Transcript Document

Western and London:
A Great Partnership
London Chamber of
Commerce
Dr. Paul Davenport
February 28, 2008
Western’s impact on the local economy
• 35,000+ full-time and part-time students (including affiliated
university colleges)
• 3,500+ full-time faculty and staff
• 65% volunteer in some capacity
• $223.5M in research funding (2006-07)
• $230M in new construction (2006-2013)
• $1.5B in economic activity annually
• Building business through technology transfer
Technology Transfer in London:
New Structure, Greater Focus
• It is central to Western's identity that the best
student experience takes place in the context
of a major international research university.
• Research is at the heart of Western’s
enterprise and the focus of future technology
transfer is directly aligned with the jobs
agendas of the federal, provincial and
municipal governments.
Technology Transfer in London:
New Structure, Greater Focus
Western, Robarts, and Lawson
• A record of success
• A City-wide technology transfer organization
• A greater focus on areas with strong links to industry
and national scientific leadership:
– Imaging and Medical Devices
– Alternative Energy
– Materials and Biomaterials
• Seeking alignment with business and government
A Record of Success
• Compared to other cities, public institutions in
London have achieved significant success
through technology transfer
• In 2005-2006, Western, Robarts and Lawson
together reported:
– 84 invention disclosures (4th nationally)
– 8 U.S. patents (4th nationally)
– $4.8M in licensing income (3rd nationally)
A Record of Success
• Western, Lawson and Robarts have
created over a dozen successful start-up
companies creating hundreds of jobs in
London
– Viron Therapeutics
– EK3 Technologies
– EVS (now GE Healthcare)
– Keigan Systems
– KGK Synergize
Are We Doing Enough?
• It is time to align the technology transfer efforts
of public research institutions across London to
achieve maximum potential within the system
• First step has been taken with the alignment of
the Robarts and Western tech transfer
operations
• LHRI has now agreed to partner with
Western/Robarts to establish a new
city-wide organization
A City-Wide Technology Transfer
Organization
• New joint-venture, involving Western/Robarts and LHRI
will be formed this spring
• Teams of commercialization experts will be located
across the City and supported by a central hub offering
administrative, patent search, and legal services
• Total institutional investment of over $2.0M plus
Federal/Provincial contributions through C4
• Will offer services on a “walk-in” basis to local
inventors subject to appropriate review of
proposed technologies
Building on Strengths
• The new organization will develop a
national/international “brand” focusing
on key areas of research strength in
London where industry links are strong:
– Imaging and Medical Devices
– Alternative Energy
– Materials and biomaterials
Imaging and Medical Devices
• London is a national and international
leader in imaging/device research
• London has a strong record of success
in commercialization
• London has a strong local receptor
capacity
Imaging and Medical Devices
London is a national and international leader in
imaging/device research
• Over 50 researchers located at
Western/Robarts, LHRI and National Research
Council
• Leading-edge facilities include:
• Centre for Brain and Mind
• C-Star
• NRC-Industrial Manufacturing Institute
• National Centre for Audiology
Imaging and Medical Devices
London has a strong record of success in
commercialization
• $2M annually in licensing income from
imaging alone
• Multiple start-ups in London
– Medtrode
– Scisense
– EVS
– Stellar Pharmaceutical
– XLR Imaging
Imaging and Medical Devices
London has a strong local receptor capacity
• Over two dozen imaging/device companies in London
employing 1000+, including Trudell Medical, 3M Canada,
GE Healthcare, Medtech, Photon Technology International,
Sciencetech, Modus Medical Devices, and Sonometrics
• Strong interest in collaborative research
– Proposed Institute for Medical Device
Commercialization driven by industry with support
from TechAlliance and LEDC
• Strong alignment with City objectives through the
Mayor’s Roundtable on Life Sciences
Alternative Energy
• Growing strength in London and
Southwestern Ontario
• Outstanding development of new
infrastructure
• Success in Commercialization and
Industrial Partnerships
Alternative Energy:
Growing Strength in London and SWO
• London is an emerging national leader in biofuels research
– Western leads $11M national initiative of Agricultural
Bioproducts Innovation Program (ABIP) sponsored
by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada
• Strong research clusters in Science and Engineering at
Western and in Sarnia, now consolidated under ICFAR
• Strong alignment with City objectives through
London Sustainable Energy Council and Mayor’s
Roundtable on Sustainable Energy
Alternative Energy: Infrastructure
• Green Building
– $22M CFI/MRI/Industry project) focusing on biooil, hydrogen from waste, biofuel cells
• Sarnia-Lambton Research Park
– $10M invested by Province in the Ontario
Bioindustrial Innovation Centre for scale-up of
new biofuel technologies to industry
• Biotron
– $28M CFI/MRI/Industry supported climatecontrolled facility will lead research on biomass
research and development
• Planned construction of $5M pilot plant facilities
north of London
Alternative Energy: Commercialization
• Western spin-off Agri-Therm has sold first
portable pyrolysis units to Mexico (units are
manufactured in Southwestern Ontario)
• Institute for Chemicals and Fuels from
Alternative Resources (ICFAR) has established
collaborative research projects with national,
and international partners:
– Syncrude (Edmonton)
– Suncor (Sarnia)
– Total (France)
– FP Innovations (Paprican)
Materials and Biomaterials
• London has long been recognized as a
centre for materials research
• Western’s Synchrotron Radiation Group
• Surface Science Western
• Links to materials and biomaterials industry
in Sarnia under development
• Strong alignment with City’s objectives
through the Mayor’s Roundtable on
Advanced Manufacturing
Materials and Biomaterials
• Western’s Synchrotron Radiation group
established the Canadian Light Source in
Saskatoon
• Western researchers continue to
dominate the field as leaders in
publication of results from CLS facility
Materials and Biomaterials
• Surface Science Western dominates the surface materials
characterization field nationally and internationally
– Includes dozens of researchers from Physics,
Chemistry, and Engineering fields
– Provides materials characterization services
to over 1000 industrial clients including several multinationals: General Motors, Honda, Novelis, CVRD
Inco, Ontario Hydro, Babcock & Wilcox, Dupont
– Planned move to the Research Park in summer
2009 to capitalize on industry links
Seeking Alignment with
Business and Government
• Strong business support for all three focus
areas: medical devices, alternative fuels,
materials and biomaterials
• Federal support through ABIP, CFI, NSERC,
CIHR
• Provincial support ORF and other programs,
and to Bioindustrial Innovation Centre
• City support through advocacy: we need to
get these key programs on the radar screen
for LEDC, the Chamber, and the City
Seeking Alignment with
Business and Government
• Western recently hosted John Wilkinson, Ontario’s Minister
of Research and Innovation on campus
• The goal of the visit was to highlight Western’s
role in the knowledge-based economy locally, provincially
and nationally
• Three members of local industry shared their experiences
in collaborating with the university and urged the Minister
to support the growth of local innovation:
– Trudell Medical - Mark Pickard
– Agri-Therm - Jim Weaver
– EK3 Technologies - Nick Prigioniero
Opportunities in Emerging Fields of
Research
• The three areas of focus do not preclude the development, support
and expansion of other technologies and industries in emerging fields
of research.
• EK3 is an example of an enormously successful university spin-off
company that has established itself in London.
• EK3 is leading the way in the digital media industry which has been
identified by the Ontario Government as one of its four priority areas
for industries innovation.
• Western will continue to develop, support and expand emerging
opportunities for technology transfer and commercialization
throughout our research endeavours.
Western and London:
A Great Partnership
London Chamber of
Commerce
Dr. Paul Davenport
February 28, 2008