Article Type: Generic

Industry Canada has asked the Council of Canadian Academies (CCA) to assemble an Expert Panel on the State of Industrial Research and Development in Canada to examine existing and emerging areas of Canadian R&D strength and how they compare on a global basis.

Sponsored research income at Canadian universities continued its long growth curve, posting a modest 3.6% increase in 2010 to $6.46 billion for the nation’s top 50 institutions. But planned cutbacks at the federal and provincial levels to rein in runaway deficits may curtail the longest expansion of university research in Canadian history.

By Debbie Lawes

Canada is doing a poor job of exploiting exemptions in trade agreements that would give homegrown technology companies — particularly small and mid-sized businesses (SMEs)— preferential treatment on government contracts, concludes a second report by an expert panel reviewing federal support for R&D.

Outdated policies must be replaced

Outdated policies and regulations pose a greater problem to US-Canada innovation than traditional competitors and emerging nations, delegates at a bi-national innovation summit heard last week.

Spectacular declines by TELUS Corp and the now-defunct Nortel Networks Corp led to the worst drop in corporate R&D spending in recent memory as Canada’s Top 100 R&D-performing firms posted $9.64 billion in outlays, a 9.

The Royal Society of Canada (RSC) has released a draft strategic framework to guide the society between 2012 and 2017 — the first time the 130-year-old organization has undertaken such an exercise. Prepared by Deloitte, the framework will be modified with the input of several task forces now in the field before a final document is submitted at its annual general meeting in Ottawa later this month.

A key research project at the Univ of Ottawa is exploring new ways of expanding the use of wireless sensor networks as increased sophistication of the technology and lower manufacturing costs open up a whole new range of applications.

Goodyear expresses support

The federal government must decide whether to accept advice recommending the dismantling of the National Research Council (NRC) or stick with the path of transformation now underway at the 96-year-old organization.

Jenkins Panel: SR&ED

The release of the Jenkins Panel report on federal support for business innovation has unleashed a torrent of debate over a suite of proposals designed to enhance Canadian innovation by boosting corporate R&D spending.

Jenkins Report: NRC

The recommendation by the Jenkins Panel to break up the National Research Council (NRC) could put it on a collision course with NRC management which is overhauling the 96-year-old organization to attract more industry funding for its activities.