Seb Tam

Aquamole is a fixed, distributed sensor network system that takes in-pipe turbidity readings and provides leak insights to water companies through an ML powered model. The sensors are self-powered and self-reporting and can be retrofitted into any existing system.

Exacerbated by factors such as climate change and population growth, half the world’s population will be facing water scarcity problems by as early as two years from now. In the UK alone, we lose 3 billion litres of fresh water every day through pipe leakages, this equates to around a quarter of all the potable treated water that we produce. Aquamole enables water companies to monitor networks and localise leaks at significantly higher spatial and temporal accuracy and with less labour than existing methodologies.

As we face the multifaceted challenges of the climate crisis, the climate resilience of our urban fabric is ever more important to the sustainable development of our civilisations. Introducing embedded intelligence to invisible urban systems such as our water distribution networks is an important step in our journey to a more symbiotic existence with the ecosystems we build for ourselves.

Epicue is a low cost, sweat powered heat stress management solution for workers in high heat environments, achieved via continuous epifluidic sweat monitoring. A visual cue informs the worker of their heat stress level during a shift, giving them tangible proof of how their body is handling heat at that particular moment.

As our planet heats up, more outdoor workers are at an ever-increasing risk of extreme heat stress. The global construction workforce of 280 million are 13 times more likely to die from heat related illnesses than workers in other industries. Currently, 32.7% of accidents in the construction industry are caused by high ambient temperatures. Each single one of these accidents leads to an average loss of $1.3 million to a development project. Our device allows people working in high heat conditions to form healthier relationships with heat and assists their regulation habits.

As our immediate environments become increasingly unpredictable, we need to better our specific understanding of how individuals’ bodies respond to these changes. Low cost on-body sensors for effective biomarker measurements, will be a vital step in our journey to an inclusive and environmentally symbiotic future.

This project was a collaboration between Selene Sari, Orestis Neokleous and Priyanshu Mukhopadhyay. Epicue is now an ERDF-funded startup bringing this innovation to reality.

Inspired by my time on two crutches when moving around and carrying things were mutually exclusive endeavours, Holde is designed to be an extension of the user’s arm.

Providing supplementary dexterity, Holde can act as additional on-person inventory for handling and managing a high volume of physical items, as well as a method of rapid retrieval of key resources in times of emergency.

This project was developed with Priyanshu Mukhopadhyay.

Feel free to read more about the project here.

The Foil Chair is so named based on two definitions of the word foil: 1. A very thin sheet of metal and 2. A thing or person that contrasts with and so emphasizes and enhances the qualities of the protagonist. Using simple elements and a streaked mirror finish, the design achieves an organically evocative and dynamic form.

Designed through the lens of distributed manufacturing, the Foil Chair is an exercise in radical formal exploration while employing standard material sections and sheets.

Feel free to read more about the project here.