The University of Barcelona, winner of Essityʼs Global University Challenge
The University of Barcelona has won the Global University Challenge 2017 in the category of Engineering, competing with 86 teams from 14 universities from around the world. This competition, organized by Essity, challenges students to create innovative solutions in the field of Engineering and Marketing, related to the hygiene and health products the company sells.
The University of Barcelona has won the Global University Challenge 2017 in the category of Engineering, competing with 86 teams from 14 universities from around the world. This competition, organized by Essity, challenges students to create innovative solutions in the field of Engineering and Marketing, related to the hygiene and health products the company sells.
The team Módul, formed by the student from the Faculty of Fine Arts of the UB Olga Casanova, Gisela Cruz, Khadija El Aadmi and María Tovar, won the competition thanks to an innovative nappy packaging. Also, the team AMC from the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, as well as Quesonia, from UB, were finalists in this category.
In particular, the awarded design is a packing solution for nappies that allows the storage of 30 units in a packaging which uses the maximum space, thanks to a design based on the same brand of the nappies, which are larger on the lower side than the upper one. Moreover, it is made with recyclable materials while it keeps the safety and hygiene of the product. Its appealing design, moreover, makes it appropriate for other uses (storing other objects).
Serafín Borreguero, director of Human Resources in Essity for Iberia, says “the University Challenge is a competition that allows us to promote young talents and identify those future professionals who, with their ideas, will change the industry of service products. Also, this goes perfectly well with our commitment to training and work, joining other initiatives we develop such as FP Dual programs in Allo (Navarra) and Valls (Tarragona), where we have two of our most important buildings in the country.
According to Khadija El Aadmi, member of the winning team, “our big challenge was finding the balance between innovation and the technical process, always from a creative perspective and respect with the environment. The award means a starting point from which we can develop new challenges and learn new things from this big company, Essity”.
According to Núria Coll, tutor of the awarded project and lecturer at the Department of Visual Arts and Design of the Faculty of Fine Arts of the UB, “the design process shows design thinking as the strategy to solve the given challenges, and the collaboration with companies brings a new viewpoint to the creation of projects”. Coll values the professional perspective brought by the contest.
The winners will be awarded with a paid internship in Essity, where they can continue with their training in a real work environment.
More information on the awarded project in this video: