Student and chassis engineer: Jedrzej on joining Electric Superbike Twente

At EST, we develop electric racing motorcycles to push the future of sustainable racing.

For me, EST was the student team that stood out the most. I’ve always had an interest in motorcycles, and the chance to work on a vehicle capable of extreme speeds immediately appealed to me. One of the fastest bikes we’ve built can go over 300 kilometres per hour, and I haven’t heard of any other student team that can build vehicles this fast.

Besides, the team is a great way to gain practical experience early on in my studies. It’s pretty close to what your actual work as an engineer might be like.

As a chassis engineer, I’m responsible for designing the bike’s bodywork. That means working on the external form of the motorcycle, while also dealing with the technical realities of manufacturing and integration with the rest of the bike. To do this, I work a lot with composites, surfacing, and 3D modelling.

This year, one of the biggest changes to the bike lies in the battery pack. We switched from pouch cells to cylindrical cells, which significantly reduced the battery weight – around 20 kilograms, which is huge in racing. On top of that, we’re making the entire main frame out of aluminium for the first time, as it was made out of just steel previously. Ultimately, we’re aiming for a 35 kg reduction in total.

Besides, our bike features a direct drive, which is uncommon in the competition we partake in; a lot of the other student teams still work with a gearbox to offset the motor axle. Not using a gearbox is more efficient and lighter, but of course, it comes with its own challenges, such as alignment between the swing arm and the motor.

Communicating with other people and working together. It’s the biggest project I’ve ever done, and it doesn’t really compare to what we’ve done in the study programme so far. Unlike coursework in Mechanical Engineering, the bike is a full system, where nearly every component depends on another. So, that’s definitely a challenge. It was also a struggle to decide on a common goal as a team, because everyone wanted to get something different out of joining EST.

I’ve learned a lot about the reality of the engineering practice. A lot of the things you learn are industry standard; for example, I think I really developed in CAD modelling. I was decent before the team, but you really start learning when you put it into practice. But it’s not just about the technical experience you gain. Working in a student team means constant communication, adjustment, and collaboration across subteams. You find out a lot about yourself and what your future work might look like.

Recently, we assembled our positive 3D-printed mould of the tank and tail, which is the part I have spent a lot of time working on. It was really exciting to see it come together on a real scale. The best part is obviously going to be the fully done carbon fibre part, but this is already quite exciting.

I think it’s definitely worth it. It’s the best choice I could have made this year!