A Coventry University student has won an international award and £1,000 in funding for his design for a filter that makes washing machine water reusable.
Twenty-year-old Joe Baker, was the only winner from Europe in the Planet category of RS Components International’s People.Planet.Product Student Design Challenge. The challenge has been set up in collaboration with the Washing Machine Project – an initiative set up to make low-tech washing machines accessible to low-income communities with limited access to water and electricity.
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Baker’s design consists of a platform that raises the washing machine, allowing water to flow through a filtration system that removes contaminants such as dirt and microplastics. The filtered water can then be reused for cooking and other purposes.
‘I’ve always wanted to get into humanitarian and sustainable engineering so this was a project that really appealed to me as it presented an opportunity to make a real difference to people’s lives as well as contributing towards a concept that could make an everyday necessity like washing clothes far more sustainable moving forward,’ Baker said.
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Baker now plans to use the £1,000 prize money develop a prototype of his design at the university and eventually build a business around it in a bid to help both people and the planet.
‘We were absolutely delighted to see Joe’s innovation and hard work pay off with this award,’ said Nick Golsby, associate professor in Coventry University’s School of Mechanical, Aerospace and Automotive Engineering. ‘It’s fantastic to see his desire to put the engineering knowledge and expertise he’s building through his studies with us into practice for a humanitarian cause that could ultimately make a really profound difference to people from deprived backgrounds. We now look forward with excitement to helping Joe develop his prototype at Coventry University.’