KONGSBERG and NTNU take responsibility

By arranging an innovative student competition, KONGSBERG and the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) would like to draw attention to the need for skilled engineers.

KONGSBERG and NTNU in Trondheim, Norway, share a common challenge: the student drop-out rate is high on the one hand and there are formidable global challenges to be met on the other. As part of a campaign to motivate students to complete their engineering degrees, KONGSBERG and NTNU are joining forces to organise a competition that will put students' creativity and innovative abilities to the test.

The competition "Extreme solutions for extreme conditions – Your Extreme" is scheduled for kick off on 14 - 16 November. November 8th there was a kick off at NTNU. First prize will be a tour for the winning team to KONGSBERG's installations on Svalbard, among other places, and a meeting with experts at the Norwegian Polar Institute in exotic Ny-Ålesund.

NTNU - you're extreme

“Knowledge is Norway's most important raw material, meaning that NTNU and KONGSBERG are important to the country's future. As Norway's foremost technology enterprise, KONGSBERG, along with NTNU, aspires to help reduce the drop-out rate for engineering students and recruit more people to study science", explains Sverre Gotaas, Vice President Business Development at KONGSBERG. 

In need of good technological ideas

A number of the serious global challenges facing the world call for sophisticated technological solutions. Such solutions are also necessary to engage in commercial activities in the High North. Oil companies are moving their operations to deeper water and locations with more extreme weather conditions, including ice, freezing temperatures and strong winds. That creates a need for advanced technology that enables companies to operate and navigate in frozen waters and under extreme conditions.

Commercial activity in these vulnerable areas also requires good knowledge about how the activity will impact the environment. For many years, KONGSBERG has been a key player in the High North, providing services ranging from monitoring the seabed and the water column to satellite and surveillance technology from pole to pole. Systems for integrated environmental monitoring are an important target area for the Group.

NTNU and KONGSBERG are already working together on several projects in these areas, but more innovation is needed.

“There are social, environmental and technological challenges facing commercial activity in the High North. We would like to see students' suggestion for solutions related to these important issues", continues Sverre Gotaas.

“Through this competition, students can see in actual practice that the basic knowledge they learn in the early years of their studies is important. We are always in the market for new talent", comments Ingeborg Sivertsen, Vice President Corporate HR at KONGSBERG.

Career Day in January

Experts from KONGSBERG and NTNU will provide support along the way. In addition to the competition in November, KONGSBERG is moving its annual executive management meeting to Trondheim and cooperating with NTNU to organise a Career Day on 17 January. On that day, the top executives from the entire KONGSBERG system will be available for informal talks with NTNU students.