THE appliance of science helped students take top honours in a contest designed to encourage interest in technology.

Northallerton College posted several teams in the Rotary Technology Tournament 2014 staged at Catterick Leisure Centre.

In the advanced category one team won and the other was runner-up after they designed and built a gondola to deliver a first aid package using wire, dowels, paper and an electric motor.

The winning team comprised Danielle Baxter, 17, Liam Geach, 17, Emma Wilson, 16 and Dan Cutler, 17, all of Northallerton.

Runners-up were Sophie Gill, 16, James Flather, 18, Jack Walker, 17 and Matthew Lawn, 18, all of Northallerton.

Taking part were Years 7-13 students from schools all over the county including Northallerton, Leyburn, Easingwold, Boroughbridge and Richmond.

Head of technology at Northallerton College Steve Marshall said: “Our teams did exceptionally well against some very strong opposition.

“They tackled the challenge intelligently and systematically and didn’t get carried away with overly elaborate designs, remembering basic principles that ensured their machine actually worked.”