DSL is delighted to announce the winner of its inaugural Design Academy 2023 award.
An innovative home recycling crusher that compacts your recyclable waste was the winning concept at DSL’s very first Design Academy awards.
The device compresses as it fills enabling a far greater quantity of household waste to be correctly recycled. The tool addresses the issue of overfilled recycling bins and where that overspill can end up.
The idea was the handiwork of 15-year-old Jemima of St Francis’ College in Letchworth who won an iPad for herself and £500 of design and technology equipment for her school, to better equip the next generation of engineers.
The DSL Design Academy is a competition run in local schools and colleges to identify young engineering excellence, promote STEM, and encourage students to explore their skills in inventiveness and electronic design.
Hundreds of entrants from a host of local educational establishments were whittled down to a shortlist of 10. The finalists presented their ideas to a packed venue and responded to questions from the expert panel of judges. Each judge marked each entry against four criteria – originality, thoroughness, feasibility and presentation.
DSL’s retired founder, Derek Carpenter, attended the event and the award was named in his honour to recognise his life’s work.
Rory Dear, Managing Director, DSL, said: “We were blown away by the hard work and imagination of all the entrants but Jemima’s environmentally-conscious idea and design just pipped them to the post.
“The nine other finalists also presented creative, well thought out ideas which spanned a whole host of device types and purposes. The concepts included products which support people with disabilities, address bullying, and help those struggling with plant maintenance.”
“Well done and thank you to all the entrants and to the schools and colleges who supported this important initiative.”
The finalists were:
- Albie (6) – St Mary’s Academy
- Jemima (15) – St Francis’ College
- Kaci (10) – Wilbury Junior School
- Laura (10) – Wilbury Junior School
- Sami (10) – Wilbury Junior School
- Matthew (10) – Hartsfield JMI School
- Eleanor (11) – Hartsfield JMI School
- Isabella (13) – Knights Templar School
- Kyle (14) – Knights Templar School
- Emilia-Elza (14) – Knights Templar School