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Global search for low-cost ventilator technologies

17 March 2020

UCL Design & Refine Sprint for COVID-19

Design & Refine Sprint 19-20 March 2020

UPDATE: The expression of interest to join today's online Design & Refine Sprint is NOW CLOSED. Thank you for your interest! You'll be contacted shortly and the Design & Refine Sprint will begin at midday today online.

Hospitals around the world are grappling with COVID-19, and the UK is no exception. Key to this challenge is making sure our hospitals have the equipment to treat people with respiratory problems.

In this context ventilators are pivotal pieces of medical equipment. But there are not enough ventilators for the projected number of people who may become ill.

While engineering firms could consider switching some manufacturing to help ramp production of the vital equipment, state of the art ventilators will still take too long to manufacture. That’s why we’re looking to emerging markets for Rapidly Manufactured Ventilation Systems (RMVS).

WHAT WE NEED: RAPIDLY MANUFACTURED VENTILATION SYSTEMS

Frontier Technologies Hub are looking for an existing, proven technology that can be rapidly adapted to be built in the UK. The winning technology will be adapted for manufacture and use in the UK by a team at University College London’s Institute of Healthcare Engineering with Global Disability Innovation Hub (GDI Hub). These designs will then be shared with the world to support their fight against COVID-19.

WHAT YOU GET: OPPORTUNITY TO SUPPORT COVID-19 EFFORTS GLOBALLY AND A ROUTE TO MARKET IN THE UK AND BEYOND

Frontier Technologies Hub are offering the winning technologies:

  • Global exposure and recognition for your technology
  • Support from a pop-up team of experts from UCL Institute of Healthcare Engineering and GDI Hub to support technology to be manufactured in the UK
  • A fee per ventilator or spare parts for the ventilator — to be determined
  • And more…

UCL DESIGN & REFINE SPRINT: THURS 19 MARCH – FRI 20 MARCH  

UCL Institute of Healthcare Engineering and GDI Hub will also be hosting a virtual, collaborative working group on Thursday 19 March – Friday 20 March. We invite participants with relevant, professional expertise as engineers, manufacturers, clinicians or intensive care technicians to join us online for a Design & Refine Sprint.

This will be an opportunity to explore how working designs and prototypes of low-cost ventilators could be adapted to fit different clinical environments (such as the NHS in the UK), meet the specific needs around COVID-19 and be manufactured at scale and at low-cost.

In the interests of maximising productivity within a short time-scale, this group will be open only to those with relevant experience. If you have expertise in this area and would like to join this online Design & Refine Sprint, please complete the following expression of interest form.

NB: You do not need to participate in the Design & Refine Sprint in order to submit to the call. 

TIMELINE

  • Launch: Monday 16 March (21:00 GMT)
  • Refine & Design Sprint: 19-20 March 
  • Close: Tuesday 24 March (09:00 GMT)
  • Final Selection: Wednesday 25th March (09:00 GMT)

Click here, for more information and to apply.