A Surrey student has won a national STEM award after building a full-size pinball machine from recycled and salvaged materials.

Marcel Fabicki, a Year 12 student at Cobham Free School, won the London International Youth Science Forum 2026 award in The Big Bang Competition, one of the UK's leading competitions for young engineers, scientists and technologists.

Marcel impressed judges with his project, "AURION – the jungle pinball machine", which was designed to make arcade-style gaming more accessible.

The project also while demonstrates how complex systems can be created using simple, understandable components.

He was also named runner-up in the Senior Engineering category.

The winners were announced at The Big Bang Fair at Birmingham's NEC, the UK's largest celebration of science, technology, engineering and maths for young people.

Richard Myhill, executive director of the London International Youth Science Forum, said: "Congratulations to Marcel. The standard of projects was extremely high, and we were very impressed by both the creativity and technical quality of the work presented.

"Marcel's project stood out for its strong combination of engineering and software approaches, alongside a clear, logical approach to problem solving. Their enthusiasm, communication skills and confidence in presenting the work were also particularly impressive."

The Big Bang Competition recognises young innovators from across the UK and rewards projects that demonstrate creativity, technical ability and real-world problem-solving.

Dr Hilary Leevers, chief executive of EngineeringUK, which runs the competition, said: "Their curiosity and creativity have driven them to produce some brilliant STEM projects addressing some really big societal problems. They should all be very proud of their dedication and hard work."

The competition forms part of The Big Bang Fair, which attracts thousands of young people each year and aims to inspire future careers in science, engineering and technology.