Tech-Access Canada welcomes 17 new Technology Access Centres into our family

BARRIE, ON, June 13, 2019 /CNW/ - Congratulations to the 17 new Technology Access Centres (TACs) awarded across the country by the Honourable Kirsty Duncan, Minister of Science and Sport, today at Georgian College as part of the College and Community Innovation Program and College-Industry Innovation Fund awards.

After the first grueling, merit-based Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC)-administered competition in three years, the 17 new TACs were awarded to colleges and cégeps across the country from Kelowna, BC to Inuvik, NWT, to Rimouski, QC, bringing the total number of Canada's Technology Access Centres to 47.

Congratulations as well to the six TACs across the country that were renewed with another five-year award, validating the Technology Access Centre model and joining the previous 15 TACs that have also been awarded a second mandate.

 "We are very excited to welcome the 17 new TACs into the Tech-Access Canada family" said David Berthiaume, Executive Director of OLEOTEK and Chair of Tech-Access Canada's Board. "We look forward to sharing our best practices and assisting them to hit the ground running and solve the innovation challenges of industry partners in their regions."

Canada's 47 Technology Access Centres (TACs) are specialized applied research & development centres affiliated with publicly-funded colleges and cégeps. Each TAC serves a specific geographic area, with a focus on strengthening the industrial sector of significance to that region. These demand-driven centres, from BC to PEI, help Canadian businesses - especially Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) - get their products, processes and services market-ready by:

• offering objective advice and specialized technical services;
• providing training related to new types of equipment and processes; and
• conducting applied research and development projects focused on company problems.

"We're able to help innovative small firms demystify and navigate R&D supports, and connect them to the innovation talent they need to get to market" said Dr. Nathalie Méthot, Director, Office of Applied Research and Innovation, La Cité and Vice-Chair of Tech-Access Canada's Board.

Tech-Access Canada would also like to respectfully acknowledge and congratulate all of the other recipients of both the Tri-Council administered Colleges and Community Innovation Program initiatives and the Canada Foundation for Innovation's College-Industry Innovation Fund. These forward-looking announcements capitalize on Budget 2018's unprecedented commitments to build college applied research capacity across the country and will amplify strategic provincial investments in college applied research, paving the way for future Technology Access Centre award winners.

A uniquely Canadian innovation, the successful Technology Access Centre model was the subject of a recent case study by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), highlighting how Canada tactically mobilized the infrastructure of public colleges and cégeps to address the innovation challenges of the small and medium sized enterprises that make up over 99 percent of the Canadian economy. Based at colleges and cégeps, TACs act as an objective innovation intermediary, providing firms access to their students via experiential learning opportunities deployed in the service of solving real-world innovation challenges. 

"The TAC competition is unique and rewards those who've made strategic use of college applied research capacity building initiatives offered at the provincial, territorial, and federal levels. As noted by the OECD, the TACs are the best of the best in Canadian college applied research, and we're very excited by the pan-Canadian support for college applied research and wish the best of luck to those colleges and cégeps participating in the 2019 TAC national competition!" said Ken Doyle, Executive Director of Tech-Access Canada.

About Tech-Access Canada

Tech-Access Canada is the formal, national network of Canada's 47 Technology Access Centres. Based in Ottawa, Tech-Access Canada facilitates the sharing of best practices between member TACs; works to harmonize service models across regions; and promotes college applied research to external audiences. The network enables the TACs to serve any company, anywhere in Canada, and help them access the expertise, equipment, and facilities they need to solve their innovation challenges.

Learn more about the TACs at MeetTheTACs.ca

SOURCE Tech-Access Canada