A better soap case that drains water away from the soap. An organizer to replace heavy laundry detergent bottles.

Rensselaer students took two of the top six spots at the 2005 ASME Student Manufacturing Design Competition, with one team finishing in second place. The competition, held in early November at the International Mechanical Engineering Conference and Exposition in Orlando, Fla., is designed to provide the engineering community with fresh new perspectives on design and to create a forum for students to share their new and innovative ideas.

Design a product that would make a college student’s life easier — that was the challenge put to first-year students in Rensselaer’s Product Design and Innovation (PDI) Studio 2 course during the 2004 spring semester. Charlotte Williamson, now a junior in mechanical engineering, designed a laundry detergent organizer that students could fill with detergent and carry to the washing machine, rather than lugging a large, heavy detergent bottle. Felicia Chang, also now a junior in mechanical engineering, designed a better soap case that drains water away from the soap.

Both designs were selected from more than 20 entries to be mass-produced the following semester by students in the Advanced Manufacturing Laboratory (AML). With the support of several industrial partners — Arcadia, BASF, Haas/HFO Allendale, Kintz Plastics, and LoDolce Machinery — AML students redesigned the detergent organizer and soap case for manufacturability, and then they designed and implemented an automated manufacturing system to make 600 units of each product.

The detergent organizer won second place at this year’s ASME design competition, which came with an award of $750. The better soap case also garnered a spot among six finalists. Frank Choltco-Devlin, a junior in mechanical engineering, presented the projects and accepted the awards on behalf of the Rensselaer teams.

“The fact that two Rensselaer teams were among the six finalists and one team actually placed in the top three is a testament to the PDI/AML collaboration that has made this all possible,” says Daniel Walczyk, associate professor of mechanical, aerospace, and nuclear engineering, and team advisor for the detergent organizer. Rensselaer students have been involved in the competition for several years, winning first place in both 1998 and 2000.

“The AML is an opportunity for students to literally practice engineering in a model which represents the real world,” says Sam Chiappone, manager of fabrication and prototyping resources and adviser to the better soap case team. “They are in control of selecting processing methods, designing and manufacturing tooling, integrating all aspects of the system, and final production. The students truly get a chance to work through problems and implement solutions to the problems-based lessons they learn in AML and other classes here at Rensselaer.”

Published November 28, 2005