ENGINEERING GRADUATE FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF GREENWICH WINS INNOVATION PRIZE IN THE EIBF 2022 CHAMPION OF CHAMPIONS COMPETITION

Twenty-five-year-old Mechanical Engineering graduate, Dinul Wijetunge, from the University of Greenwich won a £1,500 innovation award in the Engineers in Business Champion of Champions Final at the Royal Academy of Engineering.  Dinul was awarded the cash prize and business mentoring for his innovation UMMACH (pronounced YOU-MARK), a revolutionary low-cost, environmentally friendly, air-conditioning device that can be retrofitted to existing fan units, helping to reduce the impact of air conditioning on the environment.

Dinul’s mission is to bring affordable, environmentally-friendly air conditioning to people living in very hot countries who cannot afford traditional air conditioning systems that are both expensive and bad for the environment.  Currently, there is no air conditioning system that can run completely off-grid via two DC 12V solar panels and does not require the use of a coolant in the form of gas or refrigerant. Dinul has develop a product that could help tackle health risks and deaths associated with humidity exhaustion caused by the rising temperatures that we are seeing around the world.  Dinul already has a working prototype and over 1,000 pre-orders when UMMACH is launched.

Receiving his award from TV presenter Rob Bell, Dinul said: “I’m very excited to be a winner in the Big Ideas category.  This award and recognition will further benefit the development of UMMACH, especially by raising the profile of the business and the brand. 

“Being involved in the Engineers in Business Champion of Champions Competition has given me a great insight into how to market my business further and on top of that, I’m leaving the final with a fantastic asset – another board member for my Advisory Panel, Simon Bonini, who Sainsbury Management Fellow who coached me the day before I pitched my business to the judges.” 

In addition to the £1,500 cash prize, Dinul will also benefit from mentoring from a Sainsbury Management Fellow, an engineer who received a £50,000 scholarship from Engineers in Business Fellowship to study for an MBA at a top international business school.  Dinul will also receive professional CV packages from PurpleCV and a popular entrepreneurial book from Cambridge University Press.

Engineers in Business Fellowship is a registered charity that champions business education for engineers and supports not only qualified engineers to gain business education, but also supports universities by giving them grants to award prizes to engineering students who develop ground-breaking ideas that can make a positive impact on society.  The grants enable universities to inspire more engineering and technology students to participate in innovation and entrepreneurship, skills that they take into their careers. 

Head of the Judging Panel, SMF Chris Shelley, Chief Executive Officer, SolarBotanic Trees said: “We had an exceptionally talented group of finalists, and it was very difficult to separate many of the presentations.  The improvement in pitches, following their coaching sessions, from the submissions that got them into the finals, was noticeable in every finalist.  We were pleased to see how much they embraced new input from their coaches even a day before the final pitches. 

“Dinul Wijetunge won his innovation award by demonstrating a clear vision and mission, sound research and a passion for his business idea.  The fact that he already has a prototype, is working on a patent, and has a B2C customer in the wings is very impressive. We wish him continued success with UMMACH.”