About BMEplanet
BMEplanet was initiated in early 2007 by Dr. Tom Skalak, a Professor of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Virginia. The network was comprised of 27 charter organizations, and its goal was to provide experiential education of new talent for the bioengineering workforce and enhanced translation of new bioengineering knowledge to products and services.
BMEplanet focused on upstream innovation and globally distributed design
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Globally distributed design
Harnessing capabilities in different countries facilitates efficient innovation. |
Upstream innovation
It is thought that parallel, early interaction among business, scientific, engineering, legal, and marketing units can positively impact the innovation level. |
BMEplanet initially received support from the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Partnerships for Innovation (PFI) program.
Over the next year, BMEplanet grew to nearly 140 organizations spanning 30+ nations around the world, and the global bioengineering network facilitated several student internship exchanges. In fall 2008, the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, the world's largest foundation devoted to entrepreneurship, provided a grant for the generation of a collaborative innovation networking Web site that would help accelerate BMEplanet's charter activities.
A new Web 2.0 collaboration suite debuted on August 5, 2009, providing personalized access to each bioengineer, as well as a set of unique interactive tools including:
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An "opportunity bank"providing access to job and internship openings, funding opportunities, and exchange programs, etc.; |
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"collaborative project workspaces"enabling research and design teams to share files, blog about project progress, and track upcoming milestones; and |
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An "idea box"for sharing and innovating upon nascent ideas, broadcasting design challenges, and pursuing licensing partners for new discoveries or technologies. |
By involving the worldwide bioengineering community through this freely available, state-of-the-art Web 2.0 site, BMEplanet hopes to offer three vitally important advances to the field of bioengineering: enhanced flow of human intellectual capital to member countries and new routes for effective globally distributed design for corporate partners; better workforce preparation and national bioengineering economies at international hubs that are a part of the network; and improved processes for global bioengineering education, research, and innovation. BMEplanet will facilitate:
- Multi-university undergraduate design projects;
- International corporate internships;
- Capstone (design) incubators for translational technologies;
- Emphasis on person-to-person links necessary for effective teaming and free-flow of ideas globally over many generations; and
- Enhanced corporate access to new markets.
