Three Delphi Teams Make it to Championship Round At FIRST Robotics Competition 2000
10 April 2000
Three Delphi Teams Make it to Championship Round At FIRST Robotics Competition 2000 Students Earn Scholarships
ORLANDO, Fla., April 10 Three teams from Delphi Automotive
Systems made it to the final championship round Saturday, April 8,
at the national FIRST robotics competition held at Disney World's EPCOT
Center. They competed in a field of 270 teams. Team Delphi ELITE, from
Warren G. Harding High School in Warren, Ohio; the TechnoKats from Kokomo High
School in Kokomo, Ind.; and Chief Delphi, representing Pontiac Central High
School in Pontiac, Mich., maneuvered their robots to the final round.
In an awards program following the competition, the TechnoKats of Kokomo
High School received the FIRST Creativity Award for their effective use of
materials in building their robot, and Chief Delphi of Pontiac Central High
School was recognized as one of five nominees for the prestigious FIRST
Chairman's Award. Chief Delphi was nominated for demonstrating leadership,
pride, integrity and team spirit and also for creating spirit for their team
in their community.
Additionally, students Vincent A. Cothern of the Kokomo, Ind. TechnoKats,
Team 45, and Lonnie Newton, Jr. from Saginaw, Mich.'s Delphi Knights, Team 49,
each earned a four-year, $20,000 scholarship to Kettering University in Flint,
Mich., for their leadership and innovation.
The FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology)
robotics competition was established in 1989 to inspire students to study
engineering, science and mathematics. Students begin designing, building and
testing robots in January. The robots are created from a kit of parts
consisting of a microprocessor, radio-frequency transmitters and receivers,
electrical components, motors, batteries and other hardware. The teams have
six weeks to complete their robots.
According to J.T. Battenberg III, Delphi chairman, CEO and president, the
competition was fast-paced, exciting and fun: "All of the teams demonstrated
teamwork, innovation and a desire to think strategically," he said. "It was a
great competition."
"The program allows engineers, teachers and students to learn more about
science and technology under real-world conditions -- and that's the best way
to learn," Battenberg said.
This year Delphi sponsored six teams at the national event:
* Chief Delphi, Pontiac Central High School, Pontiac, Mich., Delphi
Interior Systems, Team 47.
* Circuit Stompers, Newfane High School, Newfane, N.Y., Delphi Thermal
Systems, Team 378.
* Delphi ELITE, Warren G. Harding High School, Warren, Ohio, Delphi
Packard Electric Systems, Team 48.
* Delphi Knights, Buena Vista High School, Saginaw, Mich., Delphi Saginaw
Steering Systems, Team 49.
* Knight Riders, Flint Southwestern Academy, Flint, Mich., Delphi Energy
& Chassis Systems, Team 397.
* TechnoKats, Kokomo High School, Kokomo, Ind., Delphi Delco Electronics
Systems, Team 45.
Delphi also co-sponsored three teams:
* General Motors Controls, Robotics and Welding and Troy High School,
Troy, Mich., Team 226;
* Rapistan Systems/X-rite and Grandville High School, Grandville, Mich.,
Team 288;
* GM Truck Group, Flint Assembly and UAW Local 598 and Carman-Ainsworth
High School, Flint, Mich., Team 314.
More than 18,000 students competed in this three-day event with the first-
place, three-team alliance formed by: Team 25, Raider Robotics of North
Brunswick Township High School in North Brunswick, N.J., and sponsored by
Bristol-Myers Squibb; Team 232 from Vintage High School in Napa, Calif.,
sponsored by NASA Ames Research and Napa Pipe; and Team 255, Odyssey of
Foothills High School in Foothills, Calif., also sponsored by NASA Ames
Research.
Delphi awarded its "Driving Tomorrow's Technology" award to the Space
Coast FIRST team, Team 233, sponsored by NASA/Lockheed Martin/Dynacs &
Rockledge High School & Cocoa Beach High School in Cocoa Beach, Fla., for
having the most elegant and advantageous machine features.
Photographs from FIRST Robotics Competition 2000 are available at
http://www.delphiauto.com . Click on the VPR hot button.
Delphi Automotive Systems, headquartered in Troy, Mich., is a multi-
national leader in transportation and mobile electronics components and
systems technology. Delphi's three business sectors -- Dynamics & Propulsion;
Safety, Thermal & Electrical Architecture; and Electronics & Mobile
Communication -- provide comprehensive product solutions to complex customers
needs. Delphi has approximately 214,200 employees, and operates 178 wholly
owned manufacturing sites, 41 joint ventures, 53 customers centers and sales
offices and 27 technical centers in 39 countries. Regional headquarters are
located in Paris, Tokyo, and Sao Paulo Brazil. Delphi can be found on the
Internet at http://www.delphiauto.com
