ACC and Mines Place Fourth in BattChallenge Year 2
The Arapahoe Community College (ACC) and Colorado School of Mines (Mines) team placed 4th in the Battery Workforce Challenge (BattChallenge) Year 2 Competition.
A collegiate competition that launched in the fall of 2023, BattChallenge charges 12 university / technical school teams to design, build, test and integrate an advanced electric vehicle battery pack into a Stellantis vehicle. The ACC and Mines team – Team PackMules – also earned several awards for the Year 2 Competition, including:
- Project Management Assessment Center: Obeya Execution Award
- Winter Workshop Project Management Assessment Center Excellence Award
- Fall Workshop Technical Distinction Award
- Technical Excellence in Creepage and Clearance Award
- Maestros of Advanced Multiphysics Simulation Award
Even more, ACC Auto Tech faculty Jake Tipsword was presented with the Outstanding Faculty Advisor Award (Vocational), and Mines student Viviana Nelson earned one of three Volta Foundation Women in Batteries Awards.
Team PackMules took delivery of its 2024 Ram ProMaster electric van in March 2025. The Ram ProMaster EV is designed specifically for electrification, featuring a unibody design that efficiently incorporates the production battery pack. The van is suited to perform commercial activities, and this application serves as an opportunity for students to design batteries for larger vehicles. Team Pack Mules will integrate the battery pack into its Ram ProMaster EV and conduct comprehensive road tests during the third and final year of the competition in 2025-26.
Team Pack Mules was named as the BattChallenge Year One champion in the spring of 2024. The final BattChallenge champion will be positioned to receive engineering & sponsor-related category awards, $100,000 in industry-provided prize money, and invaluable real-world experience working with electric vehicle industry leaders.