2024 Technology Report Contest

Technology Accreditation Canada – 2024 Technology Report Contest Press Release

On September 17, 2024, Technology Accreditation Canada (TAC) announced the 2024 Technology Report Contest prize winners. Awarded the top prize of $1,000 are Mari Cel De Vera, Ethan Nott and Leo Punongbayan graduates of the Mechanical Engineering Technology program at Northern Alberta Institute of Technology (NAIT) with their “Design of Fluid-Jacketed Phosphate Dip Tank” report.

Water-jacketed tanks have been a topic of discussion at Argus Manufacturing for many years stated Randy Wiltermuth Engineering Manager. Mari Cel De Vera, an Argus employee worked here for several years and in different departments. While in the Engineering department she took an interest in Mechanical Engineering and decided to go back to school at NAIT. Mari Cel reached out to Randy when NAIT was looking for capstone projects. Capstone projects are usually sourced by Scott Sparling from local companies and individuals in the Edmonton area. Audrey Claydon, Derek Walker, Scott Sparling Instructors NAIT’s Mechanical Engineering Technology Department noted, “Design of a fluid-jacketed tank would cover most of the topics taught in our program. Mari, Leo, and Ethan collaborated to form a very strong team, and they produced an exceptional design, an outstanding presentation, and a comprehensive report. Mentoring these students was a pleasure and seeing them win the TAC national contest, placing first amongst all accredited colleges and polytechnics across Canada, was an incredible honor to the hard work they put in and the dedication to teaching all NAIT staff have.

Stephen McMillan, NAIT, Dean School of Manufacturing & Automation, School of Transportation noted, “Congratulations to the NAIT Mechanical Engineering Technology student team "Gear Heads" for their outstanding victory in the 2024 TAC Technology Report Contest! This achievement is a testament to their excellent engineering skills, dedication, and teamwork. Your success reflects the importance of technology accreditation, which ensures our graduates meet the highest industry standards. Well done!”

Mari stated, “This win gives me the boost I need in my confidence and abilities. 3D modeling provided me with hours of hands-on design experience needed in the industry. The best part for me was the day of the presentation.” For Ethan, “Personally, it’s awesome to see something I worked very hard on win such a large competition. It’s nice to have something to look back on fondly after graduating. The best part was the thermodynamics and the final presentation, as it was enjoyable to showcase our accomplishments.”

Leo cited, “This win reinforces my confidence in my technical capabilities, and teamwork I gained at NAIT. The best part of the project was the professional growth we gained after navigating through all the overwhelming challenges and complexities of the design.”Timothy Hannah and Natacha Jean, graduates of the Biotechnology Advanced program at Centennial College collected the second-place prize of $500 for their Technology Report, “Investigating the Potential Additive Effects of UV and Heat Pretreatment”.

With their report titled, “Design for the Ring-Based Finger-Controlled Cursor Navigator System” Thanoshan Jeyakumar, Olawale Olubode and Ali Salehi, graduates of the Biomedical Engineering Technology at Centennial College collected the $300 third place prize.

The contest, open to TAC nationally accredited programs, saw twenty submissions. A panel of TAC certified auditors from select engineering technology and applied science disciplines form the technical review panels to conduct an initial rating of the reports. The top two reports from each reviewer in each discipline group were assessed by a final judging panel of four certified professionals, each with extensive education, industry, and audit backgrounds. Reports were scored on their topic selection, methodology, research, analysis, conclusions, originality, innovation, and presentation.

"On behalf of TAC and our Board, I extend sincere congratulations to the winners of the 2024 Technology Report Contest," stated Derek Tsang, TAC Chair. "The top three submissions exemplify our mission to promote excellence in engineering technology and applied science education. This year's winning reports were thoroughly researched, well-supported by experimentation, and addressed highly relevant topics. We thank students and the project sponsors for their participation and support.”

1st Place

Criteria

Eligibility: One Technology Report submission per TAC or CTAB accredited program, written by one student or in a group up to four students, in their final year of their program

Report Criteria: Produce a written, minimum 3,000 word Technology Report, following general learning outcome GY01 Technology Report, which includes research, design, testing, analysis and conclusions related to a significant technology-related issue

Judging Criteria: