2011 Giant Vision Winners and Finalists

The first place $5,000 winner was Lee Ertman, Great Plains Aquaponics. Northern State University, Aberdeen- It is the goal of Great Plains Aquaponics to provide quality organic produce, year round, at a high rate of production, with minimal environmental impact.

The production of Great Plains Aquaponics will be done in the aquaponics method of agriculture. Aquaponics is the combination of Hydroponics, the growing plants without soil, using chemical nutrient-rich water and Aquaculture, the farm-raising of fish. In aquaponics, water from the aquaculture operations is fed into a hydroponics system. The water provides nutrients to the plants and the plants, in turn, clean the water so that it can be recycled back into the system.

Second ($3,500) : Heist Brewing Company, Luke Rensink and Thomas Strubel, South Dakota State University- Heist Brewing Company produces quality craft beers, everything from pale ale to porter and stout. All of which are crafted locally in Brookings, South Dakota. Heist combines the highest quality ingredients along with a passion for crafting great South Dakota beer. Heist will start producing its quality craft beer in July and will hit the Brookings bars in August.

In addition to producing great beer, we show South Dakota pride through embracing local history and taking our namesake from the 1938 bank ‘Heist’ in Brookings. Heist fans can find out more about us on Facebook and Twitter or at www.heistbrewing.com

Third ($2,500): Nism Snow, Royce McDaniel, South Dakota State University- Nism is a dynamic company that is aiming to change the world view on snow sports. Currently Nism is developing an adaptor to allow any BMX or Mountain Bike to convert into a ski bike with a much better bike feel than the competition. As Nism grows, we will expand into technical apparel, foot wear, and gear to ride in any season. Nism will continue to find ways to take summer action sports to the snow. It's tome to Rethink Winter.

Fourth ($2,000): Cloaca Maxima, Carlos Beatty Jr., South Dakota School of Mines & Technology- This is Cloaca Maxima; a company based around innovating restroom facilities. Cloaca Maxima was founded by five students from the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology. The focus of Cloaca Maxima is restroom facilities with its’ main product being a splash-proof urinal.

This urinal is water efficient, sanitary, innovative, and made of stainless steel. Most of the actual production of the parts used to make the urinal will be outsourced to other companies in order to ensure quality of the product and cost efficiency. Although the urinal will be the main focus, Cloaca Maxima will also manufacture other products.

The remaining qualifiers will receive $500 each to help with the expenses of participation.