A group of students in Da Nang has finally won the top prize in the Engineering Projects in Community Service (EPICS) 2020 for their multifunctional life jacket called sCoat.  

The multifunctional life jacket, sCoat, made by the Da Nang students

Da Nang’s first winners are Dam Tien, Ba Thang, Da Thao, Le Nha and Nhan Tam, all are students of the Da Nang University of Science and Technology.

The Da Nang students have made a thermal and waterproof jacket that warms the body of wearers in extreme weather conditions such as at sea. This product is not only a jacket which helps fishermen stay warm in bad weather but also a life raft.

With its simple design and affordable price-tag, sCoat is highly recommended for fishermen, and weak or non-swimmers. The inflatable jacket uses compressed air, or CO2, to fill its arms and neck with air, allowing wearers to float higher and be more visible when the life jacket is inflated.

Reflective strips on the jacket help increases wearers’ visibility at night, while the D-ring attachment comes in handy for adding safety accessories like a whistle, a torch and a small knife.

The Global Positioning System (GPS) is designed and installed in sCoat in an effort to facilitate search and rescue activities when its wearer is in danger at sea.

The Engineering Projects in Community Service course, known as EPICS, is an international award-winning social entrepreneurship program. Entries are designed to solve engineering-based problems for charities, schools and other not-for-profit organisations.  

The annual event is co-hosted by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the USA-based Arizona State University, the Dow Viet Nam STEM Programme, and some Viet Nam’s leading technology universities.

By NGOC HA - Translated by MAI DUNG