Mint-Tek Celebrates 10-Years in Business with Competition for Transition Year Students 

In celebration of its 10th anniversary, Mint-Tek, a product design company in Na Forbacha, is thrilled to announce the launch of its Product Design Competition, STEMblem, encouraging creativity, innovation, and interest in STEM among Transition Year students in Galway.   

STEMblem invites TY students from secondary schools across Galway to conceptualise and design a new product – a St. Patrick’s Day-themed emblem. Mint-Tek has partnered with the PorterShed for the competition, as part of their Innovative City Programme, funded by Galway City Council. STEMblem kicks off on 17 October with a product design and business plan workshop at PorterShed a Dó, Galway. 

At the workshop, students will meet the Mint-Tek design team to learn the essentials of designing a new product and understand how electronics can make their design come to life. The second half of the workshop will focus on turning their product into a business, drawing on the PorterShed’s extensive start-up experience. 

Following the workshop, students have a few weeks to submit their product designs and business plan, ahead of the finals on 21 November. The final prize for the winning team, valued at €2,500, is a new product: finalised, tested, and manufactured. A great business plan is essential, as the winning team will get to sell their product - and keep the profits! 

Speaking of the inspiration behind the competition, Mint-Tek Founder & CEO Siobhán Ní Chofaigh describes how a gift from her father encouraged her career in STEM: “My Dad gave me a Ladybird book of Great Scientists, about Marie Curie. I always believed that girls made great technologists thanks to Madame Curie and probably thought I could become famous in science too, sadly that didn’t happen. STEMblem mixes design, technology, and business, just like Mint-Tek! What better way to celebrate our 10th birthday. All ideas deserve to be born, but they must be well designed for us, and enough people must want to buy them.”

Rosemary Gallagher, Programmes Lead at PorterShed, believes science and technology are creative pursuits: “We’re thrilled to be involved with the STEMblem competition, and to welcome transition year students from all over Galway into the PorterShed. Designing a new product is a truly imaginative process, and by incorporating electronic design we can make our ideas a reality. Hopefully, these students will be back in the PorterShed soon, at a tech event, hackathon, or even to build their own business one day!” 

The competition

• Prize: €2500 worth of the winning team’s product, finalised, tested, and manufactured. 

• Important Dates!  

• 4th October – Closing date for entry 

• 17th October – Workshop  

• 21st November – STEMblem Finals

• Who can participate: TY Students from any school based in Galway 

Key Details of the Workshop: 

• Date and Time: October 17th, 10am-2pm  

• Location: Portershed, Galway  

Join us for a day of creativity, collaboration, and competition designed to spark the imagination and inspire the product designers of tomorrow! 

For more, see: https://mint-tek.com/ty_competition/ ‎ 

Register for STEMblem here: https://portershed.clr.events/event/136499:stemblem-ty-product-design-competition