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Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/813780
BOTTOM LEFT: PETER HOLST MAY 2017 BCBUSINESS 43 MineSense, which focuses on base metals—copper, iron, nickel and zinc—works with mining clients in B.C. and Ontario. The 35-employee company is starting to build a small unit to support business in Chile, the world's largest copper producer. It also recently hired a new vice-president of busi- ness development in Australia, a big mining market, and is looking at other countries. Founded in 2008 by chief technology offi- cer Andrew Bamber, MineSense just closed a $19-million financing round led by Chile's Aurus Ventures. Among the other inves- tors: Caterpillar Venture Capital—a division of the U.S. industrial equipment titan—and Vancouver-based Chrysalix Venture Capital. For mining companies, MineSense's technol- ogy has the potential to change the econom- ics of new projects, More says. "From an exploration perspective, that could open up more areas where they're looking for deposits, so they may be able to find deposits that traditionally would not have been rich enough to make viable." —N.R. Who's Minding the Parents? Telus explores how technology might allow the elderly to stay in their homes s "chief dreamer" for Telus Communica- tions Co., Allen Devine comes up with new ways to use technology. A concept may remain just that or end up being developed by Telus and/or another company. One area Devine is exploring is using the Internet of Things to prolong people's independence as they age. For example, placing sensors around the house could monitor aging parents or grandparents in a way that doesn't invade their privacy but will alert family members or care providers of a change in behaviour patterns: if the fridge door isn't opened or the coffee maker isn't turned on by a certain time in the morn- ing, that could be a signal that something is wrong. A TV screen built into a door could recognize that a senior is heading outside in the middle of the night and video conference in a family member to suggest going back to bed. Even toys can be adapted to more serious purposes: a Sphero BB-8 toy Star Wars android that maps a room as it collides with solid objects could be modified to detect when an elderly person has fallen down and call for help. Closer to home, Devine has connected a Philips Hue light bulb, which can be operated remotely and changes colour, to his mother's sleep monitor. If the light is green in the morning, he knows that she had a good rest. Yellow means she was tossing and turning, and if the light turns red, she slept poorly or got up early, so he should probably check in on her. Devine is also experimenting with devices from smart light bulbs in his mum's suite that measure how long it takes her to walk down the hallway—a slower pace could indicate health issues—to sensors in the bathtub that can trigger it to automatically drain if she loses consciousness. —F.S. ■ WORK IN PROGRESS SOURCES FOR TIMELINE: Mountain Equipment Co-op, Whistler Museum, Ballard Power Systems, Vancouver Sun, Forbes, Lululemon Athletica, Telus Communications, Globe and Mail, Business Insider, Techvibes, Hootsuite Media, CBC News, Business in Vancouver, Retail Insider, Science.ca, Financial Post 2017: Roger Hardy was thought to have a Midas touch, but the online Shoes.com empire he helped underwrite–with Sean Clark as chief revenue officer–goes bankrupt early this year, just as it was winning awards and planning a big bricks-and-mortar expansion. It's a far cry from the happy exit Hardy experienced in 2014, when he sold his Clearly Contacts for $435 million. 2017: If it truly is all about location, location, location, this is the symbolic end for Vancouver's two major daily news- papers. The Vancouver Sun and the Province, after years of gutting their newsroom (another 54 positions, or 42 per cent of staff, were eliminated in March), unceremoniously strip the nameplates of their land- mark tower at 200 Granville Square this spring. Their new home, starting June 1: an office park in East Vancouver. CARE TAKER Telus's Allen Devine helps seniors remain independent