Freshmen build app to clean up students’ laundry etiquette

A group of students is trying to improve the laundry process on campus.

Freshman international students Pawan Subedi, Daniel Leite and Alexander Jowi Amayo have created a laundry app for students to use in the residence halls.

Subedi, who had the original idea for the app, said that the frustration of bringing laundry down to the laundry room only to discover all of the machines in use motivated the creation of the app.

“I think many people have been frustrated in this area,” Subedi said. “We are not the only ones.”

The original idea was to create a website, but the creators decided to design an app instead because it is more convenient for students who are always checking their phones.

Subedi, Leite and Amayo, who are all computer science majors, started developing the app using programs like JSX, JavaScript and CSS.

Subedi says the idea of the laundry app is simple. Students will use their Augie emails to log in and, in one or two clicks, they can check the availability of washers and dryers.

The top half of the screen will show how many machines are available, while the bottom half will say which machines are currently in use.

The app will utilize QR codes on each washer and dryer that students can scan to show that they are using or are done with a machine.

Subedi compares this to the Snapchat code that is used to add friends with one scan.

There will also be a personal tab where students can check which machines they are using and how much time is left on each machine’s cycle.

The creators also intend to add a notification that will alert students when their laundry is finished.

“I think it will make the lives of students easier and more flexible for their schedules,” said Subedi.

Freshman Maddy Deetz agrees.

“I think it’s a great idea,” she said. “Living on the top floor and having to carry my laundry basket down only to discover there are no open washers is inconvenient and frustrating.”

Subedi noted students might ask why they should use the app. His answer is that it is a way for students to help each other in a simple but important way.

He realizes that the process will not work if students do not use the app, but he thinks it will catch on as a normal responsibility in community living.

“When they run into the same problem of carrying the clothes down and bringing them up and back down, they will say ‘if I had looked into the app, I would not be doing this’” Subedi said.

Before the creators can continue, they need funding for the app which will come from ASA.

“The laundry app will be completely funded by ASA,” ASA President Anna Stritecky said. “Some of the money is for certain testing that is needed to be done, and another part is to pay the students for how hard they’ve been working on this app.”

She said the group requested $682.50 to cover the app and labor, and the money will be taken out of the general Senate fund, so senators will not vote on allocation.

Subedi, Leite and Amayo already have the prototype for the app ready, but they hope to launch the app in one residence hall, gather feedback, analyze the data and work to improve the app.

After this beta test, they plan to implement it in all six residence halls.

The creators hope to have the laundry app implemented by the end of this school year.