Innovative product for classrooms could make teachers’ work a bit easier
By: Deborah Johnson Wood
Holland-based LS Mold, a plastic injection mold manufacturer, has come up with an innovative product to diversify its business and help make teachers’ work a little easier. The product, Clipsters, gives teachers a convenient way to hang posters and projects from suspended ceilings without their feet ever touching a ladder or stepstool.
Clipsters are ceiling hooks or loops with a magnetic end that attaches to the metal strip of a suspended ceiling. A teacher clips the hook/loop to the end of a positioning pole, and can attach, remove, or reposition the hook on the ceiling strip while standing flat on the floor.
“We bought another business in 2000 and ceiling hooks were an existing product line,” says Larry Koning, president. “We took the concept and redesigned it.”
A Clipsters display system includes a horizontal holding rail, similar to the top rail of a picture frame. The rail clips over the top edge of artwork and keeps it from sagging in the middle when hung. Using the positioning pole, a teacher can hang the rail from the magnetic hooks to display the art, or take down the rail so the art can be changed.
“This product idea was a very fun find,” says Bill Small of InnovationWORKS. When Small toured LS Mold earlier this year, Koning asked if InnovationWORKS could help market Clipsters.
“InnovationWORKS is trying to help manufacturers with market diversification,” Small says. “I’m researching where teachers go to get their props and teaching aids, and we’re working on the business and distribution side for Clipsters.”
Small says he’ll also list Clipsters on InnovationWORKS’ Idea Portal with the intention of generating interest from investors or businesses looking for a new product.
“This could be a perfect product for bars, hospitals, party stores, restaurants, and department stores,” says Koning. “There are millions of miles of suspended ceilings.”
Source: Larry Koning, LS Mold; Bill Small, InnovationWORKS
As published in www.rapidgrowthmedia.com
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