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Meet the entrepreneurs who found a use for your recycled shower water

England is set to run short of water in 25 years. It’s an uncomfortable truth that we aren’t really talking about and very little is being done at Government level to take action. That’s why Joanna Power and Paramveer Bhachu, entrepreneurs and founders of Lylo Products, have taken matters into their own hands and designed a portable washing machine that uses recycled shower water to wash clothes.

The problem and the product

Inspiration first came to Power and Bhachu at university. They noticed the volume of water disappearing down shower drains and asked themselves how it could be reused before being channelled back into the ocean. After one frustrating experience too many walking to the laundrette only to find broken washing machines, the pair decided to put their backgrounds in product design to good use and design their own machine aimed at students.

Lylo portable washing machine — Lylo Products, Joanna Power & Paramveer Bhachu

The psychology of ‘clean’ water

The first step in Lylo’s research was to investigate psychological barriers for potential customers. They discovered the main mental obstacle is believing that the recycled water the washing machine uses is really clean. Upon further questioning, they discovered that “the decisive factor for judging cleanliness is the water’s appearance.” In order to build confidence that the water is clean, the pair adapted the CAD models to have transparent sides so the customer can see the clean water for themselves. They also made blue the focus of Lylo’s brand colour palette, embracing the colour’s associations with good hygiene.

piece of white material with various stains — Lylo Products, Joanna Power & Paramveer Bhachu

Creating under the threat of climate collapse

Power and Bhachu are conscious that “governing systems are not paying attention to scientists and young people.” Bhachu points out that people can have a hard time accepting the truth because “twenty-five years [until we run out of water] seems short and doesn’t seem real.” Like many young people, they are frightened at the prospect of the challenges our planet faces but are using their trepidation as a catalyst. They encourage other young designers to step up and bring their creativity to the fore too: “We have a lot to be proud of as young innovators… and are very big advocates for young innovators to come forward.”

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Composing sound design to be the hero

From the streets of her village to the starting line of the race track, short film The Journey – created by Don’t Panic for refugee agency UNHCR – tells a powerful story by showing just a protagonist’s running legs. The sound design team at String & Tins tell D&AD how they composed a sequence to follow her as she flees from home to escape conflict and violence. Created in collaboration with two IOC Refugee Athlete Scholarship holders, The Journey highlights the power of sport to bring hope and change for all those forced to flee.

Composing for a POV sequence

The prospect of designing a soundtrack to raise awareness of the refugee crisis would be rousing for any sound designer. Senior Audio Producer Laura-Leigh Smith tells us that the part of the brief that first captivated them was “the idea there would be one long shot… specifically of just her feet.” Without visual information such as facial expressions and body language to tell the story, there was scope for the sound design to become the hero of the piece. Smith says focusing on the protagonist’s feet helps the viewer to “identify with [her] struggle and make it universal.”

person running against backdrop of green land and evening sky — The Journey, Blacksmith

War journalism as a reference

Lead Sound Designer Joe Wilkinson likens the sounds he employed to those you could expect from a piece of journalism: “If you watch a news piece about a conflict zone, it has that raw quality where the gunshots and cries are distorted.” The direction specified that the sound be “abrasive rather than super polished” and so war films proved to be a useful reference. To complete the sensation, the sound design takes advantage of binaural processing and gives the impression of distant impacts and objects flying around the listener.

persons bare feet against a concrete floor, with trainer and food items to the side — The Journey, Blacksmith

Adding an emotional layer

The sound design masterfully communicates a sense of transience and provides a forward momentum with which to make sense of the protagonist’s changing situation. It acts as an emotional layer but, importantly, it resists telling the listener how to feel. The music is not triumphant at the end of the film and this is crucial for landing the message that the refugee crisis is an ongoing journey and struggle. Our protagonist is able to build her experience into something positive, but many are not so lucky and the sound design is a poignant reminder of just this.