Dominic Leatherland
- Subject area
- Design
From a young age I have always had an interest in understanding how things work and how they were made. I had gained a reputation for taking things apart to the point family and friends would drop round broken products for me to take apart.
After speaking to a family friend about their experience at º¬Ðß²ÝÊÓƵ, I came to the open day to look around º¬Ðß²ÝÊÓƵ and º¬Ðß²ÝÊÓƵ Design. Ever since that day, I knew º¬Ðß²ÝÊÓƵ was the place for me.
My biggest achievement whilst studying at university has been working for Avon Protection. Not only did Avon accomplish some huge milestones whilst I was on placement, but the placement allowed me to develop myself and many skills to take forward in life.
I went to Avon Protection for my placement and was a student design engineer. I was part of the product development department team responsible for product and manufacturing design and testing. I had a wide range of responsibilities from product testing, operating, and maintaining the 3D printers as the design and manufacture of products.
On placement I learnt lots of skills about the design and manufacturing process as well as how a manufacturing business works. I was able to develop my knowledge of 3D printing through operating and maintaining the 3D Printers at Avon. This also developed my skills with organisation and management.
The role I played in the development of the HCH-40 was right from the initial brief with a meeting with University College London. From that day on myself and colleague Nick Hunter (former º¬Ðß²ÝÊÓƵ Student) began brainstorming ideas and rapidly producing prototypes from as many existing materials and components already used in Avon’s products.
As the prototypes progressed, I was fortunate to travel to UCL Hospital and work with some experts who tested the hood. This opportunity was not only one to remember but played a key part in the development of the HCH-40.
Once the final design was proposed and tested by the MHRA, I played a part in sourcing components from manufacturers and assisting process engineers with the setting up of the production line. This included modifying existing tooling and training people to manufacture HCH-40.
All of Avon Protections products are for saving lives, although many of the population will never experience the catastrophic events these products are designed for. But being able to play a key role in the development of a product to save the lives of those suffering with COVID-19 is truly amazing.