Welcome to Generate!
by Kendall Meenan
Generate is Northeastern’s only Student-led product development studio for entrepreneurial engineering. One of the five programs under the Michael J. and Ann Sherman Center for Engineering Entrepreneurship, Generate educates students about the product development cycle. Generate is also a part of Mosaic, which encompasses the entrepreneurship ecosystem here at Northeastern.
Through an extensive application process, clients can apply to have their product idea or venture come to life with the help of Generate! Our product development cycle is a roadmap to guide any product’s lifetime. Though each product’s journey is unique and often challenging, our reliable framework can bring your vision to life.
Generate is comprised of five teams: Management, the Build Studio, Operations, Outreach and Branding. Leading the Management team, the Executive Director sets up the vision of Generate for the school year. The Management team executes the vision of the Executive Director and ensures that the organization functions efficiently.
The Build Studio makes up the majority of Generate. The Build Studio is further broken up into different teams that work with clients, who are Northeastern affiliated, to deliver a prototype of their product. Most clients don’t have the engineering background necessary to create a prototype for their product, that’s where Generate comes in. Currently, Generate offers services for software and hardware production, which is how the Build Studio is divided up. Each hardware team, has a Project Lead that oversees the production along with engineers. Software teams have a Technical Lead and designers.
The daily success of Generate is made possible through the Operations team. They order supplies for projects, maintain the Sherman Center Makerspace and create standard operating procedures for the organization. Generate’s Outreach team focuses on creating external content about the organization and recruiting new members. The Branding team creates the image of the organization and they’re responsible for creating promotional materials.
This semester (Spring ‘20), Generate is working with six clients, four hardware-focused and two software-focused.
Here are our hardware clients:
- Driftio, a smart device that monitors pipeline efficiency making environmental consciousness economical for businesses.
- Goodsticks, a dispenser for environmentally friendly utensils.
- Medsix, a wound drainage medical device that automates post-operative wound monitoring.
- DeepCharge, a wireless charging landing pad for unmanned aerial vehicles.
Here are our software clients:
- Butter, a service that connects users with high-quality restaurant recommendations straight from the people that live in the area.
- MentorMatch, a peer mentoring platform where alumni guide current high school students with the transition to college and careers.
Generate is still a relatively young organization–it’s only in its ninth semester of operation! Generate was founded four and a half years ago by Bailey Kane and Mina Iskarous, with the help of Ted Johnson, Assistant Program Manager of the Sherman Center, and Shashi Murthy, Director of the Sherman Center at the time. Generate was created out of the need for a creative engineering space within the Mosaic ecosystem.
Over the course of Generate’s history, there have been four Executive Directors–Mina Iskarous (2016–2017), Maddy Leger (2017–2018), Dan Bartels (2018–2019) and Reza Ahktar (2019–2020)–each with unique visions that have driven the organization forward. You can learn more about each of their visions by listening to the ShermCast’s episode on Generate!
In its first year, Generate had two hardware-focused projects–Knightly (Spring ‘16), a mobile application and Bluetooth enabled safety clip combination for college students, and Therapeutic Innovations (Spring ‘16), a customized bubble continuous positive airway pressure (BCPAP) device. The initial aim of Generate was hardware focused, but in the Spring 2018, Generate expanded into software. Malaria Free World, an app to teach students both in the US and across the globe about malaria, was Generate’s first software project! Generate is continuing to do new and innovative things, including having its first interdisciplinary project in Fall 2019. Smarty Pill, a smart automatic pill dispenser to aid those who are forgetful in taking their medication, had both software and hardware requirements.
Generate tackled many projects in its nine semesters of operation. At the end of each semester, we host a showcase to present all of the work that we’ve done over the course of the semester. Then, each team presents the current iteration of the prototype along with a detailed report to their clients. The work done over the course of the semester has the potential to have a real impact on the trajectory of the venture. Just recently, the venture, Cruz Control (Spring ‘19), has started the process to file a patent and listed all of the Build Studio engineers on the patent. And the returning venture Mount Locks (Spring ’18 and Fall ’19) is continuing to iterate on the prototype created by Generate.
Not only has Generate impacted the engineering entrepreneurship community in Northeastern, but the organization also has a significant impact on its members. I know that Generate has had a huge impact on me, personally. I joined Generate in Spring 2018 and I learned an immense amount. From improving my technical and leadership skills to expanding my knowledge of the product development space, Generate provides me with the tools and resources that I never would have had access to. Most importantly, I’m a part of a community that’s like no other. Generate is full of intelligent, passionate and caring people. I have found my role models and best friends, as I’m sure many others can attest.
Past Projects:
- Spring 2016 — Knightly, Therapeutic Innovations
- Fall 2016 — Dash Electric, Rebar, Tropogarden
- Spring 2017 — Evergreens, SizeU, TrailTag
- Fall 2017 — Fillo, Flipper, NeuroDotVR, Stiggy
- Spring 2018 — AdDrive, Cold Therapy, Malaria Free World, ReLock, Labs
- Fall 2018 — Continuity, Jolt, Fast Cold Brew, Smart Insoles, Perpetual Mobility
- Spring 2019 — A+tendance, Adapt, Carry Strong, Cruz Control, Fancily
- Fall 2019 — Mount Locks, NomiX, Rouh, Smarty Pill, Perfect Capo
- Spring 2020 — Driftio, MedSix, Helpful, Butter, Goodsticks, Deepcharge
