Engineering students spark creative fun
Published: June 25, 2012
They’re known as “Spark” - a group of U of T engineering students dedicated to spreading fun and creative engineering projects throughout the campus.
“The original idea for the club, which was founded by Anmol Kaur and me,” says club member Hubert Ka, “was to bring examples of great ideas, design, and engineering done by students onto display in our halls.”
Created in 2011 and partnered with U of T’s Faculty of Applied Science and Engineering, Spark seeks to create an inspiring working environment and encourage students to explore their design interest beyond the textbooks by showcasing their innovative projects.
“Many engineers graduate without first-hand experience in prototyping, and actually visualizing a product from beginning to end,” explains Ka, “we wanted to inspire great design, creativity, and the attitude that engineering can be fun.”
The flourishing club has completed five projects to date, but their latest project easily captured onlookers’ imaginations. Using only playing cards and a new construction toy called Skallops the group was able to create a nine-foot high model of the famed Eiffel Tower.
The feat was showcased on the Discovery Channel’s Daily Planet segment (beginning at the 3:23 mark) on March 12, 2012.
Spark first caught the eye of producers at the show with an earlier project that transformed the floor of the Bahen Centre’s lobby into a giant piano, enticing countless students and passers-by into stepping on the keys to produce notes.
As Spark grows and expands, so do the ambitions of its members. Next year, the club aims to host six to seven workshops along with weekly meetings to hone their skills and test ideas. Their next workshop is planned for mid-July.
Spark will also participate in the Engineering Frosh Week, hosting a short workshop for incoming students.
“Our displays are open to everyone on campus, and we’ve seen students from all the different faculties enjoy them,” Ka says. “I think a lot of people appreciate the fact that we’re taking time off and making things that people can interact with and enjoy.
“This shows that engineering isn’t only utilitarian, that we can create very interesting and fun projects too.”
