Orestis Neokleous

*Featured Project: SolarMander

Orestis is a multidisciplinary designer and engineer that enjoys focusing on the interplay of creative thinking and science in the pursuit of creating value for society. Most of the thinking inside of his head goes towards figuring out; what constitutes a healthy relationship with modern widespread technology, why cities aren’t completely covered in greenery and sometimes, why structures aren't building themselves.

After obtaining a Masters in Electronic Engineering from the University of Warwick, and working in scientific research and software development for a year, he joined the Innovation Design Engineering course to accelerate his transformation from mainly technical outputs to more holistic ones.

Orestis is now involved in start-up building, helping teach in higher education institutions and the use of hard physical exercise to maintain body and mind balance.

Check out his LinkedIn and Personal link for his experiences and other projects. Contact information or Instagram for inquiries about anything.

I’ve come to find out that being a Designer, Engineer and Inventor in 2023 is mostly about keeping tabs on the real problems that underlie our lives. The constant strive to understand them deeply and innovatively solve them, strengthens the connections we have with each other and leads to a better world.

Having well formed team dynamics that facilitate free ideation is perhaps the most magical catalyst that emerges from design thinking. Consistency in creation of this magical catalyst is my favourite out of the many pathways to much needed innovation.

SolarMander Mechanism Prototype

SolarMander: Kinetic Structure for the future of Urban Solar Power

Urban solar energy has the potential to bring electricity independence on a per house basis.

One of the primary obstacles to implementing solar power in urban environments is the high cost associated with installing solar photovoltaic panels on individual houses. Additionally, many urban residents may not own the property they live in, making it challenging to invest in solar infrastructure. Solarmander's kinetic structure provides a potential solution to these challenges by allowing for solar-as-a-service schemes to be more viable.

Solarmander is a kinetic structure that allows for optimised return-on-investment by providing single-axis sun tracking, which maximises energy generation throughout the day. This feature ensures that the solar cell rows are always positioned to capture the most sunlight, increasing their overall efficiency while keeping a similar form factor as normal solar panels. These structures can be quickly installed on various urban surfaces, such as flat rooftops, balconies, or even on the sides of buildings.

By challenging the status quo of traditional solar PV panels, Solarmander's kinetic structure represents a future where solar energy harvesting can have a more adaptable nature. Urban solar power can be like a salamander, adapting to its environment to thrive in its overall goal to provide renewable electricity when needed most.