The innovators

Dr. Michael Dunbar receives a Dalhousie Innovation Award for Life Sciences. (Nick Pearce Photo)

For Dalhousie physicist Ian Hill, winning the Dalhousie Innovation Award is more than just a nice recognition on the mantelpiece.

“It will provide the funding to allow me to hire a post-doc to further my research, something I would not be able to do otherwise,” says Dr. Hill. “It’s a wonderful program and I’m very happy to be a recipient.”

Dr. Hill was not the only honoree taking home the prize at last week’s ceremony. To mark the fourth year for the Dalhousie Innovation Award – which recognizes innovative research with strong commercial potential – Dal’s office of Industry Liaison and Innovation (ILI) doubled the pot and presented two $50,000 prizes. Dr. Hill was awarded the prize for physical sciences and engineering, while Michael Dunbar of the Department of Surgery received the award for life sciences.

David Wilson, Allan Hennigar, Michael Dunbar, Dalhousie President Tom Traves, Ian Hill, ILI executive director Ron Layden.  (Nick Pearce Photo)

“We wanted to really broaden the reach of the Innovation Award and encourage more researchers to consider applying,” says Ronald Layden, executive director of ILI. “We want Dalhousie faculty to be thinking critically and constructively about the commercial potential for their research, and the awards are a great incentive.”

Dr. Dunbar was recognized for developing the Femoral Fracture Reduction Device, a tool to assist surgeons in reducing and setting severe long bone trauma fractures. It fulfills a need for a device that limits invasive surgery for femoral fractures while ensuring correct alignment of the bones.

”The award will allow us to focus on development of the project and specifically to help build prototypes,” says Dr. Dunbar. “It is a critical infusion of capital at a critical time that will greatly increase the odds of commercial success.

Dr. Hill was recognized for his work in developing alternative materials to increase efficiencies and lifetimes of Organic Light Emitting Diode (OLED) displays. OLEDs are widely touted as the next generation of flat-panel display screens in a wide variety of applications, from televisions and computer screens to mobile phones.

The Dalhousie Innovation Award is made possible with the support of its co-sponsors: InNOVAcorp, Nova Scotia Economic Development, the IWK Health Centre and the Capital District Health Authority. For more information, visit http://innovation.dal.ca