PEP Boat Building Competition

The Promoting Electric Propulsion (PEP) program is a national workforce development initiative sponsored by the Office of Naval Research and administered by the American Society of Naval Engineers. Student teams design, analyze, fabricate, integrate, test, and race an electric-powered crewed or uncrewed surface craft while applying mechanical, electrical, manufacturing, controls, naval architecture, and systems engineering principles. The project follows a complete engineering lifecycle, including concept development, computer modeling, component selection, fabrication, systems integration, validation testing, technical documentation, and public demonstration at a national competition. UIUC is building off of many years of successful iteration and improvement.
Students also interact with Navy engineers and industry mentors while presenting their engineering decisions through white papers and technical discussions. The program is specifically designed to prepare graduates for careers supporting the maritime and defense industrial base.
Students will design, build, and race a boat for a competition in or near Bremerton, Washington in April 2027.

***This project is conducting remote interviews. Please see remote interview sheet on BrightSpace (D2L) to schedule a time to speak to the sponsor.***