“Advancing Innovation and Technopreneurship In Mindanao”, the theme for the Technnovation 2014 fittingly describes the intentions of the Organizers in conducting the MSU-IIT First Innovation and Technology Fair dubbed Technnovation 2014 at the Institute Mini-theater on September 25-26, 2014.
The activity hosted by the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research and Extension in coordination with the Intellectual Property Unit ( IPU) – Innovation and Technology Support Office ( IPU –ITSO) and the Commission on Higher Education – Philippines Higher Education Research Network ( CHED- PHERnet ) Center was co-sponsored by MSU-IIT’s industry partners. USAID STRIDE, Mabuhay Vinyl Corporation, Holcim Cement, PILMICO, Nutra Tech Biopharma and PhilDev provided the prizes, trophies and other support during the activity . Industry partners also served as judges for the various competitions done during the Technnovation.
Technnovation 2014 showcased science, technology and engineering R & D results, developed technologies, innovations and inventions of Institute graduate and undergraduate students with their faculty advisers. It is an initiative directed towards creating a vibrant technology marketplace for the creative undertakings of the academe.
Twenty seven ( 27 ) teams exhibited their projects and were categorized into 4 clusters. Cluster A are technologies and innovations pertaining to Energy; Computer Apps/ Games & Animation while Cluster B is for R & D on Environment, Cluster C is on Health and Pharmaceuticals / Disaster Risk Reduction Management and Cluster D is Food & nutrition /Education research results. Awards were given per cluster to the Best Project, Best Display, Industry Choice, Best Elevator Pitch and Best Video Pitch.
Aside from the exhibition, lectures on innovation and technopreneurship, workshop on innovation and technology Pitching and panel discussions on the role of the academe in fostering innovation were tackled during the two-day event.
The event was also an opportunity to heighten awareness on innovation. The talk of Dr. Gary Wnek , a professor of the School of Engineering at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio who delivered his lecture via Skype summarized the present innovation climate in the academe. According to him, “we (academe) are not doing a very good job at innovation”… . He added that we should train students to be innovators and prepare them for success outside the academe. This contention was substantiated by the Creative Productivity Index report of the Asian Development Bank and Economic Intelligence Unit published by the Philippine Daily Inquirer on September 12, 2014. The article reported that the Philippines placed 18th among the 22 Asian Economies including USA and Finland for comparative purposes. The index shows the efficiency of countries to convert their creative inputs into innovations.
Participants also listened to some success stories of researchers who, through perseverance and continued innovation, were able to market their products.
Dr. Henry Ramos of UP Diliman talked on his TiN Coat technology. Two MSU-IIT alumni were also among those who shared their success stories, Engr. Rolly Michael R. Racsa of Nutra Tech Biopharma for his pharmaceutical products and Engr. Gil Michael Regalado who dabbled on IT innovations. Wilfredo Dimamay, the Immediate Past Director of the MSU-IIT Computer Center shared how they were able to innovate and create the e-SMS ( School Management System) at the center.
The panel discussion on the role of the academe in fostering innovation discussed the advantageous requisites for increasing innovation output in the academe such as incentives to innovate, bigger budgetary allocation for R & D, fostering teamwork and multi-disciplinary collaborations among others. The panelists were Dr. Alita T. Roxas, the Dean of School of Graduate Studies as Lead Discussant and panel members composed of Dr. H.Ramos, Engr. Racsa, Dir. Dimamay, Engr. Regalado and the Director of Research, Dr. Franco G. Teves. mepcruz, IPU-ITSO for OC-OPI
The Intellectual Property Unit-Innovation and Technology Support Office (IPU-ITSO) of the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research and Extension (OVCRE) in collaboration with MSU-IIT CHED – Phernet and the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) will be conducting a Patent Drafting Writeshop on August 26-28, 2014 at the College of Nursing Conference Hall.
With the advent of globalization and the race for global competitiveness, there is growing pressure for HEIs to support and assert their role in the national innovation system by transforming R & D results into commercially valuable innovations. The protection of these intellectual properties (IPs) generated by researchers is vital in the dissemination and commercialization of knowledge and technology.
IPOPHL’s Patent Examiners Rosa M. Fernandez, Eric C. Paden, Emmanuel M. Mendoza, Kristine Marfe S. Amer will conduct the writeshop. The resource persons will be assisted by the ITSO Technical Team of MSU-IIT.
The writeshop is an excellent opportunity for participants to learn how to draft patent applications.
Invitations have been sent to the different colleges for the writeshop. Researchers are invited and are requested to bring to the writeshop their research results to be drafted into patent applications which will be registered at IPOPHL. (M.E.P. Cruz, IPU-ITSO for OC-OPI)
The forum on Commercialization and Industry Partnership conducted by the Intellectual Property Unit (IPU) – Innovation and Technology Support Office ( ITSO) at the MSU-IIT Boardroom on April 11, 2014 aimed to promote innovation and technology development. It also provided opportunities for accelerating commercialization of researches through intellectual property protection and by fostering collaborative work with industries. The activity was done in support of the Institute’s pursuit of becoming a research university.
Invited speakers during forum were Dr. Gonzalo “Al” Serafica, a Balik-Scientist, and Dr. Richard S. Abendan, the Research and Industry Partnerships Manager of the Science, Technology Research, and Innovation for Development (STRIDE) Project of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) in the Philippines.
Serafica who holds a Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from Rennselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, New York talked on “Technology Innovation & Commercialization: The Xylos Experience”.
Serafica has a 20-year experience in technology commercialization. He co-founded Xylos Corporation which developed and commercialized various microbial cellulose-derived medical devices from “nata de coco” ranging from permanent implants as brain patch or dural substitute, to soft tissue replacements and adhesion barriers, and artificial skin or advanced wound dressings for treating chronic wounds. He holds 10 US and 20 international granted patents.
Abendan for his part talked on “University – Industry Collaborations : USAID STRIDE Program”. He has a Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry from Georgetown University in Washington DC.
As the Research and Industry Partnerships Manager of USAID–STRIDE Program in the Philippines, he actively promotes collaboration between Universities and Industries. The five-year USAID-STRIDE Program provides grants to strengthen applied research activity in Philippine universities and industries and to help drive innovation–led growth in the country.
The forum was attended by Institute researchers and representatives from some of the Institute industry partners – Holcim Phils. Inc.,, Phil. Sinter Corporation, Mabuhay Vinyl Corporation Newtech Pulp , Pilmico Foods Corporation and from the Phil. Institute of Chemical Engineers ( PICHE ).
The Institute’s Innovation and Technology Support Office’s (ITSO’s) general manager Ma. Esperanza P. Cruz and technical experts, Dr. Ma. Sheila K. Ramos and Dr. Evelyn C. Creencia participated in the 2nd De LaSalle University Innovation and Technology Fair held in Manila on March 26-27, 2014.
The DLSU innovation and technology fair allows IIT to showcase its innovative products developed on campus.
Five faculty members and one staff recently passed the Patent Agent Qualifying Exams (PAQUE) by the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHIL), the Intellectual Property Unit-Innovations and Technology Support Office (IPU-ITSO) announced.
The exam was given in December 2013 after a series of seminars and workshops on intellectual properties (IPs) by experts from the Philippines, Germany and the United Kingdom at the University of the Philippines in Los Banos and the Diliman campuses.
The Institute’s newly registered patent agents are Dr. Evelyn C. Creencia, Dr. Reynaldo M. Vequizo of the College of Science & Mathematics (CSM); Dr. Maria Sheila K. Ramos, Atty. Nathaniel C. Tarranza and Atty. Edgar Allan A. Donasco of the College of Engineering (COE), and Ms. Marietta Esperanza P. Cruz of the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research & Extension (OVCRE).
The IPU-ITSO is the result of a merger between two units of the OVCRE. Created in 2010 by virtue of a BOR Resolution for the MSU System, the IPU-ITSO protects, manages and utilizes IPs of the Institute faculty, staff and students.
The ITSO is a franchise granted to the Institute by IPOPHIL in 2011. It is envisioned to provide the general public with IP Protection and commercialization support services like patent search, patent drafting, patent application and prosecution, and license agreement drafting.
ITSO is supported by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) in Geneva, Switzerland with major ties with other IP offices in the world. by Nathaniel C. Tarranza for OC-OPI
