National Research Council Industrial Research Assistance Program NRCIRAP Program and Tips for Commer

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National Research CouncilIndustrial Research
Assistance ProgramNRC-IRAP Program and Tips
for Commercial Success
Kashmir Gill May 16, 2007 NSERC I2I Workshop
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NRC National Research Council IRAP
Industrial Research Assistance ProgramITA
Industrial Technology AdvisorINA Innovation
Network AdvisorBA Business AnalystTBA
Technical Business AnalystSME Small Medium
Size EnterprisesTPC Technology Partnerships
CanadaY Program Youth InternshipClient A
Canadian Incorporated FirmNM Network Member
Organization
Some Wonderful Government Acronyms
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Canadian SMEs Statistics

• Approximate number of incorporated 2.1 Million
• 98 of businesses employ less that 100 people
• 74 have less than 10 employees.
• SMEs account for 80 of new jobs created and 82
  of all new technologies
• Revenues of 75 SMEs lt 5.0 Million
• Survival rate for new small businesses average at
  72 after one year, 44 after three years, 32
  after five years
• Background Expertise of an Owner / Operator of
  SME
• Marketer / Salesman 80
• Technocrat..20

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Significant Innovation And RD Challenges

• SMEs have limited resources to invest in new and
  improved products, skills and technologies
• Canadian SMEs struggle to grow into medium-sized
  enterprises

REVE NUE
T I M E
2 years
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NRC-IRAP Across The Country
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NRC-IRAP Strategic Approach

• Increase the innovation  capabilities of
  Canadian SMEs by
• Providing excellent, relevant knowledge-based
  innovation assistance services to SMEs
• Providing access to relevant resources to support
  client innovation activities

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NRC-IRAP value proposition
Stimulate Wealth Creation for Canada
Improved Performance
Effect
of SMEs
Increased Skills,
Increased
Improved
Enhanced
Improved
Performance
Knowledge,
Innovation
Management
Linkages
Financial
evaluation
Competencies
Practices
Performance
Increase the innovation
Objective
capabilities of Canadian SMEs
Actions
Contributions
Advice
Networking
Core
Technology Innovation Management
competencies
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IRAPs business modelto Increase the innovation
capability of SMEs
X
IRAP-TPC ()
Client
Contributions ()
New personnel Y ()
Level B
Tech. info
Advice Linkages
Innovation Strategy (plan)
Intellectual property
Strategic Planning Marketing Management Structure
Client
Industrial Eng.
Diagnostic ()
Level A
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What NRC-IRAP has to offer
240 Industry Technology Advisors (ITA) working on
the shop floor of individual firms in 90 local
communities Links to ST resources and
networks Cost-shared financial contributions,
small scale, rapid decisions and action Assist
SMEs access international technologies via
linkages, visits, missions
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Field Advisory Services

• Assist with plans / procedures for new
  technology and RD projects
• Arrange for diagnostic analysis of operations
• Assist in potential market analysis

• Establish links to tech sources
• Access to technical information
• Provide financial linkages

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Financial Contributions

• Type I Innovation Support
• Up to about 350k, but typically staged
• Non-repayable
• For Innovation Activities
• Technical feasibility
• r D
• Prototype Process development
• Developing/exploiting licensed technology

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Financial Contributions

• Type II Youth Employment
• 15k in salary for 12 months (per Graduate)
• Non-repayable
• Recent Grad College or University
• Possible permanent position

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The RING Diagram1
Due Diligence
Inner Ring (Internal Functions)

• Management
• Sales
• Accounting
• Engineering
• Purchasing
• HR

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Skill
Project Focus
1
8
12
2
6
Market
Outer Ring (External Functions)
5

• CEO
• Marketing
• CFO/Legal
• CTO
• Mtl Management
• HR Professional

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3
4
9
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Raw Material
1 Principle developed by Jim Ergil, P. Eng., ITA
1962 to 1979, and copywrited by Alberta Research
Council in 2002.
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Companys Evolution
Integration Phase
Lost Touch with Customers, Low-Risk Attitude -
Inwardly focus on Itself
Level 2
Systemisation Phase
Company Needs to work on Outer Ring
Its getting too big, We want Guidelines,
Priorities Unclear Given some Cashflow, they
can persist but death will come.
Level 1
Pioneering Phase
Company needs Organizational Help to Bring Order
Inner Ring
Level 0
Few People, Little Formality, Need Quick ROI
They either focus or die
Taken in part from Change The Challenge for
Management by Valerie Stewart
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The Cycle
Alpha
Feasibility Study
Beta
The Cycle
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Our impacts with clients over the last seven
years

• Facilitated 3,800 linkages per year between SMEs,
  universities and other organizations
• Assisted in the development, risk-taking and cost
  sharing of over 30,000 technology projects
• Invested over 570M in innovation efforts by
  Canadian SMEs
• Been emulated as an SME assistance program by
  countries around the world e.g. Thailand,
  Argentina, etc
• Served 10,000 to 12,000 SMEs each year

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Who to contact?

• Bob Arnold (Microelectronics/Nanotechnology)
• Lou Beres (Manufacturing/Lean)
• Walter Cool (Construction/ICT/Finance)
• Craig dEntremont (Environment)
• Al Everitt (Business Analyst)
• Doug Fraser (Advanced Materials)
• Barb Nyland (INA)
• Ed Polukoshko (Energy/Oilsands)
• Vic Prystawa (Manufacturing/Construction)
• Eric Swanson (Biotech/Life Sciences/Nanotechnology
  )

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Questions?

• www.irap-pari.nrc-cnrc.gc.ca
• [phone]