Christina del Rosario of One Motion Syringe explains her winning Ideas 2 SERVE technology at the Poster Competiton at InterfaceFLOR showroom.

Syringe technology that could help facilitate the dissemination of vaccines in Third World countries was one of the top winners in Georgia Tech's second annual Ideas to SERVE  (I2S) Competition for early-stage business concepts that could help solve social issues or sustain the environment.

One Motion Syringe, led by industrial design major Christina del Rosario, was the I2S Social Solution track winner ($1,250) as well as the People's Choice Award winner ($250). Improving upon the current syringe design, the One Motion Syringe technology provides a shorter training period for healthcare workers learning to use syringes and a better ergonomic experience.

The I2S Environmental Solutions track winner ($1,250) was SecondWind, led by mechanical engineering major Francis Garing and management major Kevin Luk.  They propose leveraging high-speed roadways to generate wind-driven electric power. Small wind turbines, embedded in roadside barriers, would harness the current from passing traffic in industrialized nations.

Organized by Georgia Tech's Institute for Leadership and Entrepreneurship, the I2S Competition was open to all Georgia Tech students (graduate and undergraduate) and recent alumni. Forty-four teams competed in the competition, with 13 advancing to the finals, vying for $10,500 in prizes. Eight teams or individuals advanced to the finals of the I2S Social Solutions and Environmental Solutions categories, while another eight competed for the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation Award (with three teams overlapping the Solutions and Blank categories).

Done with DOTS won the top Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation Award, which honors ideas that would help mitigate poverty's effects on Georgia's low-income families. Done with DOTS, led by mechanical engineering major Ryan Turk, offers an innovative medical device for dispensing Tuberculosis medication that could improve the effectiveness and decrease the cost of treating this disease in developing countries.

The I2S Competiton was sponsored by the Institute for Leadership and Entrepreneurship, Georgia Tech College of Management, MaRC Sustainable Design & Manufacturing, Tedd Munchak Chair in Entrepreneurship at Georgia Tech, Tech's Brook Byers Institute for Sustainable Systems, and the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation.

Judges for the multiple awards in the I2S Competition included numerous leaders in the corporate, nonprofit, venture capital, legal, and academic communities.

Bryan Cayce, principal of Gray Ghost Ventures, served as host of the Ideas to SERVE finals reception, and Kathleen Kurre, CEO of TechBridge, was guest host. John Bare, vice president of the Blank Foundation, presented the Blank Awards.

Click here to view a complete list of Ideas to SERVE award winning teams and finalists.

 

© 2012 Georgia Institute of Technology