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BME Design Team Wins BMEidea Competition

BME Design  Team with trophyThe BME Design Team, which is made up of seven graduate students, has cause to celebrate. The team, now being referred to as the FastCast team, won first place in the BMEidea competition.

The first place prize includes $10,000 and the BMEidea trophy, which is the equivalent of the Stanley Cup of this competition. The team will keep the trophy for one year and then it will be passed on to the winner of next year’s competition.

The team, who is led by MABE Associate Professor Xiaopeng Zhao, won the competition with their FastCast design. The FastCast is an orthopedic cast they say will improve patient experience and save cost and time. The FastCast overcomes a lot of the problems associated with the common cast that’s made of plaster by being easy to apply and remove, waterproof, allowing visualization and breathability of skin, and applicable to any extremity. The FastCast uses a new “particle jamming” technique that makes application possible in less than two minutes compared to the 30-60 minutes it takes for a plaster cast.

In addition to the first place prize, the team also won the TREAT award, which includes an additional $1,000.

The BMEidea trophy is currently on display in room 410 of the Dougherty Engineering Building.