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I’ve always referred to myself as a problem solver.
I knew that I was from a very young age. Growing up in Lagos, Nigeria, I could often be found tinkering away at something, which mostly involved taking things apart and not knowing how to put them back together again, much to the annoyance of my parents, or even attempting to bring one of my own crazy ideas to life.
While law or medicine was the career path my parents would have chosen for me, I chose design.
More specifically I chose a BSc in automotive design technology at the University of Bradford. Rather than drawing and design, I soon discovered that most of my modules involved the applied use of maths and physics. These subjects did not come easily to me. I struggled with them at school but, the more I understood them, the more interesting they became and the more determined I was to do well.
It took a few years after leaving university until I began to believe in my own design ideas.
Following graduation I worked as a design engineer in various industries but felt unfulfilled in these roles. It was only when I went for an interview at an automotive company as a contract engineer that I realised I’d been there before for an interview. I didn’t get the job that first time as I was too inexperienced. However, they recognised me as they had actually taken my graduation project idea for a wheelchair-accessible vehicle and made it. While I didn’t think that project was particularly innovative, it was a turning point for me. It gave me the confidence to believe in myself and set me on the path as a freelance design engineer.
Most of the products I’ve designed since focus on solving practical problems arising from everyday issues.
For instance, I’ve made solar-powered lights and clean filtration water systems for use in Africa. My most widely known product to date, Plugull, started out by finding a solution to address my grandma’s difficulty in pulling out plugs from wall sockets due to her arthritis. My solution was an inclusive design that makes it easier not just for her but for all users to remove stiff or fiddly plugs.
Plugull is a very simple product although the process to have it made was never straightforward.
Once I designed and prototyped it, it took me six months to find a local manufacturer as it’s important to me to have my products made in the UK. There was then a lot of back and forth with the manufacturer to get the product right. Since launch, Plugull has spiralled, receiving various forms of recognition, including attention from the press. I’ve made TV appearances and won various awards, such as runner-up in the Make UK Manufacturing Matters 2021 Award, as well as being named the Young Innovator of the Year by Innovate UK and the Prince’s Trust.
I’ve discovered that once you understand how things work you’re able to see opportunities around you to utilise for the good.
That's pretty much my story and it encompasses everything I do. Right now I’m using my skills in an activist engineering project with RS Components Design Sparks to bring awareness around air pollution.
I may not have studied engineering but that is what I spend most of my time doing.
An engineer is a person who solves problems – the title “engineer” isn’t a definer of who you are. Although I do sometimes wish I had studied engineering or at least done an engineering apprenticeship. I might have done if there wasn’t so much stigma around engineering.
I found my niche as an industrial design engineer but my path there has not been easy.
There were times when I felt frustrated and wanted to give up, especially seeing others progress so much quicker than I was. For this reason and because of the stigma around engineering I give talks, especially to students, at various events to share my journey. I feel that if I can put ideas out there then anyone else can too, and you don’t always have to get the top grades to be a design engineer.
I also feel inspired to share my story in the hope that I might inspire someone who looks like me.
I never had a role model in the industry when I was growing up, and certainly not one from a diverse background like myself. So I feel passionately about being that role model and showing younger people, whatever their ethnicity, that engineering can be a world for them.
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Content published by Professional Engineering does not necessarily represent the views of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers.