A swim safe smartphone app that helps to identify warning signs of a rip has earned a group of Otumoetai College students the Supreme Award in the Young Innovator Awards.

Otumoetai College Year 12 students Blake Fairweather, Emily Farron, Lucy Beaton, Annie Freeman and Jess Gadsbey demonstrating the WalkTheDog belt with schnoodle Louis. Photo by: Zoe Hunter.

Year 10 Otumoetai College students Frano Gabric, Lachlan Farron and Hayden Christie with Keith Marshall CEO of Careers NZ, sponsor of the Supreme Award. Photo: supplied.

More than 200 people attended the awards at ASB Arena overnight where the Bay of Plenty's young innovators were recognised for creative thinking.

Year 10 science students Hayden Christie, Lachlan Farron and Frano Gabric are the supreme winners of the competition for their innovative Swim Safe App.

The app uses a camera to evaluate the sea's movement patterns and identifies signs of a rip.

The smartphone camera scans for movement patterns in the water and after analysis, informs the user of the safest swimming location.

The group is also the winner of the junior section and has claimed a one-week internship with major sponsors, Locus Research and Woods Creative.

'We were very pleased and surprised to come away with 3 awards seeing as the competition was so strong,” says 15-year-old team member Lachlan Farron.

A surf lifeguard at Omanu Surf Life Saving Club, Lachlan thought an idea with a beach aspect would be relevant idea for the Bay of Plenty.

'We began brainstorming and worked together to bounce ideas off each other heads until we came to our final idea,” says Lachlan.

'When we completed our research we recognised that there was large number of swimming incidents that occurred in Bay of Plenty.”

From more than 100 entries, 55 finalists from six secondary schools across the sub-region were judged on innovative thinking and problem solving to come up with an idea for a product or service.

Criteria used to determine the category winners included research, sustainability, communication, innovation and creativity.

Otumoetai College group design ‘WalkTheDog' - allowing dog owners to walk pooches hands free won the People's Choice Award, in which 700 people were asked to vote for their favourite product.

Priority One's Instep Manager and YiA spokesperson Lyn Parlane says the quality and calibre of this year's entries were the best the annual competition has seen.

'There has been an increase in the number of group entries from participating schools, which includes Aquinas College, Mount Maunganui College, Otumoetai College, Papamoa College, Tauranga Girls' College, Tauranga Boys' College, Te Puke High School and Te Wharekura o Mauao.”

The annual Young Innovator Awards are organised by Priority One's Instep programme, Locus Research and Woods the Creative Agency. For further information, visit www.yia.co.nz.

The category winners are:

Junior section:

Hayden Christie, Lachlan Farron and Frano Gabric from Otumoetai College for Swim Safe App, which uses the camera to evaluate the sea's movement patterns and identify the signs of a rip.

Senior section:

Maraea Ranui from Tauranga Girls' College for Multi Twister, a multi plug that will swivel around 90 degrees in blocks of units.

Under 40 section:

Glen and Monique Storey for Silent Light, an iPhone/iPad app that helps manage classroom noise levels.

People's choice award

Lucy Beaton, Blake Fairweather, Emily Farron, Annie Freeman and Jess Gadsbey from Otumoetai College for Walk the Dog, a hassle-free dog walking storage and clip-on lead belt.

Internship:

Swim Safe App by Hayden Christie, Lachlan Farron, & Frano Gabric, Juniors from Otumoetai College

Supreme winner:

Swim Safe App by Hayden Christie, Lachlan Farron, and Frano Gabric, juniors from Otumoetai College.

Junior Secondary Student highly commended was awarded to Otumoetai College Year 10 science students, Cassie Chapman, Roos van Gorp and Katelyn Wallbank, for their Peanut allergy medical bracelet.

Senior Secondary Student highly commended was awarded to Kevin Meyer's Technology student Tessa Livingstone Pooley with her ‘Share Chair' machining templates for renting out to parent working bees to make eco school furniture.