Rigorous in their pursuits and aspirations, a team of former mechanical engineering students has catapulted a small project they started at Texas A&M University in fall 2017 called Swing Sleeve into a marketable product that has found a home in the golfing industry.
Swing Sleeve enables golfers to see their arms in virtual reality, allowing them to capture their arm motions as they swing. The objective of this product is to give golfers the ability to analyze their swings and in turn, improve their game; however, this product’s market was not always evident.
“This project is as real as it gets,” chief executive officer Ian Cash '17 said. “I first got involved in this project because my friend and computer science engineer, Alex Hansen, approached me with the idea to develop a device to track arm motion in virtual reality.”
This idea then transitioned into a personal project for Cash’s senior design class where he picked up six more team members who saw value in this undertaking. Eventually, they decided to see how the product would test out in the market through the National Science Foundation (NSF) I-Corps Site program at Texas A&M that allows students a chance to hold interviews with potential customers to see observe the market potential in their products.
After some difficulties and doubts, the team learned perseverance and the true strength behind their team.
As a startup, we doubted our ability to build the product, doubted that there’s a market, doubted the big decisions we had to make, but we knew we could build this. Sometimes things don’t go as planned, but that’s okay, and having a team like we do, lifting each other up and looking for what lessons can be learned, goes a long way in building a supportive environment where you can take the risks that need to be taken.
Eventually, the group developed trust in their aspirations as well as faith in their goals.
“I firmly believe in the product that we are creating and I want to be part of something revolutionary from the very beginning,” chief product officer Cesar Fuentes '18 said.
The project attracted many students at first, many who left other opportunities behind to become a part of it.
“I went to see Ian and his teammate, Alex, present their first prototype at the Texas A&M Engineering Project Showcase,” advisor Sara Van Kalker '18 said. “My mind was blown and I knew I had to try to be part of the team, so I asked to join, then proceeded to leave my summer internship with General Electric.”
After graduation and successful customer reviews, they built their company, Alba Technologies, as the first step of their startup. Cash said that the name “Alba” comes from the word albatross: one of the rarest scores a golfer can achieve that requires a person to get the ball in the hole with just two strokes, instead of the five expected for it.
“I am absolutely obsessed with the company and I eat, breathe and live Alba,” Cash said.
The team largely credits their successes thus far to Texas A&M and their mentors.
“We’ve been working nonstop, making sacrifices, working crazy hours and learning new skills at a rapid-fire pace, and Texas A&M has been so generous,” Cash said. “After all, a wise man learns from his mistakes, but an even wiser man also learns from others.”
Among the team’s mentors at Texas A&M was Dr. Waqar Mohiuddin, a research assistant professor in the J. Mike Walker ‘66 Department of Mechanical Engineering, who said Cash and his team serve as a great example for the potential students have to pursue their ideas while in school.
“The ultimate pleasure I can receive as a mentor is to see students take an idea, continue to shape it and bring it out into the world with passion,” Mohiuddin said. “When I talk about Ian Cash and his team, my students are motivated by their story.”
Mohiuddin said having the opportunity to help guide Cash in the early stages of his idea through the formation of his team in the MEEN 210 and MEEN 402 courses, respectively, was a rewarding experience. While few students pursue their own ideas to the same extent as Cash and his team, Mohiuddin said he encourages them all to explore their potential as early as possible.
“I think we should continue to nurture this excitement in our students and give them the resources and encouragement to pursue their ideas, ideally as early as their freshman or sophomore year before they get too busy with their studies and internships,” he said. “At the end of my first lecture, I always tell my sophomore students this is an opportunity for them to take control in their hands.”
Looking forward, Mohiuddin said he is excited to see where Cash and his team take their company as they continue to move their work forward into the market.
Alba Technology’s Swing Sleeve product will launch in the market soon, which has caused a range of emotions for the team.
“It’s a nerve-racking experience for us because you have investors that have put big money into us, teammates that have made big sacrifices, and you’d like to see all of that pay off,” Cash said. “But I’m very excited for the team because they’re here through thick and thin.”
Ultimately, Cash said that it’s important to take risks when one has as big dreams as he and his company did.
“As cliché as it is, that’s the attitude you have to take to succeed because you don’t get to go the entrepreneurial route without taking major risks,” Cash said. “Overall, my team’s chemistry, willingness to push through, ability to come up with creative solutions, learn from mistakes, collaborate and take ownership are beyond anything I’ve ever seen and I owe it all to that.”