will draw lots for the work stations including welding equipment and the order in which you produce the work. This helps to avoid bottle necks on equipment and helps judges mark the test projects as modules are completed.

Health & SafetyDuring the competition as in any work or educational facility you have a duty to protect yourself and those around you.

As an Organising Partner, Semta and our delivery partners have a responsibility to protect you and keep you informed about health & safety procedures and practices including;• Making the competition area safe and without risks to health

• Ensure plant and machinery are safe and that safe systems of work are set and followed

• Ensure hazardous articles and substances are moved, stored and used safely

• Provide adequate welfare facilities

• Give instruction, information, supervision and where applicable training necessary to maintain health and safety

As a competitor you have a legal duty to:• Take reasonable care for your own health & safety and that of others who may be affected by what you

do or do not do

• Cooperate with the Organising Partner and/or their appointed delivery team on health and safety matters

• Correctly use work/competition items provided, including personal protective equipment, in accordance with instructions and/or training given

• Not interfere with or misuse anything provided for your health, safety or welfare

In particular:• All health and safety regulations, including protection standards, specified by the competition hosts

and delivery team, must be followed exactly. Any defect in machines or equipment must be reported immediately.

• Safety goggles must be used in all material-removing operations.

• Shoes and clothing must comply with health and safety regulations.

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ConclusionRemember, the competition will be difficult but achievable. There will be a lot of ‘self-pressure’. You need to learn how to control this and focus on the task in hand.

Once a task is complete, you cannot change the outcome good or bad, start the next task afresh and with positivity.

Drink plenty of water throughout the competition, staying hydrated will help with your concentration, focus and will reduce stress and headaches.

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We wish you the best of luck in your competition journey, and would like to leave you with the following quote:

Life is a series of experiences, each one of which makes us bigger, even though sometimes it is hard to realise this. For the world was built to develop character, and we must learn that the setbacks and grieves which we endure help us in our marching onward.Henry Ford

Further sources of information and websites

SemtaEmail: WSUKEng@semta.org.uk Web: www.semta.org.uk Tel: 0845 643 9001

WorldSkills UKEmail: enquiries@worldskillsuk.org Web: www.worldskillsuk.org Tel: 0800 612 0742

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