Competitor Information

This is the ninth Engineering Sketches Prize run by the Engineering Club in association with D R A W I N G A T W O R K.

The Engineering Sketches Prize encourages the greater use of hand-drawing techniques to communicate knowledge, design and ideas in engineering. It is an opportunity for the profession to get together to share examples and compare skills, rewarding the best examples of engineering drawing in a number of categories.

Who can enter?

Entrants can be from any design or construction discipline – both engineering and non-engineering, as long as the subject of their drawing/drawings is of an engineering nature. Students may enter but Student Prizes are awarded in a separate event run later. Entrants can submit multiple sketches from different projects, but be wary of overloading the judging process.

The competition is free to enter.

By joining the competition entrants give consent to their drawings being used in Engineering Club and D R A W I N G A T W O R K publicity and educational material.

Key dates

Closing date for entries: Thursday 21 September 2023.

Prize-giving and exhibition launch: Thursday 12 October 2023. This will involve the announcement of prizes and a short presentation by a guest speaker. Prize giving and exhibition of entries will take place as part of the Engineers Create exhibition running in October 2023.

Prizes

The judges will award two main prizes:
-the best overall sketch by members and non-members

The judges will be looking for drawings that show a combination of technical knowledge, sketching skill, and invention in the way engineering ideas are communicated and explained.

In addition, there will be a Commended Prize in each of the following categories:

Concept Sketch - or group of sketches: an explanation of a design proposal for a project or a construction element. This is a sketch or combination of sketches which presents ideas, strategies and systems for a project which, at the time of the sketch, has not yet been built. In the past, entries have ranged from minimal engineering idea sketches, to multiple structural and environmental engineering proposals.

Process Sketch - showing how an idea is worked through to produce a conclusive construction brief. These sketches may be procedural sequences that tell the story of a design development. They may show construction sequencing. They may include combinations of section, single point perspective, isometric, oblique, exploded diagrams etc.

The Detail Sketch - showing the explanation of a detailed engineering solution in the design office or on site. For example, site notebook sketches which resolve design issues where the detail is not apparent on the drawings. These sketches are often immediate and informal (“quick and dirty”) and are used to communicate how something can be laid out or put together.

Historical Studies - which record the engineering aspects of an existing building, object, system or mechanism. Examples in previous competitions have included ancient buildings, vehicles, favourite pieces of contemporary architecture and studies of engineering objects and mechanical systems.

Digital Sketching - This is a new category for sketches in all the categories above but originating as a hand drawn sketch on a digital device or tablet.

There will be two main prizes of £250 for the best hand drawn sketch in both the professional and student categories as part of a total prize fund of up to £2,000.

How to Enter

Each entry should have an informative title and should be accompanied, either in a covering note or on the drawing itself, by a short sentence explaining the intention of the sketch. 

Entries should be submitted in A4 or A3 pdf format and no larger than 5Mb. Please note that, unlike in previous years, sketches will be judged and exhibited online which favours a size and format that can be easily viewed on screen.

Please submit your entries using an ftp site, such as WeTransfer to events@engineeringclub.org.uk and provide the following information:
Name  
Company / Educational institution
Discipline 
Category and short description of the sketch/es submitted.

Competition Judges for Engineering Sketches 2023:
Susan Mantle, Technical Director, Heyne Tillett Steel.
Trevor Flynn, Drawing at Work
Andrew Scoones, The Engineering Club