Chandigarh Students Cut Hexacopter Weight 87.5%
Chandigarh University students cut hexacopter landing structure weight by 87.5% and won Rs. 2.5 lakh at ASME IMECE India 2026.
By Academic Writing Club Newsroom
Chandigarh University mechanical engineering students reduced a hexacopter landing structure’s mass by 87.5%, from 6.26 kg to 0.785 kg, in a competition at ASME IMECE India 2026 in Chennai. The six-member Mech Minds United team won second prize in Brain Bolt-The Engineer’s Sprint 2026 and MechanIQ-The Engineers’ Quiz, receiving a combined Rs. 2.5 lakh. More than 400 teams entered the first round of Brain Bolt, with 60 teams shortlisted for later rounds. The result follows the team’s first-place finish in Brain Bolt at ASME IMECE India 2025.
Hexacopter Design Challenge
Siemens Technology and Services Pvt. Ltd. set the structural engineering challenge, asking teams to redesign an industrial hexacopter landing structure for metal additive manufacturing. The task required a lighter design while maintaining load-carrying capacity, stiffness, and structural integrity.
Mech Minds United used topology optimization, lattice design, FEA validation, and DfAM principles. The project exceeded the 50% mass-reduction target and earned Rs. 2 lakh in Brain Bolt.
Quiz Prize Adds To Result
The team also won Rs. 50,000 for second place in MechanIQ-The Engineers’ Quiz. The contest tested participants’ technical knowledge and engineering aptitude.
Deepinder Singh Sandhu, Senior Managing Director at Chandigarh University, said:
“We are immensely proud of Mech Minds United for achieving a remarkable double podium finish at ASME IMECE India 2026.”
What It Means For Students
The six final-year students, SM Nafis Ahmad, Mohit Mishra, Akhand Pratap Singh Rana, Krishna Kumar Jha, Vishwa Raj Singh, and Ghulam Waris Warsi, worked through three rounds based on 15 industry-relevant problem statements during a 24-hour sprint.
