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The James Dyson Award is an international design competition that celebrates the next generation of design engineers. It’s open to current and recent design engineering students, and the brief is simple: “design something that solves a problem.” On September 16th, the national winners and finalists were announced, and one project caught our eye: ENCAJA, the national winner for Colombia.
ENCAJA tackles a real gap in prosthetic care: the lack of affordable, custom sockets for people with transradial (below-the-elbow) limb loss. Laura Echeverri-Giraldo, a student at Pontifical Javierian University, was inspired to start the project after meeting a little girl, born without one arm, who wanted to play the piano. Echeverri set out to help her reach that dream, but she soon realized the problem went much further: “People without hands cannot use most everyday objects because they are designed to be held by hands. Before designing new tools, we first need to redesign the interface between the body and the tool.”
Prototype validation with a user testing the universal distal connector.
Prosthetic sockets already exist, of course. But they’re often expensive, uncomfortable, or both. That motivated Echeverri to find a way to make affordable, custom sockets using accessible technologies.
How ENCAJA Works
ENCAJA combines 3D scanning and generative design to create custom sockets. The process starts with a 3D scan taken on a smartphone, with small stickers placed on key anatomical landmarks and sensitive areas of the residual limb. The scan is then uploaded to the ENCAJA platform, where an algorithm generates a custom socket designed to protect pressure-sensitive areas.
From there, users or partner organizations can use the digital file to produce the final socket. ENCAJA provides the file, and the user or manufacturer handles the rest, which leaves plenty of flexibility. For example, they can choose materials based on their budget and resources. According to ENCAJA, the result costs a fraction of what traditional handcrafted sockets do.
User testing an interchangeable fork attachment
What Makes the Socket Design Special
Using 3D printing for prosthetics is nothing new. What stands out here is Echeverri’s design approach. She started by designing the socket along with a universal distal connector, so she could keep developing interchangeable tools down the line. Early prototypes showed that direct contact between the printed socket and the skin was uncomfortable, so she added a removable, laser-cut foam liner. This extra layer also opened the door to more personalization, since users can pick their own patterns and colors.
Next, Echeverri built a Grasshopper algorithm that adapts the socket to any 3D scan of a residual limb while accounting for sensitive anatomical areas. She tested it successfully on five different limb scans.
Concept sketches of the modular prosthetic socket and tools
Putting It to the Test
With the system designed, Echeverri had it evaluated by a prosthetic user and a certified prosthetist. Their feedback led to several improvements: a redesigned distal connector to prevent accidental detachment, an extended liner for better comfort, visual alignment guides for attaching tools, and a refined user interface for the scanning process.
As a national winner, ENCAJA takes home £5,000. Stay tuned for November 4th, when the international winner and the sustainability winner will be announced. Each will receive £30,000. To learn more about ENCAJA, visit the project page here.
If you’re interested in medical additive manufacturing, be sure to attend ADDITIV Medical on October 21st, 2026.
What do you think of ENCAJA? Let us know in a comment below or on our LinkedIn and Facebook pages! Don’t forget to sign up for our free weekly Newsletter here, the latest 3D printing news straight to your inbox! You can also find all our videos on our YouTube channel.
*All Photo Credits: Laura Echeverri Giraldo
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