The University of Tennessee at Martin tractor team placed 10th in the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE) International Quarter-Scale Tractor Student Design Competition held May 29-June 1 at the Expo Gardens Fairgrounds in Peoria, Illinois.
The result was the best finish ever for a UT Martin team in the university’s 13 years of taking part in the competition. There were 23 teams competing in the 2025 competition.
The competition consists of teams of university students who design and build working tractors to one-fourth scale. The contest provides a realistic 360-degree workplace experience, and is a popular recruiting event for many sponsors, who find among the participants practiced, high-achieving prospects with strong technical, communication and leadership skills honed by competition experience.
Teams are given an engine and a set of tires; the tractor is theirs to design and create. A panel of industry experts judges each machine for innovation, manufacturability, serviceability and other factors relevant to real-world operability.
Teams also submit a written design report in advance of the competition. At the site, they must sell their design in a formal presentation to industry experts playing the role of a corporate management team.
Finally, machines are put to the test in three performance events: tractor pulls, a maneuverability course and a durability course. Teams are recognized for their excellence in all aspects of competition, some of which factor into overall scoring.
Dr. Sandy Mehlhorn, professor of agricultural engineering and the UT Martin ASABE chapter’s adviser, said there are many aspects to the competition.
“There’s a sales pitch, and there’s design judging that looks at traits like manufacturability, ergonomics and safety,” she said. “I think it’s a great example of multidisciplinary teams coming together for an operational product.”
Mehlhorn added that some UTM engineering majors have used components of the tractor to satisfy their senior project requirements.
Members of the campus ASABE chapter may compete in this annual competition. The UTM chapter consists of engineering students as well as agriculture students.
Mehlhorn said mentioning being a part of a successful team in this competition on one’s resume would go a long way.
“Employers recognize this competition because there 13 or 14 corporate sponsors from all areas of agriculture,” she said. “They send judges and others to work at the competition.”
Members of the UT Martin tractor team who attended the international competition were Sam Baker, a senior agriculture major from Bolivar; Dalton Hall, a May graduate from Thompson’s Station with a degree in mechanical engineering; Baillie Kearns, a senior mechanical engineering major from St. Louis, Missouri; Hunter McCoy, a senior mechanical engineering major from Nunnelly; Nathan Robison, a May graduate from Bruceton with a degree in engineering; Ellarose Strasser, a May graduate from Chapel Hill with a degree in agriculture; and Hunter Watson, a junior agriculture major from Jackson. (Class levels given are for the fall 2025 semester.)
The top 10 teams in the 2025 ASABE International Quarter-Scale Tractor Student Design Competition were: 1. North Carolina State University, 2. (tie) Kansas State University and South Dakota State University, 4. University of Kentucky, 5. Purdue University, 6. University of Wisconsin, 7. University of Illinois, 8. University of Missouri, 9. University of Nebraska, 10. University of Tennessee at Martin.
Other universities from the United States that placed among the top 20 were North Dakota State (11th), Penn State University (13th), University of Georgia (14th), Iowa State University (15th), Oklahoma State University (18th) and Oregon State University (19th).
For more information about the University of Tennessee at Martin, visit www.utm.edu or call 1-800-829-UTM1 (-8861).
PHOTO: Representing UT Martin at the ASABE International Quarter-Scale Tractor Student Design Competition – shown with the tractor they and other UTM students built – are (l-r) Dalton Hall (kneeling), Baillie Kearns, Ellarose Strasser, Sam Baker, Nathan Robison, Hunter McCoy and Hunter Watson (kneeling).
