Pieter Jan Jordaens
Pieter Jan Jordaens was born on the 18th of October 1986 and grew up in a little city called Zoersel. As a little kid he already got a large interest in science and engineering. It was quite evident to start a study industrial sciences at the Free Technical Institute located in Zandhoven. After finishing these studies he got a real passion for engineering. Therefore it was evident to start a study at the Groep T Leuven Engineering school.
Currently he’s finishing the 2-year Master in Engineering (at the Groep T Leuven Engineering school.
It was very evident to join the VDS network: working in team, innovation, working together with universities all over the world, a passion for engineering, building a large network and making important contacts,….
His focus isn’t only building an environment friendly and sustainable car, but also developing his qualities as a future engineer and pushing the limits on that, are important goals for him in this project.
Interests: Social club Zoezel, festivals & music, drinking a beer and having a chat, traveling, movies, …
Jelle Collignon
July 15 1986, D-day for Jelle. Since then he lives in Olmen, a little village. After 18 years he leaves his hometown during the week, to go study at Group T. 3 years and a lot of study later he joins the Vehicle Design Summit project. This because it’s a good thing for the environment. If everyone had a car like this, there would be a lot less consequences for the environment. The time there is left, he works for Bruudruuster Visuals Productions as director, cameraman and photographer. He also likes Walt Disney and themeparks.
Pieter Roels
April 3th, 1985, a year no longer only known for it’s good wines. 5h48 in the morning somewhere in Hasselt. For the first time ever, he left the mother ship for a first short reconnaissance trip across the planet. He saw that it was good and decided to stay. Not in Hasselt, but in Cologne for the first 5 years of his young and inexperienced life. Afterwards he returned to his roots and after living in Wilsele for some years he moved to Heverlee, hometown of all that is good and pure. At the moment he enjoys the beauty of life, living in a student house in the centre of Leuven.
As a little boy, he started rebuilding lawnmowers into turbo-meadow-pirate-ships. In between these rebuilding projects this rascal also finished secondary school at the Heilige-Drievuldigheidscollege, a school located on the Oude Markt in the centre of Leuven. He then decided to take a higher education in Industrial Engineering at GROUP T University College. At GROUP T, yet again, he got the chance to build a turbo-high-tech-lawnmower. But this time it had to be a model capable of transporting 4 passengers, it had to be lightweighted and yet superstrong, with a minimum mileage of 200 mpg and fully recyclable. Another major requirement was crashworthiness, so being able to withstand the bumpy night rides through the meadows like in the good ol’days was not sufficient for this vehicle.
Designing, developing and building your own car, having ambitious goals laying ahead, coming up with inventive solutions to complex problems, facing huge challenges and working in team on the car of the future, building up international relations and making business trips to foreign countries… reasons enough for Pieter to give the VDS-project his full devotion and to spent all of his energy on the project (and of course on the fight for world peace as well).
Interests: Chatting with people, making noise, practising swimming pool sports and parties, bar tending and bar sitting, solving IT-problems (for a living), travelling, ...
Jan Nolens
It was January 20 1986, when Jan made his first steps into this world. After graduating high school in 2004, he decided to study for Master of Industrial Science in Electromechanical Engineering. When the time came to decide what to do as master thesis, he noticed the opportunity to implement it in a big project, this project.
A technical challenge with a clear goal you can work towards, coupled to the factor of teamwork is what this guy needs.
Hobbies: Football (Am: soccer)
Maarten Vanhove
Maarten Vanhove was born on the 22nd of November in the year 1986, after a scientific education at the Saint Peterscollege in Louvain it was clear that the engineering genes were passed on. Group T became an obvious choice for his higher education. Especially the interesting projects that this school promotes were a big part in the decision to join the VDS-project. Next to the world improving character that this project surrounds, there is the international aspect that made the biggest impression on Maarten, working together with universities all over the world, who wouldn’t dream about that? After hours you probably can find Maarten behind the bar at Eclips, Old Market, where he works as a bartender.
Hobbies: Cinema, music, books
Pieter Wante
Pieter Wante was born in Mechelen. With a graduate degree in automotive mechanics he already had a background in the automobile sector. The hunger for to my knowledge convinced him to study industrial engineering at GROEP T.
After the completion of a crashcourse, he followed the electromechanics course, with a focus on intelligent manufacturing.
In the search for a thesis topic, it was soon clear to him that it should be car related. Therefore he stepped in the VDS team. He is a member of the frame team, and focussing on the frame dynamics and vibrations.
Interests: Beside school my life contains tennis, skiing and going out with friends…
Thomas Gheysen
Thomas Gheysen was born in Leuven. He went to primary school in Kessel-Lo. After this period he decided to go to the secondary school named Sint Pieters College at Leuven. There he discovered his interests in sciences. That also convinced him to enter the engineering course at GROUP T Leuven, the ultimate place of interest. There, he learnt a lot about engineering and developing his skills. After Thomas Gheysen succeeded on the bachelor course, he was searching for a thesis that was more then a regular thesis. The solution was building the Vision 200, a worldwide project. With this project he wants to increase his skills, discover the world of engineers and improve the world.
Hobbies: Painting and drawing, climbing, jogging
Gert Vos
Gert Vos was born on the 20th of June 1985 in Leuven, where he grew up and still lives today. Here he finished his high school at Koninklijk Atheneum Leuven ‘De Ring’. He studies sciences and mathematics, what else did you expect?
Very soon he seemed to be interested in everything that has something to do with computers, hence the choice to study civil engineer computer sciences. But after the first year the studies seemed to be not what he expected them to be, a bit too theoretical, so he decides to study industrial engineer at GROUP T.
In his third year electronics-ICT he noticed that he was more interested in electronics than ICT. Also during the bachelor project, where he was team leader of an international team of 15 students, he became more interested in a large international project like VDS. During this bachelor project he mostly worked with low-power digital electronics. This time he will take the challenge with VDS to work with high powers and so design the motor controller. As the team leader of the Electrical Motor Team he will also be involved in the project management.
Hobbies:
* Computers: websites, networking, ...
* Elektronica: what did you think!
* Music: guitar, piano, recording, ...
Thijs Herteleer
Thijs was born at the 29th of April 1985. After a couple of years he started at the music school to take trumpet lessons. Because he had time enough after school, Thijs started also successfully the percussion courses. For trumpet as well as percussion, he graduated at the music school in Gooik and participated in many concerts with the orchestra and a brass band.
Beside this, Thijs was also very active in the youth movement ‘Chiro’ and later the ‘KAJ’. Because of the lack of sports, he trained many hours in the judo-club at Leerbeek.
At the age of 16, the technical prickles became too big, and he started the courses to become private pilot at the airbase of Grimbergen near Brussels. When he was 17 years and 8 months old, he accomplished his official first solo flight with a Cessna 152.
After one year at the university of Leuven, Thijs arrived at the GroupT Leuven Engineering College and he was from the beginning evolved with VDS. He confirmed to take the lead of the frameteam and the year after he decided his Thesis: Investigate the potential of bio-composites in a structural element, and compare the Life Cycle Impact compared to other materials.
Critical Design Review @ GROUP T
Submitted by Arthur Vijghen on October 5, 2007 - 9:40pm.
At this moment all VDS-teams across the globe have been working on the project for a considerable period and the time has come to evaluate the general state of affairs in the so called Design Review.
This third Vehicle Design Summit design review, the Critical Design Review (CDR), will be hosted by the VDS GROUP T Team in the city of Leuven, which is located 25 kilometres from Brussels. This event will take place from Friday, November 16 till Sunday, November 18.
The VDS GROUP T Team wants to kick off the CDR with a symposium on Environment-Friendly Transport Technology on Friday. On Saturday and Sunday, talks, individual team presentations and discussion moments will be used to review the design verification, the design analysis and preliminary systems level optimization. Next, VDS Org and SAT will present the assembly strategy for the first Vision and a long-term strategic plan.
In the days to follow, more detailed information will become available on our website, www.vehicledesignsummit.be.