Innovation Incubator

Chrysler engineers deliver a Dodge Ram truck to the Wilson Student Team Project Center

Chrysler Group LLC’s resurgence has revved up its interest in the Walter E. Wilson Student Team Project Center at the University of Michigan’s College of Engineering, where 38 different student teams are hard at work on cutting-edge engineering projects. Their futuristic endeavors cover a wide-ranging spectrum ― from a solar-powered car and concrete canoe to a human-powered helicopter and Mars rover for planetary exploration.

“As our company continues to grow, we’ll want to attract and retain the highest quality of candidates for full-time jobs and summer internships,” explains Ben Winter (’92 MBA,  ’85 PhD, ’82 MSE), vehicle line executive for Chrysler’s minivan/MUV segment. “The Wilson Center offers us the opportunity to meet and interact with talented undergraduate engineering students at a world-class university and to support project teams focused on our core business, automotive engineering.”

In 2011, Chrysler contributed $25,000 in sponsorship funding for the Solar Car racing team and loaned the Wilson Center the use of a Ram truck for one year to transport students and their projects to various competitions. The auto maker is currently exploring ways to expand its partnership with the center and the project teams by offering access to its technical facilities and engineering experts at the Chrysler Technical Center in Auburn Hills, Mich. These initial technical exchanges could pave the way for a fruitful longer-term collaboration.

“We not only see benefits for our recruiting efforts but also for the technical development of our future vehicle programs,” says Winter. “The project teams are exploring cutting-edge technologies in body and chassis engineering, advanced propulsion systems and control systems. We have an opportunity to see what they are doing and potentially adapt these technologies to our programs.”

Approximately 400 company sponsors ― including General Motors, Eaton, Altair, Roush Industries, Union Pacific and Alro Steel ― donate cash, raw materials, technical expertise and/or products to the student teams at the Wilson Center, located on the University’s North Campus. The $10 million, 20,000-square-foot skunkworks facility, established in 1999, has become an innovation incubator for 600 undergraduates who design, manufacture, assemble and test high-tech racecars, boats and aircraft for class and intercollegiate competitions. Standouts include the MRacing Formula SAE team, which is ranked No. 1 in the world following its successful 2011 season. The Wilson Center also hosts more than a dozen sustainability and social-venture projects in partnership with nongovernmental organizations ― such as Ann Arbor-based Appropriate Technology Collaborative ― to address global health and environmental challenges through engineering innovation.

“Students gain experience in project leadership and multidisciplinary teamwork while demonstrating they are able to apply what they’ve learned,” says Chris Gordon, the Center’s manager. “Companies, in turn, see students who know how to solve real-world problems and can step into the workplace and contribute right away.”

Thomas Cayia ('82 BSEME), a division manager with ArcelorMittal, spearheads the company’s recruiting program on the U-M campus. 

“We try to hire the best engineers possible,” says Cayia, who is a third-generation Michigan mechanical-engineering graduate. “The multifunctional teams that utilize the Wilson Center get good experience in developing teamwork and leadership ― two key competencies we look for in our recruitment. They also learn social and communications skills, which are as important as technical skills at our company.”

Last year, ArcelorMittal donated grant money to support the MRacing Formula SAE, Mini Baja SAE, Steel Bridge and Solar Car teams. This year, the company provided a $5,000 gift to the Wilson Center for equipment and materials while continuing its funding for MRacing. 

More information: Contact Chris Gordon, manager of the Wilson Student Team Project Center, at gordoncl@umich.edu or 734-763-1224, or visit www.engin.umich.edu/teamprojects.