NTU students selected for Engineers Without Borders Grand Finals

The second-year BEng and BSc Civil Engineering and BSc Product Design undergraduates are among 37 teams shortlisted from 87 entries from educational institutions across the UK and Ireland.

Engineers Without Borders UK is dedicated to a worldwide movement for change, with an aim to embed global responsibility into the heart of engineering.

Its award-winning Engineering for People Design challenge prepares engineers of the future to be globally responsible.

Each year, NTU students work on projects to explore the ethical, environmental, social and cultural aspects of engineering design.

For this year’s challenge, students were tasked with creating urban renewal solutions for an area of Johannesburg, South Africa, known as Makers Valley – a place which has suffered housing shortages, inconsistent access to electricity and water, food scarcity and problems with waste collection due to rapid population growth and economic inequality.

Hot spot sanitation solution created by second-year BSc Product Design students

BSc Product Design, students Charlotte Bradford, Freya Robinson, Max Bousfield and Angelos Rousou chose to tackle issues surrounding sanitation with The Jukskei Initiative, a proposal to implement Hot Spot toilet hubs targeting the problem of toxins in the Jukskei River that runs through Makers Valley.

Team leader Charlotte Bradford said: “The benefits include an increased quality of life for residents due to improved access to toilet facilities, the reduction of water pollutants, the creation of a positive place for the community, the river becoming a place of life, clean water, electricity, compost and an increased crop yield.”

Three of the teams focused on the challenges the area faces with water scarcity.

BSc Product Design students Ellen Burke, Claudine Khalil, Luca Williams and George MacDonald were selected as finalists for their project Waste4Water, a community centred proposal providing four-minute hot showers in exchange for a bag of recyclable waste being brought to the site.

Team leader Claudine Khalil explained: “This proposal will bring the community together and promote sustainability and positive change within the area. A set of blueprint plans are provided to aid in the construction and maintenance giving Makers Valley and similar communities throughout South Africa a long-term, reliable solution.”

BSc Civil Engineering students Louis Brown, Luke Barrenger, Jamie Brooks and Abdulmajed Alrowaily worked on a proposal for Futureproofing the Communities Water Supply, a series of underground tanks fed by the river to provide water for tasks such as gardening and cleaning

Also shortlisted for their water solution is BEng Civil Engineering students Rossa Dirrane, Edward Holderness, Patrick Jeffrey, Ozay Aydos and Dennis Barnie for their project the Underground Water Tank, a rainwater harvesting system that filters water to provide residents with a safe alternative supply.

The four teams are being considered for the competition’s top six nominations in the Grand Finals, which has been reimagined into a virtual series taking place from Monday 8 June to Friday 3 July 2020.

The series will include a variety of events from digital pitching sessions to a panel of expert judges, mentoring from professionals, and culminate in the virtual Grand Finals on Friday 3 July, where the winning team and runners up will be announced.

The public can vote for one of our two entrants for the Engineers Without Borders People’s Choice Awards prize.

Head to the Engineers Without Borders website to cast your vote, and find out more about our student projects Waste4Water, Futureproofing the Communities Water Supply, Underground Water Tank and The Jukskei Initiative.