Xerox sees huge potential in public-private collaboration for printable electronics

NRC flagship program builds momentum

A new Printable Electronics Consortium (PEC) back-stopped by funding and expertise from the National Research Council (NRC) is optimistic that its work developing prototypes and new technologies can establish Canada as a leading player in the emerging and rapidly expanding field. Launched last year but only officially announced September 30th, the PEC pulls together 11 companies and three other organizations into a $56-million, five-year initiative in which firms are able to choose the direction of the research and exploit successful outcomes (R$, September 10/13).

PEC members bring their own cash and in-kind and have access to cutting-edge equipment and expertise resident throughout NRC but largely concentrated in Ottawa and Boucherville QC. The NRC is providing $40 million, augmented by $16 million in member contributions.

The Mississauga On-based Xerox Research Centre of Canada (XRCC) was the first firm to join the consortium. As a Tier I member, it can propose and control projects and decide on outcome goals. XRCC is one of five Xerox global research centre with a global product mandate, which positions it to both contribute to and potentially acquire commercializable products, expertise and business relationships from the PEC.

"It's very timely … This is a commercialization-focused, public-private partnerships and a good model for Canada. It puts all of the value chain together with commercialization," says Dr Paul Smith, XRCC's VP and manager of the centre, which has a global mandate for materials research. "From the Xerox point-of-view, the value is access to all these players in the value chain that may use our materials, or we may use a device that's produced. The consortium has all the necessary players to make devices and prototypes and commercialize them."

Xerox was an early entrant into the field of printable electronics (PE) and XRCC has been conducting PE-related research for more than a decade, primarily working on inks and nano inks used in antennas and interconnects. When NRC first floated the idea of PEC, Xerox was first on board.

"We were involved in the discussions right from the start. We are Tier I and each tier affords members different abilities within the consortium," says Smith. "The consortium has been active for the past year and we've started some collaborative work. We are skilled in the area of printing and with PE this is changing rapidly so it's a great opportunity ... There is a whole range of benefits for us and this could grow into a major area for Canada."

This isn't the first time Xerox has tapped the NRC to augment its in-house research expertise. In 2007, it entered into a multi-year research collaboration to develop nanotechnology-based R&D with commercial potential. Billed as Canada's first private-public nanotech research partnership, the initial three-year, $4.5-million collaboration between Xerox and the National Institute for Nanotechnology (itself an NRC-Univ of Alberta collaboration) was extended to six years as research teams conducted targeted programs for document- and display-related technologies (R$, February 26/07).

"That collaboration was funded heavily by Xerox and came to an end after six years, but we're still working with NINT on more fundamental research on the analytical side," says Smith.

NRC central to PEC success

For the NRC, the PEC is part of a larger strategy to stimulate targetted areas of the economy through its so-called flagship program initiative. It falls within the authority of Dr Dan Wayner, VP of NRC's Emerging Technologies division which encompasses Information & Communications Technologies, Measurement Science & Standards, National Science Infrastructure and Security & Disruptive Technologies.

"We're keeping our eyes on the horizon to see opportunities or threats to Canadian companies. We have a longer time horizon of 10 to 15 years," says Wayner. "The printable electronics consortium defines the key objectives and our programs contributes to that."

NRC has long-standing expertise in areas such as advanced materials and associated design devices, as well as imprinting and embossing that are complementary to the consortium's value chain. And while the PEC has a five-year time horizon, it may be extended if consortium members see sufficient continuing value in collaboration.

"Printable electronics is a tough, competitive environment but we are aware of the capabilities of others and have tactics to focus on applications that are best suited to transfer to Canadian companies," says Wayner. "We're open to new partners. It's all about creating value accrued in Canada for Canadians."

The PEC does not intend to replace the use of silicon but rather is focused on opening up new markets where silicon is too expensive. By driving down the cost of PE and shifting to mass production techniques, the PEC is helping to establish a homegrown industry that Wayner says is "accessible from a capital perspective".

"Fabrication facilities cost billions of dollars and PE costs much less than that. It's an area where Canada can compete," he says. "It's a form of additive manufacturing much like 3-D printing and it can move Canada very quickly into a promising area of advanced manufacturing.".

"PEC will grow absolutely," says Thomas Ducellier, executive director of the PE flagship program. "We want to be a catalyst for key technologies in Canada, driven by product opportunities."

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