Mayor’s Entrepreneur Competition – 2023

First year undergraduate students at London South Bank University’s School of Engineering undertook a group design project for their Design and Practice module. Students were tasked with developing business ideas that solved real problems London is facing. Almost 300 students participated, culminating in the top ten groups being shortlisted as finalists to a pitch party. Each group which made the top ten earned at least a £100 prize from the EIBF fund and were then given the opportunity to win an additional prize by preparing and presenting a three-minute pitch to their fellow shortlisted classmates, and a panel of esteemed judges.

First place: ZΩH

The team’s business idea is to implement several rotating devices around the city of London, in areas of high concentrations of air pollution, specifically Nitrous Oxides, (NOx). These devices will clean the air of London and provide better quality air for the population to breathe.

The spinning motion of the devices is generated by taking advantage of key infrastructure in London infrastructure, brimming with potential energy: the sewer. By installing water turbines in the sewer system, the project can create a turning force that can be fed into a differential gear and use it to spin the device along the correct plane. The shape of the device is akin to a drill bit, and by rotating it, one can induce air flow towards the base of the device. Along the length and underneath this device exists the revolutionary material known as NOxtek; a biodegradable ceramic-like substance that is capable of absorbing great amounts of NOx and storing them within itself. The device can clean the toxic air while itself being powered solely by clean energy.

Students:

Jose Casas Castro – Electrical Power Engineering
Andres Jaimes – Electronic and Computer Systems Engineering
Sullivan Lopez Bastidas – Electronic and Computer Systems Engineering
Anirudh Chevuru – Electrical and Electronic Engineering

Prize awarded: £700

Second place: Aerocap

Aerocap Hub Caps are a unique product that aims to improve vehicle fuel efficiency by reducing drag. By installing the caps on a vehicle’s wheels, users can expect improvements in their vehicle’s miles per gallon (MPG) rating and save money on fuel. The easy to install hubcaps will reduce the drag placed on a vehicle while it is in motion.

Students:

Mohammed Ali – Mechanical Engineering
Mohamad Alberwary – Mechanical Engineering
Ilyas Bekele – Mechanical Engineering

Prize awarded: £600

Third place: Neurocalm

NeuroCalm’s Electroencephalogram (EEG) headset monitors the brain’s electrical activity and outputs this to an associated app. The headset is designed to be worn at different periods of the day, when the user feels comfortable wearing it. It can be used over time and analyses data to show patterns and improve stress control, distractability and mood.

It does this through measuring the alpha activity in the brain, which then can be used to determine stress levels. Completing activities in the app will help control these brainwaves and, in turn, improve the user’s mental health and state of calm. Activities include meditation, music therapy and breathing exercises. The headset also has the ability to measure heart rate.

Students:

Christopher Shave – Mechanical Engineering
Michael Calderaro-Tracey – Electronic and Computer Systems Engineering
Anthony Fernandez – Electrical Power Engineering

Prize awarded: £500

Judge's choice: Extractor 2000

Extractor 2000 is a system to try and tackle the problem of damp, mould and condensation in homes – an issue which can cause allergic reactions and respiratory problems. It is based on a PIV system unit with a digital screen where the temperature is visible, and on and off buttons which will show if shutters are open. Users will be able to alter the size of the gaps in shutters to regulate air flow. It also includes an air grate filter which gets rid of any fibres, lint or debris.

Students:

Grace Anthony – Chemical Engineering
Shawmiya David – Chemical Engineering
Minahil Khan – Chemical Engineering
Hodan Mohamed – Chemical Engineering

Prize awarded: £500

Highly commended: Labᒐak

Labᒐak (pronounced LabJak) is a machine that helps environmentally-conscious visually impaired people contribute to a greener city and aim for a lower carbon footprint. It is a portable machine that helps users to learn braille, simplifying the process from other products on the market. It displays just one line of dots, allowing the user to go back to the line’s beginning without having to move onto a new line of braille. The machine can be connected to any existing website that converts audio to text, so will likely cut down on the number of books being produced.

Students:

Mahirlabib Ali – Mechanical Engineering
Alexandros Biratsis – Mechanical Engineering
Justin Essandoh – Mechanical Engineering
Haris Khan – Mechanical Engineering

Prize awarded: £200

Positive feedback

The Engineers in Business Prize Fund is instrumental in igniting a passion for real-world problem-solving for my first-year undergraduate engineering students. In semester one those students are navigating through a lot of information. The module which runs design project one, that offers EIB Prize Fund, received arguably the best set of student projects this year. I was amazed by how well thought out the engineering business solutions were. Thanks to the prize fund, the students got to experience working on real challenges faced in London for a client where the best pitched ideas ‘won’. This instilled a great range of soft skills like creative problem solving, working in teams, working to a tight deadline, report writing and project pitching. The EIB Prize Fund helped to motivate the students and get them off to a great experience in their first semester at University. I’d like to thank the Engineers in Business Prize Fund for supporting my students at such a pivotal stage in their University life, and career.

Alessio Corso
Associate Professor and Head of Division: Mechanical Engineering and Design
London South Bank University