Everett Wind Energy Team
Washington State University Everett, Everett, Washington
Faculty Adviser
Gordon Taub, [email protected]
Student Lead
Kaitlin Jones, [email protected]
Vision and Mission
The state of Washington has a beautifully diverse climate that is perfect for the production of a wide variety of renewable energy from sources such as water, biomass, and wind. We want to use our participation in the U.S. Department of Energy Collegiate Wind Competition (CWC) to help promote and expand wind energy technology in our state.
The competition gives students interested in wind energy an opportunity to focus their efforts by encouraging them to study and work to develop creative and experimental solutions to industry challenges. The structure of the competition’s deliverables, deadlines, and rewards also helps build bridges to future projects and employment.
Background
Our team was initially founded in 2018 in collaboration with the STEM Club at the neighboring Everett Community College, but we have competed in the CWC since 2020. Now, we are supported by faculty advisors at both Everett Community College and Washington State University Everett. This year’s student lead has been involved with the team during each competition, through both schools.
Our team is broken into four subteams—mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, project development, and communications—which each have their own leads. We have recruited team members by reaching out to students through faculty and class visits.
Because our team is open to anyone, it features members with a diverse set of backgrounds and experiences. We are also a female-led team, which we feel is vital for diversifying the generally male-dominated engineering world. Three of our electrical engineering students are using their participation in the competition to support their senior capstone project.
Top(from left): Gordon Taub, Kaitlin Jones, and Joe Graber; Middle Row: Boris Gindlin, James Garfield, and Steven Fordham; Bottom Row: Taylor Funk, Dan Gilles and Tamara Robertson.
Strategy
Previous competitions have taught us to start prototyping and testing early in the process, which gives us more time to solve problems and refine our design. Additionally, based on our difficulty last year with a vertical-axis wind turbine, this year we chose to go with a more traditional horizontal-axis turbine and experiment with different types of generators.
Our location in a region that emphasizes science, technology, engineering, and mathematics offers us a multitude of nearby resources. As such, we have become connected with many industry professionals who have insights relevant for our situation. Recently, we’ve been in contact with an inventor who is researching solutions for problems facing the wind energy industry. This connection has helped us take a solutions-based approach to wind energy challenges.
Follow Us
- Facebook: WSU Everett Engineering Club
- Instagram: @everettwindenergyteam
- LinkedIn: Washington State University Everett Engineering Club
- Twitter: @WindEverett
- YouTube: Everett Wind Energy Team
This content was submitted to the U.S. Department of Energy by the team. Find more information on CWC 2022.