Last month, five students from the University of Liège won the Wallonie Entreprendre prize for their Drinkey project. Justine, Carla-Marie, Quentin, Federico and Anthony, all five Engineering Science students, first came across each other in a Start-up Project course. Once their project was conceived and developed, they had to submit it to the annual Startech competition. Sensitive to the scourge of chemical submission, particularly at parties, they developed a straw that changes color when it comes into contact with drugs. Their project and its format have evolved for a number of practical reasons. Today, it comes in the form of a key-ring, like an all-in-one kit, containing 10 sticks. Using these rods, it is possible to detect the three substances most frequently used in chemical submission assaults.
Drinkey functions very simply. When you suspect that a drink contains drugs, simply take a rod and dip it into the glass for a few seconds. After letting it rest for two minutes outside the liquid, one of the squares will change color, if the drink contains drugs.
It should be pointed out, however, that the risk of false positives or negatives is not excluded, and in the event of doubt, it is advisable to visit the nearest hospital for more precise analyses.
Between their university courses and meetings with VentureLab, it's not always easy to find the time to finalize their project and prepare the ground, but that doesn't stop the five students, who are looking forward to launching their project on the market!
The mayor of Liège, Willy Demeyer, supports their project, and would like to see Drinkey marketed in pharmacies “to reach as many people as possible, and to work together for safer parties”.
What a promising and essential project! Congratulations to them!