By Mikee Natinga Norico
Day 1: Innovation and Technopreneurship Day focused on technology-driven innovation.
The College of Engineering at Central Philippine University (CPU) held its annual Innovation Week from March 27-29, 2024, with the theme “Nurturing Engineering Creativity of Central.” The week-long event aimed to promote a technopreneurial culture among engineering students, fostering creativity and innovation while developing startups that address critical community issues.
Engr. Gelvie Lagos, the brain behind the initiative, explained the theme’s inspiration.
“Students are becoming less creative and innovative. We need to make learning fun again and spark creativity in our classrooms. Innovation is the lifeblood of an engineering student, and creativity fuels that innovativeness. By fostering a learning environment that encourages both, we can cultivate a technopreneurial culture, preparing students to innovate in the industry or launch their own businesses after graduation.”
Day 2: 2nd Engineering Startup Challenge showcased creative and sustainable food innovations developed by engineering students to address pressing food-related issues.
The Innovation Week featured three key activities spread across three days:
Day 1: Innovation and Technopreneurship Day focused on technology-driven innovation.
Day 2: 2nd Engineering Startup Challenge (Exhibits and Festival) showcased creative and sustainable food innovations developed by engineering students to address pressing food-related issues.
Day 3: 4th Mechatronics Day featured a robotics competition organized by Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) students.
Engr. Lagos envisions Innovation Week becoming a university-wide event, potentially involving other colleges in the future. “We plan to educate a wider student base through our startup education program. Strengthening startup education within the university is vital to creating successful startups. We’re slowly but surely taking steps to realize this vision,” he said.
Day 3: 4th Mechatronics Day featured a robotics competition organized by Electronics Engineering (ECE) students.
Organizing a large-scale event like Innovation Week comes with its fair share of hurdles.
“It requires significant logistics and manpower, which can be a challenge. Imagine setting up booths, audio-visual equipment, tarpaulins, and securing judges for 50 startup teams! I’m incredibly grateful to the few dedicated individuals who helped and believed in this event’s success, and of course, to the students – the true stars of the show. Without them, there would be no event,” he said.
Looking back, Engr. Lagos finds success in the growth of Innovation Week itself. What began as a single-day Mechatronics Day has blossomed into a three-day event with more planned for the future. Additionally, he highlights the achievements of students in the technopreneurship program, who have consistently won local and international innovation and pitching contests. The faculty has also participated, with a team even reaching the national pitching competitions in 2021.
Engr. Lagos emphasizes the importance of gathering feedback.
“We actively seek feedback from students, even during the event. I believe in providing constructive criticism – it’s the only way for their products to compete in the market. Feedback also helps us improve our event delivery for future iterations. We learn from our mistakes,” he said.
This year, participants can expect further improvements, with plans to create a “startup marketplace” within the CPU community to allow student startups to validate their innovations through sales. Moreover, by leveraging the university’s existing Business Incubation Facility, the goal is to transform student ideas into real businesses that have a positive impact on the community.
The CPU College of Engineering’s Innovation Week serves as a testament to the institution’s commitment to nurturing the next generation of creative and innovative engineers, equipping them with the skills and resources to become successful technopreneurs who contribute meaningfully to society.