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BCE Inc’s purchase of the CTV television network has resulted in several proposed R&D and training initiatives that could pump much needed funds into the creation of new technologies and applications in the broadcast and Internet sectors.

Rolls-Royce Industries Canada Inc, Lachine PQ, has secured a world product mandate for the firm’s Industrial Trent family of gas turbine engines. It will undertake a $213.3-million R&D project to develop a new line of natural gas-powered industrial engines with lower emissions and greater efficiency and will target power generation and natural gas compression.

Canada is mounting a deftly orchestrated pitch to become the home for the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) as interest in the long range mega project gains momentum after years of setbacks and indecision.

The official slate of virtual research institutes comprising the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) has been selected by its recently formed 19-member governing council. Work can now begin in earnest on selecting a scientific director and advisory council for each – a task expected to take approximately two months.

Genome Canada has issued a press release to emphasize Canada’s past and future role in the development of genomics, following the historic completion this week of a rough draft of the human genome.

The statement acknowledged the contributions of Canadian researchers – Drs Lap-Chee Tsui, Stephen Scherer, Bartha Maria Knoppers, and Charles Scriver – in the international effort, but stressed that the work in genomics is only just beginning.

The Canadian Health Services Research Foundation (CHSRF) has announced an investment of $20 million over 10 years for 11 health services and nursing research chairs in five provinces, with a twelfth chair to be announced in the near future.

Merck Frosst invests $250 million in facility
Merck Frosst Canada & Co is investing $250 million in its Kirkland PQ facilities, including $156 million for operational and manufacturing systems and the construction of laboratories for medicinal chemistry, molecular biology and pharmaceutical R&D.

Nearly $300 million in new money is on the table for international science and technology (S&T) but disagreement over how some of the funds will be managed could still derail the tangle of inter-related proposals now going forward for government consideration.

Six examples of successful technology transfer from the federal government were recognized at this year’s Federal Partners in Technology Transfer (FPTT) conference, held June 18-20 near Aylmer PQ.

Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC), the National Research Council’s Industrial Research Assistance Program and Nova Agri Associates Ltd were chosen for a process extending the life of freshly harvested highbush blueberries from Nova Scotia.

The National Research Council (NRC) has unveiled an aggressive new strategy to use its technological expertise to help close the gap between the Canadian manufacturing industry and its chief competitors.