Video: 2020 TechAwards Winners Presentation
Organizations and individuals with innovative technology were celebrated at the 2020 TechAwards, with the presentation shown as part of the Bermuda Development Agency’s Virtual Tech Summit.
Premier David Burt noted in his remarks, “It is my pleasure to be here for our 13th Technology Innovation Awards which recognize outstanding achievements being made in information technology by Bermuda residents and Bermuda-based organizations. Bermuda is a small island; however, we have a wealth of talent and a long history of innovation.
“I have been informed that we have 13 awards to present including some special COVID inspired ones. As well we have other health related innovations, e-commerce solution for local merchants, along with some international fin-tech and reinsurance solutions.”
A spokesperson said, “Dr. Marisa Stones, Acting Director of the Economic Development Department then began with the Innovation of the Year – International Market which went to Ed Broking [Bermuda] Ltd for TradEd, launched exclusively in Bermuda in April, as the first electronic trading application for complex property insurance and reinsurance placements.
“The application based on up to 700 structured data items enabling carriers to view submissions, make queries, edit deal documents while simultaneously close deals on the same online platform. Congratulations to Chris Bonard, CEO Ed Bermuda, and Jonathan Prinn of BGC Partners.
“Next award was for the Most Innovative COVID Solution. Bermuda’s Gateway System’s Solution team developed eTrack & Trace, a privacy-by-design product, used in office buildings to monitor visitor’s health conditions upon entering the premises. Kevin Luckham, Michael Harding and Zakia Tuzo accepted the trophy on behalf of John Kyle and the rest of the Gateway Systems team.
“The Local Market Category was up next with congratulations to Danielle Paynter for creating NAB App a solution to a long-standing problem the Bermudian consumer has when trying to find specific brand-name products to purchase in local stores which will aid local consumers, and visitors, to ‘Buy Bermuda’. Janos Lengyel & Stephan Johnstone head up Bermuda 3D Printing which provides customers with an array of unique products ranging from laser-fit COVID masks, casts for broken bones, architectural models, remanufactured engine parts, customized super hero models, to one-of-a-kind 3D art and sculptures.
“Top honours went to Damien Furbert for Admuda Online Marketplace, an ecommerce shopping platform designed to accommodate medium and small businesses with an online outlet for their products and services. Merchants can create their own virtual store with real-time analytics displayed on custom dashboards. They also have the utilities to create their own ads, chat with customers, and track inventory to avoid customers ordering out-of-stock items.
“The Most Innovative Youth Category this year was divided into two distinct sections Programs and Projects. Bermuda High School is being recognized for their first ever Innovation Expo. This showcase of student projects was a true display of all things S.T.E.A.M. As lead teacher, Lynn Furtado stated to the judges “These experiential projects are not only fun, but they create deeper learning by encouraging the girls to make connections and comparisons between subject areas and develop their problem-solving and team-work skills in the process.”
“Our top Innovative Youth Program went to Connectech Coding Program which has programmes in all government primary schools and brings middle school students into its labs for week-long coding and robotics infusion programs. In February Connectech took a team of 5 students to the FIRST GLOBAL International robotics competition in Dubai. And, when COVID restrictions threatened the implementation of classes beginning in March Connectech pivoted by offering 20 online classes per week which experienced over twenty-three hundred student registrations from 29 Bermuda and 10 international schools.
“Our Most Innovative Youth Project focuses on the individual youth ages 11-25 who reside in Bermuda and have done noteworthy technology projects. The runner up for this category is the 2020 TFL Interns; Maha Clarke, Eli Smith, Tyler Cameron, Derek Tucker-Peters, Kirk Stapff, and Malachi Butterfield. They focused on a team project supporting one of Bermuda’s renowned social service organizations, Friends of Hospice – Agape House.
“The judges were most impressed with our top nominee Gabe Jones, who made use of his time in lockdown, after traveling back to Bermuda from the University of Edinburgh, by connecting over a technology chat room with three other individuals to create CovidIQ. This unique database presents an answer to the need in the marketplace to enable community participation to help contain and forecast the spread of COVID-19
“Recognized in the Most Innovative New Mobile App as in innovative service in the health care industry, TeleCare Bermuda a remote patient monitoring service that specializes in tracking vital signs via Bluetooth devices patients use with mobile phones from their homes was brought to Bermuda by Lunette Castillo. Our first place finisher is a new app that is becoming extremely popular in this sports-crazy island, OnTrack Bermuda. Citing a gap for a modern age tech solution Shannon Burchell and Rodger Lee created this comprehensive software application designed to provide football & cricket stats, standings, fixtures, and teams data to both iOS & Android users. Additionally, the user interface allows individuals attending a contest to post the action which is received by users in real-time. Schedules, player roster and individual statistics are also available through an exclusive partnership with the league governing bodies.
“The final presentation, The Most Innovative COVID Inspired Award.
“Developed as CovidIQ by the team of the same name, it was developed as an online symptom reporting solution to track the spread of potential cases of Covid-19. When introduced to the Bermuda Health Council it was refined and launched as HealthIQ.
“Initially, the idea of CovidIQ was conceived by Lee McArthur, a senior technologist in Bermuda. The project grew through his outreach to like-minded individuals, including Gabriel Jones – a Bermudian computer science student, Kai Huebner, a geographic information systems architect based in Brisbane, Australia, and Zeeshan Ali, a data scientist in Pakistan’s Punjab province.
“CovidIQ is designed to be used by health management authorities anywhere in the world who may not have the time or expertise to develop these sorts of solutions independently. In Bermuda, the platform was well received, with approximately 20% of the population actively sharing their health status, and nearly 50% visiting the platform to check on the progress of Covid19 in their community.”
The Premier closed the presentations by adding “I’d also like to thank the TechAwards Committee who along with Marisa Stones put together our awards program in this most challenging year 2020. Sloane Wilson, Economic Development Department, Jana Darrell, Economic Development Department, Jamillah Lodge, Bermuda Economic Development Corporation, and our project management team from the Youth Entrepreneurship Initiative, Joe Mahoney, and John Narraway.”
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