Precision engineering component distributor Accu has sponsored three successful student teams in the Race2Space Rocketry competition.
Race2Space is a national rocket propulsion competition that aims to accelerate and upskill student rocket teams, provide networking and industry-academia links and increase the diversity of the talent entering the space sector.
As part of its sponsorship, Accu provided £1,550 of components to rocket teams from Cardiff University, Sheffield Hallam University and the University of Sheffield. The students used the components in the creation of their rocket engines.
Matt Ogden, Communications and Partnerships Manager at Accu, said:
“We are delighted to be supporting these university teams in advancing their knowledge and skills around rocketry. It really is rewarding to see the unbelievable talents of their student engineers who are gaining new skills and expertise in designing and building rocket engines. We wish all three teams the very best for the future.”
Accu sponsored the winning hybrid team Cardiff Rocket Labs from Cardiff University. Their first time in the competition, Cardiff impressed the judges with their high performing hybrid rocket engine.
Yusif Algurair, Founder and President, Cardiff Rocket Labs, said:
“We are all really delighted to win best Hybrid Rocket Engine. As a result of the win, we've been given a free hot fire day to test another hybrid within the next year, this will mean we’re able to use even more high spec components from Accu on this one. We are also planning to make a liquid bi prop engine for Race2Space.
“Using Accu’s online ordering platform made it very easy for us to find exactly what we were looking for and also to have it delivered in large quantities, speed is a game changer. It was crucial that the Accu bolts used on the engine worked for our multiple hot fires and they performed perfectly.”
Hallam Rocketry, the team from Sheffield Hallam University, won the award for Best Newcomer. Although their first year in the competition, the Sheffield Hallam team managed to build and test one of the highest performing and most reliable bi-propellant rocket engines.
Ben Imber, President of SHUROC (Sheffield Hallam University Rocket team) said:
“Winning the ‘Best Newcomer’ award at a major propulsion competition like Race2Space honestly means the world to us. Everyone worked incredibly hard throughout the year, and we are proud of what we have accomplished with no prior rocketry experience.
“Trying to find sponsors while balancing the technical work of the project alongside university work and job hunting was challenging. However, Accu always supported and encouraged us from day one, by giving us the resources and flexibility to acquire crucial components for our engine and our rocket.”
Hallam Rocketry developed a 2kN liquid rocket engine, which completed two successful hot fire tests. It proved to be one of the most reliable and efficient engines, finishing joint second in the Nitrous bi-propellant category.
Accu also sponsored Project Sunride from the University of Sheffield. The team won the prize for best Liquid Oxygen bi-propellant engine, as a result of the team firing the rocket engine with the highest specific impulse and the highest thrust liquid oxygen engine in the competition.
Nathan Westwick from Project Sunride said:
“Accu’s bolts gave us the confidence to push boundaries, securing our rocket to the test stand under 6.1kN of thrust and holding back 43 bar of chamber pressure during a hot fire test.
“Accu's short delivery times and huge range of available components have allowed us, as a team, to build this engine in record time, adapting to the changing requirements when a project goes from CAD into the real world. Their support has allowed us to claim the highest ISP record on this engine, and given us the opportunity to claim the best-performing liquid oxygen bi-propellent prize for 2025. We are very grateful to Accu for their support on this project.”
Accu supplied components including cap head screws, countersunk screws, hex bolts, grub screws, nyloc nuts, hex nuts, washers and cable ties, which were essential in helping these teams to bring their rocket engineering visions to life.
