The 2010 James Dyson Award competition kicks off

The organizers of the 2010 James Dyson Award are looking for student engineering entries for this year’s competition. Founded by James Dyson, inventor of the famed Dyson vacuum, the award competition vets student designs from across the globe, with a grand prize of £10,000 for the student designer, and another £10,000 for the student’s university. The deadline for entries is July 1, 2010.

Among last year’s finalists were two McMaster University engineering students, Cory Minkhorst and Lindsey Kettel. Their entry, The Crosstown, is a collapsible flatbed bicycle trailer that can carry nearly 100 lbs of cargo.

Out of more than 400 entries, last year’s winner was Automist, a kitchen sink attachment that detects and extinguishes fires with a fine water mist. The project was developed by British students Yusuf Muhammad and Paul Thomas from the Royal College of Art in London, England.

A nominee from each country will be invited to Dyson laboratories to participate in a workshop run by Dyson engineers.

For this year’s competition, the Canadian panel of judges includes:

• Jennifer Taggart, ARIDO
• Dr. Ramin Sedaghati, Concordia University
• Dr. John Runciman, Guelph University

James Dyson will announce the global winner on October 5, 2010.
www.jamesdysonaward.org