New Business-Led Network to Accelerate Commercialization in Canada

ReMAP to help bring innovative products to market − faster

TORONTO, June 23, 2014 /CNW/ - The Refined Manufacturing Acceleration Process (ReMAP) network officially launched today. ReMAP is a business-led network formed to help to drive innovation in Canada by supporting emerging technologies and associated manufacturing processes that accelerate new products to the global market.

"As products are being launched exponentially faster than ever before, the role of the network is to accelerate researchers' innovative ideas and emerging technology through to product commercialization," said Irene Sterian, Executive Director of ReMAP. "By bringing together large industry, start-ups, small and medium enterprises, we can help to build and strengthen a manufacturing ecosystem that complements Canada's existing infrastructure and drives innovation."

ReMAP will help companies succeed in Canada to compete globally by offering tools that bring innovative products to market faster. Sharing resources across 38 labs and factories throughout ReMAP's 25+ partner network will help these companies lower cost, improve processes, differentiate products, and become more environmentally sustainable − faster.

Janet Walden, Chief Operating Officer of the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council, commented on the benefits of a network approach, "Companies are attracted to business-led networks because they see clearly how these kinds of collaborations will add value to their bottom line. The program provides a way to bring together competing companies in pursuit of solutions to shared problems."

In conjunction with $7.7 million received from Networks of Centres of Excellence (BL-NCE) program, ReMAP has attracted $11+ million from partnership commitments in cash and in-kind contributions over the next five years. The funding will support ReMAP as it brings together academic partners, research organizations, and a wide range of companies, to work on research and development (R&D) technologies and to develop reliable and environmentally-sustainable products in Canada.

Minister Holder, who was in Toronto today to help celebrate the launch of ReMAP, stated that, "Our government is investing in science and technology that drives business innovation and moves ideas from the laboratory to the marketplace more efficiently. The business-led research network ReMAP is positioning Canadian manufacturers to improve processes and materials in high-tech industries that create jobs and prosperity for Canadians."

BL-NCEs increase business investment in R&D and help companies grow, add value to products and services, create jobs, increase productivity and develop greener practices by merging academic expertise with the private sector's drive to respond to real-world challenges.

About ReMAP
Refined Manufacturing Acceleration Process (ReMAP), a Business-Led Networks of Centres of Excellence (BL-NCE) partnering to accelerate commercialization, offers new capabilities in electronics manufacturing, research, development, product and process design currently not available elsewhere in North America. These capabilities are intended to assist Canadian manufacturing companies of all sizes to accelerate time to market. www.remapnetwork.org

About BL-NCE
The BL-NCE program is a federal program overseen by a tri-agency NCE Steering Committee composed of the Deputy Minister of Industry (or delegate), the Deputy Minister of Health (or delegate); and the Presidents of three federal granting agencies: the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC), and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), with the President of the Canada Foundation for Innovation serving as an observer.

The goal of the BL-NCE program is to address private sector research and development (R&D) challenges in Canadian research priority areas through the creation of business-led research networks that increase private sector investment in R&D, innovation and competitiveness. www.nce-rce.gc.ca

SOURCE: Refined Manufacturing Acceleration Process (ReMAP)

For further information:

Loretta Renard
Network Manager, ReMAP
416-448-4155
[e-mail]

Hans Posthuma
Acting Manager, Communications
NCE
613-943-8752
[e-mail]