TraXon
A U.dea Venture Brand
An idea this good can’t help but gain traction
Our Idea
Who are we?
We are a group of undergraduate Mechanical Engineering students from the University of Calgary, with diverse experiences in field engineering, product design, patent-filing, project management, and manufacturing.
We boast industry connections positioned in executive leadership roles for large Oil & Gas companies, safety officer roles, field-staff positions and in the manufacturing industry, we posses all the necessary backing, insight and knowledge to bring our product to a market that so desperately requires a better traction aid solution.
What are we offering?
We are offering an innovative and easy to use solution to mitigate the largest cause of workplace injuries worldwide; slips, trips and falls.
Our TraXon traction aid technology will provide best-in-class convenience, reliability and value for traction-aid devices, taking the hassle out of safety.
Who are we offering it to?
Our immediate focus is for our technology to serve some of the hardest working men and women in the Oil & Gas Industry.
Traction aids are a company mandated component of field PPE (personal protective equipment) for all site workers that have proven time and time again to be both inconvenient and unreliable.
TraXon technology has the potential to evolve and serve many adjacent markets such as emergency services, leisure, construction and beyond.
Why does that person care?
TraXon will serve its customers by eliminating the hassle and wasted time associated with applying traditional traction aid technologies.
This will ultimately enhance their overall productivity, safety and state of mind while on the job.
By strategically targeting reputable boot sole manufacturers, our technology allows customers to get in to their favorite work boot brand integrated with our technology.
Our distinctive competencies
Our group members have intimate experience with both patent review and filing, working in manufacturing environments for large-scale consumer products, product design and validation, project management and field engineering roles.
Our skills and competencies are complimented by the fact that TraXon is a proven patentable technology as well as our impressive roster of industry connections. We have connections positioned in executive leadership and safety positions as well as field-staff roles for large Oil & Gas companies. We have even began discussions with Vibram, one of the largest sole manufacturers in North America.
These connections provide us with the necessary knowledge and experience to understand the traction aid problem and how to solve it. Vibram will give us the means to get our product to a market that is ready to accept it with open arms.
The substitutes & alternatives
Customers looking for traction aid technologies can also consider removable traction aids and Kick Spikes (a Startup company based out of Alaska).
Applicable traction aid technologies are inconvenient because they must be put on every time a worker heads outside and taken off every time a building is entered.
Kick spikes are a boot brand with auto deploying spikes with the kick of the heel. This solution is inferior to ours as their technology adds an inch to the bottom of the boot, this added boot height adds extra weight and makes the boots unsafe. To make matters worse, these boots cost upwards of $400 USD.
Our Pitch
The Key Personas and the Value They See
Owner of Sole Manufacturing Company
Our TraXon technology can add enormous value to their current product line. With TraXon technology integrated into their products, it gives them leverage to sell their sole to boot manufacturers at a higher premium and make substantial profits. Our promise to them is for TraXon to uphold the quality and reputability that their brand is known for, and assuming they have the manufacturing capabilities to sustain the demand, a potential deal of exclusivity for TraXon technology.Field Worker
Field workers will care about this product because it introduces a convenience to traction application that they have never experienced before. Our promise to them is that TraXon is guaranteed to be the most seamless and enjoyable traction aid application on the market and will hold up to the demanding environments they work in.Field Manager
Field managers will care about TraXon technology because of the introduced capacity for enhanced productivity for all of their staff due to the simple and fast deployment of these traction aids. Additionally, they are designed to maximize safety and wont introduce any additional hazards that are common of other traction aids, allowing for peace-of-mind about their staff's safety. Our promise to them is to be the most efficient and safety conscious traction aid available, allowing for maximum productivity without compromising safety.Your feedback and ideas
Feedback on our idea and your assessment of it are incredibly important. Please provide yours below.
Giving feedback and making an assessment are pretty straightforward, but make sure you know how it's done »
Customer (C)
9
Value proposition (VP)
8.5
Substitutes & alternatives (SA)
8
People (P) on the team
8.5
Offering (O)
8.5
Distinctive competencies (DC)
7.5
The only part about TraXon that I feel is missing is the difficulty of getting a big company like Vibram to use the TraXon design. If there was some kind of evidence for that I think it would really help overall.
Customer (C)
9
Value proposition (VP)
9
Substitutes & alternatives (SA)
9
People (P) on the team
10
Offering (O)
9
Distinctive competencies (DC)
9
Your pitch was great! You did great explaining the product and who your team is. I loved the quick 5 second skit in the beginning. I am still a little confused about the imperial oil relation a little bit, it doesn’t hit home the same way as Starbucks does. May be rethink mentioning that number or find a different one if possible? The ending for your last pitch should be a little more clean and enthusiastic! Would love to see you guys get excited at the end for the last pitch! Great job!
Customer (C)
8.5
Value proposition (VP)
9
Substitutes & alternatives (SA)
9
People (P) on the team
8.5
Offering (O)
9.5
Distinctive competencies (DC)
9
The idea revolves around safety which is an incredibly important issue, kudos to you guys for attempting to tackle it! The pretotypes and prototypes have always aided in understanding how the safety mechanism works and it’s evident that a lot of effort has gone into this. Good job, best of luck for the final pitch!
Customer (C)
9
Value proposition (VP)
9
Substitutes & alternatives (SA)
8
People (P) on the team
9
Offering (O)
8
Distinctive competencies (DC)
9
Great idea, I really think your idea adds value to the customers you are trying to target. The skit in the beginning really forces the audience to listen and captures the attention really well. I like how far you guys have come from your pretendotype to prototype and now a function prototype. The only comment I would have is to make sure you cover all the points during your pitch and show some excitement at the end of your pitch. Overall great job.
Customer (C)
9
Value proposition (VP)
8.7
Substitutes & alternatives (SA)
9.2
People (P) on the team
8.9
Offering (O)
8.2
Distinctive competencies (DC)
9.2
You guys had an awesome pitch, and I am really really impressed by you idea revolving around safety for people in the oil & gas industry. I feel that this product can definitely being some value to the Pre-Personas that you layed out. You guys have done a great job in selecting your target audience as well. One thing that I would like to suggest for your Pre-Personas is that this technology can be universal in terms of its use in slippery winter conditions, especially for the everyday regular person who experiences that harsh winter in Calgary. But Overall, Great job Guys and all the best in the final pitch!
Customer (C)
9
Value proposition (VP)
8.5
Substitutes & alternatives (SA)
8
People (P) on the team
8.5
Offering (O)
9
Distinctive competencies (DC)
9
The pitch was great! I think the idea is amazing, it has great potential. The story telling about being late is a really effective way to start the pitch and helps capture audience attention. Having functional pretotype and prototype really helped understand the functionality of the product. I think you guys make it clear that the product is focused on time saving aspect/ enhanced productivity. Maybe mention on how you are going to make big companies like Dakota, Cat, Timberland, etc. to adapt/ integrate your product into their existing products. Overall, good job and best of luck for the final pitch.
Customer (C)
9
Value proposition (VP)
9.5
Substitutes & alternatives (SA)
8.5
People (P) on the team
8.5
Offering (O)
9
Distinctive competencies (DC)
9
Great idea! The story telling at the beginning about being late is a great way to start a pitch, really helps capture audience attention. Pretotype and prototype really helped me understand the functionality of the product. You guys make it clear that the product is focused on time saving aspect/ increased productivity. Maybe mention how you are going to make big companies such as Dakota, Cat, Timberland, etc. to integrate your technology into their products. Overall, great idea and best of luck for the final pitch.
Customer (C)
7.9
Value proposition (VP)
10
Substitutes & alternatives (SA)
6.7
People (P) on the team
7.5
Offering (O)
8.8
Distinctive competencies (DC)
9.2
the idea is great and was executed really well through the pitch and pretotype.
A concern i have is why couldn’t kick spikes just license their technology to Vibram since they already have a working patented and proven concept. Kick Spikes are more expensive but if Vibram gets on board then their manufacturing costs will decrease drastically.
Customer (C)
9.3
Value proposition (VP)
9
Substitutes & alternatives (SA)
6
People (P) on the team
6.3
Offering (O)
9.3
Distinctive competencies (DC)
8.5
-What if the invention is too similar to the kick-spike, and you can’t get a patent?
-Great presentation
-What if Vibram refuses? You should consider another way of getting your product out
Customer (C)
9
Value proposition (VP)
10
Substitutes & alternatives (SA)
9
People (P) on the team
10
Offering (O)
9.6
Distinctive competencies (DC)
10
Great idea!, and awesome effort was put in developing the idea, prototype and in the pitch! would definitely love to see this product in industry. your product is definitely adding a great value for your customer. One thing that I believe you guys are missing is talking about iif your product is still meeting the safety expectations as the possible alternatives such as removable tractions