Smart 100 2010
Fryamz (SMART 100)
I removed the number plates from my car only to realise the rattling I had been constantly hearing on the car was from these same number plates scratching my paintwork. I thought there must be a better solution to stop this from happening but when I searched, I could not find anything that protected the car from the number plates or could stop the rattling that occurred from the plate. I then set to work designing a product that would not only cushion the plate, stopping rattling and damage, but also offer the consumer many unique designs to choose from.
SI-Toro (SMART 100)
Paul, Southern Innovation’s founder, was researching new technologies for the detection of antipersonnel landmines. Landmines, which lie active for decades after a conflict, are one of the most insidious artifacts of conflict, severely restricting communities getting back on their feet. Paul was investigating technology which could detect the explosive in the landmines; however, the detectors were so inefficient that detecting a single landmine could take 20 minutes. Paul and his PhD supervisor Prof. Rob Evans came up with a data-processing algorithm which would provide a twentyfold improvement in the efficiency of radiation detectors.
Ship 2 Anywhere – Courier Comparision Website (SMART 100)
Our business concept came to life when we had both permanently swapped our weekends for 20+ hours working as lifeguards. During this time we discovered that we had both studied Logistics, were passionate about business, technology and innovation, and hated the idea of working for someone else. We realised that we had complimentary skills. I have the tech/web knowledge; Michael has experience in the logistics industry, providing him with insider knowledge and many contacts. We knew that by working together we were in a unique position to innovate in an industry that wasn’t keeping pace with new technology.
Online1984 (SMART 100)
We were looking for solutions to our clients’ needs for social media monitoring and analysis. We found many technical solutions that provided data but could not allow for human sarcasm, vernacular, industry jargon, spelling errors, abbreviations, etc., and so provided inaccurate or irrelevant analysis. If someone tweets “I’d kill for a Cadbury chocolate” it would be scored as a negative when in fact it is a positive. We realised that to provide a genuine understanding of how a brand, product, or person was being positioned online we had to have a human being evaluate, analyse, and score every feed individually.
modpod (SMART 100)
The innovation came to life when Modra Hayes was approached by a number of fly in/fly out miners to solve the quality of accommodation problem that existed in remote locations around Australia. Traditional mining accommodation was considered to be uncomfortable, dirty, and not aesthetically pleasing or attractive to live in. The modpod's use of composite fibre technology was specifically designed to redress the deficiencies of traditional mining dongas. Modra Hayes has also designed and is constructing a modpod Mass Production Facility (MPF) capable of producing one modpod or more per eight-hour shift.
Clean Rain (SMART 100)
Our NPD team started to dream about a way to take Australia's rainwater collection experience to the world. As people globally begin to see how they can contribute to the water cycle through the collection of rainwater we asked, "How can we get Australia's learnings over the last decade, put it all in one product and make rainwater simple? Let's make a product that people won't need to worry about, will find easy to use and will let them contribute to our water system."
Social Business Integrator (SBI) (SMART 100)
A sales manager asked his employers for fast information on other sales regions performance. In discussions with other people in other jobs, he noticed that every person wanted fast information without being bombarded with email, and the concept of SBI was born.
CARPARKING.INFO (SMART 100)
Our idea came about while we were waiting outside a women's clothing store for our girlfriends and we saw the same cars circling the block looking for parking. Having been frustrated at the inability to make informed decisions when finding a parking space -- and more than often walking past a better alternative on our way to our destination, we decided that it was about time someone found a better way! Digging into the parking space we realised that the rates vary dramatically and are not geographically dependent so we developed a rate comparison tool to allow for custom results.
The Scarpar (SMART 100)
This innovation initially came to life when a typically short snow season left the inventor thinking about how he could get the snowboard experience all year long. A love of extreme sport, a desire to ride a board off-road all year long and huge amount of ingenuity allowed the inventor to construct a proof of concept. It took 10 years from having the idea to riding the proof of concept in 2004. The outcome will be the best of skating / snowboarding / motoX all combined into one awesome electric powere off-road product.
Corporate Family Program – Aged Care (SMART 100)
We received feedback from a number of our clients who are currently using Expect A Star's Child Care component of the Corporate Family Program. The clients relayed that the current offering is great for their staff caring for young children, but what about the older demographic who may be caring for an elderly loved one? In response to this feedback we developed a comprehensive Aged Care offering leveraging off the existing infrastructure of the Child care offering, but extending the reach of the innovation to an entirely new audience. So far the response to the program has been overwhelming.
QlikView by Inside Info (SMART 100)
A bright idea in response to a customer’s need to analyse multi-dimensional data, led to the development of a new type of business intelligence (BI) software by QlikTech in Sweden in 1993. They called this new software QlikView because it provided a point-and-click simple way to view data. QlikView is now a global phenomenon and delivered to Australia by Inside Info since 2003. The founders of Inside Info could see that the time, cost and complexity of traditional BI software was underwhelming. They chose to change this, developing QlikView applications that greatly simplify how businesses measure and analyse business performance.
R&D Eligibility Wizard and R&D Application Wizard (SMART 100)
frustration as to the few Australian companies claiming R&D Tax Breaks led an R&D Tax Specialist (myself) with over a decade's experience to create a series of simple online tools to make the R&D Tax Claim process much easier and more worthwhile than is currently available. The goal is to get all the smart SMEs in Australia claiming what they are entitled to, without the need for hours reading tax legislation or expensive consulting fees. Currently only around 7000 companies in Australia claim R&D versus the 30% that claim to be innovative.
TradeInsure.com.au (SMART 100)
I started my own financial planning firm in 2010, with insurance for tradesmen and women being our target market. Insurance for tradies is quite unique in that the minimum requirements are set by the various state and territory governments depending on the type of trade. As we started to field enquiries from tradies, we noted that many of them had no idea of their insurance responsibilities under the relevant laws. As we grew our own knowledge by doing research on our clients' behalf, we saw the opportunity to collate this information and create on online insurance resource for trade workers.
CAPTure Strategic Workforce Planning Software (SMART 100)
A couple of women got really tired of employers talking about how important their talent was...and not really meaning it! They decided that they could use software to show big companies why they needed to care about people...and also to help them know how to.
BillsTrust (SMART 100)
One of the partners receives lots of bills and invoices (10+ a month), varying from handwritten to printed bills, and payment methods all vary. He came up with a simple proposition of a web-enabled service that took care of all your bills to get them out of your headspace by not having to remember due dates or do any data entry to physically pay them.
Last Chance Ads (SMART 100)
We saw businesses struggling to advertise themselves, unsure of where to start and lacking in time, money and media experience. We created a trusted marketplace matching available media space, both rate card bookings and ‘last minute’ deals, with those businesses wanting to purchase advertising. All types of media are available, including: TV, Radio, Newspapers, Magazines and Digital (online). We developed the Last Chance Ads marketplace to be: fast, easy to use, open 24/7, media company independent and offering businesses the opportunity to search, find and purchase - all in the one place via the web or mobile.
www.handleyourownpr.com.au (SMART 100)
We wanted to help small businesses that couldn't afford our PR fees to generate publicity themselves.
DSS (SMART 100)
Researchers at the ANU collaborated with Volvo in Sweden to explore advanced driver safety systems based on monitoring the driver (instead of monitoring the vehicle or environment). Using a video camera and video image analysis the team learnt to accurately track and monitor the driver's face and facial features. That technology allows the driver's eyes to be monitored (open or closed?) and to track the direction the driver is facing (looking at the road or not?). Crucial innovations along the way include coping with eyeglasses, sunglasses, working night and day, and being fully automatic and remaining off-body/non-contact.
Cursions – the online resource database for Australian teachers (SMART 100)
We have spent almost fifteen years working in the Victorian education sector, teaching everything from Outdoor Education to Science to History to Geography. After seeing firsthand the increasing frustration felt by many teachers trying to find the best educational opportunities for their students, and how this was matched by an inability by many providers to successfully advertise their products to schools. Having identified a big gap in the market, we looked around at the technology available, decided upon ones and zeros as our medium, and after many sleepless nights and cups of coffee -- Cursions was born!
The Loop (SMART 100)
My business partner, Matt, and I work at MTV, Matt in Digital and me in Marketing. The idea for The Loop was born out of my frustration in finding fresh creative talent - we were overly dependent on word of mouth and incredible people were slipping through the net. On the flip side, Matt, being the digital guy, was constantly being asked by other creatives for advice on the best way to build their own websites to showcase their work online and promote themselves to potential employers. We brought these two frustrations together and The Loop was born.