5th anniversary celebration slides

CRI 5th Anniversary

April 1 2007 – March 31 2012

4/5/2012 3

4/5/2012 4

Risley products sell worldwide!

5

Innovation in the Peace Country

In collaboration with:

researched and written by Gary Christopherson

A presentation to the

Grimshaw Rotary Club

Tuesday, 22 June 2004

The Innovation Network Bridging the Gap …

Statement of Purpose: To assist Peace Region entrepreneurs in developing innovative, commercially viable products and services.

The Vision: The Innovation Network will assist entrepreneurs and businesses by increasing regional innovation capacity, providing client services and by developing a culture of innovation within the Peace Region.

A Project of PREDA

Coming together is a beginning / Keeping together is progress

Client Services • limited

•relocated to Grande Prairie – SMEs •discussions with College begin

The solution ?

2005 – 2007 Keeping it together Part-time – no office

http://www.innovationexpert.net/

http://www.innovationexpert.net/

1. Centre for Research & Innovation

Vision The Center for a Network of regional researchers and

innovators; and The Model for Rural Innovation Mixed staffing model

• Employees • Contracted consultants • Volunteers (ambassadors)

Funding (2010-2011 $2.4 m Revenue vs. $2.1 m Expenses) • Operating Funds: AET/AI-TF & RADF & clients • Research Funds: Industry / NSERC – CCI / CFI

application • Project funds (IRAP, PREDA, others)

The Centre of a Network of Regional Researchers and Innovators

2. Culture of Innovation

Regional Entrepreneurs & Innovators • ~40% patent requests from 5% population (2005) • More patents per capita than half of Canadian

Provinces • Grande Prairie #1 in Canada for

entrepreneurship (2010) [was #2 – 2009] Innovation Awards Awareness Programs • Advertizing campaign • Destination Imagination (schools)

‘. . . The Model for rural innovation

Rural Service Model – service first

GPRC: Fairview College Campus

GPRC: Grande Prairie Campus

Centre 2000 Chamber of Commerce

Peace River Community Futures Peace Country

So . . . What is working?

Working together is success “One-stop-shop for SMEs”

3. Innovation Services Inventor management services

1. Intellectual Property Assessment and Management 2. Prototype Development 3. Idea Assessment and Management 4. Investor Readiness 5. Mentoring/Coaching 6. Workshops (eight topics) 7. Market Analysis





Regional Service Points

Our Model

‘one-stop-shop’ for SMEs

3. Innovation Services





Clients Inquiry IP Workshops Celebrations TotalApril 2007-June 2008 41 0 7 19 0 67July 2008-June 2009 65 0 66 50 43 224July 2009-June 2010 73 8 72 458 111 722July 2010-March 2011 26 62 45 95 72 300

205 70 190 622 226 1313

Centre for Research & Innovation Client Summary as at March 31, 2011

Principles:

• Do not tell clients what to do EXCEPT IP • Do not market clients’ products for them

• Ensure we maintain climate of non-disclosure and confidentiality

• Avoid conflicts of interest (self and among clients)

• Use a variety of models and approaches

Innovator & entrepreneur services

Sirolli Model (2003) • Production

– ‘Making the product’ • Marketing

– ‘Selling the product’ • Business Management

– ‘Keeping the books’

Manager

Promoter

Entrepreneur

Innovator

Timmins Model (2009)

Business Skills

Cre

ativ

ity

Models:


Programs: 1. Idea Assessment and Management • work with clients to help them define

problems, filter ideas and create solutions. CRI staff works with clients to assess new product development & innovation-based business strategies, clarify ideas and develop work plans designed to move their ventures forward.

• CRI’s strength is its knowledgeable path-finding services and contacts into local and regional networks offering marketing, engineering, investment readiness and management expertise.


Productivity (2009) • Productivity AB tools

The Webtool (2003) • Idea

• Will it Work? • Is it Feasible?

– prototype • Is it Viable?

– financial • Implementation

1. Idea Assessment and Management

Assessment Tools

Programs: Innovator & entrepreneur services

2. Intellectual Property Assessment and Management

• help clients assess and manage their intellectual property inquiries.

• The CRI uses both internal and external expertise (IP Lawyer) to work with clients.

Thompson Woodruff

Programs:

3. Investor Readiness • advises innovators, entrepreneurs and

SMEs on accessing money for the development of their new product development ideas and innovation-based company growth plans.

• The CRI works with clients to assist them on how to “prepare the pitch” and offers them access to an Investment Readiness group for investment feedback and potential introductions to investors.


4. Prototype Development Services

• assists inventors/innovators, entrepreneurs and SMEs with their prototype development and testing across a wide range of industry sectors and technical areas.

• The CRI uses both internal and external expertise for designing & developing prototype systems, processes and products, and analyzing & testing new technologies.

Programs:

“The CRI are an understanding group that understand the needs and requirements of a start-up

company and channel activities in appropriate ways.”

-Paul Dagesse, Founder and CEO Rhinokore Composites Ltd.


5. Mentoring/Coaching • provides clients with assistance

and advice on various aspects of their innovation-based business endeavors.

• CRI uses internal expertise and brings together experienced industry leaders to provide valuable input to clients as needed.

Programs:

"I only wish that I'd run into CRI earlier. They're a

tremendous ally!"

-David Forseth, President Cataflow Technologies Inc.


6. Market Analysis • works with clients by providing advice on

marketing, sales and distribution of new innovation products and services.

• CRI uses internal and external expertise to access intelligence and contacts through a network of Market Intermediaries in the region and beyond.

Programs:


Programs:

7. Learning Opportunities • engaged in a host of learning opportunities via applied

research, business training and demonstration projects on innovation, commercialization, and entrepreneurship.

• CRI topics include for example: Idea to Implementation: The Innovation Workshop; Researching Products and Markets; Critical Marketing Techniques; Investment Capital; Intellectual Property 101; Inventors Workshop; Market Intermediaries, Foresight Scenario Planning.

• Hosted topics include: SR&ED, AMFI, AB Government program information sessions


Jim Letersky – former CRI Adjunct Staff with Murray Smith – Long-time CRI Client

Client Quotes

• “Your team (at the CRI) has provided our business with more support than we could have ever imagined! Thank you so much!"

- Julie Boucher NordicPac Ltd. • The innovation voucher program helped us to establish

our new brand (The WoodPad Inc.), create a marketing plan, develop a number of our glulam timberframe product designs and drawings complete with engineering sign-off.

Julie Boucher, President The WoodPad Inc.

Client Quotes

• The CRI has been instrumental in helping me network with the right people in the industry to challenge some of my thought processes, develop my ideas from paper to prototype to patent “pending” and of course fund and assist funding. Richard VanderZee – OnTrack Supplies & Equipment –

Grande Prairie AB.

Client Quotes

• “The CRI and its staff have proved themselves invaluable to us, business owners and inventors, time and time again. Without their passion, dedication and knowledge we would not be in the position we are today; Ready to market. We at Golden Sheep whole heartedly thank the staff at the CRI for all their hard work”.

- Golden Sheep Power

Client Quotes • "Through the CRI with the Innovation Voucher

Program, Endeavour Equipment was able to take our conceptual design to a prototype stage. The CRI had the services, network & expertise to ensure this challenging transition was handled efficiently & professionally while meeting our requirements with a personalized approach. I recommend the CRI's professional innovation services to business of any size & any field of work..."

Adam Corfe, VP, Endeavour Equipment Inc.

2nd Base Originals is a web based business

offering creative & fashionable accessories for

breast cancer survivors.

“Wow what can we say... we met you (CRI) when we had hit a brick wall. We had a great idea and followed it through as far as we could and then stalled because we had no idea how to proceed. Left to our own, we may have given up… You provided us with sound professional advice on marketing and production and patenting. You encouraged us to harness our enthusiasm and believed in us which still carries us through this new adventure. - Katherine Fleming Co CEO 2nd Base Originals

About the Centre for Research & Innovation…

Intel Energy Systems Ltd.

Intel Energy Systems

Intel Energy Systems provides renewable energy generation systems for homes, commercial, industrial and public sector. Their hybrid solar wind generation system can provide greater than 100 per cent of the electricity required to run a house or a commercial building.

CRI Service provided: innovation voucher Sam Perera

CRI Client Randy Hanson

The most reliable, economical, ‘start it & forget it’

Heat Trace System on the market!

"I only wish that I'd run into CRI earlier. They're a

tremendous ally!"

- David Forseth, President Cataflow Technologies Inc.

The Cataflow system is a flameless, self-powered hydronic heating system, designed to operate away from the power grid.

Perfect for flow lines, pipelines, well heads and BOP’s.

Recent CRI Client – Kim Kinderwater with his prototypes

A number of different sources and surveys tell us that innovation in the Peace rates near the highest per capita in all of Canada. That is a “warm and fuzzy” statistic to know, but since I have lived here most my life, it seems quite normal to me. I have always known someone who is tinkering with something to come up with a better way. Why wouldn’t we look for a better way? It may make life easier and besides, exploration is fun!

Pollutants to Products (P2P) Concept – Reframes waste from a problem to a useful resource and turns pollutants into industrial products

There are currently 20 major industry and 5 government partners

Total funding of $3,500,000

Major researchers Dr. Weixing Tan – Principal Investigator Dr. Melissa Day – Research Coordinator Dr. Bruce Rutley – Director of CRI Mr. Langji Lin – Research Engineer GPRC Faculty members – Dr. Phil Johnson, Dr. Les Rawluk, Dr. George Ding, Dr. Ali Al-Asadi, Dr. Georgia Goth, Mr. Rick Scott, Ms. Audrey Wells GPRC Students - various

Turning Air Pollutants into Microalgae • Microalgae are aquatic plants that need CO2

to live • Flue gas from a boiler is pumped to the algae • Algae then remove most of the CO2 from the

gas

Chlorella vulgaris: Pilot Plant algal species

Pilot Plant - algae tubes; artificial light

ConocoPhillips, NSERC, EnEco Systems Inc,

Woodmere Nursery, Rheaume Engineering,

Pond Biolfuels, Converted Carbon Technologies

Project partners

Wastewater to Industrial Fiber (poplar) • Wastewater contains nutrients trees can use (particularly

nitrogen and phosphorus) • Wastewater is used to fertilise hybrid poplar trees • Reduces need for storing/extreme treatment of wastewater

and (hopefully) increase tree growth Hybrid Poplar

County of Grande Prairie Aquatera

Ainsworth Eng LLP NSERC

Canadian Forest Services

Clairmont site Project partners

Hardening of White Spruce • Arrival of spring is not consistent year to year • A late spring frost can cost forestry industry

millions in mortality • Seedlings are ‘hardened’ prior to planting as a

method to prevent/reduce frost losses White spruce

Evidence of frost

Manning Diversified Forest Products, Tolko Industries, Vanderwell Construction, Weyerhaeuser, CANFOR, PRT Nursery, NSERC

Project partners

Winter Planting – Wetland Reclamation • Resource companies must reforest • Wetlands in northern Alberta cannot be reforested in

spring (too soft for heavy machinery) • Winter planted black spruce (<95% survival rate)

Black spruce (8 months old) Winter planting: high hoe making mounds for seedling

OSLI; Nexen, Global Restoration Alberta, Alberta Environment, Sustainable Research Development, Next Generation; Centre for Resource Excellence

Project partners

Centre for Research & Innovation

40

Contact:

Center for Research & Innovation Grande Prairie Regional College

DIRECTOR and APPLIED RESEARCH 780-539-2054

INNOVATION SERVICES 780-539-2807

Toll Free: 1-877-539-2808

5th anniversary celebration slides

Business

innovation servicescentre

innovation networkinnovation

regional innovation

help clients

innovationproperty inquiries

market clients products

peace region entrepreneurs

grande prairie campuscentre