46 Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS (UTP) students from the Mechanical Engineering programme has set the Malaysia Book of Records (MBOR) for the most number of stick bombs. The stick bombs comprised of 30,050 sticks with 703.2 metres in length.
To set the MBOR, the students need to set off a stick bomb with a minimum of 20,000 sticks and 500 metres in length.
A stick bomb is a (mechanical) spring-loaded device constructed out of flat sticks woven together held under pressure. The stick bomb is constructed by crossing two sticks into an "x" shape. When a key stick is removed, the entire structure flies apart by chain reaction displaying basic principles of physics and kinetic energy.
"We have been preparing for this project since October last year. The main challenge is to ensure that everyone master the weaving of the sticks. In addition, the sticks are highly sensitive to weather, they will be deformed if we use them too many times," said Nur Shamilah Shadun Zubiar, the project manager.
"The time taken to weave the stick bomb also plays an integral part, if it is more than six hours, the sticks will not move," she added.
The event was organised by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers UTP Student Chapter with Associate Professor Dr Mokhtar Awang as the advisor.
It provided a platform for engineering students to develop both their technical and soft skills and apply them in the real world. It also helped equip students with the ability to synthesise issues and communicate effectively to diverse audiences as well as develop and practice skills required in the workplace.
In April last year, UTP successfully made it into the MBOR for the first time for the longest great ball contraption machine.
52 students from Chemical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Civil Engineering and Computer and Information Sciences were involved in the making of the machine. It is 26.18 metre-long and incorporates 50 engineering, scientific and programming concepts. It consisted of 21 stations that generate a chain of actions by showcasing 34 basic principles of physics.
