The team at Omron knows that safety is important – that’s why they wanted a team of capable Humber students to help them build a portable Safety Trainer.

Electromechanical Engineering students Daniel Abisso, Kyle Nyman, and Paul Schiabel worked with Omron to program and build a machine that would be able to demonstrate industrial safety practices and ensure companies in the industry are up to date with these safety standards. The Safety Trainer cell also had to be easily transportable so the device could be used at various locations.

Designing a cell that everyone was happy with, and then getting that design ESA approved was a demanding task, but the team was up to the challenge.

“I’m not a mechanical person,” admitted Kyle Nyman. “But I helped with the mechanical building and helped to design the entire cell from the ground up, which was new for me – it was a very rewarding experience.”

The students were encouraged to connect with various Omron employees to ensure the project was designed and built in the best way possible, and Paul Schiabel noted that even after the project was completed, the team at Omron was eager to add the students on LinkedIn to see where they ended up after graduating their program. The collaboration resulted in new industry connections for everyone involved.

By working on this project with Omron, students had the ability to learn first-hand how to plan and manage a project, as well as develop their communication skills with various types of people in the industry. And from the partnership, Omron got a Safety Trainer that the company is proud to use.

“The best part was when we showed Omron the final product,” said Schiabel. “To see a world-class company give that kind of reaction to students who have no real work experience in the industrial field – to put a smile on their face – was really satisfying.”

The industry partner was so pleased with the final product, contact Christian Bidner stated that he wanted Humber to make more of the Safety Trainer cells, and Neal Mohammad – one of the faculty leads on the project – wants to see one of these cells at Humber to train students. The Omron Safety Trainer was a lot of hard work but it paid off, and the project was a huge success.

Research team:

Partner: Omron

Faculty leads: Neal Mohammed, Peter Villalta

Students: Daniel Abisso, Kyle Nyman, and Paul Schiabel