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Students from Biloela State High School and Redeemer Lutheran College are building their bright futures as they design and construct model hydraulic arms at a Queensland Minerals and Energy Academy (QMEA) workshop today.

Thanks to support from Batchfire Resources, about 25 grade eight and nine students are bolstering their creative design, engineering, and problem-solving skills as they participate in a workshop delivered by the QMEA, the education arm of the Queensland Resources Council (QRC).

QRC Director of Skills, Education and Diversity, Ms Katrina-Lee Jones said Heavy Hydraulics is a unique educational experience linked with the Australian Science Curriculum, highlighting the wonders of physics in a resources-related context.

“Engineers and industrial designers, including in the resources sector, must factor in functionality and usability when designing and creating solutions to problems, and common components or standardized modular solutions are often included in the design process,” Ms Jones said.

“Hydraulic devices use non-compressible fluids like hydraulic fluid, or in today’s workshop, water to transfer force through a system, which in turn generates movement.

“Today is an opportunity for the students to investigate how creative design and fundamental physics principles can make an otherwise difficult task safer, easier, and more efficient.”

Batchfire Resources CEO, Mr Allan Fidock, said the resources and energy sector is always open to passionate and enthusiastic young people who want to build upon their science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) skills.

“This workshop is all about inspiring the next generation to continue STEM studies, leading them to an exciting and rewarding career with Batchfire Resources or in the wider resources sector,” Mr Fidock said.

“I am very pleased that Batchfire’s partnership with QMEA is giving these Biloela students firsthand experience of how their classroom learning can be applied to solve real-world challenges.”

Biloela State High School Principal, Ms Natasha Bunn said this is the second STEM-focussed QMEA engagement the school has eagerly hosted in the last fortnight alone.

“The activities in Heavy Hydraulics allow our students to put their tangible STEM skills to the test while also helping them further develop professional skills like collaborating, reading and comprehending technical instructions, and using new-found knowledge to solve problems,” Ms Bunn said.

“As educators, we’re dedicated to preparing these young men and women for life after school, and today’s workshop is showing them just how relevant their school studies are for the real world.”

As Australia’s largest and most successful industry-led education and schools training initiative, the QMEA seeks to broaden student and teacher knowledge of career opportunities in resources.

The academy encourages a talent pipeline of employees into vocational and professional careers, with a focus on female and Indigenous participation. The QMEA currently engages with 90 schools and is a partnership between the QRC and the Queensland Government under its Gateway to Industry Schools program.