The 2025 Fluid Power Vehicle Challenge Final Competition hosted by Danfoss Power Solutions took place April 23–25 in Ames, IA, bringing together university teams from across the country. This dynamic event, part of the NFPA Foundation’s workforce development initiatives, challenges students to design and build a human-powered vehicle using fluid power systems.
The competition featured three races—Sprint, Efficiency, and Endurance—along with formal presentations and judge interviews to assess each team’s design approach, safety considerations, and engineering rigor. Industry professionals from across the fluid power sector served as judges and mentors, providing students with valuable feedback and career insights.
The Grand Champions of the IMI-hosted event are:
- 1st Place: Northern Illinois University
- 2nd Place: Cleveland State University
- 3rd Place: FAMU-FSU College of Engineering
Click here for the full list of exemplary performance awards earned at the Danfoss competition.
Specific awards are given to highlight the use of pneumatics and electronics in the teams’ designs. The prize for Best Use of Pneumatics, sponsored by IMI, was taken home by Purdue University. The prize for Best Use of Electronics, sponsored by IFP Motion Solutions Inc., was awarded to Cleveland State University.
Thank you to the NFPA Foundation donors who support this program:
Event Host
- Danfoss Power Solutions
Program Sponsors
- Applied Fluid Power
- HYDAC
- IFP Motion Solutions Inc.
- IMI
- SunSource
Founding Sponsor
- Parker Hannifin Corporation
Product Suppliers
- Brennan Industries
- Danfoss Power Solutions
- Famic Technologies Inc.
- Helios Technologies
- Lubrizol
- Source Fluid Power
We would also like to thank the industry representatives who served as judges during the Midway Reviews and Final Competition, served as mentors to guide students throughout the program year, and met with the students during the Fall Networking Mixer to talk about career opportunities at their companies.
Representatives from the following companies participated:
- Bosch Rexroth
- Bucher Hydraulics
- Danfoss Power Solutions
- GPM Controls
- HAWE Hydraulik
- Helios Technologies
- HYDAC
- HydraForce
- Hydraquip, Inc.
- IFP Motion Solutions, Inc.
- IMI
- JARP Industries, Inc.
- Kraft Fluid Systems
- Mosey's Production Machinists, Inc.
- Motion Industries, Inc.
- Nott Company
- Parker Hannifin Corporation
- Price Engineering
- QCC – Quality Control Corporation
- ROSS Controls
- Scott Industrial Systems, Inc.
- Sun Hydraulics Corporation
- SunSource
- Trelleborg Sealing Solutions
- Walvoil Fluid Power
For further information on the Fluid Power Vehicle Challenge, contact Mary Pluta, Workforce Program Manager at mpluta@nfpa.com.
