Filipino structural engineer Aldrei Ong won the 2026 James Dyson Global Sustainability Award on November 4 for Sentinel, a low-cost sensor designed to detect hidden damage in concrete buildings after earthquakes.
How Sentinel works
Sentinel turns a standard concrete spacer block into a sensor using self-sensing concrete. The material detects changes in electrical resistance when cracks or other damage occur. The device aims to provide early warnings and speed up the accuracy of safety assessments in earthquake-vulnerable regions such as the Philippines.
Award and development plans
Ong will receive PHP 2.39 million (about £30,000) to develop Sentinel further. He plans to validate the technology, replace its hand-soldered electronics with a custom printed circuit board and create versions for existing buildings. The 2026 competition received a record 2,294 entries from students and recent graduates across 28 countries and regions. The global sustainability distinction returned to the Philippines six years after Carvey Ehren Maigue won it in 2020.
Important Facts for Exams
- Eligibility: The James Dyson Award is open to university-level students and recent graduates, and recognises designs intended to solve a problem.
- Piezoresistive sensing mechanism: In conductive cement composites, deformation changes contacts between conductive particles, altering bulk resistance; this piezoresistive response can make the concrete itself a strain-sensing element.
- Environmental influences on resistance: Electrical resistance measurements in concrete are also sensitive to moisture, temperature and ionic content, so practical damage sensing often needs calibration or environmental compensation.
- Post-earthquake screening: After an earthquake, rapid visual screening is a triage method for prioritising buildings for detailed evaluation; it does not certify a structure as safe.
