|
IAT Creativity
Endowment
Projects & Competitions to Spur Innovation for
Developing Countries
The Creativity Endowment is
proposed to encourage innovation and offer
incentives for creativity concerning affordable
transportation. The endowment will ensure that many
universities and design teams propose a
variety of creative ideas that will ultimately help
the developing world. This will allow a critical
mass of engineering effort in the design competition
and perpetuate high quality research on the marketing
projects. IAT’s Board of Director’s would oversee
the proper functioning of the fund.
Professors are
more likely to undertake a "funded" project
than an unfunded one. Money
is required to build prototype vehicles
($3000 per project on average). Whereas corporate
sponsors offset some costs and often donate
components, an endowment
provides the flexibility of cash to the design team,
a distinct advantage. Cash facilitates creativity
because students have more sourcing options. Also,
money can be wired quickly and efficiently, products
cannot…this is especially true for foreign
universities.
Design Ownership:
IAT maintains the rights to the design so that it
can keep the design "open" (non-proprietary) and
publish the design on the IAT website. In order for
a school to receive money from the Endowment, the
school concedes ownership of the design and the
prototype to IAT. IAT can then complete more
vehicle tests, refine the designs, and use the
prototypes for promotional purposes.
Capital Required:
The Creativity Endowment would fund the Annual BUV
Design Competition, annual marketing research
projects at top MBA schools, web-site development
for technology sharing, and incentives for the
private sector. The capital required to make this
self-funding would be approximately $2,800,000.
Assuming a conservative 6% rate of return on
capital, the fund could finance creativity for
several decades.
Future Development:
After a BUV design is finalized, it will be
published and made available to all. The published
BUV design will continue to be refined through
feedback and the annual competitions. Gradually,
the competition will focus on other aspects of
affordable transportation, such as electric BUVs and
mountain applications. The competition will further
enhance the utility of the BUVs by focusing design
work on auxiliary power units (APUs). APUs include
generators, water pumps, compressors, cement mixer,
and any powered device related to community
development.
Example -
Design Competition
The
Creativity Endowment could fund 20 engineering teams
$3000 each at the beginning of the semester. It
would also cover $20,000 for the annual event
expenses. The advising professor for each team
sends a request form with the students' names to the
endowment. Once approved, the endowment wires
money to the university for $3000. The
students can then purchase the materials through the
appropriate account and build the vehicle.
Accountability:
If a student team does not deliver a
driveable BUV to IAT, then:
-
the university commits to
return the $3000 to IAT
-
the university
cannot participate
in the next BUV competition
-
the
students loose their $100 entrance deposit
|
