21/07/2021
The TITAN Efkarpia plant welcomed the ROBONERDS to an interactive two-day educational event that encouraged innovation, exploration and automation
Through guided tours and simulation exercises, our goal at the TITAN Efkarpia plant was to inspire children to continue innovating and dreaming of tomorrow’s world.
ROBONERDS, the winning team in the Robot Design category of the Panhellenic Robotics and Innovation FIRST® LEGO® League Championship, had the opportunity to travel from Heraklion, Crete, to Thessaloniki and visit the TITAN Efkarpia plant. During two full days in early July, the team of 7 students aged 11 to 13 were able to get to know how a cement plant works, to learn about its history and main operations, and to tour the city of Thessaloniki, enjoying a variety of activities.
As part of the educational initiatives it continuously supports, the TITAN Efkarpia team welcomed the young ROBONERDS and their two coaches, having designed a full programme of informational meetings, interactive exercises, as well as guided tours around the premises. The goal of the two-day event was for the young students to understand how everything they envision and design in the field of robotics applies to real conditions and the production process of a plant. In this framework, the Efkarpia plant team set up a simulation exercise where the children took the lead so that they could understand the importance of automation in a modern plant. The simulation exercise presented to the students all the steps required from notification of a malfunction to understanding it, evaluating it and ultimately repairing the damage. Through this process, ROBONERDS had to work intelligently and methodically to implement everything they had learned, while they were also required to take initiative and provide solutions to the problem they faced.
During their visit, the young guests received information about the plant’s operations, its local contribution, the environmental actions implemented, as well as the Health and Safety measures taken. At the same time, during a tour of the plant’s facilities, they had the opportunity to talk to employees from different departments and get to know the plant's entire chain of operation. They also toured the world of science through the games and experiments of the interactive “Doctor Why?” programme that the Company implements in collaboration with “DIMOKRITOS,” the country’s top research centre.
Speaking about the visit, the TITAN Efkarpia Plant Manager, Kostas Nikolaou, stated: “ROBONERDS impressed us all with their original ideas and unique way of thinking. The patience and perseverance they demonstrated during the simulation exercise was remarkable. Through the guided tours and practice offered, our goal at the TITAN Efkarpia plant was to provide children with the opportunity to experience the daily life of an automation engineer, to enrich the STEM knowledge they have acquired, and to inspire them to continue innovating and dreaming of tomorrow’s world. Over this two-day visit, as we do every single day, we felt that we had a great responsibility toward young people. At the same time, we were very pleased to witness their enthusiasm! We will be happy to host ROBONERDS again in the future, and I am certain that by then they will have designed even more innovative automations.”
Konstantinos Vasileiou, a teacher and the Founder and President of EduAct, expressed his deep satisfaction at the promotion of STEM and technology through activities of this kind: “The first-hand experience gained by the winners of the Robot Design category of the Panhellenic Robotics and Innovation FIRST® LEGO® League Championship can have excellent results in understanding the functioning of automations that the children have made themselves, and how they can apply them to real-life problems or services.”
During the two-day event, the students and their coaches also enjoyed guided tours of historical neighbourhoods and districts of the city of Thessaloniki, such as the Kastra (Castles) area, the Ancient Agora, the Rotunda and the White Tower.
The Panhellenic Robotics and Innovation FIRST® LEGO® League Championship was held online during the weekend of 29-30 May, with the participation of teams from all over Greece. The Greek Championship is organised by the Non-Profit Organisation “Action for Education - EduAct”. The ROBONERDS team, with students from the Cretan Robotic & Science Academy, won first place in the Robot Design category and received the “Design Excellence” award and a free trip to the TITAN Efkarpia plant in Thessaloniki, sponsored by the plant.
A brief video of the children’s experience can be found here: https://www.titan.gr/el/newsroom/vivliothiki/video
More information on Titan’s actions for youth is available at: https://www.titan.gr/el/viwsimh-anaptuksh/youth-matters
More information on the EduAct robotics competitions is available at: https://educationunlimited.gr/leagues-challenges/