by ttoadmin | May 7, 2019 | Events, News, Uncategorized
On the 9th of May 2019, UWC will be celebrating world IP day, the main theme being “Reach for Gold IP and Sports”. Given such a special day, our campus community has been invited to join us and learn more about how IP is or could contribute and play an important role in sports. Special guests from NIPMO, Spoor & Fisher and our very own UWC researcher from SAIAMC will be joining us to celebrate this wonderful...
by ttoadmin | Mar 28, 2019 | Events, News, Uncategorized
The Department of Science and Technology’s first Top Intellectual Property Creators Award ceremony took place on the 28th of March 2019 at the Saint George’s Hotel and Convention Centre in Pretoria and was attended by Prof. Lototskyy and Monique Heystek from the TTO. University inventors with the most actionable disclosures for the period 2 August 2010 to 31 March 2018 each received a Certificate of Acknowledgement for their passion in ensuring that their research has practical application and seeks to result in an innovation that can be of benefit to society. In addition, each University’s Technology Transfer Office received from NIPMO a monetary contribution towards progressing these technology(ies) to the next stage of the innovation value chain. In her keynote address, the Minister of Science and Technology, Ms Mmamoloko Kubayi-Ngubane, made reference to the “innovation paradox”: Despite the vast potential returns on investment from innovation in developing countries, these countries tend to pursue innovation to a far lower extend than their advanced counterparts. The Minister then emphasised the need to increase South Africa’s capacity to innovate as a country. NIPMO incentives for intellectual property creators therefore seek to promote the conversion of research and development (R&D) outputs into products, processes and services that are of benefit to society. The minister commended the intellectual property creators for their good work and for being agents for positive change. She recognised that, by making disclosures, they forgo the prestige of publishing their work in reputable journals, and for this, she expressed gratitude. We wish for many more collaborative endeavours with these two innovative...
by ttoadmin | Jan 11, 2019 | Events, News, Uncategorized
Thursday 6th December, Bellville. The successful completion of the Alpha prototype of a male Y-Chromosome forensics detection kit, the UniQ-Typer, was announced on Thursday. This kit gives law enforcement agencies across the continent the ability to uniquely identify the perpetrators of crimes such as rape. This kit also finds application in familial studies. The announcement of the successful completion of the alpha prototype testing brings the hope of justice for thousands of rape victims across the continent a step closer. Speaking on behalf of the Forensics Laboratory of the University of the Western Cape, Eugenia D’Amato gave a synopsis of the performance of the kit during its alpha phase testing, where the kit demonstrated its unique ability to discriminate paternal lines in African male populations, especially when compared to products developed for Western populations. Key to this capability is the unique database of collected DNA profiles from African populations that is continuously updated with new profile data, improving the predictive capabilities of the kit. Together, the proprietary market set and the database, create a formidable market offering that the commercial partner to the consortium, Inqaba Biotec, believes will have a significant impact in the market. Mischa Fraser, representing Inqaba Biotec, and project manager for the development of the UniQ-Typer kit, stressed the importance of making available a dedicated product for African forensics laboratories. The impracticality of using Western developed kits was illustrated by Mr. Mpasi Lesaoana of the Lesotho Mounted Police service, who has been using the markers to populate the database with paternal lines from Lesotho. Mr Zephaniah Dhlamini of NUST in Zimbabwe spoke of a backlog of...
by ttoadmin | Sep 4, 2018 | News
Janine Chantson and Fred van der Post completed an IP valuation course “Realising Value from Intangible Assets” organised by the Licensing Executive Society South Africa in collaboration with Parallel North IP (Sweden). “To be an expert IP valuator, you need to understand IP rights, commercial considerations and in the South African context also regulatory issues. Each IP valuation must make sense within its...
by ttoadmin | Sep 4, 2018 | News
Dr Janine Chantson, the Director of UWC’s Technology Transfer Office, has been officially recognised with the designation of Registered Technology Transfer Professional (RTTP). RTTP is the international professional standard for knowledge transfer and commercialization practitioners working in universities, industry and government laboratories. RTTP status is awarded by the Alliance of Technology Transfer Professionals (ATTP) to professionals who demonstrate core competency and achievement in the field of technology transfer. This coveted status gives Dr Chantson credibility in over 60 countries around the world as an expert in technology transfer. ATTP is the international body for associations representing professionals engaged in technology transfer and comprises members of twelve associations from around the world: ASTP-Proton, AUTM, ISTA, KCA, PraxisAuril, Redtransfer, SARIMA, SNITTS, STEM, TechnologieAllianz, UNITT and...
by ttoadmin | Jun 28, 2018 | Events, News, Uncategorized
The UWC TTO hosted the Innovator’s Recognition event on the 20th of June 2018 to acknowledge the good work that is being done by UWC’s innovators. On that special day, innovators from different research departments at the university were in attendance. Many of these researchers are also TIA Seed Fund recipients (past and present). Members of the UWC TIA Seed Fund Management Committee were also invited to the event to network with the innovators. The DVC for Research and Innovation, Prof Jose Frantz, welcomed and thanked the innovators for their creativity and sterling contributions as an innovation community at UWC. Prof Frantz further encouraged the innovators to continue their innovative endeavours. We had special guests from (1) NIPMO Director Regulatory and Compliance Jetane Charsley, (2) Savvy Venture Partners (Pty) Ltd Phindile Tshabangu (external member of UWC TIA Seed Fund Management Committee) and (3) TIA Seed Fund Manager Tshembani Khupane who did their presentations, (1) the IPR Act and implications for RD&I at HEIs(2) A thought-provoking presentation entitled “The National System of Innovation – health, wealth and evolution” and (3) TIA funding instruments the main focus being on the TIA Seed Fund. Within its mandate to identify, protect, utilise and commercialise intellectual property developed at the University of the Western Cape, the Technology Transfer Office awarded a number of certificates of recognition to the following researchers Leslie Petrik for her ability to identify commercial opportunities for her research in the “Fly Ash Beneficiation” Project; Mykhaylo Lototskyy for his excellent contribution in IP protection when filing a patent for “Metal Hydride Hydrogen Storage” Bill Tucker for his determination to ensure that...
