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ROSEMONT, Ill.—The SurviBear Disaster Preparedness Kit for Infants and Relleve Delivery System for Topical Therapy received top honors in the International Housewares Association’s 27th annual Student Design Competition.
The competition challenges college students to redesign a current housewares product to meet a need or to create a concept for a new product. Winning projects are selected for their innovation, understanding of production and marketing principles and quality of entry materials. The top six finishers were slated to receive an all-expense paid trip to The Inspired Home Show, before the show was canceled.
Sanae Tanaka Wilson, an Art Center College of Design junior who was born in Japan and now lives near Los Angeles, and Jesse Palma, a Purdue University graduate from Munster, Ind., living in Long Island City, N.Y., won first place respectively for their SurviBear Disaster Preparedness Kit for Infants and Relleve Delivery System for Topical Therapy.
Wilson says she drew her inspiration from the massive earthquake that hit her hometown of Kobe, Japan, when she was eight years old. An emergency kit for parents of infants, SurviBear contains a three-day supply of baby needs. Worn as a backpack, it allows parents to hold the infant securely during an evacuation. When opened, it can act as a clean surface for diaper changing and feeding, and as a bed. A subscription service replenishes and updates the food and diapers as the child grows; unused supplies can be returned and reused.
“The SurviBear presentation set the bar high. The concept was well-thought-out and each phase was innovative and extremely detailed,” said Robert Giacolo, new product development program manager, Transcendia, Franklin Park, Ill., one of 14 judges in the 2020 Student Design Competition, and a winner in 1995. “Sanae saw a problem that was not being addressed and created a solution that could go to market with little to no changes. For a student to have this vision and such a detailed concept from start to finish is beyond impressive.”
The other first-place winner, Palma, suffers from eczema and was teased in school. This led Palma to design Relleve, which solves problems with topical ointment application, patient-doctor interaction and patient self-confidence in managing treatment for these skin conditions. A customized ointment tube fits into the pen applicator which dispenses the proper dosage, reducing waste and mess. Tubes are delivered to the home as needed by an online pharmacy subscription.
“Jesse did a fantastic job of contextualizing the issue and showing how current products failed to account for user behaviors and perception of their own treatment,” said competition judge Elizabeth Reuter, an industrial designer with Thermos, Schaumburg, Ill., and a winner in 2010. “His insightful identification of the importance of establishing correct behavioral habits in younger, newly diagnosed patients was a logical lead-in to the design decisions he made for this target audience. The design itself was sleek and well thought out, even down to replenishment cycles, RX support and branding.”
Both Wilson and Palma won $3,000 first-place awards. This year, the competition drew 265 entries from 29 schools in the U.S., Canada and India.
“IHA’s program has become known as the gold standard for college-level competitions. Many U.S. professors – and an increasing number internationally – assign the program annually to industrial design students because it is a real-world exercise and every entry receives feedback from two industry professionals,” said Vicki Matranga, IHA’s design programs coordinator and manager of the Student Design Competition. “Students must identify user needs and opportunity spaces in the marketplace, research competitive available products, test models with users and consider production issues.”
Second-place awards of $2,000 each went to: Sy Hyin Wong, a San Jose State University senior from Malaysia, for her design of the Electric Flower Cutter; and Antoinette Louw, a University of Houston senior from Johannesburg, South Africa, for Ruf Protection Vest for Small Dogs.
Wong’s battery-powered Electric Flower Cutter protects hands from painful repetitive motions caused by using scissors and pruners, allowing aging florist enthusiasts to continue their flower-arranging hobby. Louw’s Ruf protects a small dog in its vital areas—neck, back and stomach—and prevents serious injury from a dog attack.
Third-place awards of $1,000 each went to: Lillian Gluck, a Georgia Institute of Technology senior who was born in Wisconsin, studied abroad in Australia and now lives in Atlanta, for her design of Clearly Waste Reducing Container for Personal Care Products; and Megan Piunti, a Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design senior from Grosse Isle, Mich., for the Heel At-Home Care System for Injured Dogs.
Gluck’s Clearly design offers a sustainable alternative to single-use personal care bottles by reducing plastic packaging waste and the environmental and financial costs of shipping water-heavy products. The system forecasts changes in beauty product formulation away from liquids to concentrated gels. Internal components diffuse and mix the concentrates. Clearly offers convenience in shopping, storage and use, while it also allows consumers to switch brands and reuse the same bottles.
Eight students received an honorable mention and a $250 cash award:
- Madelyn Bauer, Cleveland Institute of Art, senior, Rise Home Fitness
- Alison Benz, University of Kansas, senior, Home Aer—Air Purifier
- Dylan Brockhaus, University of Kansas, senior, KOVA Smart Opioid Dispenser
- Jane Kassabian, University of Notre Dame, senior, TPAK Camping Hygiene and Waste Disposal
- Emery Burkhalter, University of Washington, junior, Perco Cold Brew Iced Coffee Maker
- Lily Liu, University of Washington junior, SQUISHI Exercise Toy for Juvenile Arthritis
- Taylor Patrick Stoiber, University of Wisconsin–Stout, senior, Fiberr Upcycled Textile Waste Furniture
- Nicholas Koch, Western Michigan University, junior, Redé Makeup Brush Cleaner +Travel Case
The six winning schools will receive grants totaling $3,000.
