The
Manufacturing Technologies Association (MTA) has announced the winners of the 2026 Technology, Design & Innovation (TDI) Challenge.
The national final took place in July at
Yamazaki Mazak’s European headquarters in Worcester, where young innovators presented their projects to a panel of industry experts.
Siddarth Santosh, from St John’s College, Cardiff, won the Key Stage 4 category with ‘Plane Aero’, a self-sufficient, airport-compliant vertical-axis wind turbine designed to power runway lights using renewable energy.
Designed for installation in safe airport buffer areas, Plane Aero aims to reduce carbon emissions, electricity costs and reliance on fossil fuels. Its omnidirectional design maximises efficiency while limiting noise, glare and radar interference.
Owen Exon, from Droitwich Spa High School and Sixth Form Centre, won the Key Stage 5 category with his ‘Accessible Modular Electronic Musical Instrument’.
The handheld instrument uses universal design to make playing music more accessible, considering physical interaction alongside practical factors such as cost and repairability. Owen combined CAD modelling, 3D printing and woodworking with electronics and coding to create the finished product.
Chief Judge Mark Wood, chair of the education and development committee and social sustainability lead at
Siemens, said: “These winners demonstrate exactly why the TDI Challenge matters. Siddarth’s Plane Aero combines smart design, sustainability and genuine industrial potential, while Owen’s accessible instrument uses outstanding coding and universal design to connect technology with music.
“Both projects were imaginative, technically accomplished and focused on making a real-world difference. The standard of the finalists gives us enormous confidence in the next generation of UK engineering talent.”
Danny Reed, education and skills manager at the MTA, said: “The quality and ambition of this year’s projects were exceptional. Every finalist combined creativity with hard work, showing just how exciting the future of UK engineering can be.
“We are enormously grateful to the
Gene Haas Foundation, the Imagineering Foundation, the Royal Navy and our hosts Yamazaki Mazak for helping us give these talented young people the recognition they deserve.”
Andrew Ward, director at Haas Automation added: “The 2026 TDI competition was another triumph to showcase the design and engineering talent being nurtured and supported across the UK in schools and UTC’s and something the Gene Haas Foundation is proud to support, this being the third successive year.
“The judging for 2026 was the most difficult I’ve seen so far with strong entries in both KS4 and KS5 levels; worthy winners being determined by their recognition and adoption of the three pillars of the competition being Technology, Design and Innovation (TDI) and I hope both winners, all the finalists and all of the heat entries across the competition, continue their technology and engineering journeys into rewarding careers within this dynamic sector of UK industry.”
The winners, together with the other top-three finalists from each category, will receive an exclusive experience at the TGR Haas F1 Team’s UK factory in Banbury in September or October 2026.
The prize includes a factory tour, an insight into team operations and race preparation during an F1 season, the opportunity to hear from members of the team, and dedicated career and educational activities.
Open to young people aged 14–19, the TDI Challenge encourages entrants to develop working models and prototypes that demonstrate creativity, technical skill and design excellence. Through regional events and the national final, participants receive valuable feedback, exposure and recognition from engineering and manufacturing experts.
Pic: TDI Winners Siddarth Santosh and Owen Exon with Andrew Ward from Haas Automation