SASKATCHEWAN POLYTECHNIC
Winding roads lead to lifelong career and innovative projects at Sask Polytech for alumnus

A severe motorcycle accident in 1989 changed Marc Bernier's life and career path.

"I was in critical condition for eight weeks. Doctors didn't know whether I was going to live or die," he says.

With a one-month-old baby at home, Bernier made it through and was released from the hospital. He spent the next three years walking with crutches and canes because of his complex multifracture leg break. Before the accident, he had completed the Retail Meat Specialist and Professional Truck Driving programs at Sask Polytech.

"I couldn't do the work I had previously done, so I came back to school at Sask Polytech," Bernier says. "I took the Media Arts Production program. Once I started my second year, I was already working part-time at our Prince Albert campus."

The Prince Albert local has been a Sask Polytech employee for 31 years. All the while, he struggled with chronic pain from the accident.

"It's challenging when you live with pain all the time and you're trying to raise a family and work and everything else," he says.

After more than two decades, Bernier made the decision to move forward with selective amputation in December 2017.

"Doctors said there was nothing else I could do to help my pain, so it was really a question of helping with pain management and improving my quality of life," he says. "After I got the prosthetic, it was a game changer. The pain is 90 per cent gone. My family knows I'm in a lot less pain, and the grandkids kind of think I'm a robot so that's fun."

After the surgery, he worked with a prosthetist to get two models fitted to his needs, one for daily use and one for use with work boots.

Throughout his career, Bernier has worked in different departments from AV Services to Shipping and Receiving, from Reception to Facilities. For over a decade, he ran the mobile training labs, a 53-foot semi-trailer that turns into a 1,000 square foot shop, for which he and his team won an internal Sask Polytech Innovation Award.

As he worked on audiovisual installations, he came across a new challenge. His prosthetic leg had a protruding metal edge that could get stuck on a ladder and would tear his clothes.

He looked into solutions and communicated with Occupational Health and Safety for advice. Through his research, Bernier found a company that made shields to prevent issues, as they created a flat surface similar to a shin. An email to Sask Polytech staff about 3D printing being available on-campus caught his attention. Bernier reached out to the Learning and Teaching team to see if a shield could be created. The department established a suite of specialized hubs to foster innovation and collaboration by offering access to a wealth of resources, insights and tools to navigate the evolving technological landscape.

Ryan Howe, a graphic design analyst, was brought into the project to create the graphic model to 3D print. Bernier's prosthetics were photographed and measured. Howe designed a custom shield fitted to each prosthetic. It was the first prosthetic shield he worked on.

"This was a really great example of a project that was outside the box. It was a design for practical, daily use. That's what we want to work on," he says.

The new project fell under the 3D Innovation hub, which was created last year at Sask Polytech. There was a collaborative effort between Bernier, Howe and Printing Services.

"I had the ball going, I knew what I wanted," says Bernier.

Adds Howe, "This project shows how customization can make or break a project. When you can go in and create a model adapted to needs, you'll get a good product."

Several prototypes were made, as small improvements were identified through daily use, for example modifying where the velcro looped through to ensure a secure fit. A finalized version was selected and is in the process of being completed for both prosthetic models.

Always eager to adapt and follow his passions at work and in his personal life, Bernier made a few tweaks to allow him to continue to ride his motorcycle with his prosthetic.

"You have to keep going, don't give up and make the best of it. You only have one life to live," he says.

Learn more about Sask Polytech's Media Production program.

Learn more about personal 3D printing with Sask Polytech's Printing Services.