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Covid-19: Meeting the challenges through Engineering

I was president of the IET for 2016-17, and have been asked by government to gather practical and innovative ideas from our Engineering communities. So, please enter any ideas you might have in this thread that might help address and mitigate the Covid-19 crisis. Ideas might include digital tracking / monitoring through therapy equipment and beyond. Even ideas outside your usual expertise domain will be welcome. Now’s the time for Engineering to show we can change the world!

0 Nicholas Prowse over 4 years ago

I am fairly new to the IET, and volunteering in Design Engineering as a Project Lead re Face Protection for ENG4Healthcare aka 'ENG4'

Headline - "A Not-For-Profit collaboration of professionals and volunteers supporting health and wellbeing in times of need"

Website is; http://eng4.org.uk/ We are in the process of obtaining Charity status.

We meet typically every week online for the progression of current and pipeline projects.

For the project I lead, the plan is to create one or more products for solving issues relating to Face protection for people in UK of 18-90 years old.

We are currently starting the Market Research, and User Research is being planned to start in the next few weeks if not sooner.

There is also a separate survey for Healthcare professionals on face protection on the ENG4 website - http://eng4.org.uk/face-protection

We are also seeking to raise funds to support all of our projects - https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/eng4nhs

If you would like any more details feel free to contact me on e.g. IET forums, LinkedIn. Thank you
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0 Barry Brooks over 4 years ago

Thanks Ian - I'll pass to Nachi to investigate. I'd have gone along (to an airport) to investigate myself but currently not allowed!

The video of them in use shows tha tthe end to end solution is not there, namely no timer with the auto soap dispenser etc as set out in the proposed "requirement" to force people to wash thoroughy for the recommended time.
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0 Ian MacGillivray over 4 years ago

Hello Barry. I immediately think of this Dyson dryer and tap visible already in airports. It's not cheap but for timing and sequencing functionality plus a display, it might be a place to start re a conversation?
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0 Barry Brooks over 4 years ago

I'm not sure how active this forum is, but here goes:

Professor Nachi Chockalingam, a fellow Liveryman of the Worshipful Company of Engineers and Professor of Clinical Biomechanics at Staff Uni, is seeking help to find solutions to a problem that we all face: Automating Handwashing Systems that ensure thorough washing whilst reducing waste of running water.

Yes, there are some part-solutions out there, but none is an end-to-end solution in terms of effectiveness and economy of use. See attached paper and, if you can help, or know someone who can, please contact Professor Nachi (details in the paper), or me.
20201024 IET Call for solutions to Hand washing automation proposal.pdf

Barry Brooks CEng FIET

(IET President 2013-14)
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0 Former Community Member over 5 years ago

Hi Kate

I'm in Nailsea, just west of Bristol

Regards

Dave Gray
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0 Former Community Member over 5 years ago

Dave Gray:
I'm a retired MIET control systems engineer and have some ideas on how control engineering concepts could be useful in the control of lockdown exit. For a few weeks I've been unsuccessfully trying to find a way of feeding these ideas into the Government’s considerations. The parliamentary Health and Social Care Select Committee are holding an inquiry that may cover this so I managed to put my ideas into the attachment and submit it yesterday as written evidence to the enquiry, the closing date for which is today.
I’m not familiar with the way in which the IET lobbies the government and I feel like a bit of a lone voice. I’d like to contribute ideas to IET lobbying on lockdown exit.
I've contacted my MP but he's not been terribly helpful, possibly because, as a minister, he has his hands full but he may also be constrained by parliamentary protocol as this is not in his portfolio.
Attachment:A control engineers view of lockdown exit.docx

Hi Dave,

Thank you very much for sharing this and apologies at the slight delay in getting back to you. Can I ask where in the UK you are based for future reference? I am the Devolved Nations Lead so deal primarily with Scotland and Northern Ireland at present but I'd like to pass this on to my colleagues if that's ok?

Many thanks,

Kate-Zillah Sharpe

Devolved Nations Lead, IET
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0 Former Community Member over 5 years ago

I'm a retired MIET control systems engineer and have some ideas on how control engineering concepts could be useful in the control of lockdown exit. For a few weeks I've been unsuccessfully trying to find a way of feeding these ideas into the Government’s considerations. The parliamentary Health and Social Care Select Committee are holding an inquiry that may cover this so I managed to put my ideas into the attachment and submit it yesterday as written evidence to the enquiry, the closing date for which is today.
I’m not familiar with the way in which the IET lobbies the government and I feel like a bit of a lone voice. I’d like to contribute ideas to IET lobbying on lockdown exit.
I've contacted my MP but he's not been terribly helpful, possibly because, as a minister, he has his hands full but he may also be constrained by parliamentary protocol as this is not in his portfolio.
Attachment:A control engineers view of lockdown exit.docx
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0 Mike Henry over 5 years ago

Hi Jeremy,

I work in the oil and gas industry and we have a large number of electrical heat tracing applications.....I'm sure I can find you contacts at EHT manufacturer's that might be able to help with this problem.

Generally, EHT is designed to maintain temperature in pipelines in my industry, rather than raise it higher enough to vaporize liquid, so I'm not personally sure how much energy would be required for what you are describing. However, the EHT manufacturer's could well have resolved this problem in previous application. Please reach out if you need contact details, I will help if I can.

Cheers,

Mike

E: michael.henry@ietvolunteer.org
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0 Former Community Member over 5 years ago

Jeremy: We've been supplying flexible insulated electrical heating jackets to industrial users of pressurised gas cylinders for many years. It's a common problem, relatively easily solved. We just need size/dimensions of tank, ambient temperature, indoor or outdoor, and preferably photographs of the tank to start dialogue. Most common problem is variable flow due to pressure variations with lower ambient temperatures. Email me using mark@drumheating.com to discuss further.

Hope we can help!

We've also started making full face visors to CE standards - to give away free of charge to any front line need - and found it difficult to engage with the "official" channels despite using all the recommended routes.

Mark Newton, Managing Director, LMK Thermosafe Ltd, Haverhill, Suffolk.
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0 Jeremy D Watson over 5 years ago

I believe one of the challenges recently faced by hospitals is achieving sufficient 'house' oxygen flow from the cryogenic O2 storage typically used. Liquid gas is evaporated by warming coils, drawing thermal energy from ambient air. To get more flow, active warming may be needed (e.g. electrical trace heating) does anyone have experience of this type of modification to cryogenic oxygen evaporators?
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Covid-19: Meeting the challenges through Engineering

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