Winner chosen for Interior business competition

November 20, 2015

The Interior winner of a national business strategy competition hopes to develop a smart backboard that will weigh patients, take vital signs and provide information remotely to medical and emergency personnel.

Kathryn Dodge, economic development specialist for the University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service, said five individuals were chosen to present their business ideas Nov. 14 in Fairbanks as part of the InnovateHER competition.

A panel of four judges chose the business idea proposed by Sheridan Heinrichs of North Pole, who said she and her husband, John, recently acquired a patent for a system, method and apparatus for weighing an individual on a medical backboard. John Heinrichs is a fire captain with the Fort Wainwright Fire Department.

As the Interior winner of the competition, Sheridan Heinrichs will receive assistance in developing a business plan to be forwarded to the Small Business Administration, which will select 10 finalists nationally to travel to Washington, D.C., to compete for cash prizes.

Other proposed business ideas included a fleet of zebra-striped cabs that would take children to appointments; a web page that provides resources to people who are in pain or considering suicide; and a purse outfitted with key items a high school senior would need.

The competition provides an opportunity for entrepreneurs to showcase products and services that have a measurable impact on the lives of women and families, have a potential for commercialization and fill a need in the marketplace.

The Interior competition was hosted by Extension and the Alaska chapter of SCORE, an organization that promotes small business success and is formerly known as the Service Corps of Retired Executives. Other organizations assisting with the competition include the Fairbanks Small Business Development Center, the Fairbanks Economic Development Corp., the UAF Office of Intellectual Property and Commercialization, and Catalyst Consulting.

ADDITIONAL CONTACT: Kathryn Dodge, 907-978-7718, kdodge@alaska.edu