Guidelines on the use of laboratories and

research facilities by McGill innovation

teams and McGill-affiliated start-ups

Office of Innovation and Partnerships in Cooperation with the McGill University Innovation

Steering Committee

March 2017

2

Table of Contents Introduction .................................................................................................................................... 4

Criteria............................................................................................................................................. 4

Section A-- McGill students and researchers working on an innovation project ........................... 4

Section B—McGill-affiliated start-ups ............................................................................................ 6

Appendix A—Draft agreement template ........................................................................................ 8

Appendix B—Internal Case Studies and External Best Practices Related to Equipment Use by Students and Start-ups ................................................................................................................. 11

Background ................................................................................................................................... 11

Objectives...................................................................................................................................... 11

Current Situation at McGill ........................................................................................................... 11

Case Studies .................................................................................................................................. 11

Zamboni Chemical Solutions (ZCS) ...................................................................................... 12

Sensoreal Inc. and Parralexbio ............................................................................................ 13

eNuvio .................................................................................................................................. 13

Anomera .............................................................................................................................. 15

A Review of Equipment Policies at Peer Institutions .................................................................... 17

University of Toronto .......................................................................................................... 17

UBC ...................................................................................................................................... 18

University of Waterloo ........................................................................................................ 19

McMaster ............................................................................................................................ 19

ETS ....................................................................................................................................... 20

MIT ....................................................................................................................................... 21

Cornell.................................................................................................................................. 22

George Washington University ........................................................................................... 24

University of Alabama ......................................................................................................... 25

Carnegie Mellon University ................................................................................................. 27

Lund University .................................................................................................................... 27

3

Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule (ETH) .................................................................... 27

Recap of Models analyzed ............................................................................................................ 29

Summary ....................................................................................................................................... 29

Recommendations ........................................................................................................................ 29

Appendix C: Research Facilities tools available across Canada .................................................... 31

Appendix D: CoLab - Platform Beta version only .......................................................................... 31

4

Introduction McGill University encourages full utilization of its laboratories and research facilities and supports those

researchers and laboratory managers who choose to enable students, researchers and McGill-affiliated

start-ups to make use of these facilities and research services for the purposes of innovation and

entrepreneurship. These activities enrich research and scholarship, add to the student experience, and

strengthen the link between research and practice.

The following guidelines will help to govern important aspects of these collaborations, mitigate risks for

all parties and provide clarity in terms of decisional authority and recommended practices. These

guidelines were informed by internal case studies and external best practices detailed in Appendix B.

The guidelines in Section A apply to McGill students, staff and researchers engaged in innovation and

entrepreneurship activity as part of a project or Report of Invention that has not yet taken the form of

an incorporated or for-profit start-up. The guidelines in Section B govern the use of McGill research

facilities by McGill-affiliated start-ups. Each of these groups are defined by the criteria below.

Criteria The following criteria identify the applicable set of guidelines.

McGill students, staff and researchers working on an innovation project (Section A)

McGill-affiliated start-ups (Section B)

Not yet incorporated Team includes at least one current full-time McGill student or researcher, or has licensed or holds McGill IP

No revenues Employs fewer than 10 individuals

No employees Has annual revenues of less than $100,000

Section A-- McGill students and researchers working on an innovation

project

Decisional authority

Requests for permission to make use of laboratory space and/or research equipment should be made to

the affiliated principal investigator, researcher, or, in the case of a core facility, the academic supervisor

for that facility. If approved, he or she should then inform his/her reporting officer1 and/or Associate

Dean Research regarding the planned activity. These agreements should not interfere with the

productivity of principal investigators of the associated department, center or research unit.

1 See section 1.9 of the McGill Regulations on Conflict of Interest for a complete definition of “reporting officer”.

5

Agreement terms and support

With the necessary approvals in place, the Office of Innovation and Partnerships will support both the

requestor(s) and the facility-affiliated researcher and/or laboratory manager in the development of an

appropriate agreement, following a standard template (see Appendix A) identifying specific access

rights, training requirements, times, duration, and any other terms particular to the laboratory or

research facilities in question. To enter into force, the agreement must be signed by the requestor(s),

and the facility-affiliated researcher and/or laboratory manager.

Liability insurance

McGill University’s institutional liability insurance covers current McGill students and employees.

Intellectual property rights

See McGill’s Policy on Inventions and Software which applies to all activity involving McGill laboratories,

equipment and facilities.

Academic supervision

All individuals and groups wishing to access laboratory space and equipment are required to be affiliated

with an academic supervisor in the laboratory space being accessed.

Fees

It may be impractical for teams working on innovation and entrepreneurship projects to pay facility

usage fees, however an appropriate understanding should be reached for the at-cost reimbursement for

consumables and this understanding should be included as part of the overall access agreement.

Services

Any services required on the part of the student(s) in order to make use of the laboratory/research

equipment should be fully outlined in the agreement. Examples include assistance/training to operate

equipment, interpret results, and advice on experiment design.

Conflicts of interest

McGill University’s Regulations on Conflicts of Interest apply to any arrangement for the use of

laboratory space and equipment.

Dispute resolution

Any dispute arising between the innovation team and the representatives of the McGill

laboratory/research facility shall be brought to the attention of the Director of the office of Invention

Development and Entrepreneurship Assistance to receive support for resolution. If a resolution is not

reached within 30 days, the Associate Vice-Principal, Innovation and Partnerships shall render a

decision.

6

Section B—McGill-affiliated start-ups Decisional authority

Requests for permission to make use of laboratory space and/or research equipment should be made to

the affiliated principal investigator, researcher, or, in the case of a core facility, the academic supervisor

for that facility. If approved, he or she should then inform his/her reporting officer2 and/or Associate

Dean Research regarding the planned activity. These agreements should not interfere with the

productivity of principal investigators of the associated department, center or research unit.

Liability insurance

McGill-affiliated start-ups wishing to enter and make use of McGill laboratories and research facilities

must provide proof of appropriate liability insurance coverage prior to being granted access.

Recommended coverage and a list of appropriate providers may be obtained from McGill University’s

risk management office.

Agreement terms and support

With the necessary approvals in place, the Office of Innovation and Partnerships will support both the

start-up and the facility-affiliated researcher and/or laboratory manager in the development of an

appropriate agreement (e.g. use of facilities, research, service, who will be performing the experiments,

space, etc.), following a standard template identifying specific access rights, times, duration, and any

other terms particular to the laboratory or research facilities and the desired agreement.

Fees

• Consumables

o The principal investigator/senior research affiliated with the laboratory/facility and/or

the laboratory manager will specify reimbursement rates for consumables.

• Equipment/space rental/usage fees

o The principal investigator/senior research affiliated with the laboratory/facility and/or

the laboratory manager will specify equipment/space rental and usage fees.

• Other fees

o Any other fees will be specified in a budget as part of the agreement

Research or service agreements involving McGill-affiliated start-ups

• These agreements fall under the responsibility of the Office of Sponsored Research, which

facilitates these arrangements. Where a sponsored research or service contract involves a

2 See section 1.9 of the McGill Regulations on Conflict of Interest for a complete definition of “reporting officer”.

7

McGill-affiliated start-up meeting the criteria above, it is recommended that overhead fees for

sponsored research be set at a preferential rate of 10%; a rate that is lower than the 40%

typically charged to industry partners for sponsored research. All other entities will be subject

to the typical 40% rate.

Conflicts of interest

McGill University’s Regulations on Conflicts of Interest apply to any arrangement for the use of

laboratory space and equipment.

Intellectual property rights

See McGill’s Policy on Inventions and Software which applies to all activity involving McGill laboratories,

equipment and facilities.

Dispute resolution

Any dispute arising between the start-up and the McGill laboratory/research facility shall be brought to

the attention of the Director of the office of Invention Development and Entrepreneurship Assistance to

receive support for resolution. If a resolution is not reached within 30 days, the Associate Vice-Principal,

Innovation and Partnerships shall render a decision.

8

Appendix A—Draft agreement template McGill students, staff and researchers working on an innovation project (to be revised/refined by IDEA

and OSR staff)

Requestor(s): Innovation team members requesting access to the laboratory/facility/equipment

Name: Status (student, faculty, staff member, external): Email: Phone:

Insurance status: As McGill students/staff our activities in the facility identified below are covered by McGill’s institutional insurance policy (yes/no) OR I/we have obtained appropriate insurance to cover these activities (yes/no).

Conflict of Interest (COI) Disclosure Statement (Consult McGill University's COI Regulation to complete this section.): Will this project potentially create a Conflict of Interest (COI) or have Significant Financial Interest (SFI)* to you and /or team members (Faculty, staff, students)? (No; Yes, previously disclosed; Yes, new) *SFI: salary, honoraria, consulting fee valued in excess of $5,000 when aggregated; gift; reimbursed or sponsored travel; equity interests; intellectual property rights and interests (excluding royalties paid through McGill University).

Facility/equipment: Please identify the name and location of the facility and/or equipment you are requesting access to

Facility name: Location:

Lead facility administrator (Principal Investigator, Academic Supervisor and/or Laboratory Manager)

Name: Primary Department: Primary Faculty:

Conflict of Interest (COI) Disclosure Statement (Consult McGill University's COI Regulation to complete this section.): Will this project potentially create a Conflict of Interest (COI) or have Significant Financial Interest (SFI)* to you and /or team members (Faculty, staff, students)? (No; Yes, previously disclosed; Yes, new)

9

*SFI: salary, honoraria, consulting fee valued in excess of $5,000 when aggregated; gift; reimbursed or sponsored travel; equity interests; intellectual property rights and interests (excluding royalties paid through McGill University). My reporting officer and/or Associate Dean Research has been advised of this planned activity in my facility (yes/no)

Project name and description

Proposed use of the laboratory/equipment/facility

Duration of use (date-range, hours)

Other (e.g. responsibilities, training requirements, fees, etc.)

Lead facility administrator undertaking

This signature confirms that: 1. All persons engaged in the project, whether paid or unpaid, shall be properly trained, fully informed of, and agree to be bound by the terms and conditions of this Agreement. 2. Actual or perceived COI that arise during the course of the project for any person engaged in the project will be promptly communicated to the appropriate Reporting Officer as per Regulations on Conflict of Interest.

Requestor(s) undertaking This signature confirms that: I/we will be bound by the terms laid out in this agreement and that assertions related to insurance and conflicts of interest are accurate.

10

These guidelines are endorsed by the members of the Innovation Steering Committee:

Prof, Peter Grutter, ISC Co-chair, Chair, Department of Physics, Faculty of Science

Angelique Mannella, Associate Vice-Principal, Innovation & Partnerships

Prof. Pierre-Emmanuel Moyse, Faculty of Law

Prof. Jason Carmichael, Faculty of Arts

Prof. Steve Maguire, ISC Co-chair, Director, Marcel Desautels Institute for Integrated Management, Desautels Faculty of Management

Mr. Paul Chesser, Assistant Vice-Principal, University Advancement

Prof. Mark Andrews, Department of Chemistry

Prof. Dilson Rassier, Dean, Faculty of Education

Lea Cameron, Senior Advisor, Innovation Strategy

Dr. Tim Geary, Director, McGill Institute of Parasitology

Prof. Doina Precup, Department of Computer Science

Prof. Greg Vit, Faculty of Management, Dobson Centre for Entrepreneurship

Prof. Ollivier Dyens, Deputy Provost, Student Life and Learning

Prof. Benoit Boulet, Associate Dean, Research & Innovation, Faculty of Engineering

Dr. Gordon Shore, Faculty of Medicine

Prof. Josephine Nalbantoglu, Dean of Graduate and Postdoctoral Students

Arisha Khan, SSMU Representative

Jacob Lavigne, PGSS Representative

11

Appendix B—Internal Case Studies and External Best Practices Related

to Equipment Use by Students and Start-ups

Background This study is motivated by a series of requests by businesses and University-affiliated start-ups to make

use of McGill equipment for commercial purposes. In addition, the question of student use of McGill

research facilities in support of innovative projects which are independent of their academic studies has

been identified as a “grey area” in University policy that requires clarification.

Objectives The objective of this study is to provide the Innovation Steering Committee (ISC) with an understanding

of several concrete cases that have been presented to the Office of Research and Innovation, and also a

broad overview of equipment usage policies at peer institutions, in order to help develop and/or revise

relevant McGill policies and procedures in ways that facilitate access to laboratory capacity for innovation

purposes.

Current Situation at McGill McGill University currently does not have an institution-wide policy on equipment and lab usage by

affiliated start-ups, commercial entities, or for student innovation projects. Nor does the Office of

Research and Innovation have signing authority on agreements for renting space and/or equipment at

McGill.

However, in response to recent requests, both the Office of Sponsored Research (OSR), and the Invention

Development and Entrepreneurship Assistance (IDEA) team have been involved in drafting agreements

for start-ups or commercial entities to use McGill equipment and lab space. Only 1 agreement has been

signed (ZCS and the Faculty of Medicine). All other cases are stalled, or the companies have found

alternatives to using McGill equipment and lab space.

Case Studies The 4 case studies below illustrate the context of these collaborations and their development.

12

Zamboni Chemical Solutions (ZCS)3 Background

Dr. Zamboni, the founder of ZCS, is a former Vice President of Merck, who is internationally respected for

his expertise in medicinal chemistry. He is responsible for the chemistry of several approved drugs, and

therefore brings valuable expertise and services to researchers at McGill.

Between 2014-2010, ZCS was based in the Faculty of Science. During this period, 17 McGill researchers

(13 Faculty of Medicine, 4 Faculty of Science) benefited from ZCS services.

In the summer of 2014, the Faculty of Science no longer had space to house ZCS. Negotiations ensued for

several months to find a new home for ZCS. In March 2014 an agreement was reached between ZCS and

the Faculty of Medicine. The Office of Innovation and Partnerships was directly involved in creating an

agreement between ZCS and the Faculty of Medicine.

Current Situation

A member of the Office of Innovation and Partnerships acts as a liaison between ZCS and the Faculty of

Medicine, and performs monitoring and reporting activities for the Faculty of Medicine on the worked

completed by ZCS.

Services Offered to McGill Researchers: Researchers pay for their specific reagents, and access to any

specific equipment, however ZCS provides common reagents for all projects. In exchange for services

rendered, ZCS has a lab and office space in the Bellini Life Sciences building. Services provided by ZCS must

be done within McGill working hours.

Services Offered to Industry: ZCS can also provide services to industry, but must pay for any equipment

used at the usual industry rate. As with services offered to McGill researchers, all services offered to

industry must be tracked and reported to the Faculty of Medicine.

IP Ownership: McGill owns all the IP created through the services ZCS provides to our researchers, even

the creation of new molecules.

Insurance Requirements: ZCS has its own insurance (1M professional and 2M commercial).

Future Considerations

In general, the relationship between ZCS and the Faculty of Medicine is working well. If this model is to be

replicated, the IDEA team recommends that a resource be allocated to act as a project manager to

perform monitoring and reporting activities, and to help manage the relationship between the industry

partner and the faculty.

3 Information based on conversations with the IDEA team.

13

Sensoreal Inc. and Parralexbio4

Background

Sensoreal and Parralexbio are both McGill’s start-up with IP related to the university. In 2016, they

requested support and access to the laboratory of Prof. Juncker. More specifically, they were requesting

their employees to get an access to the lab and access to the assay optimization facilities (Spotter, Fridge,

scanner, microscope, some reagents, cold room, etc.), 3D printer and the plasma machine. On a very short

term plan, they need to test the feasibility of making capillary circuits with the 3D printer, plus technical

supports, and insightful advice and direction from the director of the lab. They were also interested to use

the expertise of employees of the lab when needed and to pay for their services.

On a midterm perspective, their plan is to purchase some of the essential machines for the microchip

optimization such as plasma machine, and the 3D printer, and two of their employees will be only use the

McGill lab for assay optimization purposes, and eventually per cases.

Current Situation

OSR recommended to come up with a detailed budget and ensure this will include the 40% overhead.

Also, OSR required more details about the scope of work of what would be done in the labs in order to

ensure that this work is in line with McGill policies. OSR confirmed that there aren’t really any mechanisms

at this time for renting space and the best way would be to structure this a like a research agreement.

No decision has been taken yet for both of them. The fact that we have IP related to this project in more

interesting for McGill since we could have potential benefits in the future and adjust our fees in

consequence.

IP Ownership: McGill owns the IP of those two start-ups.

Future Considerations

The relationship between the 2 start-ups and the Faculty/Lab is working well. Nevertheless, the OSR team

recommends to clarify the modus operandi (Type of agreement and overhead) in order to make sure we

cover our expenses.

eNuvio5

Background

4 Information based on conversations with the IDEA team. 5 Information based on conversations with the OSR team and Centech/ETS.

14

The company eNuvio (led by two McGill post docs) and based in the Centech incubator asked us to use

equipment/lab space of McGill (HTS facilities) out of normal business hours (evenings/week-ends) since

those students were working during the day in the Lab. HTS was fine for them to work those hours without

any supervision and involvement of McGill employees (academics or technicians) as they are trained and

have been using this equipment as McGill Postdocs. HTS provided them with a quota and asked OSR to

sign an agreement. The questions about insurance were raised by McGill Risk management as those

PostDocs will behave here not as McGill PostDocs but as outside company - McGill insurance would not

cover any damages if they happen to the equipment. Since, the Faculty of Medicine does not have a formal

policy in place, OSR proposed to sign a service agreement with this company (with the approval of the

director of the lab) to perform the tests. But it has not been finalized as the faculty did not agree with

proposed price.

Then OSR reiterated our position regarding eNuvio’s request to access the HTS facility cell culture. Such

requests fall under the following conditions:

- That a service agreement be implemented between McGill and the requesting party; - That the work be carried out under the supervision of a McGill researcher, by McGill

employees and within normal business hours; - That the requesting party pays a fair price to McGill for the work and provides sufficient proof

of insurance for accessing McGill’s facilities.

Otherwise, they should proceed with the normal practice of HTS facilities – Please refer to their website:

https://www.mcgill.ca/lifesciencescomplex/core/hts-hcs/fees

IP Ownership: McGill students with no IP related to McGill

Current Situation

Currently, VPRIR/OSR does not have signing authority on agreements for renting space and/or equipment

at McGill. A framework for such type of activities as renting equipment to an outside company does not

exist at McGill. We have been trying to find a solution for this particular situation of Centech/eNuVio by

following up with the Faculty of Medicine as well as with Risk Management.

The questions of liability, insurance, EHS-regulations are extremely important here. For example, McGill

insurance covers only McGill employees and students. Completing tests, experiments by an outside entity

is going outside of McGill coverage. By proposing a service agreement (tests executed under McGill

academic supervision and by McGill employees), the IP is still owned by the company. It seems that this

agreement should have been in the form of a contractual arrangement structured by Legal Services,

signed by a signing officer of the University and the owners of the start-up outlining the formal conditions

of the agreement. The major issue was to determine who should approve this agreement that allows

eNuVio scientists to come in and use McGill facilities. An agreement with clauses as per Risk

management’s conditions has been proposed but this arrangement has not been approved and went to

15

legal services which came back with concerns/questions relate to insurance and regulations. If we signed

a service agreement (through OSR) we need a McGill academic PI to be responsible for providing service

of testing, etc.

After many discussions between OSR, Faculty and Lab, the entrepreneur told us he was not interested in McGill’s offer because of its conditions.

Future Considerations

If we want to support external start-ups interested in renting McGill equipment, we should look at the

signing authority on agreements (for renting space and/or equipment at McGill) as well as the specificities

around the questions of liability and insurance.

Anomera6

Background

Anomera is a McGill start-up that was spun out of the laboratory of Professor Andrews. Anomera has two

industry giants as strategic partners. The company is located both in Montreal and in Mississauga, Ontario.

At the Ontario location, it leases laboratory space within the Xerox Research Centre as it works with Xerox

to complete pilot plant scale up of its manufacturing process. Anomera has signed a Joint Development

Agreement and has sales with its other Strategic Partner, a prominent cosmetics company. Anomera’s

close association with the cosmetics company requires that it conduct tests on materials develops.

IP Ownership: IP has been transferred, by negotiated agreement, from McGill to Anomera.

Current Situation

Anomera views McGill as an innovation hub within which intends to award research contracts to McGill

so that Anomera can use laboratory space and specialized equipment in the Chemistry department. The

company intends to locate two of its employees (former McGill students) in the laboratory of Professor

Andrews. This is so that Anomera can utilize a small spray dryer that resides in his laboratory. It also needs

access to elite measurement tools like multinuclear NMR, scanning and transmission electron microscopy,

scanning probe microscopy, X-ray photo-electron, Raman, infrared and fluorescence microscopy. One of

Professor Andrews’ graduate students may work on a project of interest to Anomera.

Future Considerations

McGill and Anomera have agreed to terms that protect the interests of McGill and students who work on

projects of interest to Anomera. Professor Andrews is experienced in balancing his mission and

commitment to research training at McGill, with his entrepreneurial activities. In the long term, Anomera

6 Information provided by Prof. Mark Andrews.

16

will build its own R&D facility, though it intends to make significant use of university services to support

its research objectives.

17

A Review of Equipment Policies at Peer Institutions

Through a combination of interviews and desktop research, data on equipment usage policies was

collected for nine peer institutions.

University of Toronto

Students ■ The University of Toronto has approximately 150 policy documents governing the University community. None make direct reference to the use of laboratory space and/or equipment by students. Section 5b of the University of Toronto Code of Student Conduct states: “No person shall knowingly gain access to or use any University computing or internal or external communications facility to which legitimate authorization has not been granted. No person shall use any such facility or any commercial, disruptive or unauthorized purpose.”

■ Individual laboratories within the University of Toronto appear to govern student access and usage independently, without making these policies clear or public. There is abundant documentation on student use of computer labs, but not on the use of other forms of research equipment. Some labs operate on a fee-for-use model and offer training for parties wishing to use the equipment.

■ University of Toronto Mississauga Core Instrument Facility: students that are permitted to use the instruments independently (after sufficient training) are graduate students and undergraduate students that are performing some independent research under a particular researcher. Access to the facility is controlled by key card access and access is requested by each of the student’s supervisors, through our department. Training for the users and SOP`s for each instrument required. Student`s supervisors are responsible for any damage due to improper or negligent use of the equipment. As for personal insurance of the students, this is either covered by U of T or they come under the scope of their Supervisor.

Corporations ■ As with student access, University of Toronto laboratories govern the use of laboratory equipment by industrial users individually.

18

Affiliated start-ups ■ In the case of UofT’s Toronto Nanofabrication Centre, the fee structure for equipment usage does not distinguish between start-ups and other industry users.

UBC

Students ■ Students have access to the normal facility support services provided for all users. Student can easily use computer labs, but no specific policy on the use of other forms of research equipment.

Corporations Labs may allow businesses to use their facilities at their own discretion. Companies may rent space in a laboratory for a price which is negotiated with the department chair. The company needs to supply their own employees and carry their own insurance. UBC’s technology transfer office negotiates the deal, but does not see any revenue from these arrangements.7

“The use of standard departmental resources such as duplicating

equipment, stenographic equipment, laboratory or shop facilities, etc. for

non-commercial or non-consulting purposes, may be authorized by the

Head of the Department, the Director of the School or Institute, or by the

Dean of the Faculty, whichever is appropriate, if such use is not already

covered by approved departmental policy and practice.

1.5. University property as described in the paragraph above, or specialized test or research equipment, including that acquired by the University under certain duty and sales tax exemption arrangements, may be used for commercial or consulting purposes only when authorized by the appropriate administrative officer as in paragraph 3 above. The administrative officer shall be responsible for ensuring that the appropriate arrangements for this use are made….”8

7 University of British Columbia Facilities Use Agreement Template 8 UBC Policy on Non-University Use of University Services and Facilities

19

Affiliated start-ups ■ Although the policy documents do not distinguish between corporations and start-ups, the fact that these are negotiated individually gives reason to believe that lower rates may be possible for SMEs and start-ups9.

■ Anecdotal evidence suggests that graduate students can use UBC labs for prototyping their own innovations.

University of Waterloo

Students ■ Specific maker spaces are available to students participating in the Velocity student entrepreneurship program. This program typically last for 1-2 years.

Corporations ■ Companies can use lab equipment through a service contract.

■ If there is a service contract, a company employee may be given direct access to lab equipment.

■ There is a requirement that any startup wanting to use lab equipment carries insurance, and also that there is a UW staff overseeing the safety, and equipment to further mitigate risks.

Affiliated start-ups ■ Access to equipment is determined by the Chair of the department and priority is given for the research purposes for which the equipment was purchased. Affiliated start-up access to equipment is a second level priority.

■ It is allowable for a professor to utilize their labs to work on their own startup, but it would be conditional on disclosure and approval of faculty member’s Chair/Dean.

■ Waterloo faculty members can use up to 20% of their time for private consulting and the university takes the view that this time allocation could also be used for startup support work (if disclosed and understood by Chair)

McMaster

9 Brett Sharp, Associate Director of Technology Transfer at UBC, implied that companies can get a “fantastic deal” on lab space.

20

Students ■ Students have access to the normal facility support services provided for all users. Student can easily use computer labs, but no specific policy on the use of other forms of research equipment.

Corporations ■ There isn’t an official policy for equipment usage by corporations.

■ There are some situations where corporations have employees working in McMaster labs. In these cases, the university insists that the company has insurance.

■ Start-ups based in McMaster’s accelerator space do not need to have insurance to use the space. They have access to free office space and some maker equipment.

Affiliated start-ups ■ Many agreements are made on a case-by-case basis, and at the discretion of Faculty Deans.

■ Arrangements have been made in the past where a faculty member has been allowed to use their lab space to work on their start-up without a formal contract.

■ There are also cases where overhead rates have been reduced for affiliated start-ups.

ETS

Students ■ There is no policy statement concerning student use of labs and equipment, however students attached to Centech incubator have access to these resources.

Corporations ■ According to policy, “the property, facilities, and services of ETS are for the conduct of instruction, research, programs and related administrative uses.”

■ Start-ups and companies require insurance to use ETS equipment for R&D purposes.

■ There is no central policy but they are working on it.

21

■ Pierre Dumouchel, Executive Director, ETS is trying to convince ETS researchers to make their labs available for industry partners and start-ups since those facilities are considered the property of ETS.

Affiliated start-ups ■ Start-ups from the ETS technology incubator Centech have access to ETS labs and equipment. Insurance is required ($ 2M).

MIT

Students ■ Project Manus is a major effort by MIT’s Innovation Initiative to create a “gold standard” network of academic makerspaces that students also have access to.

■ MIT has over 45 major makerspaces that make up their maker system.

■ The Mobius mobile app enables MIT community members (including students) to find the resources they need within the maker system, pay for materials/usage fees, demonstrate training credentials and schedule use of resources. The Mobius app was launched in March 2016.

Corporations ■ MIT has unique facilities built for its own internal use that are not available anywhere else. Outside organizations may rent these facilities for their research when they are not being fully utilized by MIT.

■ Outside organizations may rent MIT facilities for their research when they are not being fully utilized by MIT. Lab directors often negotiate contract terms directly with industry partners. Special agreements are negotiated by MIT legal consul.

■ The MIT MTL Lab has differentiated pricing for members of the MIT community to use their equipment vs. external users. They also have an outreach program for grad students from other universities to use their equipment at a reduced rate. There are detailed

22

acceptance requirements for industry projects and the Outreach Program.

■ The MIT Media Lab allows corporations to use the lab via their Corporate Sponsorship Program. The highest level of sponsorship allows for: An employee in residence, access to all of the research conducted at the Lab, a non-exclusive, license-fee-free, royalty-free licensing rights for IP.

Affiliated start-ups

■ Same rules as corporations apply and makerspaces available for affiliated start-ups.

Cornell

Students ■ Engineering students have access to several equipment labs and maker spaces. The main resources include Emerson lab machine shop (mills, lathes, welding, CNCs), the Rapid Prototyping Lab (3D printers & laser cutters), a new specialized Electrical and Computer Engineering space being outfitted with 3D printers and soon to be a new PCB fab.

■ Involvement of University students in proprietary work is limited to the normal facility support services provided for all users.

Corporations ■ No use of University property, facilities, or services is permitted to interfere with instruction, research, or general university programs and related administrative uses.

■ Proprietary use of University facilities by non-Cornell personnel is not usually permitted (University policy prohibits Cornell personnel from engaging in research on campus which is confidential to the sponsor or classified for security purposes). In exceptional cases where the best interests of the University and the other parties would be served by use of University facilities by outside persons for proprietary or confidential purposes, the Vice Provost for Research may grant permission using the following criteria:

23

“1. Such use must support the educational and research mission of the

University.

2. There must be a clear need to carry out the proposed work at

Cornell.

3. A proposal or abstract describing in general terms the purpose of

the proprietary work to be done must be submitted for review (…) the

existence of proprietary use of a Cornell facility may not be kept secret.

4. All details of the proprietary work to be done that are relevant to

the safety of personnel or of the facility must be made available to and

approved.

5. Involvement of University faculty, students or staff in the proprietary

work is limited to the normal facility support services provided for all

users.

6. There will be no difference in the operating personnel or procedures

of the facility for proprietary or non-proprietary work.

7. The organization performing the proprietary work must pay Cornell

appropriate costs of the use of the facility.

8. Only a small fraction (usually not more than ten percent) of the use

of the facility shall be devoted to proprietary purposes.

9. The property, facilities, and services of Cornell University are for the conduct of instruction, research, general University programs and related administrative uses. No use of University property, facilities, or services shall be permitted which interferes with the conduct of these functions or which is inconsistent with University status as a tax-exempt educational institution.”10

Affiliated start-ups ■ Policy documents do not make explicit mention of start-ups, spin-offs or SMEs. They are likely treated in the same fashion as corporations.

Additional Cornell policy documents are available here.

10 https://www.osp.cornell.edu/Policies/space-policy.html

24

George Washington University

Students Under the VP Research, Office of Innovation and Entrepreneurship (OIE), is the main contact point for GWU startups and spinoffs, it runs the NSF funded I-Corps program (about $1.25M in the last couple of years) which is essentially a boot camp (lean start up model) for teams which must have a prof who has previously received NSF funding. GWU, along with UVa and Johns Hopkins form a hub for the region. The goal is to prep the teams (which include students) to eventually pitch for a Small Business Innovation Research grant and those who are selected to the final stage receive $50K for prototyping, travel to potential customers, graduate student stipend (basically a mini i2i). It is expected that the work is done in the prof’s lab and it seems like the NSF even encourages these virtual companies to leverage the labs when they can.11

Corporations Access to facilities is possible for non-GWU startups and other companies using agreements led by OICR. It appears their structure requires separate agreements for different facilities, in addition to different rates. Setting the rates was a complicated exercise.

Affiliated start-ups Does not have a policy specific to the use of university facilities by spin-offs or start-ups, and this remains “a bit of a gray area for now”12. The Office of Innovation and Commercialization of Research (OICR) is trying to set up templates for access by GWU spin-offs as well as others start-ups. For the template agreements a management committee will be set up to reduce COI, user and availability issues that may arise.

There is no specific policy favoring GWU start-ups/spin-offs. Innovation and commercialization administrators have indicated that they assume that professors are using their labs. Administrators are concerned about liabilities.

GWU plans to implement more shared services/common facility (pooling) support. The University of Virgina is also going down this path.

Example is the GWU’s nanofab facility: 3 year transition pricing for GWU faculty (and by default) their spin-offs, full price for outsiders. This facility reports into VP Research as opposed to the faculty/department. Many of the first outside customers were directed to GWU by the equipment vendors, these customers were looking at acquiring equipment were able

11 From conversations with the Coordinator of the Office for Innovation and Entrepreneurship and the AVP of the Office of Innovation and Commercialization of Research. 12 From conversations with the Coordinator of the Office for Innovation and Entrepreneurship and the AVP of the Office of Innovation and Commercialization of Research.

25

to try out the equipment at GWU. This has apparently led to other collaborations.13

University of Alabama

Students ■ Select labs (3D printing) are open to all students, and students can easily use computer labs. No specific policy exists on the use of other forms of research equipment.

Corporations ■ Companies and researchers may use university facilities, with companies paying a market rate for space (utilities and other services included) and faculty paying below market rate. There is a conflict of interest document that is evaluated that maps the boundaries between academic and industrial activities to try and ensure arm's length. For certain services they pay service fees and follow use policy (eg. if there is a university equipment operator they respect that). They use university equipment as needed but they also have key equipment owned by their spinoff and for sole use by the company. Quoted prices of 20 - 28 USD/ sq ft for wet lab and 15 USD/ sq ft of office space.14

Affiliated start-ups ■ University of Alabama has its own incubator, the Bama Technology Incubator (BTI) which provides office space and lab space and equipment for use by start-up companies. It is governed by its own policy document. They have an entrepreneurship program that is extended to staff, faculty, and students through an initiative called I-Corps funded by the NSF.

13 https://nic.gwu.edu/about-us 14 Information provided by Prof. Robin Rogers, Professor of Chemistry at McGill University.

26

Students ■ Students have free access to nearby, off-campus office and conference facilities. The space can accommodate teams of maximum 4-6 persons and has some communal and presentation spaces. No labs or makerspaces are present at this facility.

■ Students wishing to access specialty equipment at the university or facilities such as clean rooms may do so through contracts with the university, but pay the same rates as corporations and affiliated startups.

■ There are makerspaces and prototyping facilities on-campus, and the university is constructing a new, dedicated facility in conjunction with a major tech corporation that will provide students with access to a wide range of technologies and high-end software. The software will be provided free-of-charge by the corporate partner.

■ Graduate students and post-docs have access to the Innovation Fellowship program that runs similar to the US I-Corps program. The university will provide $50K (that must be matched through grant or other funding) to allow a student to progress a university-owned technology, and the tech transfer department will guide and advise the student with entrepreneurial and other advice.

■ Many students will access the Pittsburgh TechShop facilities (CNC, 3D printing, CAD, etc.) for prototyping.

Corporations ■ Corporations can access equipment through research contracts. Work is performed by university personnel.

Affiliated Startups ■ Faculty may use their own laboratories for startup incubation as per the university Spinoff Guidelines. For incidental use there is no charge, for more than incidental use payment is in the form of equity. Faculty are not allowed to use their laboratories past 2 years, and must arrange for off-site rental in one of Pittsburgh’s numerous tech incubator spaces.

■ Under federal law, affiliated startups must pay the same overhead as corporations (and students) in contract research with

27

Carnegie Mellon University

Lund University

Students ■ Students have access to the normal facility support services provided for all users.

Corporations ■ All equipment and facilities use is regulated through contracts.

■ Lund University sponsors a program that allows companies to come on campus to access equipment and during this process the company is profiled in order to identify and build links between academia and industry for further venture or research collaboration.

■ The terms and rates of each research contract is considered on a case-by-case basis in negotiations between the school/department/company.

Affiliated start-ups

■ As researchers outright own their inventions, any spinoff would be judged an external company and would be assessed as such. This applies even if the TTO has an equity stake in the spinoff.

Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule (ETH)

Students ■ ETH has a dedicated program for graduating MSc. And PhD. students that intend to use applied research developed at ETH in the creation of innovative products or services, the Pioneer Fellowship.

the university.

28

■ Approximately 10 Pioneer Fellows are appointed each year from across the faculties of ETH and are taken into a fast-track entrepreneurship program lasting between 12 and 18 months. Each fellow will be given 150K CHF (approx. 150K USD), free access to lab and office space, legal and financial advice, coaching and mentoring, and will be guided to a go/no-go decision at the end of the program. Two thirds of all Pioneer Fellows continue with their spinoffs once the program is finished.

Corporations ■ There is some dedicated rental space that can be used by spinoffs and other startups. The most prominent is a clean room for micro-/nano-fabrication, but they have some wet labs for chemistry and biology as well.

■ Corporations that have signed research contracts with ETH academic groups would not be present on campus to perform experiments or operate equipment. This would be left to the personnel within the research groups.

Affiliated Startups ■ How professors who are founders/co-founders work with their affiliated startups is an area of active discussion at ETH. Although the university prides itself in the freedom of its researchers, and considers this a driving force for innovation, it is recognized that policies are not explicit and might invite misinterpretation or potential controversy. ETH is trying to build a system to manage issues that might arise as a result.

■ Affiliated startups have the possibility to rent laboratory or office space at a discounted rate compared to corporations.

29

Recap of Models analyzed

Summary Out of the ten institutions surveyed, none had an institution-wide policy on laboratory access and

equipment usage by students/corporations/affiliated startups. In many institutions, lab and equipment usage for non-research purposes was at the discretion of

lab directors, department chairs or faculty deans. All institutions required unaffiliated startups to have insurance in order to access labs and

equipment outside of what is provided in designated startup/maker spaces.

Recommendations Clarify McGill’s position on providing laboratory access and equipment usage privileges to

industry, with special consideration for university-affiliated start-ups. Clarify which offices/departments at McGill have the authority to create industry agreements for

lab access and equipment, and for setting the fee structures. Conduct a series of in-depth interviews on the needs of university-affiliated start-ups. Consider whether providing startup maker-spaces, wet labs, and offices is a better route to

providing support for innovation projects at McGill than applying policies to existing infrastructure.

30

31

Appendix C: Research Facilities tools available across Canada The CFI Research Facilities Navigator is a searchable directory of participating research labs and facilities in universities, colleges and research hospitals across Canada that are open to working with business. https://navigator.innovation.ca/en/navigator Limits: each university populate the Navigator. McGill’s University repertory is underpopulated compared to other universities. There are a few labs from McGill listed, but many are not present.

Appendix D: CoLab - Platform Beta version only Created by a McGill Alumni and finalist in the McGill Dobson Cup Innovation-Driven Enterprise track, the

platform https://discovercolab.com/ allows a prof in one part of the University to see what equipment is

available within McGill that he/she could use to perform experiments.

CoLab is a scientific equipment & services sharing platform—like the Airbnb for research. Graduate

students, professors and laboratory managers can list, search and pay for these services online instead of

by paper invoice. CoLab could enable transactions between start-ups and research labs. The system could

be used to track uses of equipment as well.

The main competitor to CoLab is called Science Exchange: https://www.scienceexchange.com/ Science

Exchange is the easiest way for scientists to order experiments from the world’s best service providers.

There are a few labs from McGill listed on it. Science Exchange does not process transactions. It is focused

on pharma/life sciences