GTU takes students’ innovations under its wings to hatch them
The state tech varsity is launching next month a startup support system in which its students and faculty can incubate their prototypes and find potential takers for them in industry
Yogesh Avasthi
Posted On Tuesday, August 14, 2012 (http://www.ahmedabadmirror.com/article/2/201208142012081423575221b7a523ad/GTU-takes-students%E2%80%99-innovations-under-its-wings-to-hatch-them.html?pageno=1)
Fifty teams selected for Student Startup Support System will work on GTU’s Innovation Council centre for up to six months. They will continue to get institutional support like access to lab and mentoring from successful entrepreneurs for a year
Buoyed by the industry adopting its students’ projects, Gujarat Technological University has decided to help them further by launching Student Startup Support System (S4) under its initiative for entrepreneurship and innovation.
To begin with, the university’s Innovation Council will select 50 teams of innovators from among its students and faculty members and provide them with domain expertise, training and infrastructure support to help them convert their innovations into products and market them.
The system will be in place by next month and operate out of a centre that will come up on GTU’s new campus in Chandkheda or GNLU old campus in Gandhinagar where the university is likely to get some space. As part of their final year project, GTU students had come up with nearly 50,000 big and small innovations under the guidance of their faculty and industry experts.
“As many as 1900 of them proved useful to the industry which adopted them. Many industrial units also absorbed the students. This inspired us to launch S4,” GTU Vice Chancellor Akshai Aggarwal told Ahmedabad Mirror.
“While the development was heartening, we realised that the students gained little except for a job. Their innovation could be turned into worthwhile products and sold to the industry. There is a possibility for students to turn entrepreneurs and contribute much more to society. Our innovation council centre will equip our students to do so,” Dr Aggarwal said.
The entry to the programme will be given after a due selection process, he added. GTU has the support of Gujarat Industrial Development Corporation (GIDC) which will provide the programme entrants access to its labs in Gandhinagar to develop and test their products, said Haresh Shah, co-chairman of GTU’s Gandhinagar Innovation Council Sankul.
The council will co-ordinate with GIDC’s Gandhinagar as well as other estates in the state to find clients for S4 participants’ products. The programme is open to all students of GTU who have passed in the last two years and faculty members who want to take part in it. The faculty members can nominate students who have worked or are working on good projects or innovative products or their own ventures.
While the participants will be expected to work on the centre premises for three to six months to give final shape to their product or even launch their business venture based on the product, they will get centre’s support for a year. The entrants may work on their projects at the centre in teams or individually.
The centre will provide them with office space and access to computers and labs. While special sessions may be held to give the participants more learning, domain experts and successful entrepreneurs will visit the centre frequently to guide the participants, said Dr Aggarwal.
The centre will also try to provide accommodation to students from outside Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar in the university hostel. “This will be a great help to students like us who do not have a place to live in Ahmedabad. People in rural and far flung areas will be the real beneficiaries. We do not get such facilities and mentors in places like Navsari where I come from,” said Hardik Chauhan, one of the applicants to the programme.
He was a part of the team that developed a mobile application for GTU earlier this year. The application helps the university give its students details of lectures, announcements, examination alerts and results on mobile phone. The centre will invite entrepreneurs in Gujarat who are interested in guiding and mentoring the participants at the centre or sharing projects which can be developed at the centre with the help of expertise from entrepreneurs.
Yogesh Avasthi
Posted On Tuesday, August 14, 2012 (http://www.ahmedabadmirror.com/article/2/201208142012081423575221b7a523ad/GTU-takes-students%E2%80%99-innovations-under-its-wings-to-hatch-them.html?pageno=1)
Fifty teams selected for Student Startup Support System will work on GTU’s Innovation Council centre for up to six months. They will continue to get institutional support like access to lab and mentoring from successful entrepreneurs for a year
Buoyed by the industry adopting its students’ projects, Gujarat Technological University has decided to help them further by launching Student Startup Support System (S4) under its initiative for entrepreneurship and innovation.
To begin with, the university’s Innovation Council will select 50 teams of innovators from among its students and faculty members and provide them with domain expertise, training and infrastructure support to help them convert their innovations into products and market them.
The system will be in place by next month and operate out of a centre that will come up on GTU’s new campus in Chandkheda or GNLU old campus in Gandhinagar where the university is likely to get some space. As part of their final year project, GTU students had come up with nearly 50,000 big and small innovations under the guidance of their faculty and industry experts.
“As many as 1900 of them proved useful to the industry which adopted them. Many industrial units also absorbed the students. This inspired us to launch S4,” GTU Vice Chancellor Akshai Aggarwal told Ahmedabad Mirror.
“While the development was heartening, we realised that the students gained little except for a job. Their innovation could be turned into worthwhile products and sold to the industry. There is a possibility for students to turn entrepreneurs and contribute much more to society. Our innovation council centre will equip our students to do so,” Dr Aggarwal said.
The entry to the programme will be given after a due selection process, he added. GTU has the support of Gujarat Industrial Development Corporation (GIDC) which will provide the programme entrants access to its labs in Gandhinagar to develop and test their products, said Haresh Shah, co-chairman of GTU’s Gandhinagar Innovation Council Sankul.
The council will co-ordinate with GIDC’s Gandhinagar as well as other estates in the state to find clients for S4 participants’ products. The programme is open to all students of GTU who have passed in the last two years and faculty members who want to take part in it. The faculty members can nominate students who have worked or are working on good projects or innovative products or their own ventures.
While the participants will be expected to work on the centre premises for three to six months to give final shape to their product or even launch their business venture based on the product, they will get centre’s support for a year. The entrants may work on their projects at the centre in teams or individually.
The centre will provide them with office space and access to computers and labs. While special sessions may be held to give the participants more learning, domain experts and successful entrepreneurs will visit the centre frequently to guide the participants, said Dr Aggarwal.
The centre will also try to provide accommodation to students from outside Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar in the university hostel. “This will be a great help to students like us who do not have a place to live in Ahmedabad. People in rural and far flung areas will be the real beneficiaries. We do not get such facilities and mentors in places like Navsari where I come from,” said Hardik Chauhan, one of the applicants to the programme.
He was a part of the team that developed a mobile application for GTU earlier this year. The application helps the university give its students details of lectures, announcements, examination alerts and results on mobile phone. The centre will invite entrepreneurs in Gujarat who are interested in guiding and mentoring the participants at the centre or sharing projects which can be developed at the centre with the help of expertise from entrepreneurs.
