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From Skudai to Texas skies: UTM's Rimau-1 to represent Malaysia at global rocket competition finals
Malaysia to complete at largest rocket engineering finals in the US from June 9–14
Their 2.5-metre Rimau-1 rocket, capable of reaching 10,000 feet, was developed using RM30,000
The rocket is named after Johor's football team, the Southern Tigers
JOHOR BARU, June 1 — A multinational team from Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) has qualified for the finals of the prestigious International Rocket Engineering Competition (IREC) 2025 in Midland, Texas, the United States.
Known as the UTM Rocketry Team, its members consist of third- and fourth-year undergraduates from the university's mechanical and electrical engineering faculties.
The team is led by Arykummara Thava Kumar, who said the initiative began in June last year.
He said in the early stages, the team was highly motivated and inspired to do something different.
'After several discussions, we settled on the rocket project that used propulsion technology.
'For us, the Rimau-1 rocket project was the perfect opportunity to show our skills in structural composites, rocket propulsion, electronics and also a combination of aerodynamics.
'Basically it's a combination of what we have learnt and also our own initiative,' he told Malay Mail when met at the UTM main campus in Skudai recently.
UTM Rocketry Team leader and project director Arykummara Thava Kumar said the motivation to compete in a rocket championship was inspired in doing something different. — Picture by Ben Tan
Arykummara said the UTM Rocketry Team comprises 40 undergraduates who have all contributed to the success of the Rimau-1 rocket project.
He said the team will campaign Rimau-1 against other universities from around the world during IREC 2025, which takes place from June 9 to 14 in Midland, Texas.
This June, more than 2,000 students, faculty members and mentors will gather for the 18th annual IREC.
IREC is one of the world's largest intercollegiate rocket engineering competitions, testing students in aerospace design, propulsion systems and flight dynamics.
It features more than 150 colleges and universities from across the globe competing in various rocket categories.
How Rimau-1 came about
The 2.5-metre Rimau-1 rocket is rated as a jet propulsion rocket capable of reaching an altitude of 10,000 feet (3,048 metres).
Since its inception, the team has spent about RM30,000 to construct Rimau-1.
Arykummara said the idea to name their rocket Rimau-1 came from the Johor Darul Ta'zim (JDT) football club, which features a tiger as its emblem.
He said JDT, also known as the Southern Tigers, has been the pride of Johoreans due to its strong achievements in football.
'Since the UTM campus is also located in Skudai, Johor, our Rimau-1 rocket identifies with the state and its football team,' said the final-year engineering student chosen as the project director.
Arykummara said the idea to name their rocket Rimau-1 came from the Johor Darul Ta'zim football club, which features a tiger as its emblem. — Bernama pic
Road to IREC 2025
Team member Izzat Idlan said he was proud that the Rimau-1 project had potential despite the team's limited funding in the early stages.
The 24-year-old, who is in charge of sponsorship, said this was the first time a UTM team would participate in an international rocket championship.
'This shows that Malaysians are capable and we can aim beyond textbooks and theories.
'At the same time, we were also inspired by Universiti Sains Malaysia's (USM) rocket team as they were the first to have participated in the previous IREC,' Izzat said.
Another team member, Youssef Shahin, said the achievement was commendable as the team had managed to qualify for the finals.
The 21-year-old Egyptian student said he was proud of how far the team had come.
'Despite the many hiccups we endured, we finally made it to the tail-end of the project.'
'All our hard work paid off and we made it for the finals in the United States,' he said, adding that it was another uphill task as they will compete with 160 teams in the final round of the competition.
UTM Rocketry Team members preparing the Rimau-1 rocket's structure with composite material and epoxy in the early stages of the project in 2024. — Picture courtesy of UTM Rocketry Team
Raising the standard
Izzat said the team hopes that their achievement will raise the profile of Malaysian engineering talent internationally and motivate more students to realise their potential.
'As a team, we hope that our success will have an impact so that others can see that Malaysian students are also capable of competing on the global stage.'
'Such impact can also inspire the next generation of UTM students,' he said.
In 2022, USM's WAU Rocketry Team made headlines as the first-ever Malaysian team to participate in an international rocket competition during that year's Spaceport America Cup.
The team made Malaysia proud after finishing in 11th place that year.
However, USM is not participating in this year's IREC.
