Manning Innovation Awards highlight Canadian thinkers, tinkerers
by CanadianManufacturing.com Staff,
The Ernest C. Manning Awards celebrate Canadians who have demonstrated recent innovative talent and successfully marketed their innovations
CALGARY—Winners of 2013 Ernest C. Manning Innovation Awards were announced today by Ernest C. Manning Awards Foundation President Jennifer Diakiw.
Innovations created by the 2013 Ernest C. Manning Innovation Award winners include:
• a social innovation from Halifax now being offered in four Canadian provinces with outstanding outcomes;
• a device for hearing aids created in Kitchener that reduces loud and sharp sounds which can cause acoustic shock, now being sold in more than 60 countries;
• a safety device manufactured in Scarborough now on public and commercial transportation vehicles on four continents; and,
• ‘Heads-up display’ technology developed in Vancouver now being added to ski/snowboard goggles and athletic sunglasses by leading eye wear manufacturers.
The 2013 winners, from British Columbia, Ontario and Nova Scotia, share $145,000 in prizes. The 2013 Young Canadian Award winners from Ontario and Quebec share $16,000 in prizes.
The 2013 Ernest C. Manning Innovation Award recipients come from all sectors of Canada’s economy:
Dr. Henry Luo in Kitchener, Ont., won the $25,000 David E. Mitchell Award of Distinction, for developing AntiShock Technology. Since its creation in 2006 by Dr. Luo in Unitron’s research labs in Kitchener, AntiShock has been integrated into five million hearing aids sold in 60 countries. The innovative technology instantly detects and controls sudden and harsh noises—before they are even detected by the listener—while preserving clear speech and conversations. (www.unitronhearing.com).
Ilfor Caine Davies in Oakville, Ont., won the $10,000 Ernest C. Manning Innovation Award for developing Zafety Lug Lock, a transport wheel locking device that ‘cuffs’ wheel nuts to create the required resistance to keep wheel bolts secure. There are now one million Zafety Lug Lock devices on public and commercial vehicles. (www.zafetyluglock.com).
Dan Eisenhardt and Hamid Abdollahi from Vancouver won a $10,000 Ernest C. Manning Innovation Award for developing Heads-up Display (HUD) technology which integrates state-of-the-art micro-computers into goggles and athletic sunglasses. Their technology is now incorporated into eye wear by the world’s leading goggle and sunglass manufacturers (www.reconinstruments.com).
Dr. Patricia Lingley-Pottie and Dr. Patrick McGrath, from Halifax shared the $100,000 Encana Principal Award for creating a social innovation, The Strongest Families Institute. The not for profit Institute provides distance services to families dealing with behavior problems. Services are delivered by highly-trained coaches who teach families skills through 16 telephone sessions supported by handbooks, videos and websites (www.strongestfamilies.com).
David Drouin, 19 from Quebec City won a $4,000 Young Canadian Award for his 2013 Canada-Wide Science Fair project illustrating the potential of a simple compound found in cinnamon, called cinnemaldehyde, in fighting dangerous strains of E.coli bacteria
Meagan Fabel, 17, from Windsor Ont., won a $4,000 Young Canadian Award for her 2013 Canada-Wide Science Fair project where her research showed how to enhance the low-cost electrical energy output of the Gratzel solar cell
Adam Noble, 19, from Lakefield Ont., $4,000 Young Canadian Award for his 2013 Canada-Wide Science Fair project which showed the benefits of using silver nano-particle therapy as a new cure for cancer. Adam’s findings are now being researched as part of a Drug Discovery Program at Trent University;
The 2013 awards will be presented at the 32nd annual Ernest C. Manning Innovation Awards Gala in Calgary on Wed. Oct. 16. Global Television’s Chief Political Correspondent Tom Clark will host the awards ceremony. Get more information at www.manningawards.ca.
