The OTH Amberg-Weiden (OTH AW) is a young and innovative university of applied science that offers its students a highly qualified and future-oriented education. While Amberg, with its faculties of Electrical Engineering, Media Technology and Computer Science as well as Mechanical and Environmental Engineering, focuses on technical education, Weiden is home to most non-technical courses.

The OTH AW attaches great importance to a specific and practical course of studies; therefore we at Running Snail use our acquired knowledge to construct and build a competitive race car. However, not only courses like mechanical engineering, plastics technology, electrical engineering and information technology are helpful - non-technical courses such as business administration, retail and service management or international technology management are needed, as well. While our technicians deal with the construction and implementation of the car, the non-technicians take care of sponsoring issues, public relations and event organisation. Through this, the knowledge acquired in class can be put directly into practice.

The Formula Student is an international design competition founded in 1981 in the USA and is now held annually in 14 different countries. The main organizer is the world's largest engineering association, the SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers).

The basic idea of the competition is to design the prototype of a race car for a company. Therefore, the vehicle must fulfil certain characteristics, which are assessed regarding various aspects like design, cost control, marketing or practical suitability.

At the annual competitions the cars compete against international attendees . The competition is divided into two types of disciplines: the so-called static events and the dynamic events. These are subdivided in a total of seven sub- competitions, each rated individually. Overall Winner is the team with the highest rating. There are also some special prizes, such as the best newcomer.

The evaluation is carried out by an international jury of engineers, racing drivers and representatives of industry.

The project to build a competitive race car is a great challenge for each individual and for the entire team. The abilities to work under pressure and as a team are always trained and tested. Therefore, our members develop soft skills required by the industry, such as negotiation skills, leadership qualities and organizational talent.

In our team dreams come true: Building a real race car and successfully participating in international racing competitions.  

Do you have any questions? Then please contact us directly: leaders@runningsnail.oth-aw.de