USM Archive: Rob Edwards
USM26 marks the construction of USM’s 25th car (due to a rather convoluted numbering system), and to mark this milestone we’re speaking to former members about their experience as part of Formula Student.
Earlier this month, the team sat down with Robert Edwards – one of the first members of USM and now Head of Suspension, Steering and Brakes at Williams Racing. Rob shared stories from the team’s early days in 1999, when USM was just an ambitious student project with no funding, limited facilities, and a lot of determination.
When Rob joined the team as a second-year student in 1999, there wasn’t much to inherit.
“I didn’t start the team, but I was there pretty much from the beginning, I started out in the suspension group and then very quickly was leading that group in my third year. Then I led the team in my final year [2001] – that was the first year we actually got a car to competition.”
Rob Edwards on the early days in USM
At the time, only a few UK universities had Formula Student teams. “Leeds University led the way. They’d entered Formula SAE in the US, and the UK competition started up not long after we got going.”
Finding somewhere to work was one of the team’s first major hurdles. “There was a room in the corner of the engineering common room in the James Weir Building – but it was basically a dumping ground for junk,” he said. “We got permission to clear it out and make it our office. That became our base.”
Support from the university was mixed in the early years, but one name stood out.
“Cameron Johnstone was a huge part of it,” Rob said. Cameron Johnstone – now head of the Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering department at Strathclyde – was the team’s first faculty advisor. “The team wouldn’t exist without him – he dealt with all the nonsense we threw at him.”
The team’s first engine was a challenge in itself. “It was the first one we’d had and it had an immobiliser. We spent ages trying to get it running, and when it finally fired up, we were absolutely delighted. It was one of those moments where it all suddenly felt real.”
With little money and limited access to equipment, the team learned to be resourceful. “We had to be quite creative in terms of how we got access to things. We found ways to get the work done.”
That determination carried the team through to their first competition at the NEC. “We had no right to get a car ready for 2001,” Rob said. “We were so underprepared, but it was just real force of will and human glue that got it together – sleeping on the floor in James Weir. It was crazy.”
Looking back, Rob says those years taught him more than any class ever could. “I got more out of the team than I did out of my degree. You learn how to deal with people, solve problems, and keep going when everything seems impossible. That’s what engineering really is.”
Although the car only completed half a lap before breaking down, it represented a turning point. “We were told by certain people that we weren’t going to get there,” he said. “But once we had a car, the difference was immediate. The university started to treat us differently.”
More than two decades later, Rob’s advice for new members is simple: get involved and commit to it.
“The biggest thing I would say is throw yourself into it. Don’t be shy – be humble, but make sure that you do commit to it.”
“There are a lot of Formula Student teams now. When you’re in a position where you’re recruiting, it becomes obvious who’s really thrown themselves at it and who just had it as another thing on their CV.”
Winning, he said, isn’t the most important part. “Whether you win or not doesn’t really matter that much. What matters is how much you learn from it.”
Since those early days, USM has grown into one of the largest and most successful student engineering teams in Scotland, with more than 200 active members and cars regularly competing internationally.
Rob still keeps up with the team’s progress. “It’s been quite humbling to see, year on year, the team step up. Our beginnings were very, very humble. It’s definitely a source of pride whenever you see the team progressing over the years.”
The team would like to once more extend a special thanks to Rob for making time during his very busy schedule to talk with us!
