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A major international design competition called ‘Live Edge’ – Electronic Design for the Global Environment
:: 29 May, 2007
Premier Farnell plc (LSE:pfl), one of the world’s leading distributors of electronic components, has launched a major international design competition called ‘Live Edge’ – Electronic Design for the Global Environment.
Electronics engineers, students and academics around the world are invited to submit designs for an innovative product that utilises electronic components and has a positive impact on the environment, for example by increasing energy efficiency or reducing carbon emissions. Full details are available at: www.live-edge.com
The winning entrant will receive a cash prize of US $50,000 as well as the support to move the design towards production. The support package, estimated to be worth an additional US $50,000, will include the services of an electronic design consultancy that will develop the design to prototype stage, assistance with legal matters and IP registration, marketing and publicity, as well as Premier Farnell’s help in securing investment funding. The group will actively market the end product to millions of customers globally through their leading edge web page, catalogue and direct marketing.
In addition, up to five entrants will be eligible for ‘honourable mentions’, each receiving a cash prize of US $5,000.
A prestigious and influential panel of judges from around the world will be announced shortly. It will feature a mix of innovators, engineers, entrepreneurs, academics, industry leaders and environmental campaigners; it will be chaired by a leading figure from the electronics industry.
Reflecting the environmentally friendly theme of the competition, Live Edge will be largely web-based to avoid unnecessary international travel and transportation. For example, the judges will confer online and it will be possible to view the award ceremony on the competition website.
Harriet Green, Chief Executive Officer of Premier Farnell plc, commented: “Our planet is facing environmental threats on an unprecedented scale. By unleashing the creativity that exists within the electronics industry, we can make a difference to these global challenges. Live Edge will give electronics design engineers the opportunity to have a positive impact on the future and see their vision become a reality. Live Edge is a unique design challenge for the world”. A virtual press briefing from Harriet Green is available now on the website.
The closing date for registration is October 31st 2007 and entries must be submitted by November 30th 2007. The competition is open to anyone aged 18 or over and the winner will be announced in January 2008.
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Terms and Conditions
The Competition:
1 These Terms and Conditions govern the live edge competition (“the Competition”) to create a design for the most innovative product that utilises electronic components and will have a significant positive effect on the environment ("the Design").
2 The Competition is organised and sponsored by Premier Farnell Plc ("the Organiser"). Premier Farnell Plc reserves the right to delegate all or any of its powers, rights and obligations arising in relation to the Competition to any entity directly or indirectly controlled by or in common control of Premier Farnell Plc (each “a Subsidiary”) and certain such rights and powers are assumed by Premier Farnell Plc on behalf of itself and each Subsidiary. Reference to “Organiser” shall be deemed to include reference to each Subsidiary.
3 The Competition will be judged by a panel of judges selected by and from the Organiser as set out in paragraph 19 and may include politicians and individuals from commerce and industry (“the Judges”).
The Designs
4 All Designs submitted as entries to this Competition must fall within the following criteria:
4.1 A Design must have a significant positive effect on the environment;
4.2 A Design must be independently created and novel and/or a novel improvement to an existing design or product;
4.3 A Design must utilise electronic and/or electrical components;
4.4 The Design must not be published anywhere in the world in any language;
4.5 The Design must not be known to others;
4.6 The Design must not have been the subject of a public presentation;
4.7 The Design or any product made to the Design must not have been offered for sale at any time prior to the day prizes are awarded. If you have already filed a patent application, then the contents of that application must not be published or produced at any time during the Competition;
4.8 The Design must be useful. The Design or any product made to the Design must perform its function and be operable.
4.9 The Design must be your own. You must be the creator of the Design. You may not submit someone else’s idea;
4.10 Team entries are allowed where more than one person could claim to be the creator of the Design;
4.11 A Design must be possible. An example of a Design that would not be considered possible is a Design for a machine that would allow intergalactic space travel. Furthermore, Designs which would cost excessive amounts of money to build will not be strong entries.
4.12 A Design must adhere to the laws of nature and physics.
4.13 Additional Restrictions - Ineligible Designs shall include but not be limited to:
4.13.1 Designs already disclosed;
4.13.2 Designs which relate to socially taboo topics, such as illicit drug use or sexual gratification;
4.13.3 Designs that are or could likely be illegal or immoral as determined by the Organiser and/or the Judges.
4.14 A Design must not contain any of the hazardous substances identified by Article 4 of Directive 2002/95/EC of the European Parliament on the Restrictions on the Use of Substances in Electronic and Electrical Equipment ("the Directive") or the use of such hazardous substances in the Design must not exceed the maximum concentration values set out in the Directive.
4.15 A Design must not have been entered into any other competition, unless that competition has finished and the Design did not win any prize.
Entry Process
5 Stage 1: Each entrant must fully complete and submit an electronic registration form (“the Registration Form”) found on the Competition website hosted at www.live-edge.com (“the Website”). A completed Registration Form must be received by the Organiser by midnight (GMT) on 31 October 2007.
6 By submitting a Registration Form, all entrants:
6.1 Authorise the Organiser to use their personal data (as defined in the Data Protection Act 1998) for the purposes of running and promoting the Competition, this year and/or in subsequent years;
6.2 Will be deemed to have read, accepted and agree to be bound by these Competition Terms and Conditions. Entrants are advised to print and keep safe these Terms and Conditions; and
6.3 Authorise the Organiser to use the Design Dossier, (as defined in paragraphs 15 to 18) for the purposes of the Competition and in any other way described in these Terms and Conditions, subject always to paragraph 8.5. The Organiser will not be responsible for any inaccuracy, error or omission contained in any reproduction or use of the Design Dossier.
7 Stage 2: On receipt of the Registration Form by the Organiser an entrant will be sent an e-mail providing a Registration Number. This Registration Number must be printed on every page of a Design Dossier.
8 Stage 3: Each entrant that has submitted a Registration Form may then submit a Design Dossier which must be sent by e-mail to entries@live-edge.com (“the Competition E-Mail Address”) and the deadline for the receipt by the Organiser of a Design Dossier is midnight (GMT) on 30 November 2007 (“the Closing Date”). A Design Dossier will not be accepted if a Registration Form has not been received by the Organiser and/or if a Design Dossier does not include the Registration Number printed on each page.
8.1 The Organiser will endeavour to ensure that the Competition E-Mail Address is available for submission of Design Dossiers but if the Competition E-Mail Address is not operable for any reason there will be no extension to the Closing Date.
8.2 Proof of transmission will not be proof of receipt and only a valid e-mail from the Organiser confirming receipt of a Design Dossier will be confirmation of submission of an entry.
8.3 Submission of a Design Dossier entry does not guarantee participation in the Competition.
8.4 Only one Design Dossier can be submitted under each Registration Number.
8.5 All Design Dossiers submitted will be treated as being confidential and no confidential information will be disclosed as part of any permitted publicity activities. Neither the Organiser nor the Judges will enter into any confidentiality agreements with entrants.
8.6 A Design Dossier can be withdrawn by request sent to the Competition E-Mail Address at any time up until midnight (GMT) on 30 November 2007.
8.7 The winning entries must attend an award ceremony if required by the Organiser.
9 Failure to comply with these Terms and Conditions may result in disqualification.
Qualification for Entry:
10 The Competition is open to any natural or legal person, firm or company or group of natural persons or unincorporated body.
11 Entrants who are individuals must be aged at least 18 on 15 May 2007 and teams of individuals must all be aged at least 18 years on 15 May 2007.
12 Entrants shall not be permitted to enter the Competition if by entering into the Competition they may cause the Organiser and/or themselves to be in breach of any agreement (including but not limited to any contract of employment) to which they are a party or in breach of any law, regulation or rule having the force of law to which the Organiser or the entrant may be subject. The Organiser reserves the right to disqualify any entry made in breach of this condition.
13 Entries may not be submitted by an agent whether acting on behalf of an undisclosed principal or otherwise.
14 The Competition is NOT open to:
14.1 Any employee, director, member, shareholder (as appropriate) or any of their direct families (parents, siblings, spouse, partner, children) (“Direct Families”) of the Organiser; or
14.2 The Judges or any of their Direct Families.
Design Dossiers
15 Each Design Dossier must be in the English language and complete (incomplete, corrupted or incomprehensible entries will be rejected).
16 Each Design Dossier must be submitted electronically to the Competition E-Mail Address. Each Dessign Dossier shall consist of no more than 10 single sided pages excluding any manufacturer’s technical datasheets.
17 Each page of each Design Dossier must include the Registration Number and no other identifying marks, names or logos.
18 Each Design Dossier will comprise of an Entry Form and the Supporting Documentation.
18.1 The Entry Form must be downloaded from the Competition Website and must contain the following information:
18.1.1 A name for the Design;
18.1.2 In no more than 30 words, a high level description of an application for the Design;
18.1.3 In no more than 100 words, a high level description setting out the functionality of the Design;
18.1.4 In no more than 100 words, a high level description setting out the beneficial impact the Design will have on the environment;
18.2 The Supporting Documentation must include:
18.2.1 a detailed component level schematic diagram of the Design that is legible when printed on European A3 (297mm x 420mm) size paper;
18.2.2 a high level flow diagram(s) of any software routines applicable for any programmable devices used; and
18.2.3 a detailed bill of materials (including manufacturers and part numbers for any key components together with the manufacturer’s technical datasheets).
Judging Criteria
19 There will be two stages of judging and each will be carried out by the Organiser and/or the Judges:
19.1 Stage One: All Design Dossiers submitted will be initially assessed by the Organiser applying the following criteria:
19.1.1 Originality and innovation;
19.1.2 Usefulness of the application;
19.1.3 Efficiency of energy use;
19.1.4 Compliance with the Directive (see paragraph 4.14);
19.1.5 End of life considerations;
19.1.6 Technical merit;
19.1.7 Innovative use of components;
19.1.8 Cost optimisation;
19.1.9 Completeness of Design Dossier;
19.1.10 Feasibility of Design;
19.1.11 Clarity of Supporting Documentation; and
19.1.12 Positive effect of the Design on the environment.
from which a shortlist (“the Shortlist”) will be drawn. The entrant of each Design short listed will be sent an e-mail to inform them of their admission to Stage Two of the judging.
19.2 Stage Two: The short listed entries will then be assessed by the Judges applying the following criteria:
19.2.1 Usefulness of the application;
19.2.2 Originality and innovation;
19.2.3 Technical merit;
19.2.4 Positive effect of the Design on the environment.
19.2.5 Feasibility of the Design
19.3 The winners will be selected from the Shortlist by the Judges in their absolute discretion.
19.4 Judges deliberations are confidential and will not be disclosed and the Judges decision is final and without right of appeal. No correspondence will be entered into.
19.5 The judging process will be completed by the end of January 2008 and winners will be notified by e-mail and posted on the Website. Non-attendance by the winner at an award ceremony or a refusal to take part in any other form of publicity will mean that the prize will be forfeited. Details of the winners will also be published in the media.
Prizes
20 Prizes will only be paid and/or provided if the winning entrants attend a live edge Competition 2007 Award Ceremony, if required, to formally receive their prize.
21 Prizes (whether cash or services to be provided) must be accepted and taken within 12 months of the date that the Organiser announces the winners.
22 If a winner declines or fails to accept a prize then the prize will be forfeited and awarded to the next appropriate entry as determined by the judges.
23 The first place prize is US$50,000 (USD) cash prize plus the following from third party providers, who are selected at the sole discretion of the Organiser and will be paid directly by the Organiser:
23.1 Professional advice and assistance to register the intellectual property rights of the winning Design to the value of US$20,000 (USD);
23.2 Professional advice and assistance of a technical design agency in the development of the Design to the value of US$20,000 (USD); and
23.3 Professional advice and assistance for the marketing and publicity of the winning Design to the value of US$10,000 (USD).
24 The entrant or a representative of the entrant of the winning Design will be invited to join the panel of Judges for the next live edge Competition.
25 There will be five runners up prizes each of US$5,000 (USD) cash.
26 Where the Organiser and the first placed winner both agree that the winning Design is commercially viable and technically feasible, then the Organiser undertakes to provide such professional advice and financial assistance as will be required to take the winning Design to market, on terms and conditions to be agreed between the Organiser and the first prize winner.
27 It may be that no prizes are awarded.
Obligations on Entrants and Winners:
28 Entrants:
28.1 Agree to positively participate in all publicity surrounding the Competition;
28.2 Hereby grant the Organiser the right to use their likeness, photographs, logos, trade marks, audio or video recordings without restriction for the purposes of publicity of the Competition;
28.3 Agree to be responsible for all their own expenses and costs in preparing for and entering and participating in the Competition;
28.4 Confirm that they own all relevant intellectual property rights in relation to their entries and Design Dossiers and hereby indemnify the Organiser from any claim by a third party that use of any material provided by an entrant to the Organiser infringes the intellectual property rights of a third party; and
28.5 Must not act in any way or fail to act in any way or be associated with any cause or group which would have a negative impact on the reputation of the Organiser and/or the Competition and/or the Judges.
Winners
29 All Winners:
29.1 Agree to be responsible for all applicable taxes, duties or other charges payable in relation to any prize.
29.2 Agree to positively participate in all publicity following the Competition and in promoting any future competitions.
29.3 May use “live edge Competition Winner 2007” in publicity material but this must be approved by the Organiser in writing in advance.
29.4 Must not act in any manner, or fail to act in any way which would have a negative impact on the reputation of the Organiser and/or the Competition and/or the Judges.
General
30 The Competition may be terminated at any time if there are, in the sole opinion of the Organiser, an insufficient number of entries, or if the Designs submitted are not of an appropriate standard for a competition of this nature. The Organiser has the right to cancel the Competition if necessary due to circumstances outside its reasonable control.
31 The Organiser shall have the sole discretion, to disqualify (without correspondence or right of appeal) any entrant it finds to be adversely affecting the process or the operation of the Competition or to be in breach of these Terms and Conditions, or to be acting in a disruptive manner or with intent to annoy, abuse, threaten or harass any other entrant.
32 The Organiser has the right to amend or add to these Terms and Conditions from time to time. Revised Terms and Conditions will be posted on the Website and it is a condition of entry to the Competition that entrants agree to comply with such amendments from time to time.
33 Other than liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence, the Organiser does not accept any liability to any entrant or winner for any loss or damage whatsoever and howsoever arising in relation to the Competition.
34 Headings are for convenience only and do not affect the interpretation or construction of these Terms and Conditions.
35 These Terms and Conditions shall be governed by and construed in accordance with English Law and any claim or matter arising under these Terms and Conditions shall be submitted to the exclusive jurisdiction of the English Courts.
36 These Terms and Conditions are drawn up in the English language. If these Terms and Conditions are translated into another language, the English language text shall in any event prevail.
Your environmentally-friendly design can win:
Valuable support from experts to move your design toward production
Intellectual property (IP) rights retained by you
Innovative cash and support prize valued at US$100,000
Show Floor Hours:
Tuesday, May 15, 2007 - 9:00 am - 5:00 pm
Wednesday, May 16, 2007 - 9:00 am - 5:00 pm
Thursday, May 17, 2007 - 9:00 am - 12:30 pm
Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
Paris and Bally's Hotels
Release link: http://www.premierfarnell.com/prem/News/PressReleases/index.jsp
Tags: electronic components , Electronic Design ,
