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W W W. M A I N E B I Z . B I Z 23 M AY 1 8 , 2 0 1 5 e device provides a reading of the lobster's serum protein: 9.6. e higher the level, the greater the muscle mass and the more viable that lobster is for shipping long distances. Both Bayer and Hodgkin agree: is lobster is ready for a one-way trip to China. "We actually developed this in the late '70s," Bayer says. "A graduate student and I came up with the procedure. It's relatively quick and easy. If you take random samples from lobsters that were caught in a given area, they tend to be the same molt size and their serum levels are similar. e higher the protein, the farther you can ship them." e drawback of that testing procedure is that it's invasive and requires careful attention to avoid an errant needle jab. Bayer says Hodgkin's project to fi nd an alternative procedure grew out of earlier work done by omas McKay, a UMaine mechanical engineering technology student, and his professor, Michael "Mick" Peterson. In response to an inquiry about the strength of lob- ster claws, Bayer sought the help of Peterson and his student, who created a simple device using a load cell meter to measure the closing strength of lobster claws. eir fi rst device was made out of hard plastic. e lobsters made short work of it. Following the "fail fast, fail cheap and move on" principle, Peterson and McKay took their design and made a new one out of metal. It delivered reli- able measurements of the claw strength of numer- ous lobsters. Bayer then wondered if the device might be used as a non-invasive alternative for evaluating the viability of lobsters for shipping and suggested to Hodgkin that he take it on as a project. Hodgkin says he followed the four-step process he'd learned in the innovation engineering program: Discover, defi ne, develop and deliver. e fi rst step was to discover if there was, indeed, a correlation between the serum protein samples using the invasive technique and the claw strength measurements using the lode cell metering device. He tested lobsters of similar sizes and from diff erent stages of their molt cycle. en he compared the results of the two methods. e results, Hodgkin says, are promising — showing that there is a relationship between serum protein and muscle strength as measured by the claw strength sensor. e next steps, he says, will be to expand the sampling of lobsters seasonally and geographically in order to validate the alternative non-invasive way of measuring viability. One problem he's already identifi ed with the proto- type sensor is that it appears to be less sensitive in mea- suring the grip strength of lobsters coming from water on the colder end of the spectrum, chiefl y because those lobsters tend to be "less interested in squeezing" the sensor. "I have another mentor in Connecticut who has advised me, 'Always drill down into your ideas and data; look into them more deeply,'" Hodgkin says. "I'm going to stick with it and keep on working on the project," he adds. e funding has come from the Center for Undergraduate Research and the Lobster Institute. Real-life opportunities e oldest of three children, Hodgkin grew up in Colebrook, Conn., which he jokingly refers to as "the icebox of Connecticut," a good preparation for living in Maine. His father is a computer programmer and his mother is a nurse. He acknowledges that sometimes he forgets to tell his family about new projects. What he's learned from his work with Bayer at the Lobster Institute, he says, is the value of seeking answers to real-life problems. From the innovation engineering program, he's learning how to transform those answers into products with real-world market potential. at's the impetus for a project he's still working on with Jason Bolton, an assistant professor in UMaine's food science and human nutrition program: Making sausages out of the meat of green crabs. In recent years, green crabs have become a major problem along the entire coast due to their exploding population and their heavy predation of soft shell clams and blue mussels. at's a big problem, since clams and mussels together were a $21.2 million fi shery in 2014, accord- ing to the Department of Marine Resources. e obvious solution of harvesting those pesky green crabs to keep their populations in check comes up against the problem that there isn't a clear market demand for them, as food, as bait, or for some other use. Every problem is a potential market opportunity, and Hodgkin fi gures creating food out of those crabs might off er the most promise. On the four-part innovation checklist: Check and check for "discover" and "defi ne." e development stage has led to numerous experiments of how to extract the crab meat from the shells mechanically, since it's too labor-intensive and costly to do it by hand. And then, once you have the meat, the challenge becomes fi nding the right mix of ingredients to make a tasty food with a decent texture. Hodgkin says they're not at the stage of delivering a commercial product yet, and he acknowledges even if they get there, the "consumer problem" looms of get- ting people to redefi ne their notion of "sausage." With Bayer, Lobster Institute Associate Director Cathy Billings and Stewart Hardison, an entrepre- neur from outside the UMaine community, Hodgkin also has created Lobster Unlimited LLC (formerly LobsteRx), a company seeking to fi nd new uses for lobster-processing waste and whose motto is "We throw away nothing." One potential use involves turn- ing the shells from millions of processed lobsters into organic fertilizer for golf courses. "It's been fun, it's always exciting and once you reach those milestones where your idea is getting closer and closer to fruition, it's very exciting," says Hodgkin, who's looking into graduate programs to continue his studies. " ese are all real-world problems that need solutions," adds Bayer. " ere are so many questions out there." JameS MCCartHy, Mainebiz senior writer, can be reached at JmCCartHy @ mainebiz.biz and @ JameSMainebiz Providing solutions for diverse hiring needs for Maine companies 207-854-2422 directpersonnel.net 1-800-639-8802 mainestaff.com • Finance/ accounting professionals • Skilled laborers • Flaggers • Administrative experts • Health Care professionals • Engineers Call us today! A corporate division of Maine Staffing Group Not only do you get the convenience of valet parking at the airport for $10 a day, but we'll take care of your car needs, too. www.parknjetportland.com 747-5650 Drive 100 yards past baggage claim. Look for our green sign. Open 4:30AM - 1AM or later. per day $10 park perks OiL chANge • cAr wAsh • DetAiLiNg with It's been fun, it's always It's been fun, it's always It's been fun, it's always It's been fun, it's always It's been fun, it's always It's been fun, it's always It's been fun, it's always It's been fun, it's always It's been fun, it's always It's been fun, it's always It's been fun, it's always It's been fun, it's always It's been fun, it's always It's been fun, it's always exciting and once you reach exciting and once you reach exciting and once you reach exciting and once you reach exciting and once you reach exciting and once you reach exciting and once you reach exciting and once you reach exciting and once you reach exciting and once you reach exciting and once you reach exciting and once you reach exciting and once you reach those milestones where your idea is getting closer and closer to fruition, it's very exciting. — Matthew Hodgkin

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