Griffith University has partnered with software company Opmantek to
launchthe inaugural Opmantek prize.
The prize, which was awarded at the Gold Coast campus on June 4, goes to the
best industry project developed by Griffith’s IT and Multimedia students.
Students were asked to form teams of three to five people, making up thirteen
teams in all, to undertake a six month industry project.
They were required to produce a commercial grade product for a real world
purpose and market.
The winning project was Kids @ GCU Hospital, an application designed to help
children going to hospital better understand what is happening around them
and ease their anxiety.
Linda Horne, Senior Project Officer for the Gold Coast University Hospital
Project was impressed by the quality of the winning team’s application.
“The products the students have created are fantastic. The Gold Coast
University Hospital simply played the role of the prospective ‘end-user’
for a couple of the web applications being developed,” said Linda.
“That was thanks to a nine month partnership we have developed with
Griffith’s School of Information and Communications Technology.”
The winning team, made up of members Darcelle Hinze, Ashley Burns,
Belinda Rex, Chelsea McGuinness, was given a $2,000 cash prize.
They were chosen from three finalist teams each of which had
developed an electronic storyboard application.
Associate Lecturer and Industry Project Convenor, Steven Tucker
praised the quality of the work from students.
“The three finalists produced high quality, industry targeted
products in a relatively short time frame.
“I congratulate the winners and the runners up on the
exceptional outcomes of their projects.”
The award program is a long-term commitment by Opmantek and
Griffith University, designed to enrich student experiences
and strengthen the link between academia and industry.
“The quality and professionalism of the projects presented
for judging was astounding,” said Opmantek’s CEO Danny Maher.
The winning application is already available
for devicesrunning the Android operating
system and will be replicated for Apple IOS
devices soon.
Visit appszoom.com and search for
Kidz@GCU to download the App.