DLSU, PUP to represent PHL in Asian leg of Shell Eco-marathon

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THE DE LA SALLE University (DLSU) Eco Car Team and Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP) Hygears will carry the country’s colors when they compete against 49 teams from eight other countries in the Shell Eco-marathon (SEM) Asia.

To be held this year in Lombok, Indonesia, Shell’s annual event provides students of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) an avenue to design, build, and operate automotive vehicles to achieve the highest possible fuel-efficiency.

Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp. Vice-President of Corporate Relations Serge Bernal encouraged the students to take the opportunity to learn, collaborate, and make friends not just with members of the Philippine teams, but also with those from other countries’ teams even as he reminded them that SEM is a competition. “Make your family, friends, school, and the Philippines proud,” he said.

For her part, DLSU Eco Car Team Manager Eunice Nicole Rupisan averred, “As a team, we expect the best because we want to surpass our benchmark in testing. Pilipinas Shell has been helping us from the start, helping us communicate with Shell Global. They’ve played a big role in getting us far into the competition.”

PUP Hygears Manager Nicole Tugay described joining SEM as an opportunity. “We will experience working in the industry not only in the technical sense, but also in a managerial sense,” she shared.

The panelists providing practical advice to the teams are SEM alumni: Shell Business Operations Process Data Engineer for Technical Asset Operations (TAO) Meg Celine Cruz, Upstream Turnaround Manager Jericho Paolo Rivera, and Process Data Engineer Joven Talape. “SEM is a great venue to meet people and expand your connections. This is a culmination of your sleepless nights and all your hard work,” Ms. Cruz said to the students.

Making cars more efficient since 1939, SEM shifted to its current eco-friendly focus in 1985. SEM participants are tasked to design an energy-efficient battery-powered vehicle that can outlast others on a track. SEM 2022 will be held at the Pertamina Mandalika International Street Circuit in Lombok, Indonesia from Oct. 11 to 15, resuming face-to-face interactions after running virtually for its 2020 to 2021 season. For more info about the SEM and about joining its 2023 season, visit https://www.makethefuture.shell/en-gb/shell-eco-marathon/2023-programme-on-track.