Wash Bus

Flowing with Blessings needed a way to expand from showers to clean clothes

Flowing with Blessings was already operating a weekly mobile shower service for Atlanta’s unhoused community. Showers helped — but guests left clean and changed back into the same dirty clothes. The organization wanted to add laundry to complete the hygiene loop, and needed a team to help figure out how.

Our team explored how a school bus could become a self-contained mobile laundry service: how the machines would be secured, how water and electricity would work, how guests and volunteers would move through the space, and how the service would communicate itself to the community.

Team with Flowing with Blessings (I couldn’t attend the final presentation in person)

A shower only solves half the problem

For unhoused individuals trying to find work, cleanliness is directly tied to opportunity. Clean clothes affect how people are perceived at job interviews and in public spaces — and without access to laundry, even consistent showering isn’t enough to maintain hygiene. Atlanta is home to over a quarter of Georgia’s homeless population. Flowing with Blessings saw laundry as the missing piece in the hygiene services it was already providing.

Our team designed the system, the service, and the identity

Because the bus would be built and operated by a small nonprofit, every design decision had to be practical and volunteer-friendly. We worked across three areas:

Systems planning

Machine layoutWasher and dryer placement for a standard school bus footprint, with a prewash utility sink station.

Machine securingWood screws, window jamb supports, and 5-foot load securing tracks to keep machines stable in transit.

Water systemCustom 2×4×8 fresh water tank → pump → hot water heater → washer, with separate grey water storage tanks for self-contained operation.

Electrical systemAC outlets on a DIN rail connected to each machine, running through a circuit breaker to a self-contained power generator.

Color systemMagnetic name tags on each machine protect guests’ belongings and provide clear user identification throughout the laundry process.

Volunteer workstationFolding table with swivel system and under-bench storage, designed to fold flat when the bus is in transit.

Service experience

We mapped the full service flow for both guests and volunteers — from sign-up to laundry drop-off, washing, and pickup. The goal was to make the process clear and low-friction for people who might be anxious, unfamiliar with the service, or in a hurry.

Branding and outreach

The visual identity needed to work across the bus exterior, social media, and in-person outreach. The bus graphic references flowing water — echoing the Flowing with Blessings logo — and doubles as a helping hand shape to signal community and care. The side of the bus carries a step-by-step service diagram so guests can understand the process before they arrive.

Bus graphicsFlowing water motif referencing the partner’s logo; side panel service walkthrough.

BrandingColor palette and typography system developed for the Wash Bus identity.

Colors

Typefaces

Outreach materialsSocial assets, donor-facing materials, and volunteer recruitment graphics.

Example outreach material

Flowing with Blessings built the bus — and Georgia Tech recognized the team’s role

After the student collaboration ended, Flowing with Blessings continued developing the Mobile Laundry Bus as part of its ongoing effort to provide showers and clean clothing to people experiencing homelessness. Georgia Tech later featured the project, highlighting the student team’s contribution to brainstorming, sketching, 3D modeling, workflow planning, water systems, and washer/dryer layout.

Georgia Tech Industrial Design

Laundry, Dignity, and Design: The Story of Atlanta’s Wash Bus

How a student team partnered with nonprofit Flowing with Blessings to design a mobile laundry service for Atlanta’s unhoused community.

Wash Bus taught me that community-based design doesn’t always move from concept to implementation in a straight line. Some recommendations may change as real-world constraints take over — but the work can still create real value by clarifying the system, visualizing possibilities, and helping a partner move from an idea toward an actual service.

The most meaningful part was learning how design can support dignity at a practical level: not by making an object alone, but by shaping the service, workflow, and communication around it.