Media releases

• Brock ergonomics lab partners with American virtual human simulation company

  Friday, December 22, 2017 | By Brock University

  MEDIA RELEASE: 21 December 2017 – R00237

  Brock University students studying the relationship between workplace injuries, ergonomics and fatigue are set to benefit from a $1.9-million contribution of related software from a U.S.-based company.

  Brock University Assistant Professor of Kinesiology Michael Holmes has partnered with SantosHuman Inc. through the Santos University Program to enable Brock’s Neuromuscular Mechanics and Ergonomics Lab access to the company’s predictive virtual human modelling and simulation software for research and study purposes.

  “SantosHuman has emerged as a world leader in digital human modelling and the power of this technology is an innovative step forward for the ergonomics profession,” Holmes said. “This software allows us to evaluate, in detail, the physical demands of a user while interacting with various workplace and tool designs. This approach can lead to improved worker safety.”

  A Canada Research Chair in Neuromuscular Mechanics and Ergonomics, Holmes’ research examines how the brain and nervous system interact with the mechanics of hand, arm, shoulder and neck muscles as a variety of tasks are performed.

  His lab integrates motion capture, robotics and neurophysiology to understand muscle recruitment, fatigue and injury. The Santos University Program will provide an additional virtual human resource to enhance and expand the University’s high-fidelity workplace simulations.

  “The Santos Institute is excited to be a part of Brock University’s research on upper extremity pain and injury, including carpal tunnel syndrome and repetitive strain injury,” said Tim Marler, Chief Research Officer and Director of the Santos Institute, who called it an important area of research.

  The partnership will also provide Brock students access to SantosHuman’s unique predictive human simulation software.

  “Our undergraduate and graduate courses in ergonomics will use the software for unique applied and practical learning opportunities,” Holmes said. “This sets our students up for success in a competitive work environment.”

  SantosHuman provides virtual human simulation solutions to some of the most recognizable companies in the world. The software offers a comprehensive approach to predicting human physical behaviour and performance that can consider human strength, fatigue, flexibility, balance, vision, body-borne equipment, external forces and environmental conditions.

  For more information or for assistance arranging interviews:

  * Dan Dakin, Media Relations Officer, Brock University ddakin@brocku.ca, 905-688-5550 x5353 or 905-347-1970

  Brock University Marketing and Communications has a full-service studio where we can provide high definition video and broadcast-quality audio.

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  Categories: Media releases

• As cider booms, Brock’s CCOVI continues to be a key industry partner

  Thursday, December 14, 2017 | By Brock University

  MEDIA RELEASE: 14 December 2017 – R00236

  Grocery stores across the province are vying to be one of 95 new retailers authorized to sell cider to Ontario consumers next year.

  With Ontario’s thirst for cider far from quenched, Brock University’s Cool Climate Oenology and Viticulture Institute (CCOVI) continues to be at the forefront of advancing the booming industry.

  CCOVI is the only institution in Canada to offer a certification in cider production through the Cider Institute of North America, and it also provides analytical testing services to help cider makers deliver the best product possible.

  CCOVI’s Continuing Education Manager Barb Tatarnic says that pairing the foundational educational program with testing services brings a holistic approach to the learning process.

  “CCOVI has been able to branch out into an industry that is important here in Niagara and all across Canada,” Tatarnic says. “By delivering the foundational learning elements and then providing the opportunity to test the finished product, we are ensuring cider makers are delivering the quality of product their communities are looking for.”

  Maintaining quality from the orchard through to the consumer’s glass is especially crucial when dealing with cider because the product is less established with consumers, adds CCOVI’s Steven Trussler.

  “If a consumer tries a faulted product they may simply decide they don’t like cider and that’s a lost customer,” says Trussler, who is the CINA certified instructor in the institute’s cider program. “Having that baseline of knowledge across the country helps producers make a higher-quality product and increases the number of cider consumers, which benefits everyone.”

  Cole Ford, lead cider maker at Shiny Apple Cider in Niagara-on-the-Lake, uses a range of services provided by CCOVI as a quality control measure for his products.

  “The services provided by CCOVI allow us access to fast, reliable and consistent results, which, for a small-to-medium-sized business like Shiny Apple, is key in providing our consumer the kind of cider they have come to expect from us,” he says.

  Ford also says the industry is changing as fast as it is expanding. This forces producers like him to constantly learn new things in order to provide cider products that satisfy changing consumer demands.

  “Education is key to improving any industry, and having more courses and more diversity in those courses can only help improve Ontario’s cider industry,” he adds.

  With that in mind, CCOVI will be expanding its cider offerings to include more advanced courses in the near future. This would add to the growing number of continuing education courses now offered by the institute, which has more than tripled over the past year. The number of people accessing those courses has also increased significantly, rising from 77 in 2016 to 247 in 2017.

  “You can’t stand still when it comes to the direction the industry is evolving,” says Tatarnic. “They always want to learn more, and we want to be at the forefront for those next offerings and learning opportunities.”

  After attending a masterclass in advanced cider production last month, taught by renowned cider expert Peter Mitchell at Cornell University, Tatarnic says the seeds were sown for CCOVI to take that next step in further educating the industry.

  Mitchell says he’s glad to see such significant growth in the Canadian cider industry and that Brock is in the perfect position to further drive that industry forward.

  “As part of the Cider Institute of North America, Brock is uniquely placed and appropriately resourced to take a leading role in Canada in the provision of training, skills and technology development and transfer to new and aspiring cider and perry production enterprises,” he says.

  For more information or for assistance arranging interviews:

  * Dan Dakin, Media Relations Officer, Brock University ddakin@brocku.ca, 905-688-5550 x5353 or 905-347-1970

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  Categories: Media releases