Sponsor Email
Hello,I hope you have been well and stayed safe during these times.
My names is Kristen/Catherine, the Operations/Project Manager for the UW Midnight Sun Solar Car Team. I would like to start off by thanking you and __sponsor name__ for your continued support of our team over the course of our current project, MS XIV. [insert sponsor-specific thank you]
As a trusted and valued partner, we have made it a priority to provide you with an update on our project’s status and direction.
As you know, we have been designing and manufacturing our thirteenth solar car vehicle, MS XIV and due to the COVID-19 pandemic, extended this project cycle until 2022, which is when the next American Solar Challenge will be held. We put in our best efforts to overcome the several challenges which included having limited access to our workbay due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and the knowledge transfer of members that transitioned into advisory positions.
To provide more background, the design for MS XIV was completed in late 2019 and once the pandemic hit, we saw many of the designers step back from their lead positions. New members filled their shoes to commence manufacturing. However, we have experienced many difficulties due to the complexity of the manufacturing process, in which the knowledge had not been properly handed off to the members who filled in the shoes of the previous leads.
Thus, we have made the difficult decision to terminate MS XIV and start fresh as a team. While we will not be attending the 2022 ASC with MS XIV, we will be taking the time to reflect on our learnings and put in our best efforts to design a vehicle that will once again, push the boundaries of solar transportation.
We really appreciate your generous sponsorship and we hope that with our next project, we will live up to our achievements of previous years.
If you would like to discuss additional details behind this decision, we would be more than happy to have a call over the next few weeks.
Thank you again for your support and please let us know if you have any questions or concerns.