It’s that time of year again for the University of Waterloo’s Submarine Racing Team – international competitions for their WatSub are set to soon begin. With a new submarine design in place, they’re getting ready to suit up, dive in, and race against university teams from around the world.

   The WatSub team has come a long way from its roots in a 2014 engineering project. Growing to over 100 members, students have designed and redesigned their submarine in efforts to shave time off their race numbers while maintaining the required safety and performance standards. Their submarine – “Bolt,” as it’s named – was officially unveiled for the 2017 season on Thursday, June 1^st.

   As the WatSub team says, "Everything is simple, until you go underwater."

    Designing a working submarine is no easy task, and that’s before you even think about all the details involved. Bolt needs to accommodate a pilot, be transported around the world, and cut through the water with speed, to name a few of the requirements if the WatSub team is to be a serious competitor.

    To help squeeze even more performance out of their design, the team has been using Maple to fine tune and optimize some of their most important structural components. At Maplesoft, we’ve been excited to maintain our sponsorship of the WatSub team as they continue to find new ways to push Bolt’s performance even further.

   The 2017 design unveiling on June 1st. After adding decals and final touches, Bolt will soon be ready to race.

   This year, the WatSub team has given their sub a whole new design, machining new body parts, optimizing the weight distribution of their gearbox, and installing a redesigned propeller system. Using Maple, they could go deep into design trade-offs early, and come away knowing the optimal gearbox design for their submarine.

   In just over a month, the WatSub team will take Bolt across the pond and compete in the European International Submarine Races (eISR). Many teams competing have been in existence for well over a decade, but the leaps and strides taken by the WatSub team have made them a serious competitor for this year.

  Best of luck to the WatSub team and their submarine, Bolt – we’re all rooting for you!