Research and Innovation : Innovation + Job News

In the internet age, bidding has gone way beyond its roots at online auction site eBay. Consumers now expect to see competitive bids on everything from travel at Travelocity.ca to car insurance at Toronto-based InsuranceHotline.com to cellular phones at Toronto-based mycellphonemyterms.com.

Last week, the launch of Mississauga-based Ratesheet.ca brought the same principal to the mortgage market. "The website eliminates the need to visit mulitple offices and agents in person to obtain rate quotes," says company president Vik Palan. Instead, applicants submit their information at the Ratesheet website and multiple mortgage brokers bid with the lowest interest rates they're able to offer. "The website strives to make the process of securing a mortgage hassle-free," Palan says.

Palan notes than in addition to being a benefit to consumers, his innovation also offers mortgage brokers a pool of leads who come to them online without any marketing. As the site launches, 369 brokers are currently listed with them. A review mechanism on the site allows consumers to rate various brokers they've encountered through the site, which can help further serve the site's users and help brokers build credibility.

Writer: Edward Keenan
Source: Vik Palan, President, Ratesheet.ca

The Ontario Research and Innovation Optical Network (ORION) recruited Dr. Darin Graham as its president and CEO in July, a hire that ORION Chair Maxime Jean-Louis told Yonge Street brought on a man with "an international record" who would help the organization "leapfrog into the forefront of innovation in Ontario."

Months later, the organization has announced [PDF] that they will deploy a 100G network -- the first in Canada and the first in the world to be deployed for Research and Education purposes. The new network represents a tenfold increase in capacity. "Moving to 100G is a generational leap in capabilities and a significant technological milestone. It helps move Ontario to the head of the pack in terms of having an extraordinary backbone in place to support new and innovative ways of enabling advanced research, innovation and scientific discovery," Graham says.

ORION is an "ultra high-speed research and education network" that links 1.7 million Ontario researchers, scientists, students, teachers and staff to enable research collaborations and discoveries in physics, cancer research, environmental science and technologies, social sciences and the humanities and other disciplines.

ORION says this is the first phase of a much larger major upgrade to its network, which spans 5,800 kilometres of fibre optic cable across the province. The project is expected to be completed in spring 2010.

Writer: Edward Keenan
Source: Tamara Stoll, ORION

Recently, Sally Daub was recognized in the trailblazer category at the RBC Canadian Woman Entrepreneur Awards. As the co-founder, president and CEO of ViXS systems, she's overseen the Toronto-based company's growth from semiconductor start-up to world leader in the production of smart network multimedia processors to fuel the digital video revolution.

Founded in Toronto in 2001, the company now has offices on three continents and has filed more than 240 patents. Daub's recognition (which follows her inclusion on the PROFIT magazine Woman 100 list last year) caps a year of recognition for the still-growing firm. This fall, ViXS was ranked the 106th fastest growing tech firm in North America and the 21st fastest growing tech firm in Canada by Deloitte. The company notes it has been a fixture on the Deloitte "Fast 50" list for four years running. Earlier in the year, ViXS was rated 44th on PROFIT magazine's annual list of the 100 fastest-growing companies in Canada.

"We are extremely pleased to continue to be ranked among the top growing companies in Canada," Daub has said. "As a world leader in transcoding and advanced hosting in smart network multimedia processors, we continue to benefit from consumers growing appetite to view and experience digital media content from multiple sources."

And that growth continues. Currently, ViXS is hiring for more than 30 positions in its Toronto office.

Writer: Edward Keenan
Source: Janet Craig, ViXS

It was just in early may that Yonge Street reported on the launch of Cavet Technologies' lighting control system LumiSmart ILC. Then, weeks later, we reported that the company had already won an innovation award for the "Intelligent Lighting Controller" from the Canadian Advanced Technological Alliance Innovation Awards.

As the year comes to a close, the company has racked up nine more awards for the LumiSmart ILC, most recently the New Technology Award from the 2010 Ontario Regional Awards for New Technology presented by the Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters (CME) and the National Research Council-Industrial Research Assistance Program.

Albert Behr, Cavet's president, says the company is "thrilled" to accept the award, and the slew of awards they've previously racked up. He adds that just months after launching, the company is now shipping to more than 30 countries across the world. "This thing is being installed everywhere," he says. "We're very proudly Canadian, but for sales Canada is a small part of the mix."

Behr notes that the product is manufactured at Celestica in Toronto, and that production there is going full-tilt. "We just officially launched -- as it had units ready for sale -- in November, and we've already got a run-rate most companies would kill for after two or three years."

The technology, designed and manufactured in Toronto, allows people to control their lighting automatically in a way that saves energy and money. It takes advantage of "adaptive lighting" by using sensors to increase or decrease lighting levels based on whether people are in a room or not. The company claims it can produce a 30 per cent power reduction instantly without the installation of any new lights or fixtures. Behr says this is a huge competitive advantage in a field in which most companies require installation of big infrastructural retrofits to conserve energy. He expects the company to grow exponentially in the next 12 months. "2010 was about commercializing the product. 2011 is really about harvesting sales from around the world."

Writer: Edward Keenan
Source: Albert Behr, President, Cavet Technologies

Professor Peter Zandstra of the University of Toronto's Institute of Biomaterials and Biomedical Engineering sums up the dilemma facing medical innovators nicely. "The problem is that many new and potentially life-changing regenerative medicine-based treatments never reach patients because they are not successfully moved from the laboratory to a stage where they can be used in medicine," he says. That's why he's heading up, as chief science officer, the new Centre for Commercialization of Regenerative Medicine (CCRM), a partnership among research and private sector entities to commercialize innovations.

The project, which focuses on advancements in regenerative medicine -- which includes cutting edge techniques such as stem-cell therapy, regenerative biomolecules, tissue engineering and the use of biomaterials -- will aim to bring lab advancements to market. "Our plan is twofold -- to leverage our advances in biomedical research and engineering and create an RM commercialization pipeline to get our innovations into the marketplace and to people suffering from these difficult health conditions," says Zandstra.

The project got a shot in the arm from the federal government's Centres of Excellence for Commercialization and Research competition, which awarded CCRM $15 million on Dec. 6. That money will be added to $13.7 million contributed by private sector partners to fund the project.

In addition to  U of T, the project partners include the University Health Network, The Hospital for Sick Children, McMaster University, Mount Sinai Hospital, the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute and 16 private sector companies.

Writer: Edward Keenan
Source: Laurie Stephens, University of Toronto

Toronto-based startup Peraso Technologies Inc recently announced the closing of a round of follow-on financing in which it secured $8 million. Peraso has developed the world's first 60 GHz multimedia transceiver to -- initially at least -- serve the consumer wireless mobile market.  The financing, according to Peraso CEO Ron Glibbery, will be used to bring the innovative technology to market.

"Bringing the world's lowest cost, lowest power 60 GHz transceiver to market within a year of receiving initial venture funding is a significant accomplishment" says Brian Antonen of Celtic House Venture Partners, who invested during the initial funding round in fall 2009, which generated $10 million, and led the equity financing group this time. In addition to Celtic House, this round of financing included iNovia Capital, VentureLink Funds and the Ontario Emerging Technologies Fund.

"The 60 GHz wireless market opportunity is growing rapidly," says Glibbery, adding that this financing and the participation of the province's Emerging Technologies Fund will allow Peraso to "compete with tier 1 competitors on a global scale."

As it gears up, the company is hiring four staff.

Writer: Edward Keenan
Sources: Ron Gibbery, Peraso Technologies Inc., Jim Whitaker, VL Advisors Inc.

When it is finished next year, Toronto Rehab's $36 million Intelligent Design for Adaptation, Participation and Technology (iDAPT) will be one of the world's most advanced rehabilitation research and development facilities. In building it, Toronto Rehab and its partners at the University of Toronto say they have taken advantage of the innovations of several cutting-edge GTA companies.

"Creating this amazing research space has been a complex endeavour," says Dr. Geoff Fernie, VP of Research for Toronto Rehab. "And it's certainly thrown a few curves our way. We've been fortunate to draw on the expertise of so many Canadian companies."

CIMCO Refrigeration, for instance, was called on to build a movable ice floor for an ice chamber that will simulate winter conditions at the lab, the only one of its kind in the world. Software to control the simulator in the underground lab was custom-built by Markham's Quanser Inc. An overhead robotic safety system was designed by Toronto's Nuspark Inc. Meanwhile, movable plates across which study participants will walk were created by A-Tech Instruments.

The project is scheduled to be completed in 2011, and will be used to study older people and those with disabilities as they encounter challenges that mimic those faced in real life inside the lab's underground chamber.

Writer: Edward Keenan
Source: Carolyn Lovas, Toronto Rehab

Portland-limestone cement (PLC) has been used in Europe for over 25 years, according Paul Ostrander, president of Mississauga-based cement manufacturer Holcim Canada, but it has never before been tested in Canada. This despite some strong sustainability points to recommend it: it generates lower greenhouse gas emissions in its manufacture than regular Portland Cement, and up to 10 per cent fewer carbon dioxide emissions.

So Holcim Canada has recently teamed up with researchers at the University of Toronto and the provincial Ministry of Transportation to run two trials on PLC in actual road projects. Video of the test is available to watch here.

According to U of T professor Doug Hooton, the testing has already shown a 33 per cent reduction in carbon dioxide emissions and there is no expected reduction in durability or effectiveness. The University of Toronto will be monitoring the trial sections over the next three years to evaluate its performance.

Holcim Canada currently employs 3,500 people in manufacturing products for the construction industry. In addition to it's Mississauga plant, it also owns a manufacturing facility in Joliette Quebec.

Writer: Edward Keenan
Source: Junaina Saulat, Holcim Canada

In June, Naheed Mustafa reported for Yonge Street about the Toronto startup Cognovision, a MaRS client and the brainchild of local entrepreneurs Haroon Mirza, Shahzad Malik and Faizal Javer. The company had solved the problem of measuring the effectiveness of digital signage by embedding sensors in them to monitor the behaviour of passersby.

Earlier this month, MaRS announced that the startup had graduated in the way that so many tech dreamers do: by being acquired by one of the world's computing giants. Intel Corporation has purchased Cognovision. Though the terms of the deal were not disclosed, online industry news sources estimated the size of the deal as between $17 million and $30 million.

Mirza gave credit to the Toronto business incubator MaRS for its help in building the company and paving the way for the deal to happen. "We're grateful for the work that MaRS did over the years to help us move CognoVision from a concept to a rapidly growing business. The MaRS team have been a valuable extension of our own team and an integral part of our success," Mirza says. "We've benefitted from guidance on our strategy, financing and marketing/sales at every stage of the company's development. They have also been very helpful in supporting us as we developed partner relationships here in Canada and abroad."

Writer: Edward Keenan
Source: Vanessa Caldwell?, MaRS Discovery District

Ryerson University has received $750,000 in funding from the federal government to assist in developing partnerships to commercialize its innovative research. The money, granted under FedDev Ontario's Applied Research and Commercialization Initiative, will allow Ryerson's newly established Digital Media Zone to partner with small and medium-sized businesses in southern Ontario to move university-based innovations into the marketplace.

"Ryerson has a rich history in applied technology research," notes Carla Cassidy of the University Research and Innovation department. "By connecting our outstanding entrepreneurial students and faculty members with small and medium-sized enterprises... we can move digital innovations seemlessly from the lab to the marketplace."

The Applied Research and Commercialization Initiative was launched earlier this year -- as was reported here in April -- specifically to aid businesses and capitalize on academic applied research. So far, 22 grants have been given to schools from the $15 million fund, including seven to GTA programs.

Writer: Edward Keenan
Source: Heather Kearney, Ryerson University

Last week, Toronto-based Mindshare Learning announced that it had partnered with San Diego-based software firm Tech4Learning to win a bid to provide Ontario public elementary schools with creativity software. The software will allow students to develop podcasts, online storybooks, videos and Flash animations.

According to Mindshare Learning President Robert Martellacci, this is an important step for local schools in the "emerging 21st-century movement that requires kids to be prepared for the global economy." Martellacci had a background in educational technology that led him, in 2008, to launch Mindshare as a publisher about educational technology and a consulting firm in the same field. He says that since then, his firm has seen 50% year-over-year growth in the field, and now employs five to 10 people -- mostly contract employees -- at any given time on a project-by-project basis.

Martellacci says that, in the absence of any federal educational standards body in Canada, a company like his that can help share information across provinces is pivotal. "There was a real pent-up demand for this type of service," he says. "I'm constantly being courted -- I expect even more explosive growth on the horizon."

Writer: Edward Keenan
Source: Robert Martellacci, Mindshare Learning

Health Canada has given its approval to the new antiepileptic drug Vimpat from UCB Canada. The treatment represents a potential benefit to sufferers of epilepsy and a toehold in the neurological treatment field for Oakville biopharmaceutical company UCB.

The Oakville office, the Canadian branch of international pharmaceutical giant UCB, had previously had a treatment for immunology, according to Business Unit Director Ross Glover, "This is a big milestone for the company � this is the first of several neurological treatments we intend to bring to the Canadian market."

The company's Canadian office was launched in 2006, Glover says, with the dual goals of bringing UCB's global therapies to the Canadian market and to do homegrown research that would "bring the benefit of our Canadian neurologists to the global platform." In its four years, the company has grown to employ 28 staff in the GTA.

This approval will of course, Glover says, mean growth for the company, and he anticipates further growth in step with research outcomes. "As far as employment goes, I expect ongoing hiring for the next five years as we go forward and as we have success."

Writer: Edward Keenan
Source: Ross Glover, UCB Canada Inc.

At one time, Ontario was home to the world's third-largest biotechnology cluster. Now, according to Cathy Carter, on behalf of the Ontario Bioscience Industry Organization (OBIO), the sector is struggling for its survival.

In response to the economic challenges facing the bioscience industry, health-sciences leaders from across the province are teaming up to form a group called Ontario Bioscience Economic Strategy Team (OBEST), Carter's organization announced (.pdf) last week. The team will be seeking ideas for sustainability in the industry. "OBEST is a unique coalition of stakeholders in our health-science industry contributing unmatched breadth in insight and expertise to ensure sustainability and foster growth," says OBEST advisory committee chair Dr. Daniel Billen. "Health-science is a key growth area in Ontario's emerging innovation economy."

Organizers of the group say that they'll be seeking ideas far and wide and then adjusting their strategy as they achieve milestones -- "an ongoing process of renewal and revitalization as we design it to build around the best ideas," according to OBIO President Gail Garland.

Writer: Edward Keenan
Source: Cathy Carter, OBIO

"Working as a consultant means I've been through the 'on boarding' processes a lot of times," says Yang Yu, founder and president of Prognex Group. "Usually, either my email wasn't setup, or I had no parking pass, or I had to wait a week for my voicemail. I wanted to change that."

So Yu's Prognex developed the startup Clear Onboard, launching later this month at Sprouter's Toronto Sprout Up conference. Clear Onboard offers software to manage the hiring and orientation process. "Most of the talent management software that's available is really enterprise level," says Yu. "We saw an opportunity in the market serving small and medium sized business."

The company -- headquartered in the Financial District and currently run by four team members, including Yu -- has been in operation since 2008, previously offering Yask, a business process management platform that is more enterprise level, Yu says. With Clear Onboard he hopes to prove the concept over the next few months before seeking capital through investors.

Author: Edward Keenan
Source: Yang Yu, President, Prognex Group

Polar Mobile launched in 2007 in Waterloo, across the street from RIM, an appropriate location for a company that would build applications for mobile devices. Now headquartered in the financial district, the company has seen rapid growth. "We've grown from 19 or 20 employees at the start of this year to 40 employees now," says Director of Business Development Jon Zifkin, and the company is hiring three more. And all those bodies have been busy: in late September, the company announced it had surpassed the milestone of launching 150 "superapps" for BlackBerry smartphones, serving 6 million users in 100 countries and nine languages.

"We've had quite a year of deployments," says Zifkin, "We put the R & D development into a solid platform and now we're just seeing our growth keeping up with our deployment strategy.

The company's proprietary platform "SMART" allows clients to develop applications for iPhones, Blackberrys, and Android smartphones.

With a footprint established in Asia, the Middle East and South America, Zifkin says he sees bigger things ahead. "The immediate future is pretty steady growth," he says, "as we continue expanding our reach globally."

Writer: Edward Keenan
Source: Jon Zifkin, Director of Business Development, Polar Mobile