Two students from The National University of Malaysia beat five teams from Southeast Asia (Indonesia, Singapore, the Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam) in The 3M Inspire Challenge to be named regional champions.

For their ingenious solution under the innovation theme, Mohd Fahad Saleem and Nur Liyana Syasya Mohd Zamuri (Team Too Good Duo) clinched a total of $3,000 in cash prizes and internships at local 3M offices.

“Adhesive bandages are common items that can be found in many households as there has been an increased awareness in wound management over the decades,” Saleem said. “We came up with the idea of Smart Bandages to equip users with a product that can better monitor different stages of the wound healing process and provide an optimum condition for the skin and tissues to heal so that they can continue on with their day-to-day lives without worrying about their wounds.”

3M invites students to submit innovative ideas in case challenge
UP students named as country champions of 3M Inspire Challenge

“It was deeply inspiring and rewarding seeing the teams’ growth throughout the entire four-month challenge,” said Kevin McGuigan, VP and managing director, 3M Southeast Asia Region and country leader in Singapore. “Innovation is a continuous process of refining ideas again and again, but never once did their passion or enthusiasm wane.”

Technology, sustainability, and innovation

The 3M Inspire Challenge is a regional case challenge organized by global science company 3M seeking solutions to help elevate its business through the themes of technology, sustainability, and innovation.

The regional finals saw a total of six teams from each participating country pitching their solutions to a panel of judges from diverse areas of expertise which includes business management, manufacturing, and supply chain, research and development, sustainability, as well as branding, and communications.

The first runner-up team from Vietnam (Team Charmmm) scored second place with their proposal of building a 3M 360° Virtual Store to showcase the science of 3M products and using the platform to run campaigns for customer engagement.

The second runner-up spot went to Indonesia (Team Kancil) with their idea of offering a sustainable surgical mask option by using bioplastic as the main raw material.

The judges include McGuigan; Kiyoshi Endo, VP, Plant Operations, Manufacturing and Supply Chain, Asia Pacific; Chan Yen Sze, R&D operations leader, Southeast Asia Region; Jun Lee, sustainability leader for Asia, Brand and Communication, Ethics & Compliance leader for Korea; and Napaporn Ratanasaenghirun, Southeast Asia regional business group leader, Consumer Business Group.