Two brothers from County Limerick have been announced as the 2019 recipient of Engineers Ireland's Innovative Student Engineer of the Year Award.

Sponsored by Siemens, the annual competition focuses on showcasing innovation excellence amongst engineering third-level students across Ireland.

Jack and Nick Cotter, aged 21 and 18 respectively, came out on top against four other finalists, which ranged from medical to housing and agriculture innovations.

Jack is a student of Limerick Institute of Technology studying Process and Management Engineering, while Nick is in first year at UUC studying Law and Business.

The young men developed innovative lamb handling system, the Cotter Crate.

The Cotter Crate facilitates the quick, safe, easy and accurate administration of vaccines, doses and drenches to lambs from three weeks of age. The innovative crate assists by safely and comfortably restraining lambs, allowing a farmer to administer multiple treatments quickly and accurately. The Cotter brothers have estimated that when using the Cotter Crate a farmer can dose 400 lambs an hour on one dose and dose 200 lambs with four treatments, lowering labour time and costs when compared with current methods.

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In addition to being awarded the title of Innovative Student Engineer of the Year Award, the brothers also received a €2,000 prize fund.

Commenting on the competition, Caroline Spillane, Director General of Engineers Ireland said: "The initiatives shortlisted for the Innovative Student Engineer of the Year Award competition are a testament to the talent and creativity that exists in our third-level education institutions. Today's engineering students will soon take the role of Ireland's future engineering leaders and will be at the forefront of developing innovative solutions for communities in Ireland and overseas. Congratulations to the Cotter brothers and each of the shortlisted finalists and I wish each project team every success with their future studies and engineering careers."

Gary O'Callaghan, Chief Executive of Siemens Ltd., added: "Siemens is committed to ensuring that young people have the knowledge and skills they need to succeed in and meet the challenges of a technology-led future.

"We are proud to partner with Engineers Ireland to provide a unique platform for Ireland's most innovative engineering students. The innovative and creative projects which have been showcased today at the competition final in Dogpatch Labs have each taken a unique approach to challenges faced by communities throughout Ireland. Congratulations to all of the finalists here today, particularly to Jack and Nick Cotter for winning the award outright, and based on the quality of submissions we have seen, I have every confidence each finalist will enjoy great success in their respective careers ahead," Mr O'Callaghan concluded.

Nick and Jack Cotter will join Ireland's best engineering leaders and teams on 15 November at the 2019 Engineers Ireland Excellence Awards.

(CM/JG)