The Story of the incubator tank

In the late 1990s, Tony Parazanovic created Ynot Technologies. Working in the technology industry at this time allowed two industry problems to be immediately identified:

• There was a significant lack of requires resources
• Slow adoption of technology applications. Industry required applications of technology to their problems, but did not possess the knowledge and skills in order to apply it properly, or at all.

Tony began to mentor students at Ynot Technologies in 2002. Immediately it was evident that there was a green gap for computing students heading into industry. Students were finishing their study, but were not at the level required to be a productive member of the workforce due to a lack of practical experience.

Tony has also been a member of the University of Newcastle’s Engineering Faculty’s Industry Advisory Board since 2006. Being an industry professional, working with students, and with privileged access to the University’s procedures and infrastructure, provided Tony with a unique perspective allowing Tony to identify opportunities to integrate students and industry.

In response to these problems, Ynot Technologies started a student mentor program. The student mentor program involved placing students on projects where industry have a need for the application of technology to their products. Students were in turn mentored on the project by a technology specialist. The mentor program is effective at providing students with the industry experience required to make the leap from full-time study to being a member of the workforce. Additionally, industry can take advantage of extra resources and cutting-edge skill sets, allowing them to more easily apply technology to their products.

There was a greater community wide need for a sustainable program to facilitate a conduit into industry for computer graduates. Also, industry and innovation are being stifled due to lack of access to cutting-edge tools and best practice procedures.

In 2014, The Incubator Tank was officially launched to simultaneously solve these issues: industry problems with a lack of resources and technology; and the green gap for graduating students.