Nano Ontario establishes dedicated nanotech centre in Chinese innovation park

R&D relationship growing

Ontario has boosted its collaboration with China in nanotechnology research and commercialization with the creation of a Nanotechnology Innovation Centre and accompanying industrial R&D program. The agreement between the Ministry of Research and Innovation and the Jianhsu Province's Department of Science and Technology will see a dedicated Ontario office in the sprawling Suzhou Industrial Park where Canadian companies can incubate.

The MOU was signed by Nano Ontario and Nanopolis Suzhou Co Ltd, a state-owned company that operates in the industrial park. The Ontario office became operational December 1st.

"It's all about faster research and moving innovations into the economy," says D; Alain Franq, managing director of the Waterloo Institute of Nanotechnology (WIN) and Nano Ontario treasurer. "Pull together inter-disciplinary teams and that's the powerful thing that's part of something great. Lead to be a global centre of excellence. You can't sit here at home."

The Ontario office is funded by Nanopolis Suzhou Co Ltd, an industry-oriented body that works to ensure there are receptors for promising collaborative research. Several other countries such as Finland and the Netherlands have also opened up offices at the Suzhou Industrial Park seeking similar opportunities and a commercial leg up.

"In Canada we have the top 5% of nanotechnology journal publishing. That's the ticket to the other 95% — go find like-minded researchers to create a solution," says Franq. "Ontario companies can go there and they have a program and can incubate. The park has a huge international component."

The Ontario-Jinagsu Nanotech Innovation Office is overseen by a Canada-Chinese board of directors. Ontario premier Kathleen Wynne and executives from several Canadian companies were at the signing on October 7th where a suite of MOUs and agreements were approved (see chart).

To date, the Canadian nanotech centre has been financed by Nanopolis Suzhou. Canadian firms who pay to travel to the innovation park are provided with services at cost. Franq says that while the province has indicated that nanotech is one of its innovation and economic priorities, the Canadian side of the equation is not developed to the point where resources can be deployed.

"Our people are not being paid to push this. Nano Ontario has no paid executive director yet," says Franq. "We scan the environment to let the government know where nano is in the landscape but to have reciprocity with the Chinese we need a going concern ... We will go to the premier on the heels of this and take it to the next level."

Canada is one of the few nanotech-endowed nations without a national strategy. It was only recently that Nano Canada was established at the National Institute for Nanotechnology in Edmonton to act as a unifying vehicle and promote industry commercialization and connections between nanotechnology hubs across Canada and the globe (R$, October 10/15).

More work on the provincial nano hubs like Nano Ontario is required, however, before Canada can act nationally in its collaboration with other nations including Japan and Brazil.

"Ontario companies use the Chinese facility for up to six months and then they return home. The goal is to secure Ontario funding for participation," says Franq. "We have the people and the research and now we need the business capacity. We're standing on three legs and the fourth leg is the Ontario centre in Jiangsu."

Longer term, Ontario-Chinese nanotech collaboration is expected to result in a similar nanotech office established in Canada. Franq says it's too soon to say where such a centre will be located as Ontario has several strong nanotech ecosystems, including the Univ of Waterloo, McMaster Univ and the Univ of Toronto.

WIN's relationship with Soochow Univ and the Suzhou Industrial Park (SUN-WIN-SIP) began in 2011 with a Joint Institute of Research and Education, enabling faculty at both institutions to undertake collaborative research, foster scholastic exchanges and stimulate entrepreneurship and innovation.

Workshops followed in Waterloo and Soochow Univ where areas of research compatibility were identified and exchanges began between Chinese and Canadian faculty and students.

In 2012, SIP funded 12 joint projects with principal investigators on each side. This was followed in 2013 by a second competition in which seven projects were awarded $80,000. A third round in 2014 selected 10 projects for funding of between $80,000 and $150,000.

Yet another workship will be held in Waterloo in january with an entrepreneurial focus to start building the business receptor capacity for collaborative research.

For students, the WIN-SUN collaboration has resulted in joint educational programs and exchanges for Soochow graduate and undergraduate students to study in Waterloo.

"At its core, WIN has a $50-million quantum nano lab and we maintain this shared facility. It's the same thing as offered by Nanopolis," says Franq. "Professors here are entrepreneurially minded at the discovery end of innovation and encourage students to undertake commercialization."

For WIN, the Ontario centre at Suzhou and accompanying industrial R&D program are the culmination of an seven-year effort to build up research and skills capacity at the Univ of Waterloo. Under the leadership of Dr Arthur Carty — former president of the National Research Council and former National Science Advisor — WIN has persevered through the great recession and is now gaining momentum on the international stage.

"It's joyful to see how new ideas come about. You see everyday how the power of research is going to make the country great, domestically and with international partners," says Franq.

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