1st place in the Rhineland-Palatinate ideas competition for the Trier region goes to Intermedia Design graduate

The three regional winners of the Rhineland-Palatinate ideas competition (front row, from left): Sebastian Bast (2nd prize), Adrian Wegener (1st prize), Kasia Vogel-Oulaid (3rd prize). Back row (from left): Lord Mayor Wolfram Leibe, Managing Director of the "Forschungsstelle Mittelstand", Dr. Alexandra Moritz; Spokesperson of the "Forschungsstelle Mittelstand", Professor Jörn Hendrich Block; Head of Economic Development Trier, Christiane Luxem. Photo: Franziska Wonnebauer, volksfreund.de

While most award winners do not begin with their business plan until after the award, the idea of first-placed Adrian Wegener is expected to be marketable as early as 2021: With his creative software for digital inclusion, "Eye Build It Creator", the intermedia design graduate of Trier University of Applied Sciences received several national and international awards last year.

With the help of the Eye Build Creator, physically impaired people will be able to assemble building blocks on the computer screen and create complex 3D models simply by moving their eyes, as in Minecraft. The models can then be duplicated using a 3D printer. This concept could give disabled people access to the digital world and enable them to develop something physical despite their physical limitations.

The Eye Built It Creator is scheduled for release in 2021. Before then, however, there will be a large test phase with more than 100 test persons after smaller test runs in local care facilities. After all, Adrian Wegener's main concern is that his idea is actually socially acceptable. That's why he wants to continue optimizing the software after the market launch: "It's elementary to look together with the users to see where their needs and wishes lie," he says.

Lord Mayor Wolfram Leibe finds all three prize winners particularly praiseworthy: "It's not just about business, but the ideas have an added social value.

Rhineland-Palatinate Ideas Competition
The Rhineland-Palatinate Ideas Competition has been awarding prizes every year since 2011 for ideas for new products, innovative services or the significant further development of existing ideas. The competition is organised by students of the Koblenz University of Applied Sciences under the direction of the competition founders Professor Martin Kaschny and Raphael Dupierry and is supported by donors, sponsors and regional partners. In the first stage of the competition, four regional juries in the regions of Trier, Koblenz, Mainz and Kaiserslautern will each award prizes to the three best ideas from the region. In the second stage, the state-wide jury of experts from business, science, politics and administration will select the three state winners from the total of twelve regional prize winners. The Trier regional prizes are endowed with 500 euros (1st prize) and 250 euros (2nd and 3rd prize).

The Trier regional competition of the Rhineland-Palatinate ideas competition was announced this year for the third time by the Research Centre for Small and Medium-Sized Businesses at the University of Trier. The regional expert jury included Christiane Luxem, head of the city's economic development department. The regional winners now still have the chance to win a state prize. The award ceremony at state level will be postponed to May 2021 due to corona reasons.

The next round of applications for the Rhineland-Palatinate ideas competition will start on 16 November 2020. Interested parties can submit their ideas at: www.ideenwettbewerb.rlp.de

Text: Franziska Wonnebauer, volksfreund.de