Frimley, UK, 2015-Mar-10
Big Bang 2014
A half scale model of the Mars ‘Curiosity’ Rover will be showcased on the Siemens stand. Siemens software technology was instrumental in helping NASA to design, develop, simulate, test and build this incredible spacecraft – and to find answers to questions hundreds of scientists are waiting for. Visitors will be able to view the Mars Rover and take selfies.
The Big Bang Fair, organised by Engineering UK, will celebrate young people’s achievements in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) and encourage them to investigate the diverse and exciting careers which use these important subjects every day business life.
Siemens will also be launching its Curiosity Project website - www.siemens.co.uk/curiosity-project at the Fair which is set to inspire five million young people through the promotion of science and engineering. The website will be segmented into resources for teachers and parents as well as for young people, building on the success of Siemens award winning education portal. It will also include the introduction of a new blog with resident blogger Curtis who will be talking about STEM in a fun and engaging way – https://blogs.siemens.com/curiosity-project. To mark the launch, Siemens will be running a prize draw (Wednesday 11th March- Thursday 30th April) aimed at UK secondary school teachers offering the chance to win a car kit from Greenpower worth almost £2800 and Siemens CAD software.
Greenpower not only uses the same Siemens software as the Mars Rover, but fits seamlessly into the Curiosity Project as the charity has the same aims of inspiring young people into engineering.
About the Curiosity Project and Siemens Education
For the next three years as part of the Curiosity Project, Siemens is supporting five major science and related festivals throughout the UK, each with a clear ambition to reach out to parents, teachers and students to make the world of science available in a fun and engaging way.
The investment is in response to engineering companies needing 1.86 million people with engineering skills from 2010-2020 (according to Engineering UK). Therefore the UK needs to double the numbers of engineering related apprentices and graduates coming out of colleges and universities.
To support this, the UK needs to double the number of young people studying GSCE physics as part of triple sciences and grow the number of students studying physics A level to match those of maths.
Siemens has also increased and streamlined its free online engineering education resources launched in 2013 as part of this project www.siemens.co.uk/education which underpins the Curiosity Project. Aimed at the UK’s 21,000 primary and 5,000 secondary schools, the resources have already been rolled out to 5,000 schools across the country in its first year with the aim of reaching 4.5 million pupils by 2016.
Juergen Maier, Chief Executive, Siemens plc said: “I’m extremely proud that Siemens is engaging young students, teachers and parents all across the UK both in and out the classroom, unlocking the exciting potential of a career in engineering. We want to inspire a generation to be comfortable with science stereotypes of people working in science, allowing us to highlight inspiring mentors, exciting careers and fascinating research and technology.
I am confident that Siemens and our partners in this area can make a significant difference.”
-Ends-
Media contacts
Laura Bennett
Tel: 07808 823598
Email: laura.bennett@siemens.com
For further information, please see: www.siemens.co.uk/press
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About Siemens
Siemens AG (Berlin and Munich) is a global technology powerhouse that has stood for engineering excellence, innovation, quality, reliability and internationality for more than 165 years. The company is active in more than 200 countries, focusing on the areas of electrification, automation and digitalization. One of the world’s largest producers of energy-efficient, resource-saving technologies, Siemens is No. 1 in offshore wind turbine construction, a leading supplier of combined cycle turbines for power generation, a major provider of power transmission solutions and a pioneer in infrastructure solutions as well as automation, drive and software solutions for industry. The company is also a leading provider of medical imaging equipment – such as computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging systems – and a leader in laboratory diagnostics as well as clinical IT. In fiscal 2014, which ended on September 30, 2014, Siemens generated revenue from continuing operations of €71.9 billion and net income of €5.5 billion. At the end of September 2014, the company had around 357,000 employees worldwide. Further information is available on the Internet at www.siemens.com.
Notes to editors:
The Curiosity Project by Siemens encompasses the following:
- Sponsorship of 4 major UK Science festivals until 2017:
British Science Festival
Manchester Science Festival
Edinburgh International Science Festival
The Times Cheltenham Science Festival
- Sponsorship of Manchester International Festival 2015
- The Siemens Education Portal - dedicated to helping enrich and enhance teaching and learning in schools across the UK. In particular we aim to support science, engineering, technology and maths (STEM) subjects and help develop employability skills http://www.siemens.co.uk/education
- Existing major donor sponsorship of the QEPrize - Engineers tackle big global issues, design our cities, create our water, energy and communications systems and sustain our economies. The QEPrize for Engineering is a £1 million prize that celebrates the engineers responsible for a ground-breaking innovation that has been of global benefit to humanity.
- Continuation of Siemens UK and the Crystal sponsorship of the Mayor of London’s annual Low Carbon Entrepreneur Award. It is a £20,000 prize awarded to the successful London-based student/s that have come up with the low-carbon concept the panel of judges decide is the best. The prize money goes towards bringing the winning concept to reality
- Sponsorship of Royal Photographic Society “images for Science” competition and touring exhibition at locations throughout the year
- Continuation of existing sponsorship of Greenpower - Siemens has been supporting Greenpower with sponsorship and volunteers since 2009 to encourage more students to consider engineering as a career. The Greenpower initiative is open to students of all ages, from primary school level to university undergraduates. The charity runs three race championships – Goblins (9-11 year olds), IET Formula 24 (11-16 year olds) and IET Formula 24+ (16-24 year olds) – in which students design and build all-electric race cars for the series. http://www.greenpower.co.uk
- 3 year research programme with students, teachers and parents
- Sponsorship of up to 1,600 state school teachers to benefit from The Prince's Teaching Institute programmes, inspiring more effective and rigorous teaching in Maths and Science. www.princes-ti.org.uk
- Continuation of existing sponsorship of The Big Bang Fair (75,000 school visitors over 4 days)
- Continuation of existing sponsorship of Greenpower electric car challenge (600 schools and 10,000 students – 60% more engaged with STEM after taking part)
- Continuation of existing sponsorship of the Museum of Science & Industry, MOSI
- Continuation of existing sponsorship of ‘atmosphere: exploring climate science’ at the Science Museum in London (until 2015)
- Continued investment into the interactive exhibition at the Crystal; a Siemens initiative in Newham, London
Upcoming key dates:
| Date | Event supported by Siemens |
| 4 - 19 April 2015 | Edinburgh Science Festival |
| 2 - 7 June 2014 | Times Cheltenham Science Festival |
| 2 - 19 July 2015 | Manchester International Festival |
About the British Science Festival
The British Science Festival is one of Europe’s largest science festivals and regularly attracts over 350 of the UK’s top scientists and speakers to discuss the latest developments in science with the public. Over 50,000 visitors attend the talks, discussions and workshops. The Festival takes place at a different location each year and was last held in Birmingham in 2010. The 2014 Festival will take place from 6 - 11 September hosted by the University of Birmingham. For further information, visit www.britishsciencefestival.org @BritishSciFest #BSF14
About the British Science Association
The British Science Association (BSA) believes that science should be part of – rather than set apart from – society and culture, and is owned by the wider community. Our programmes encourage people of all ages and backgrounds to engage with science, become ambassadors for science, and ultimately to be empowered to challenge and influence British science - whether they work in science or not.
Established in 1831, the BSA is a registered charity that organises major initiatives across the UK, including National Science & Engineering Week, the annual British Science Festival, regional and local events, the CREST Awards and other programmes for young people in schools and colleges. The BSA also organises specific activities for professional science communicators, including a specialist conference and training. For more information, please visit www.britishscienceassociation.org
About The Prince’s Teaching Institute
The Prince’s Teaching Institute (PTI) is an organisation run by teachers for teachers. It aims to inspire teachers in their subject disciplines, to develop subject expertise, and to give them the confidence to introduce their pupils to challenging material.
Working in secondary schools in England and Wales, the PTI has activities for all levels in schools. For headteachers and senior leadership teams, it has a Schools Leadership Programme and Headteachers’ Residentials to explore ‘what works in schools’, sharing good practice in promoting effective teaching and learning and good school curriculum design. The Schools Programme and Summer Schools are for subject leaders and include a membership scheme which enriches a department’s subject provision both inside and outside the classroom. The one-day courses are subject-based Continuing Professional Development courses for all teachers. The New Teachers’ Subject Days courses are for teacher trainees, newly qualified teachers as well as second and third-year teachers.
HRH The Prince of Wales established his first Education Summer School in 2002, with the aim of bringing together teachers of English and History from secondary state schools and giving them the opportunity to discuss why their subjects were important, what should be taught and how. The success of that Summer School led to the formation of The Prince’s Teaching Institute (PTI) of which The Prince of Wales is President.
