WD Success Stories 2012-13
Table of Contents
Community Economic Development
Policy, Advocacy, and Coordination
Business Development
Impacts
FPInnovations – British Columbia
First Nations communities in British Columbia have benefitted through increased involvement with the forestry industry, thanks to funding provided by WD. FPInnovations (FPI), the world’s largest private, not-for-profit forest research institute received WD funding of $592,008 in December 2010 to undertake the implementation of a First Nations Forest Sector Technical Support Program in British Columbia.
The two-year, $1,274,596 project supported the work of a team of experts who engaged more than 50 First Nations communities across BC (all recent recipients of provincial timber supply agreements and/or community forest resources) to devise strategies for commercializing local timber resources. These experts inventoried fiber supplies; devised harvest plans; outlined transport strategies; prescribed manufacturing equipment, technology and mill layouts; as well as provided marketing intelligence and conducted global marketing studies.
The project has been successful in creating, maintaining, or expanding 20 First Nations businesses. For example, the Moricetown Band used WD funding to re-open the Kyahwood finger-jointing mill that had closed in 2008.
Portage College – Alberta
In March 2012, WD provided funding of $490,286 to acquire heavy equipment machinery for Portage College’s Heavy Equipment Operator (HEO) Training Program operating in Boyle, Alberta. This $980,571 project helped address the province’s existing and growing skilled labour shortage in heavy equipment operation. Funding towards the 14 pieces of heavy equipment helped improve the skills and competencies of operators in the industry while contributing to the increased productivity and competitiveness of companies requiring trained heavy equipment operators. This project was successful in creating employment, as well as assisting business operations in the region. Seventy eight percent of the students enrolled in the program found employment upon graduation and 12 businesses were created or expanded as a result of this initiative.
Portage College is uniquely located near seven First Nations and four Métis settlements. In an earlier pilot program, in 2010, 60 percent of HEO students were Aboriginals without high school completion.
Saskatchewan Trade & Export Partnerships Inc. – Saskatchewan
In 2010, Saskatchewan Trade & Export Partnership Incorporated (STEP) received WD funding of $153,232 to provide one-on-one support to Saskatchewan companies interested in exporting. The $338,487 project enabled STEP to deliver an Exporter Readiness Assessment Service to businesses in Saskatchewan. The program gave Saskatchewan companies the resources and tools needed to build export capacity and knowledge. Over the four-year life of the project, STEP delivered one-on-one consultations to 224 Saskatchewan companies, developed 111 export plans (or components of export plans), and exceeded their objective by assisting 87 companies to the stage where they were export ready. This service has ensured these companies are better equipped to enter into the international marketplace.
Canadian Malting Barley Technical Centre – Manitoba
With 77 percent of Canadian malt and malting barley capacity located in Western Canada, and growing international exports, the industry is an important component of the western Canadian economy. The Canadian Malting and Barley Technical Centre supports this industry by helping to secure existing export markets and develop new export markets for Canadian malt and malting barley through its research, product testing, and demonstration and training facility in Winnipeg, Manitoba.
The Canadian Malting and Barley Technical Centre has been able to increase their services through WD funding of $265,878 to support the development of an advanced malting and brewing laboratory and training centre. By acquiring five pieces of state-of-the-art technology, the malting industry in Western Canada expects to see increased tonnage of malt and malting barley and increased export sales.
New international markets have also opened up as a result of this $426,867 project and a total of four industry association partnerships were created. Two partnerships – one with SABMiller and one with Molson Coors – allowed the Centre to gain access to South American and United Kingdom markets, with preliminary work being done in China.
Innovation
Impacts
Emily Carr University of Art and Design – British Columbia
By enabling Emily Carr University to obtain state-of-the-art equipment, WD funding has provided students at the school with a significant training advantage. In 2010, WD provided $530,000 to the Emily Carr University to help purchase equipment and establish the first western Stereoscopic 3D (S3D) Centre of Excellence in digital media and film technologies. This funding helped to purchase cinematic cameras and accessories, recording media, and visualization equipment, with which to undertake applied research and development and technology commercialization activities in partnership with BC firms.
As a result of WD’s investment towards this $952,858 project, the BC film industry is now at the leading edge of training and applied research in production and post-production for S3D technology. Additionally, there have been other positive outcomes, including 50 students that have been trained in S3D, ten industry events held with the film community, and the S3D Centre of Excellence now being part of the GRAND (Graphics, Animation and New Media) Network of Centres of Excellence. Finally, the S3D has also been granted a project that brings together universities from across Canada that are working on S3D production and technology.
Alberta Centre for Advanced MNT Products – Alberta
WD’s $3.5 million contribution toward the Alberta Centre for Advanced Microsystems and Nanotechnology Products (ACAMP) in May 2009 helped provide manufacturers in Alberta’s biomedical, agricultural, communications, environment, and forestry sectors, along with energy and aerospace stakeholders with access to Canada’s first low-temperature co-fired ceramics (LTCC) packaging facility. LTCC is a specific and effective method of building micro-sized devices. This $4.36 million project also provided microsystems and nanotechnology (MNT) clients with access to the technical and business development support from staff at ACAMP, which resulted in the development of over 55 prototypes, and assistance to over 475 industry driven projects. Specifically, with the LTCC equipment, ACAMP was successful in developing their ‘smart cube’. This micro device can measure velocity, orientation, pressure, temperature and gravitational forces as well as GPS positioning using a combination of accelerometers, gyroscopes and magnetometers, all in one tiny package. The ‘cube’ can be customized to streamline new product development, such as developing sensors for unmanned vehicles to inspect pipelines. This new technology is unique to ACAMP, and provides significant advantages to Alberta companies in developing new products in unmanned vehicles, environmental monitoring, and geomatics.
Canadian Light Source Inc. – Saskatchewan
In 2008, WD invested a further $1.2 million to enable the Canadian Light Source (CLS) to complete the beamline expansion project that doubled its research capacity. This investment supported the Department’s 2006 investment of $5 million for the construction of seven new beamlines. The increased investment meant the CLS was able to acquire the final pieces of technical equipment necessary to fulfill its commitment to partner with industry on applied research projects with commercialization potential.
Beamlines house a brilliant light source, enabling scientists to study the structural and chemical properties of materials at the molecular level. Commissioned in 2009, one beamline was utilized to develop smaller, lighter sensors for specific use by large, international corporations in the auto industry, as well as by aviation electronics giant Rockwell Collins. Another beamline targets bio-medical research. Pharmaceutical companies are using it to explore new diagnoses and treatments for osteoporosis, cancer and Alzheimer’s disease. Another research focus includes development of the next generation of composite materials for use in the aerospace, automotive, agriculture, manufacturing and recreational vehicles sectors.
A 2010 study indicates synchrotron research contributed $15 million in value for its industrial partners. The CLS is proud to devote 10 percent of its total beamline time to industrial research – double the international average – and in the future aims to reserve 25 percent of beamline time for industrial research projects.
University of Manitoba – Manitoba
High performance computing has been enhanced at the University of Manitoba through WD funding of $2.1 million to develop a new facility. High performance computing uses supercomputers and computer clusters to solve advanced computational problems in a matter of hours and days, instead of weeks or months. It can be used across a variety of disciplines and offers researchers a way to improve computer simulations of weather patterns, to model the behaviour of lifesaving drugs, and to complete complex astronomical calculations.
The supercomputer at the University of Manitoba, named Grex after the university’s symbol, the bison, is capable of performing over 40 trillion calculations per second and it is in high demand by researchers who wish to take advantage of the machine’s speed to solve problems in physics, chemistry, biology, medicine, engineering, economics, and environmental modeling. Researchers from across Canada have access to the $7.1 million facility because it is connected to the national Compute Canada grid – a platform of six high-performance computing facilities.
Grex is energy-efficient, being ranked as the 44th most energy-efficient supercomputer in the world and second in Canada by Green500. The facility itself is also efficient, as it has an innovative heating and cooling system. The computing equipment is water cooled and the heat produced is recycled during the winter months to provide heat to the surrounding buildings.
Community Economic Development
Impacts
Ucluelet Aquarium Society – British Columbia
WD provided $270,500 to the Ucluelet Aquarium Society to construct a public community aquarium in Ucluelet, British Columbia. This permanent facility replaced the temporary "proof of concept" aquarium, which had proven to be a significant tourism destination for visitors to the west coast of Vancouver Island. The aquarium showcases west coast marine biodiversity and houses interactive exhibits and displays, including touch-tanks that offer a hands-on educational experience.
Survey data from Parks Canada had indicated that once the aquarium was completed and open to the public, the estimated increase in day visits and overnight visits would result in an additional direct financial benefit to the region of at least $500,000 annually. Although current impact data is not available, this $1,624,994 project continues to receive excellent local support, and it provides educational opportunities related to local marine life.
Community Futures Westman – Manitoba
The Westman Entrepreneurial Centre, one of the activities supported by the Community Futures Westman, is a knowledge-based business incubator aimed at entrepreneurs with innovative products and services with the potential for high-growth. Its goal is to develop a strong infrastructure for knowledge-based ventures with a wide spectrum of innovation-based, high growth business models.
An example of Westman Entrepreneurial Centre’s business attraction efforts is their recruitment of Evolve to open an office in Brandon, Manitoba in September 2012. Evolve is a full service multi-disciplined acquisition company offering surface strategies for right of way acquisition and community engagement services. Their unique surface land strategy team focuses on mitigating surface impacts while supporting responsible energy development. They have offices in Alberta (Camrose, Edmonton, Lethbridge, Airdrie) and Brandon, Manitoba.
Policy, Advocacy, and Coordination
Impacts
Western Canada Shipbuilding Summit
In May 2012, WD strengthened business connections and facilitated networking across the shipbuilding industry by attracting more than 600 industry stakeholders representing over 360 organizations to share information about business opportunities arising from the National Shipbuilding Procurement Strategy.
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