New environmental aerospace network funded under inaugural BL-NCE competition

Three other networks TBA at a later date

Environmentally targeted aerospace R&D is the focus of the first network to be announced under the new Business-Led Networks of Centres of Excellence (BL-NCE) program support collaborative R&D to reduce aircraft noise and emissions. The Green Aviation Research and Development Network (GARDN) will use the one-time funding to establish a national consortium and develop pre-competitive R&D projects of benefit to all industrial members.

With an award of $11.8 million over four years, GARDN is one of four networks that will receive a total of $39.2 million. Although the successful networks have been informed of the funding decisions by the NCE steering committee, RE$EARCH MONEY is unable to report on the full extent of the competition. The other three networks will be announced at the discretion of the federal government.

"(GARDN) is in addition to all the things we've been doing. It's a way to get that greater focus on more specific industry-driven research and technology," says Dr Gary Goodyear, minister of state for science and technology. "Ultimately, the idea behind this particular program is to pay greater attention to industry collectively, not individual companies but various sectors."

GARDN is led by the Aerospace Industries Association of Canada (AIAC) on behalf of its members, which formed the Green Aviation Environmental Working Group for the purpose of applying to the BL-NCE competition. Projects will focus on engine design to reduce fuel consumption and materials R&D to allow for lighter aircraft.

Before projects are developed, GARDN must finalize its agreement with the NCE secretariat as well as the agreement between the consortium members. Also a priority is the hiring of a scientific director to provide leadership along with network manager Robert Mather, AIAC's VP public affairs.

"This is an industry that goes from the Atlantic to the Pacific. There some extraordinary initiatives that are being undertaken and will be supported through (GARDN) across the country," says Claude Lajeunesse, AIAC's president and CEO.

CRIAQ CONNECTION

GARDN will forge close ties with an existing aerospace consortium — the highly successful Consortium for Research and Innovation in Quebec (CRIAQ). In fact, both organizations count many of the same aerospace firms as members, including the two largest aerospace players in Canada: Pratt & Whitney Canada and Bombardier.

"Absolutely they're connected," says Lajeunesse. "Andre Bazergui (CRIAQ's president and CEO) and I are old friends and colleagues and the intent is to have CRIAQ run the scientific side (of the network)."

For CRIAQ, the funding success of GARDN represents a major step towards realizing its goal of becoming a national organization. CRIAQ has been attempting for several years to secure federal funding to expand its pre-competitive, collaborative consortium model across canada, even going so far as to incorporate a new name. However, with the emergence of the BL-NCE and the prospects of an aerospace-focused network, negotiations with Industry canada were suspended.

CRIAQ Canada is presently on the back burner in stationary orbit," says Bazergui. "I'm on the board of GARDN and have been involved since its beginning. We have offered to operate it in terms of running projects. We have the same players and same objectives ... Time is of the essence to get the projects going."

CRIAQ's participation will also allow GARDN to benefit from its hard-won achievements in the areas of intellectual property management and project selection.

"We'll try and use the CRIAQ model at GARDN and adapt it to the new body to reduce time for negotiating IP," says Bazergui. "CRIAQ and GARDN together is a natural."

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