UAB Briefs: Students rewarded for innovation, holiday recycling tips
In this weekly online feature, we keep track of interesting people and events on campus.
Several UAB students recently received cash prizes for their business innovations and research.
UAB Facilities offers some recycling tips to cut down on waste during the holiday season.
And UAB Medicine has opened a new facility in Hoover.
Happy Holidays to all of our readers. UAB Briefs will not appear the new two weeks due to the holidays. Look for us in the new year on Jan. 9.
Know people, places and programs on the UAB campus that deserve a mention? Email jchambers@starnespublishing.com.
Launching innovation
TruSpin Nanomaterial Innovation LLC — a company begun by two UAB students — recently won a $50,000 cash prize in the concept stage category in the Alabama Launchpad business competition, according to UAB Media Relations.
Alabama Launchpad is sponsored by the Economic Development Partnership of Alabama and was held at Troy University in November.
TruSpin uses a new AC electrospinning process to manufacture affordable nanofibers with unique properties and has the ability to make materials quickly to customer specifications.
“Participating in Alabama Launchpad was an honor that provided opportunities to learn at every stage, and UAB’s Anvil Student Startup Bootcamp, led by Lydia Dick, was the ideal environment for our company to cultivate a strong foundation during its earliest days,” said Anthony Brayer, chief scientific officer of TruSpin, in a UAB news release.
Robert Agnew is the company’s chief operating officer
The company’s method is fully developed, and it will offer materials to a broader base of customers in early 2020, the release states.
Truspin was recognized as the Student Startup of the Year in the 2019 Innovation Awards at UAB.
In addition, the Harbert Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship at UAB helped TruSpin secure two patents.
Grants for students
Two students at the Collat School of Business, Fabia Hossain and Meg Wilson, have won $5,000 grants to recognize their business research projects, according to UAB Media Relations.
The innovation grants, established by Alabama Power, were awarded to Hossain and Wilson at the UAB Fall Research Expo, which was hosted by the Office of Undergraduate Research Dec. 2-3 at the Hill Student Center.
Hossain’s research proves that consumers care about sustainability and that companies should be aware of this in the way they operate.
“Many companies have shifted their marketing focus toward customer-relationship management,” said Hossain, a marketing major. “The current trend of sustainability and customer relationship management can be used to increase the value of a company. Many companies are looking to understand customers to become more innovative in how they operate or produce new products.”
Wilson, a management major from Birmingham, studied the relationship between point-of-sale system capabilities and retail small-business success.
“Point-of-sale innovations impact the success of small businesses, so connecting companies with technological solutions is important,” Wilson said.
Have a sustainable holiday
Household waste increases by more than 25 percent during the holiday season between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day, according to the United States Environmental Protection Agency.
And all of us should try to be more sustainable, especially this time of year, according to Tim Sullivan, a manager in the UAB Facilities Division, which manages the recycling center on campus.
“Whether it is planning a more sustainable event, going digital, or finding new ways to reuse and recycle items, we have to do our part,” Sullivan said in a UAB news release.
Sullivan recommends using plain, paper-based wrapping for gifts. The paper can be recycled, as long as bows, ribbons and tape are removed.
“If you attempt to recycle items that are not accepted at your recycler, it will taint the entire bin, making all of the items that you have tried to recycle, non-recyclable,” Sullivan cautions.
Non-recyclable gift wrap includes paper coated in plastic or foil; glittery or embossed elements; and bows, ribbons and tape.
There are also alternatives to traditional wrapping paper, such as seasonal foliage or colorful newsprint, according to Sullivan.
And there are sustainable alternatives to giving wrapped gifts, including gift cards, handmade gifts, experiences and charitable donations made in the recipient’s name.
When sending holiday cards, consumers should buy simple, paper-based cards that are recyclable.
Live Christmas trees are recyclable via curbside pickup, but check with your local municipality. If you plan to recycle the tree, be sure to remove all lights, wires, ornaments, nails, stand and tinsel. Holiday trees can also be properly disposed of, according to Sullivan.
For example, a tree can be cut down into wood chips and the chips spread around a landscape.
Consumers can place a tree along the shore of a lake or waterway. The tree can serve as a buffer where tides and water can strip away land.
An old holiday tree can also serve as a fish habitat when submerged in water.
For more information about the UAB Recycling Center, click here.
New Hoover clinic
UAB Medicine began serving patients on Dec. 16 at its new clinic, Hoover Primary and Specialty Care, located at 501 Emery Drive West in Stadium Trace Village, according to UAB Media Relations.
The facility, which measures 39,000 square feet, replaces the existing UAB Medicine Hoover Primary Care clinic on Highway 150.
The new clinic will offer adult primary care and family medicine for patients of all ages.