PARENTS

Michelle Fok has completed a rather different Coursework project for her studies in A Level Design and Technology Product Design. The subject requires the student to take on a challenging project, but her choice is perhaps more challenging than most! She has designed, built and now successfully tested a full size, two seater boat made entirely from cardboard!

Last year for her AS studies Michelle became very interested in cardboard as a constructional material and designed and made a very successful and attractive chair using corrugated cardboard. She has a great interest in and enthusiasm for environmental and sustainability issues and this has inspired her work as cardboard is a recycled material that can in turn be recycled again. The chair was successful and she decided to take on the challenge of producing something more adventurous using the same material. She therefore decided to look into designing and making a small fun boat. Her inspiration came from the fact that the majority of small boats are made of plastic in one form or another, As a result there are issues regarding sustainability, as plastic boats can be said to be using up precious finite natural resources with all plastics being derived from crude oil. In addition boats made from fibreglass cannot be recycled.

Using cardboard as a material for a boat of course brings its own problems, and not just the obvious one of making it waterproof! The cardboard is difficult to shape into curved structures, so her design resembles in many ways a small punt with angular lines. The waterproofing issue has been solved by treating the cardboard with a proprietary sealant that is normally used for treating leaking roofs. This has worked well, but she is aware of the limitations of this and has looked into the use of waterproof cardboard as a possibility for a production version. This could also be sold as a ‘flat pack' in outlets like IKEA or B&Q. It was very encouraging to receive a very positive evaluation of her work from Mr Terry Huckerby of Starline Marine, a local boat building company. Mr Huckerby thought the concept was a good one and that with development there was marketing potential for a boat like this.

The boat was successfully tested last week on the lake by the ‘Dome' At first weights were used to test stability, and then by Michelle herself ‘taking the plunge'. Then she set forth across the lake using the paddles she had made, these are also, quite naturally, made of cardboard!