Five innovative ideas from ENU minds have been recognised at industry awards
A handful of creative design projects by Edinburgh Napier University students have drawn praise from industry experts for their potential to make a difference to everyday life.
Five different ideas, involving six ENU students in Product Design and Creative Advertising, have been singled out at industry awards in the last week – ranging from a folding plate for children to a hard-hitting campaign about abortion.
Each of the achievements were judged by experts in the respective fields, offering opportunities for the ENU entrants to take them even further.
Read more about their success below.
New Designers
Kenwood Appliances Award – Anna Hardie, Tabs
After claiming Best in Show for ENU’s Product Design programme at the 2023 Degree Show in May, Anna Hardie’s final year project Tabs is continuing to impress. A wireless organisation system for refilled ingredients, encouraging shoppers to ditch packaging, it uses radio-frequency identification tech to create a food tracking system that makes shopping lists and recipes based on food they already have at home.
Tabs has now won Anna the Kenwood Appliances Award at New Designers – an annual showcase of the UK’s most innovative emerging design talent in London. The design fair runs for two weeks, showcasing 3,000 projects.
As well as a top-of-the-range Kenwood Stand Mixer, it lands Anna a day with the Kenwood Design Team to see how the company operates.
D&AD New Blood Awards
Yellow Pencil – Brianna Price & Mairi Macrae, Heineken Stim
Wood Pencil – Janina Piepiora, Not a Crime
The D&AD New Blood Awards offer budding creatives briefs, set by real clients, judged by leading figures in the industry. They are open to advertising, design, digital and marketing students, recent graduates – helping to give them a springboard to start their career in the sector.
Another Best in Show winner at the School of Art and Creative Industries’ Degree Show, Heineken Stim claimed a prestigious Yellow Pencil for Creative Advertising students Brianna Price & Mairi Macrae – the highest level of award won by students on the course to date. Their concept, in response to a brief set by the brewing giant, centres around a sensory bottle to help people with neurodivergent conditions enjoy socialising without feeling overwhelmed.
Ahead of the win, Mairi said: “A lot of these conditions have similar coping mechanisms, so we thought this was an idea which could potentially help a lot of people.
“To get that far in a global competition is nice - any kind of recognition feels really good.
“We were both really happy with the idea, but I'm surprised by how positive the reaction has been.”
Meanwhile, in response to a brief from health organisations The Case for Her and Hey Jane, course mate Janina Piepiora’s campaign Not a Crime aims to shock, and show that abortion is treated as a crime in some countries – while raising awareness that abortion is healthcare.
Janina has also recently launched her own ad agency working for Polish companies marketing their products in the UK.
Design Innovation in Plastics Award
2nd place – Kyle Farquhar, PlateMate
3rd place – Scott Rutherford, Rotary Bottle Opener
Product Design students Kyle and Scott were both praised for their projects at this product design competition for undergraduate students in the UK & Ireland.
Kyle Farquhar’s product – a flexible, foldable plate which shows children how to create a variety of Mexican dishes – was singled out for bringing fun into the kitchen, while Scott Rutherford’s has the aim of helping people with hand weaknesses to open bottles more easily.
Chairman of the judging panel, Richard Brown, said: “PlateMate impressed the judges with its simplicity in bringing fun into the kitchen and it also combined an educational link, with its nod to endangered species, which are used in the design of the plate.
“The manufacturing solution and material selection were well thought through, as was the marketing of the product, and Kyle had taken on board the feedback he received from the judges in the preliminary round of judging.”
Kyle said: “It means a lot to have got this far in the competition and has demonstrated to me how hard work combined with a brilliant opportunity can succeed. In doing so, I’ve learned about manufacturing and about the different properties of the polypropylene plastic which I used in the making of my product.”
Meanwhile, Scott Rutherford’s Rotary Bottle Opener converts pressure into turning force to open lids of twist top bottles with ease.
Scott said that at least two-thirds of his product was capable of being made with recycled bottle tops: “It feels great to be recognised for my work and hopefully this is just the beginning!” he added.