Paalam (The bridge) Project
Paalam is the Sinhala and Tamil word meaning “Bridge”. In 1995, Jenny Sinnadurai had a desire to work back into her own country of Sri Lanka to assist those in great need. She intended to do this by first building a community center in Wattala, which would be a center to reach out with social action into the surrounding communities. Having built the community center in Wattala we are working to be a bridge between, Tamil and Sinhala, rich and poor, and the North and South as the projects develop.
Later they were introduced to the Australian – Sri Lankan university partnership to develop community based waste recycling businesses project. At the time the communities in in need were receiving cloths from Canadian donors in bulk. Since the donors and the community in Jaffna had many cultural, social and environmental differences many garments had to be disposed because of incompatibility.
Within the project I had experimented with many fabric materials and as a result it was possible to utilize most of the garments they got, to create new composite sheets, and then to create new products. First, we trained them to create products such as pencil holders etc.
Within the project I had experimented with many fabric materials and as a result it was possible to utilize most of the garments they got, to create new composite sheets, and then to create new products. First, we trained them to create products such as pencil holders etc.
Later Canada was identified as a possible export market. Since they received cloths from Canada it was possible to use the same channels to sell locally manufactured products there. The Paalam project identified, a wine bottle holder could be a potential marketable item in Canada.
I did many experiments on a design for a wine bottle holder and was able to develop a design inspire by traditional paper cutting techniques.
I did many experiments on a design for a wine bottle holder and was able to develop a design inspire by traditional paper cutting techniques.
Design Considerations
- Easy to manufacture
- Convenience of packing when exporting
- Aesthetic appearance
- Protection for wine bottle
- Easy to carry bottle holder
- Upcycle value
Design solution
Features of design solution
- Possible for rapid production
- Orientation change of the laminated fabric strips gives a cushioning effect protecting bottle against impacts
- Possibility of flat pack makes it easy to package and transport
Manufacturing
I was able to design a cutter that can be used to cut the entire design in a single cut. This enabled the group to rapidly manufacture a large quantity with no extra practice and minimum margin of error.
Images from workshops
