Once again, Cailin O’Connell found herself surrounded by her peers as they worked over 48 hours in the hope that they’d win Aggies Invent. O’Connell, a senior nuclear engineering student, appreciated being there again with not only more experience, but the tactical skills to take on this particular competition.
Aggies Invent, a design competition that challenges students’ innovation and teamwork abilities, allows students to develop prototypes around a theme and gives them the opportunity to take these concepts and form a startup.
O’Connell said that she enjoys applying the design process under pressure, in a 48-hour window.
“Of course, my design won’t be perfect by the end of it, but getting through that first iteration can be the most challenging part of creating something new,” O’Connell said.
This June, her team “Secure the Bag” redesigned colostomy bags with the patient’s comfort in mind. This bag utilized medical-grade magnets, rather than traditional irritating adhesives, to secure the bag around a patient’s stoma.
“Our team definitely experienced the “brainstorming” phase in the form of a stalemate between two ideas, but we pushed through it,” O’Connell said. “It ended up helping our design by incentivizing us to pitch to each other before pitching to the judges.”
Although her team did not place within the top four, she said she realizes the importance of keeping an open mind to the ideas of others and that Aggies Invent competitions are a perfect example of a crash course in teamwork, technical design and pitch development.
“Aggies Invent is challenging, but it’s also a fun time if you let it be,” O’Connell said. “The more you put in, the more you will get out and interacting with other teams, making friends, learning something new from your peers -- these aspects are all inherent to the Aggies Invent experience.”
Based on her experience freshman and senior year, she advises other students in these competitions to not let the concept of perfection become the enemy of good. In this sense, she believes that it is important to not get lost in the minutia and make sure to go forward in designing as there will be other opportunities to alter it after Aggies Invent.
“If you are a freshman just getting started, there is no better way to dive into the world of engineering entrepreneurship. Aggies Invent requires no prior experience, and could even be a talking point for your next internship interview,” O’Connell said. “Aggies Invent gives you the space, support and some motivation, in the form of time constraint, to get things done.”