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'TechWorks' brings dreams of Jordan inventors to life
In the age of Covid, Jordanian mechanical engineer Saliba Taimeh came up with a device to sterilise everyday surface with UV rays with the help of TechWorks.
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Saliba Taimeh, a 39-year-old Jordanian mechanical engineer and inventor, speaks during an interview with AFP at the TechWorks digital fabrication lab in Jordan's capital Amman on February 20, 2022. (AFP/Khalil Mazraawi)
I
n the age of Covid, Jordanian mechanical engineer Saliba Taimeh pondered how to deal with one contaminated everyday surface: the handrails of escalators in shopping malls and transport hubs.
He came up with a device to sterilise them with UV rays -- and this is where TechWorks stepped in.
A wealth of ideas would not have seen the light of day without TechWorks, a Jordanian platform aimed at bringing together youth, ideas and resources to jump-start innovations.
Set up in 2018, TechWorks says its mission is "to plug into entrepreneurial and innovation ecosystems" and turn ideas into reality.
It is equipped with state-of-the-art technology such as 3D printers and affiliated with a foundation set up by Crown Prince Hussein.
Last year, it attracted about 100 inventors and start-up companies, enabling them to produce prototypes quickly and at low cost.
Taimeh, 39, said TechWorks "provided me with every support, back-up, advice and guidance" to help perfect the sterilising device, after 23 attempts over almost two years.
