Helping innovative companies in British Columbia grow and compete

More than 300 well-paying jobs will be created through the Western Innovation (WINN) Initiative

VANCOUVER, Nov. 13, 2018 /CNW/ - The world economy is rapidly changing. Innovations in artificial intelligence, clean technology, advanced agriculture and manufacturing, among others, are redefining the nature of global competitiveness.

Today, the Honourable Jody Wilson-Raybould, Minister of Justice, Attorney General of Canada and Member of Parliament for Vancouver Granville, on behalf of the Honourable Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development and Minister responsible for Western Economic Diversification Canada, announced close to $20 million to help 17 innovative businesses get their products to market faster. The Western Innovation (WINN) Initiative announcement took place in Vancouver at Precision Nanosystems.

Precision Nanosystems received $1 million to develop and commercialize the next generation of instruments to manufacture nanomedicines. Since 2010, Precision Nanosystems has been revolutionizing healthcare treatments through innovation in nanotechnology. Nanomedicine has ushered a new era for medicine by enabling new treatment options for patients. Precision Nanosystem's new instrument, named the NanoAssemblr is a cost effective and flexible solution that will help bring these innovative nanomedicine treatments to market sooner.

In today's growing market for technology developers, Western Canada has the potential to help Canadian innovators grow and position the country as a global centre of excellence by leveraging regional strengths. To seize such opportunities for economic growth, the federal government and industry are working hard to help western Canadian entrepreneurs overcome the challenges of bringing game-changing innovation to market.

Quotes

"The Government of Canada is working hard to help western Canadian entrepreneurs turn their ideas into thriving businesses and create good middle class jobs. Through the Innovation and Skills Plan funding programs such as Western Innovation (WINN) initiative, we are helping to propel innovative entrepreneurs and businesses from start-ups into global success."
-       The Honourable Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development and Minister responsible for Western Economic Diversification Canada

"Precision Nanosystems is engineering medical solutions that will benefit the world. By supporting innovative companies like Precision Nanoystems, we are generating meaningful business investments, high quality jobs and ensuring that we have a promising future as a nation. Congratulations to Precision and all the WINN recipients for bolstering Canadian innovation." 
-       The Honourable Jody Wilson-Raybould, Minister of Justice, Attorney General of Canada and Member of Parliament for Vancouver Granville

"The focus of the Western Innovation (WINN) Initiative aligns with the strong commercial focus of Precision NanoSystems. With over 250 systems placed worldwide, PNI's NanoAssemblr platform is used by over 85 pharma and biotech companies. The WINN funds will accelerate the commercialization of a next-generation instrument for the manufacture of developing revolutionary medicines."
-        Dr. James Taylor, Co-Founder and CEO, Precision Nanosystems

Quick facts

• Western Canada accounts for 38% of Canada's economy.
• Per capita GDP is 18% higher in the West than across the country.
• Clean technology and advanced agriculture and food production are major growth industries in the West.
• Western Canada's 427,000 SMEs employ over 3.4 million people.
• Five of the top 15 Canadian research universities are in Western Canada.
• The West attracts about half the venture capital of Ontario or Quebec.

Backgrounder

Helping innovative companies in British Columbia grow and compete

November 13, 2018 – Vancouver, British Colombia – Western Economic Diversification Canada

The Western Innovation (WINN) Initiative is a federal initiative that offers repayable contributions to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with operations in Western Canada to help move their new and innovative technologies from the later stages of research and development to the marketplace.

WINN promotes the development and diversification of the western Canadian economy by providing financial support to qualified SMEs to help them bring innovative products, processes, and services to market in Western Canada and by stimulating greater private sector investment in western Canadian commercialization activities.

Today's announcement is for 17 WINN projects in British Columbia.

Organization	Project Description	Location	Funding
Acuva Technologies Inc	Commercialize UV-LED drinking water purification systems	Vancouver, BC	$2,100,000
Aspect Biosystems Ltd.	Commercialize an innovative 3D bio printing platform	Vancouver, BC	$2,717,694
Ayogo Health Inc.	Commercialize artificial intelligence-enhanced software to improve adherence to therapy	Vancouver, BC	$1,730,740
Biba Ventures Inc.	Develop an app for mapping playground ecosystems	Vancouver, BC	$400,000
BQE Water Inc.	Commercialize selenium removal technology in the resource sector	Vancouver, BC	$412,500
Empower Operations Corp.	Commercialize intelligent design optimization software for SME manufacturers	Surrey, BC	$500,000
Clean Seed Agricultural Technologies Ltd.	Develop and commercialize a hybrid planter/seeder	Burnaby, BC	$508,000
Etalim Inc.	Commercialize Thermal Acoustic Converter (TAC) technology	Vancouver, BC	$3,314,500
Ethelo Decisions Inc.	Commercialize a collaborative decision-making SaaS platform	Vancouver, BC	$215,000
good natured Products (CAD) Inc.	Develop non-toxic high-heat microwave and dishwasher-safe bioplastic food containers	Vancouver, BC	$850,000
Hyas Infosec Inc.	Commercialize a cybersecurity monitoring system and dashboard	Nanaimo, BC	$475,000
Led Smart Inc.	Commercialize LED light fixtures for naval vessels	Surrey, BC	$800,000
PHEMI Health Systems Inc.	Commercialize software to bring privacy, security and governance to big data	Vancouver, BC	$1,004,000
Precision Nanosystems Inc.	Accelerate commercialization of a GMP microfluidics system for nanomedicine manufacture	Vancouver, BC	$1,002,053
Tasktop Technologies Incorporated	Commercialize enhancements to the Tasktop Integration Hub	Vancouver, BC	$1,353,750
wtfast (AAA Internet Publishing Inc.)	Commercialize Internet acceleration software for online gaming and telecom networks	Kelowna, BC	$1,489,574
Ziva Dynamics Inc.	Commercialize the Ziva Character Platform	Vancouver, BC	$900,000
TOTAL PROJECT FUNDING			$19,772,811

Associated links

• Precision Nanosystems
• Western Innovation (WINN) Initiative
• Innovation and Skills Plan

Follow the department on Twitter: @WD_Canada, @ISED_CA

IF THERE IS A DISCREPANCY BETWEEN ANY PRINTED VERSION AND THE ELECTRONIC VERSION OF THIS NEWS RELEASE, THE ELECTRONIC VERSION WILL PREVAIL.

SOURCE Western Economic Diversification Canada

For further information: Ben Stanford, Regional Communications Manager, Western Economic Diversification Canada, Telephone: [phone], Email: [e-mail]