Ahmad Alkattan winner of the prize at the Roca Master Design Challenge
03 / 02 / 2020
It was not an easy task to choose the best project out of the thirteen presented by the participatants at the final, all of them being winners of their respective editions. But it was finally Ahmad Alkattan, from Heriott-Watt University in Dubai, Arab Emirates, who won the prize, which included 3,000 euros in prize money, a workshop at Domaine Boisbuchet, a BenQ monitor and a Wacom Tablet.
The briefing announced to all participants was to design a new type of basin with an additional functionality that would provide added value to the product. And faced with this challenge, Ahmad designed Exsinka, a basin that can be taken anywhere it is needed. With elegant aesthetics and equipped with wheels, Exsinka has been specifically designed for people with reduced mobility and can be operated with the mobile phone.
It has two water tanks, one for fresh water and the second one to store grey water. When there is no more water left in the system, it emits a warning to be refilled. A clever idea that received the final prize of the jury. Isabel Pintado, Regional Managing Director at Wilson Associates and member of the jury, pointed out that “the project changes the static concept of bathroom products, incorporating a moving piece that can be used even outside the bathroom space.”
Ahmad’s project was the winner, but it is important to highlight that all submitted projects were of a very high quality, a result of the effort and perseverance of the participants. The awards ceremony marked the end of the first edition of the Roca Master Design Challenge, a special event with a desire for continuity that aims to reward the effort and talent of the young participants, in order to find the best among the best.