Nickel Asia Corporation (NAC) honored winners of the inaugural NAC Innovators Awards on April 29, 2025, at Seda Hotel, BGC.
Twelve university research teams nationwide presented findings from science-based environmental protection and resource utilization studies. These teams were selected from NAC’s 2023 Sustainability Contest research grant awardees.
St. Paul University Surigao’s Team Safer won 1st place with their “IoT-Based Real-Time Light and Heavy Equipment Monitoring System for Open-Pit Mining Operations,” designed to eliminate paper usage and improve equipment operational control.
Ateneo de Davao University’s Team Rotor Cracks placed 2nd with their UAV-based concrete crack analysis system that provides early detection while reducing inaccuracy-prone manual inspections.
St. Paul University Surigao’s Team Project Zero took 3rd place with “Zoning Exposures to Risk in Operation,” a GIS-based accident prediction system for surface mines with comprehensive 3D analysis and visualization.
Winners received PHP 300,000.00, PHP 200,000.00, and PHP 100,000.00, respectively.
“The NAC Innovators Awards is a platform for young Filipinos to ignite change, to be heard, and to help build a greener, and more resilient future for all. Because when we empower our youth, we move one step closer to a future that is more inclusive, more just, and more sustainable,” said NAC President and CEO Martin Antonio G. Zamora.
Other participating schools included Bataan Peninsula State University, Bicol University, Caraga State University, Cebu Technological University, Saint Louis University, University of Mindanao, Visayas State University, and STI College Surigao.
Projects were judged on Sustainability (30%), Integration (15%), Feasibility (20%), Repeatability (15%), and Impact (20%) by former Science and Technology Undersecretary Dr. Graciano P. Yumul, Jr., Emerging Power Inc. SVP Jasmin Agbon, UP Los Baños Scientist Florencia B. Pulhin, PhD, and La Salle Green Hills faculty member Agnes Alonsozana.
“To all our participants, we salute your passion, your creativity, and your commitment. Through initiatives like this we hope you are reminded that the work you are doing matters. We need you to push boundaries, to ask the hard questions, and to keep believing in your power to make a difference,” Zamora added.
