ISTrain, a students’ organisation at Instituto Superior Técnico, Universidade de Lisboa, dedicated to the development of railway prototypes, won the Entry Level category of the IMechE Railway Challenge 2026 with its first electric locomotive, the Loco01 “Andorinha”, on its first appearance in the international competition. Organised by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, the competition took place from 25 to 28 June at Stapleford Miniature Railway in Leicestershire, United Kingdom. University teams from several countries presented and tested their railway engineering solutions.
“Receiving these awards on our debut in the competition is recognition of all the hard work and dedication the team has put in over the past year”, said Aliya Ibrahimo, team leader and a Mechanical Engineering master’s student.
In addition to being named Best Entry Level Team, ISTrain was the overall winner of the Computer-Aided Design (CAD) and Business Case challenges, the latter of which involved all teams in the competition. The team also received the Innovation – Entry Level and Technical and Aesthetic Poster – Entry Level awards, achieving a total of five distinctions.
In her view, these results show that the project is “at the same level as the other teams”. “It was very rewarding for our team”, she says.
Founded in 2024, ISTrain brings together Técnico students from different academic fields to design, build and test scale electric locomotives, while promoting railway engineering education and closer links between the academic community and industry.
According to the student, one of the main benefits of participating in these challenges is the opportunity to apply the concepts learnt at Técnico to a “real-world engineering project”, which involves managing deadlines and costs while complying with the competition’s technical specifications. “Técnico played a crucial role in providing us with the theoretical foundations necessary to tackle the complex problems related to the design and construction of our prototype”, she explains.
Beyond the results achieved, Aliya Ibrahimo believes that ISTrain’s participation also marked a significant moment of growth for the team. “This year presented several obstacles, but the team was able to adapt and achieve the desired results”.
With her sights set on the upcoming IMechE Railway Challenge, the ISTrain leader says expectations are high. “We want to make the most of all the knowledge gained during the competition to refine our ‘Andorinha’ prototype and ensure an excellent performance in next year’s competition, in the Standard Level category”.
The team has also announced that the ‘Andorinha’ locomotive will be unveiled on 29 September to the project’s sponsors and the Técnico community at a rollout ceremony in the Great Hall.
