THE finalists have been announced for the 2016 WA Innovator of the Year awards.
Innovation minister Bill Marmion said the awards showcased a diverse range of technologies, and was a reflection of the potential within the sector in Western Australia.
“This year’s finalists include a facial recognition pain assessment tool and the world’s first fully automated 3D robotic bricklaying system,” Mr Marmion said.
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READ NOW“The Liberal National Government is committed to making WA’s economy synonymous with creativity, transformation and digital technology, while creating jobs and stimulating investment.”
Many award winners have gone on to secure funding for their projects, both here and overseas.
Previous finalist Proteomics International, which developed a predictive diagnostic test for diabetic kidney disease, recently secured funding towards the development of an In vitro Diagnostic test (IVD) kit for their innovation, romarkerD, in China.
The 2015 Overall WA Innovation Winner, software company Track’em, is pursuing opportunities in asset monitoring technology.
See below for a full list of nominees, with winners to be announced at an awards ceremony on November 2.
WA Innovator of the Year Finalists Mitsubishi Corporation Emerging Innovation Category Electronic Pain Assessment Technologies Pty Ltd (Subiaco) Innovation: ePAT, an electronic pain assessment tool, which utilises automated facial recognition technology to detect facial cues indicative of the presence of pain. Fastbrick Robotics Ltd (Walliston) Innovation: Fastbrick Robotic Hadrian, the world’s first fully automated 3D robotic bricklaying system. Segnut Pty Ltd (Mandurah) Innovation: Segnut, an industrial grade threaded nut combined with a rapid release mechanism to allow rapid and safe nut release where otherwise stuck nuts would cause delays and involve unsafe removal methods. The University of Western Australia and Botanic Gardens and Parks Authority (Crawley) Innovation: Flash flaming of seeds to improve land restoration, a device that repeatedly exposes seeds of wild plants species to a flame, in a precisely controlled fashion, to transform the ability to handle seeds that are needed to revegetate areas such as mine sites and degraded agricultural lands. Mitsubishi Corporation Growth Category Furry Dice Pty Ltd (Leederville) Innovation: Instatruck, an on-demand truck matching service for customers’ with specific delivery requirements and owner/drivers who have delivery capacity. Global Grain Handling Solutions Pty Ltd (Spearwood) Innovation: Retro-fit open bulk head clamping system, a new grain storage structure clamping system to replace aging, low tech approaches to securely covering open bulk head grain storage facilities. Subsea Engineering Associates Pty Ltd (Perth) Innovation: SEA-ICE, a cloud-based intelligent computation, engineering and data platform for subsea systems to deliver detailed engineering insight for subsea systems faster, locally and at a lower cost. Tap Into Safety Pty Ltd (Gwelup) Innovation: Tap Into Safety training platform, a safety training application delivered through cross-platform, cloud-based applications, allowing for regular in-situ, self-paced training.