Despite the small population of our state, Idaho is home to exceptional innovators and entrepreneurs who have made a global impact through pioneering advances in agriscience, energy and information technology.

For the past two years, the Idaho Technology Council’s Hall of Fame has honored outstanding professionals who have set a high standard for thinkers and achievers not just in Idaho, but throughout the world. That’s why the ITC is so excited about this year’s inductees, physician-inventor Forrest Bird and software analytics visionary Bob Lokken.

“It’s accurate to say that millions of lives have been saved through the innovative genius of Dr. Forrest Bird and that millions of dollars in cost savings have been realized by businesses from the technology-based analytics of Bob Lokken,” said Jay Larsen, president and founder of the Idaho Technology Council. “The innovations of these two Idahoans have made a worldwide impact. We are privileged to elevate them at this year’s Hall of Fame celebration.”

Tickets are $85 for ITC members or $125 for nonmembers. Tickets are available at www.idahotechcouncil.org.

Bird is known as the Father of the Respiratory Industry because of his creation of the first highly reliable, low-cost, mass-produced respirator in the world. Before his device was introduced in 1955, people with respiratory problems had limited options. The worst patients were confined to devices called iron lungs, which were bulky, primitive and expensive. In the 1930s, an iron lung cost about the same as the average price of a home.

Bird revolutionized the treatment of respiratory problems and saved the lives of millions of people around the world through inventing his “Bird Mark 7” respirator, a small, affordable device that could automatically help people breathe. Bird subsequently created a ventilator for infants, nicknamed the “Babybird.” This ventilator is credited with playing a significant role in reducing the rate of breathing-related infant mortality from 70 percent to 10 percent.

Bird has received prestigious honors for innovation. He received the Lifetime Scientific Achievement Award and was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame. Bird also has received the Presidential Citizens Medal from President George Bush and the National Medal of Technology and Innovation from President Barack Obama. Bird still plays an active role in work on medical devices to help people worldwide.

Lokken created a legacy through founding successful businesses that developed key innovations in analytic and performance-management technologies. Lokken is the founder of ProClarity Corp., which won more than 40 industry awards for analytic and performance management technologies. In 2006, ProClarity was acquired by Microsoft. The business intelligence software created by Lokken’s team of innovators makes up some of the key features of Microsoft’s Office 2010 suite.

Lokken is the CEO and founder of WhiteCloud Analytics (www.whitecloudanalytics.com), an Idaho software/consulting company that helps provide decision support for hospitals. WhiteCloud Analytics employs methodologies and analytic technologies that close key information-delivery gaps. Through this technology, WhiteCloud Analytics has helped hospitals save millions of dollars through providing a superior approach to business intelligence in the industry.

Lokken is active in Idaho’s community, serving on a variety of boards focused on education and economic development. He serves as chairman of the Education Alliance of Idaho, an association of key stakeholders in the Idaho education system, and as the vice chair of Idaho Business for Education. Lokken holds several database technology patents, has won numerous industry awards, and is a frequent keynote speaker at business schools, civic events, and industry conferences. Lokken serves as a member of the ITC’s Executive Committee, and his reluctance to be inducted was overcome by the consensus of ITC members.

Bird and Lokken join an Idaho Technology Council Hall of Fame that includes Hewlett-Packard icons Dick Hackborn and Ray Smelek, global engineering chief executive Jack Lemley and serial entrepreneur Steve Hodges. The technology community of Idaho has been energized by this signature annual event. We are equally excited to introduce these exceptional innovators and their work to our colleagues in the tech community on Oct. 2 at the Boise Centre.

vdickerson@carrington.edu; 672-0724

VALERIE DICKERSON Co-chair of the Idaho Technology Council’s Hall of Fame