Borgen Design Competition

Request for Proposals

2025-2026

Opportunity

The Mechanical Engineering Department Capstone Design Program is seeking proposals from students for the annual Borgen Design Competition! The competition supports undergraduate capstone design teams in the pursuit of creative entrepreneurial and community service projects that promote the Wisconsin Idea.

To participate in the competition, form a team and submit a project proposal before the semester begins (see below for dates, requirements, and proposal format). Proposals are evaluated by a select committee of professors with broad backgrounds from within the Mechanical Engineering Department. Awardees will be notified before the semester begins.

Multiple projects may be funded from the Borgen Design Fund, which was established in Spring of 2024 by a generous gift from Bjorn Borgen (BSME ‘62). The purpose of the Borgen Design Fund is to enhance the design education experience for students in the Department of Mechanical Engineering. We anticipate funding multiple projects at a level that exceeds the standard allocation ($400/team) for entrepreneurial and community service projects.

Award Submission and Evaluation

To submit a proposal for the Borgen Design Compeition, please use the Google form below. Note, you will need your team members names and emails as well as a .pdf version of your proposal that adheres to the requirements and format described below.

Submit a Proposal

Once submitted, proposals are evaluated by a select committee of professors with broad backgrounds from within the Mechanical Engineering Department. Criteria for evaluation include, but are not limited to, the likelihood of project success, community impact, potential for business success, professionalism, and technical feasibility. Awardees will be notified via email before the semester begins. Awards must be accepted or rejected via email within a few days of notification of an award. Project work begins at the start of the semester.

Important Dates

Requirements

• Teams of 3 to 5 undergraduate ME students enrolled in ME 351/352.
• Students must be in residence at UW and enrolled in ME 351/352 consecutively.
• Students must complete a two-page application following the format described below.
• Applications must be submitted before the due date provided above.

Proposal Format

Your proposal should be no more than two pages and contain four sections: The Team, The Challenge, The Solution, and The Budget.  Each of these is described in more detail below.

THE TEAM

This section should contain each team member’s first and last names, their email addresses, and a 1 to 3 paragraph description of your team’s qualifications. Explain why your team is qualified to work on the proposed project and why you will be successful. Communicate curricular and any extracurricular experiences (e.g. student orgs, co-ops and internships, community service, personal projects, electives) that will contribute to your work and success, as a team and as individuals. Every member of your team should have a clear contribution to the project.

THE CHALLENGE

In 2-3 paragraphs, describe the challenge you wish to address. At the center of this challenge should be a client. The type of client varies from project to project and can include members of the community, in the case of community service projects, or a target market and end user, in the case of entrepreneurial projects. You should describe your client in detail, helping us clearly understand their need and the impact your solution will have on them and the community. When discussing your challenge, make a clear case for why currently available solutions do not meet your client’s needs and how you will engage with your client (or potential market) throughout the project.

End this section with a clear statement of your team’s objective for the project.  That is, what does your team wish to accomplish by the end of the project? What will the impact be on the community? Is there potential to patent your solution through WARF?  If successful, do you anticipate working with Discovery to Product or a similar resource to begin a startup? Projects that promote the Wisconsin Idea and directly and positively impact our community and/or are entrepreneurial in nature will be given preference.

THE SOLUTION

In 1-2 paragraphs, communicate the form of the solution and technical details of the approach. Provide a level of detail sufficient to establish feasibility. Figures and sketches can be used to augment descriptions.

THE BUDGET

Provide a short table that details your budget items (see Table 1) and a one-paragraph description that clarifies each item in the table. The purpose of this section is to clearly outline the budget required to make your project a success. The budget should include any high-level equipment, supplies, travel, etc. required to complete the project. Indicate the priority of each item in the budget.

Table 1:     Example budget.

Course Coordinators

Please direct questions to the course coordinators: