Students win with farm safety device
By Ellen O'Brien
Four bright minded students from Kinsale have won the coveted first prize at the West Cork Student Enterprise Finals.
The group impressed the judges with their innovative farm safety device that aims to revolutionise calf dehorning and reduce the risk of accidents on farms.
The four students from Kinsale Community School who won were David Forde, John Quinn, Jack Good and Seán Dinneen and entered under the name of DJS Engineering.
They will now go on to represent West Cork at the National Finals in Mullingar in May and will showcase their product’s global appeal.
The final was held by the Local Enterprise Office Cork North and West on Tuesday at The Celtic Ross Hotel.
Speaking about their win David Forde said: “We are thrilled to take first place in the West Cork finals as the standard was so high. We believe our business and this product can and will save farmers time and provide added safety and peace of mind on the farm when dehorning calves.”
He added that there is nothing like their product currently on the market and “the feedback we have received from farmers has been outstanding which has led to sales and being stocked by farm suppliers”.
He continued: “It is a product which has global appeal and will save time and negate accidental fires and burns on the farm.”
There were other prize winners on the day also including Precision Fit (Best Innovation) from Clonakilty Community College, Smart Scrunchies (One to Watch) from Beara Community School and West Cork Firewood (Best Sales) from MICC Dunmanway.
Kevin Curran Head of Enterprise, Local Enterprise Office Cork North and West congratulated everyone who took part on the day.
He said: “All of the participating schools put in a fantastic effort and I would like to congratulate all of them for participating.”
Mr Curran continued: “I would also like to give special thanks to our judges Tim Casey, Cork Grasslands Services, Jane O’Regan, AIB Dunmanway and Emily Keane, KOKO Kinsale for being so helpful and generous with their time in choosing worthy winners for the West Cork region.”