A boost to college research is a boon for communities

TROIS-RIVIÈRES, Quebec, Feb. 10, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Colleges are vital to keeping communities thriving. They are experts in applied research, which benefits local businesses and creates local jobs. From opening up a new wind-power industry in remote communities to working with local businesses to improve plastics recycling in manufacturing, college-industry collaborations give businesses access to the knowledge, skills and equipment they need to stay ahead.

That’s why today, at Cégep de Trois-Rivières, William Amos, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry (Science), announced investments of close to $7 million for seven research infrastructure projects at six colleges across the country. The funding was made through the Canada Foundation for Innovation’s (CFI) College-Industry Innovation Fund (CIIF). The fund allows colleges to invest in the state-of-the-art labs and equipment their researchers need to build on their partnerships with the private sector and create new ones, generating socioeconomic benefits locally and nationally, and providing opportunities for a new generation of innovators.

Cégep de Trois-Rivières received funding for two infrastructure projects. Gheorghe Marin, General Manager of the Centre de métallurgie du Québec, will use his funding to merge the Centre’s research capacities in powder metallurgy and additive manufacturing (3D printing), making these innovative technologies more accessible to manufacturing companies that would otherwise not have the means to use them. The second project, led by Mario Parenteau, will purchase research infrastructure for Innofibre, the Centre d’innovation des produits cellulosiques. This will enable the Centre’s partners in Quebec’s pulp and paper industry to develop biomass-based products that offer Canadian consumers an environmentally friendly alternative to fossil fuel-based consumer goods.

Quotes

“The Government of Canada’s investments allow students and businesses to work together on a diverse range of research projects to boost economic development and create jobs across the country. With these projects, colleges, Cégeps and polytechnics will be making a real difference in the lives of Canadians in their own communities.”

– William Amos, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry (Science)

“Supporting partnerships between Canada’s smaller research institutions and the regions they serve helps unleash possibilities and open new pathways for innovation. Today’s recipients are leaders in their communities and important contributors to their prosperity and quality of life.”

– Roseann O’Reilly Runte, President and CEO, Canada Foundation for Innovation

“These investments will directly benefit local and national companies by offering them new development opportunities, giving them access to innovative technologies and thus enabling them to remain leaders in their field, and, ultimately, to create quality jobs. In addition, the research projects that will result from these investments will enable the training of many college students and give them access to equipment that would not otherwise be available. These conditions provide a high-quality training environment in which students can develop their potential and become highly qualified and sought-after graduates.”

– Mr. Louis Gendron, President, Cégep de Trois-Rivières

Quick facts

• The College-Industry Innovation Fund is intended to support substantial research infrastructure projects that will augment the existing applied research and technology development capacity of colleges, and allow them to respond to important sector industry needs.
• There are two competition streams under the College-Industry Innovation Fund. This announcement is for stream 1, which allows colleges to acquire the tools needed to conduct applied research and technology development activities that respond to well-identified needs of the private sector and have been developed in collaboration with key industrial partners.

Quick links

Canada Foundation for Innovation
College-Industry Innovation Fund
The Research Facilities Navigator: Connect with research facilities at colleges and other publicly funded institutions across Canada that are opening their doors to collaborations with industry, academia and government

About the Canada Foundation for Innovation
For more than 20 years, the CFI has been giving researchers the tools they need to think big and innovate. Fostering a robust innovation system in Canada translates into jobs and new enterprises, better health, cleaner environments and, ultimately, vibrant communities. By investing in state-of-the-art facilities and equipment in Canada’s universities, colleges, research hospitals and non-profit research institutions, the CFI also helps to attract and retain the world’s top talent, to train the next generation of researchers and to support world-class research that strengthens the economy and improves the quality of life for all Canadians.

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A full list of the funded projects and stories about the facilities we fund are available online at Innovation.ca. For updates, follow us on Twitter @InnovationCA and subscribe to our YouTube channel for videos about the CFI and its many transformative research projects.

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