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Innovation

Great idea becomes helpful prototype

Josh Matthews | Dartmouth

Josh Matthews could not have known that the skills his mother taught him on her sewing machine would one day help people in wheelchairs.

Machines had always fascinated Josh. That's why he enrolled in NSCC's Mechanical Engineering Technology program at the Waterfront Campus in Dartmouth.

Part of the program involved working with Northwood, a long-term care setting where many residents need wheelchairs. For residents without sufficient body strength to reposition themselves, slouching can become a real problem. To help them maintain healthy posture, care providers needed a device they could use alone without risking injury to their own backs.

Gail Giffin, senior occupational therapist at Northwood, had an idea and approached the NSCC Applied Research team for help. Josh and 2 other engineering technology students took up the challenge under the guidance of one of the College's Applied Research scientists.

They modified Gail's idea and Josh built the first prototype using his sewing machine. Josh and his fellow Mechanical Engineering Technology students took the device to NSCC's Occupational Therapy/Physiotherapy Assistant program at the Cumberland Campus to test it.

The feedback was so positive that the group enlisted a student from NSCC's Business Administration program to conduct a market study to see if the product was commercially viable.

Now, NSCC is working with industry to bring it to market. "We anticipate the product will make a real difference for our residents and our employees," says Gail.

"It was a unique opportunity to work with students from all of these programs to create something that will actually be used to help people," says Josh. "It was a big boost in helping me to get started in my field."

Tags:

• mechanical engineering
• applied research
• injury
• students
• occupational therapist
• feedback
• scientists
• helpful

Spark of invention alters career path

Danielle Francis | Shelburne

A funny thing happened on the way to Danielle Francis's NSCC diploma. She invented something that has caused quite a stir. After working various jobs, Danielle decided it was time for a career in practical nursing. As a first step, she went back to school, enrolling in the Adult Learning Program at NSCC's Shelburne Campus.

But an unexpected path revealed itself while Danielle and her husband were renovating their home. They found the removal, fixing, and replacing of mouldings to be time-consuming and frustrating, especially when the mouldings broke. "I thought, 'What if the mouldings could be attached to the wall with some kind of removable fastener?' That way, they could be taken down and put back easily." Danielle tried different materials before settling on magnets in the mouldings and adhesive metal on the walls.

At the same time, her NSCC campus was holding an Ideas Competition, through Y.E.S. (Your Entrepreneurial Self), which encourages students to develop new products and services that have business potential or community impact. Wendy McGill of NSCC's School of Business encouraged Danielle to enter her magnetic moulding idea.

Danielle won first prize: a ticket to the Atlantic Dream Festival featuring guest speaker Richard Branson. That conference inspired her to enter three more competitions – she placed first, first, and third. "Danielle embraced the entrepreneurial spirit of these competitions, a spirit that is at the heart of healthy and vibrant communities," says Wendy.

Danielle has a provisional patent now and expects to receive a full patent on her idea by next April. Companies are already interested in her invention. She's also followed a piece of advice from Wendy: instead of practical nursing, she's studying business administration.

She also has a new idea for this year's Ideas Competition...

Tags:

• entrepreneur
• ALP
• renovations
• experimenting
• product development
• Dream Festival
• competition
• ideas

Using technology to protect coastline

Dr. Tim Webster | AGRG, Middleton

For years, determining shoreline erosion meant comparing photos from decade to decade. But NSCC Research Scientist Dr. Tim Webster and his team are using technology in innovative ways to survey the ongoing impacts of storm surges and climate change on Nova Scotia's coastline.

Tim says they have adopted ground-based laser scanning for surveys along the Northumberland Strait, which is a relatively new technology for taking measurements. "It delivers information you can't get from aerial photographs, which means we can make more accurate predictions of how much erosion a particular storm will cause."

His team is also conducting surveys of Hirtle's and Mavillette beaches, taking scans before and after storms to measure changes.

"These surveys give us a better grasp of our coastline's vulnerability, and we can use that information to slow Mother Nature down. For example, we can install a practice armour (fabric with stones on top) along the shoreline to limit storm erosion. If that saves someone's house along the coastline, then it's worth it."

Tags:

• climate change
• climate change
• science
• technology
• storm surges
• coastline
• laser scanning
• measurements
• prediction

A business forum for bright ideas

Ben Stawitz | Halifax

As a young entrepreneur studying in the Computer Electronics Technician program at the NSCC Institute of Technology Campus, Ben Stawitz took a unique approach to his work term requirement: he started a business and hired students.

That business, TALOS Innovation, not only offered students an opportunity to use skills learned in class, it also led to the creation of an online forum for Atlantic Canada's budding entrepreneurs to network and connect with their peers: Brightseeds.ca. Users can set up accounts, promote their businesses, find companies with a similar focus, and then reach out to one another to discuss shared interests or concerns.

"NSCC was very supportive in getting Brightseeds off the ground," says Ben. "They linked me with movers and shakers, offered ideas and motivation, and helped get the word out about it."

Though Brightseeds is just getting started, Ben is optimistic about its future. "People will launch more businesses, get better at running them and spread that knowledge. We'll have a community of entrepreneurs and that will be good for our region."

Tags:

• connections
• computer electronics
• entrepreneur
• business
• supportive
• online forum
• getting started