IIT Delhi Bags the Indian Leg of Henkel Innovation Challenge

March 13, 2012 - PRLog -- 13th March, India: The India final of the fifth annual “Henkel Innovation Challenge” has been announced. Over 72 teams representing students from across disciplines, all over the country participated in the “Henkel Innovation Challenge” to develop innovative ideas.
A total of 72 projects were submitted out of which 8 teams were shortlisted for the national finals. This year’s international final will be held on 25th April, 2012 in Poland, home country of last year’s winners. The winning team will receive an around-the-world ticket and a travel voucher worth 1000 euros.
The innovation presented by the winning team, Innovatus Maximus, led by Karan Kamath and Jaireet Johal, from IIT- Delhi, pertained to the adhesives portfolio of Henkel. The team proposed to create an adhesive from a bacterium that is super strong and would serve as an ideal adhesive especially at an industrial level. This strain of bacteria has an amazing property to withstand a force equivalent to five tons per square inch. This technology is both sustainable and innovative, besides industrial use, they can be used as contact adhesives for fitting soles on shoes and laminates on furniture. They can also be used in construction, for reinforcing links and joints especially those built in water or moisture-rich regions. This would be a huge innovation for the latest renewable sources of energy which involves making use of tidal energy.
 
After winning the Indian leg, the team now moves on to Poland. Recounting his experience at the National Finals of the Henkel Innovation Challenge 5, Karan Kamath said, “The journey to the Finals was an exciting one. Consisting of 2 rounds, it was comprehensive and we were evaluated on several parameters. We were constantly trying to refine our ideas & thoughts for the presentation. I am thankful to Henkel for giving students such a platform and encouraging us to think out of the box. All the travel & logistics for the finals were handled very well and we could solely concentrate on the task at hand. The mentorship program enabled us to get valuable suggestions/opinions on our work which ultimately helped us to submit a competent entry.”

Commenting on the “Henkel Innovation Challenge” Mr. Jeremy Hunter, President, Henkel India said, “Henkel has always been in the forefront of innovation. We are proud to bring the fifth edition of the “Henkel Innovation Challenge to India and are pleased to see the spirit of innovativeness among Indian students. We are happy to give them a platform to showcase their capabilities and hope to see more of such bright young minds in the sixth edition of the Henkel Innovation Challenge.”

The “Henkel Innovation Challenge” was open to students of all subjects, including economics, engineering or the natural sciences. The task was to develop a concept for a product under a Henkel brand or for an innovative technology which will meet the needs of customers in the year 2030. New this year: the product ideas and technologies were to contribute to sustainable development, such as reducing energy or water consumption.
The Henkel Innovation Challenge” presents the students with an advantage of having a hands-on involvement with Henkel at an early stage in their career. During the competition, the best teams were assisted by experienced Henkel managers, who as mentors and advisors, aided them to fine tune their concept and relate it with external market realities such as on marketing and pricing strategy. As previously, Henkel continues to stay in touch with many of the promising participants even after the competition is over, with a number of talented youngsters already having been recruited.