GE, ITESM and NDS Host Predix Hackathon in Mexico City

Mexico’s brightest students and young professionals headed to the GE Business Center in Santa Fe, Mexico City, last month to participate in MX Hacks IV, a national hackathon focused on developing applications in the industrial segments that GE operates.
The hackathon was attended by more than 100 technology students from universities across the country, aged from less than 17 years old to 25 years.
The hackathon had two challenges for attendees: one was an open challenge for any kind of solution, while the other was sponsored by GE and focused on their new platform for industrial internet called Predix.
The Predix Challenge was won by a group of developers working at Nearshore Delivery Solutions (NDS), consisting of José Luis García, Rodrigo Solana, Juan Carlos Leon, Jaime Margolin, and Gilberto Silva, who developed the application “Intelligent Buildings”. The solution demonstrated, in a very short period of time, the chances of using Predix for the fast, safe, and high-quality development of industrial applications.
The second place team was formed by students of La Salle, Tec de Monterrey, ITAM, and IPN: Tania Patiño, Isai Vargas, David Sanchez, Eric Uriel Octavio Trejo, and Ivan Hernandez. The team developed an application to manage inventory intelligently, according to the type of product, the demand, and storage place.
Third place went to HacksFI from UNAM, including Laura Vanessa Bobadilla, Ari Edwin Cueto, Jose Arturo Vazquez, Alejandro Juarez, Daniel Trápala, and José Andrés Guerrero, who created a system for monitoring gas leaks and water. The application monitors the pressure drop of these components, and sends a security alert to Predix cloud. The resulting data are stored in a base that can then be graphed.
“For me, it was amazing to see the amount of talent that we have in Mexico,” said Luis Humberto Rojas, Business Developer at Nearshore Delivery Solutions. “You hear everywhere that Mexico is full of talent, but it’s rare to have a chance to see it in person. I saw young professionals and students from many different backgrounds creating extremely innovative solutions.”
The hackathon was produced by Major League Hacking and sponsored by NDS, General Electric (GE), and Tec de Monterrey (ITESM), among others.