In the age of Covid, Jordanian mechanical engineer Saliba Taimeh pondered how to deal with one contaminated everyday surface: the handrails of escalators in shopping malls and transport hubs, IgbereTV reports.
He came up with a device to sterilise them with UV rays — and this is where TechWorks stepped in.
A wealth of ideas would not have seen the light of day without TechWorks, a Jordanian platform aimed at bringing together youth, ideas and resources to jump-start innovations.
Set up in 2018, TechWorks says its mission is “to plug into entrepreneurial and innovation ecosystems” and turn ideas into reality.
It is equipped with state-of-the-art technology such as 3D printers and affiliated with a foundation set up by Crown Prince Hussein.
Last year, it attracted about 100 inventors and start-up companies, enabling them to produce prototypes quickly and at low cost.
Taimeh, 39, said TechWorks “provided me with every support, back-up, advice and guidance” to help perfect the sterilising device, after 23 attempts over almost two years.
His invention sterilises the handrails of escalators “from all kinds of viruses, such as coronavirus and bacteria,” he said
