Final six students present their concepts to the judges - rising standards of entries applauded

Six very talented design students drew praise from the panel of industry judges when they got to present their concepts in the final round of judging for the competition on Friday, May 09.

Answering this year’s brief of ‘Health and Wellbeing – a product for the self-care agenda’, the six finalists brought models or prototypes of their products and were given time to explain the research and reasoning behind their ideas, the selection of plastics, sustainability and how their product would work, as well as other important considerations such as manufacturing and costs.

After the tense but fascinating day of presentations and questions, the panel of industry judges commented on the rising standard of entries, quality of research and the feasibility of the ideas.

Chairman of judges, Richard Brown, said: “All our finalists had improved their products since submitting them for the preliminary judging round in April and receiving feedback from ourselves.  It was also evident that the training course they had been given at Sumitomo Demag, as part of their prize, had influenced their thinking, particularly sharpening their focus on selection of plastic materials and method of manufacture.

“They had thought very carefully about the suitability of their products for their end users and as a result we believe a number of their products could have the potential to be commercialised.”

The results will be announced at the DIP award ceremony on Friday, June 20, at IOM3’s headquarters in London.  Students are competing for a top prize of £1,000.  There are supporting cash prizes for all finalists, and work placements or training courses with leading design and industry sponsors, who include Brightworks, Innovate Design, and PDD.

This year’s six finalists are:

·       Krzysztof Boroniec, TU Dublin, with ‘Nibbliee’ a device enabling users to exercise chewing muscles in a fun and entertaining way.

·        Romaine Crawford, Loughborough University, with ‘Serenity’ a support device to help people relax and improve their mental health.

·       Henry Follett, Brunel University, with ‘CrosStick, an expandable walking stick which provides more stability for users.

·       Michael MH Leung, Brunel University, with ‘UE:1 Seat, an ergonomic seat designed to help people rehabilitating from back pain.

·       Abbie Williams, Nottingham Trent University, with ‘FlexiKnee Pro, a knee strengthening brace that can help offset osteoarthritis.

·       Harry Wragg, De Montfort University, with CPR+Aid, a device which enables people to apply the correct pressure in the right way when performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).

Design Innovation in Plastics is the longest running student plastics design award in Europe.

The Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining (IOM3) is a major UK engineering institution and is the professional body for the advancement of materials, minerals and mining to governments, industry, academia, the public and the professions. For more information visit www.iom3.org

The Worshipful Company of Horners is one of the oldest livery companies in the City of London and was formed to regulate the horn-working trade. In 1943 it adopted its modern equivalent, the plastics industry. For more information visit www.horners.org.uk

Headline industry sponsor – Covestro

About Covestro:

Covestro is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of high-quality polymer materials and their components. With its innovative products, processes and methods, the company helps enhance sustainability and the quality of life in many areas. Covestro supplies customers around the world in key industries such as mobility, building and living, as well as the electrical and electronics sector. In addition, polymers from Covestro are also used in sectors such as sports and leisure, telecommunications and health, as well as in the chemical industry itself.

The company is geared completely to the circular economy. In addition, Covestro aims to achieve climate neutrality for its Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions by 2035, and the Group’s Scope 3 emissions are also set to be climate neutral by 2050. Covestro generated sales of EUR 14.2 billion in fiscal year 2024. At the end of 2024, the company had 46 production sites worldwide and employed approximately 17,500 people (calculated as full-time equivalents).

Other competition sponsors:

·       Brightworks: an award-winning UK product design and development consultancy dedicated to helping other companies develop the best products for their customers, their markets and their brands

• Innovate Product Design: specialises in helping individuals to protect, develop and commercialise their new product ideas and inventions

• PDD: provides integrated design and innovation skills, working with organisations worldwide to develop novel products, services and business processes that drive revenues and create competitive advantage

• Sumitomo (SHI) Demag – a world leading manufacturer of injection moulding  machines

• Media partners: British Plastics and Rubber, Materials World, Mould Technology