Waste not, want not

Siam Center and Siam Discovery recently announced the winners of this year’s “100Designs” contest, which aims to identify the very best in ecofriendly designs. The competition, on the theme “Redefine Living”, asked contestants, both as individuals or in groups of two, to design their items from recycled materials, thus staying well away from causing environmental problems. Out of 300 teams joining the contest, only 10 were selected for the final round and given the chance to attend the plastic design workshop with the team of Design Catalyst by SCG Chemicals in Rayong province. 

The first prize of Bt30,000 went to “Blooming in the Rain” by Raksit Panyalertlakana, a 26-year-old ceramic designer. The second prize of Bt20,000 was given to “Save & Save” by Worawet Atthaprachong, a 22-year-old student of the Faculty of Fine Arts, Burapha University. The third prize of Bt10,000 went to “Shift” by Saisuda Kaseamtanasak, 21, also a Fine Arts student at Burapha University. 

The Popular Vote – judged on a count of the “likes” at Facebook and Instagram, will be announced at a later date. 

“My idea was inspired by man’s over-exploitation of natural resources, especially water, so I wanted to come up with a water-saving piece of work that would improve quality of life. The first thing came to my mind was how people in the old days used to save rainwater for later use. Hardly anyone does that these days fearing the water will be unhygienic. I combined local wisdom with advanced technology to come up with ‘Blooming in the Rain’, which looks like a tulip on the outside but whose interior is divided into two levels. The first level stores and filters the rain. The water then vaporises and goes to the second level that stores the purified water. It can be placed in the communities, parks or bus stops to ensure that the public get the most benefit from it,” says the winner Raksit.

SCG Chemicals’ Best of Plastic Design prize went to “Stick and Flow Bowl” by Supanat Make–ka–yai and Pakpoom Prasongsantisuk, 20-year-old students of the Faculty of Science and Technology, Rajamangala University of Technology Bangkok. Both of them will join the Business of Design Week in Hong Kong as their reward. ThaiHealth also offers funding for any practical design that can be further developed the people’s quality of life.

Supanat and Pakpoom Prasongsantisuk said they got the idea for their Stick and Flow Bowl from concerts and musical festivals that never provide enough restrooms to meet the needs of bursting bladders. When stuck in the ground, the mobile PVC urinal bowl allows the waste to flow down automatically, using little or no water. Mothballs can be placed in the bowl to get rid of odour. The pair says it’s a perfect solution for concerts, beaches or mountains.