The CRI has had success over 5 years in bridging the gap between innovation and commercialization for entrepreneurs in rural Alberta. It provides a one-stop-shop for innovator services including intellectual property assessment, prototype development, investor readiness training, mentoring, market analysis, and workshops. The CRI works with over 200 clients annually using a mixed staffing model and $2.4 million budget. It serves as the center of a regional innovation network spanning the Peace Country.

2. CRI 5th Anniversary
April 1 2007 – March 31 2012

3. 4/5/2012 3

4. Risley products sell
worldwide!
4/5/2012 4

5. The Innovation Network
Innovation in the Peace Country …
Bridging the Gap
A Project of PREDA
A presentation to the
Grimshaw Rotary Club
Statement of Purpose: 22 June 2004
Tuesday,
To assist Peace Region entrepreneurs in developing innovative,
commercially viable products and services.
researched and written by Gary Christopherson
The Vision:
The Innovation Network will assist entrepreneurs and businesses
In collaboration with:
by increasing regional innovation capacity, providing client
services and by developing a culture of innovation within the
Peace Region.
5

6. The solution ? Client Services
• limited
•relocated to Grande Prairie – SMEs
•discussions with College begin
2005 – 2007 Keeping it together
Part-time – no office
Coming together is a beginning / Keeping together is progress

7. http://www.innovationexpert.net/

8. 1. Centre for Research & Innovation
Vision
The Center for a Network of regional researchers and
innovators; and The Model for Rural Innovation
Mixed staffing model
• Employees
• Contracted consultants
• Volunteers (ambassadors)
Funding (2010-2011 $2.4 m Revenue vs. $2.1 m Expenses)
• Operating Funds: AET/AI-TF & RADF & clients
• Research Funds: Industry / NSERC – CCI / CFI
application
• Project funds (IRAP, PREDA, others)
The Centre of a Network of Regional Researchers and Innovators

9. 2. Culture of Innovation
Regional Entrepreneurs & Innovators
• ~40% patent requests from 5% population (2005)
• More patents per capita than half of Canadian
Provinces
• Grande Prairie #1 in Canada for
entrepreneurship (2010) [was #2 – 2009]
Innovation Awards
Awareness Programs
• Advertizing campaign
• Destination Imagination (schools)
‘. . . The Model for rural innovation

10. So . . . What is working?
Rural Service Model – service first
GPRC: Fairview College Campus
Peace River
Community Futures Peace Country
GPRC:
Grande Prairie Campus
Centre 2000
Chamber of Commerce
Working together is success “One-stop-shop for SMEs”

11. 3. Innovation Services
Inventor management services
1. Intellectual Property Assessment and Management
2. Prototype Development
Our Model
3. Idea Assessment and Management
4. Investor Readiness
5. Mentoring/Coaching
6. Workshops (eight topics)
7. Market Analysis
GPRC: Fairview College Campus
Regional Service Points
Centre 2000 Peace River
Chamber of Commerce Community Futures Peace Country
GPRC:
Grande Prairie Campus
‘one-stop-shop’ for SMEs

12. 3. Innovation Services
Centre for Research & Innovation Client Summary as at March 31, 2011
Clients Inquiry IP Workshops Celebrations Total
April 2007-June 2008 41 0 7 19 0 67
July 2008-June 2009 65 0 66 50 43 224
July 2009-June 2010 73 8 72 458 111 722
July 2010-March 2011 26 62 45 95 72 300
205 70 190 622 226 1313
GPRC: Fairview College Campus
Centre 2000 Peace River
Chamber of Commerce Community Futures Peace Country
GPRC:
Grande Prairie Campus

14. Innovator & entrepreneur services
Principles:
• Do not tell clients what to do EXCEPT  IP
• Do not market clients’ products for them
• Ensure we maintain climate of non-
disclosure and confidentiality
• Avoid conflicts of interest (self and
among clients)
• Use a variety of models and
approaches

15. Innovator & entrepreneur services
Models:
Sirolli Model (2003) Timmins Model (2009)
• Production
– ‘Making the product’
• Marketing
Innovator Entrepreneur
– ‘Selling the product’
• Business Management
– ‘Keeping the books’ Creativity
Promoter Manager
Business Skills

16. Programs:
1. Idea Assessment and Management
• work with clients to help them define
problems, filter ideas and create solutions.
CRI staff works with clients to assess new
product development & innovation-based
business strategies, clarify ideas and develop
work plans designed to move their ventures
forward.
• CRI’s strength is its knowledgeable path-
finding services and contacts into local
and regional networks offering marketing,
engineering, investment readiness and
management expertise.
Innovator & entrepreneur services

17. Innovator & entrepreneur services
Programs:
1. Idea Assessment and Management
Assessment Tools The Webtool (2003)
• Idea
• Will it Work?
• Is it Feasible?
– prototype
• Is it Viable?
– financial
• Implementation
Productivity (2009)
• Productivity AB tools

20. Innovator & entrepreneur services
Programs:
2. Intellectual Property 3. Investor Readiness
Assessment and • advises innovators, entrepreneurs and
Management SMEs on accessing money for the
• help clients assess and development of their new product
manage their intellectual development ideas and innovation-
property inquiries. based company growth plans.
• The CRI uses both internal • The CRI works with clients to assist
and external expertise (IP them on how to “prepare the pitch”
Lawyer) to work with clients. and offers them access to an
Investment Readiness group for
Thompson Woodruff investment feedback and potential
introductions to investors.

21. Programs:
4. Prototype Development
Services
• assists inventors/innovators, “The CRI are an understanding
entrepreneurs and SMEs with their group that understand the needs
prototype development and testing and requirements of a start-up
across a wide range of industry company and channel activities
sectors and technical areas. in appropriate ways.”
• The CRI uses both internal and -Paul Dagesse, Founder and CEO
external expertise for designing & Rhinokore Composites Ltd.
developing prototype systems,
processes and products, and
analyzing & testing new
technologies.
Innovator & entrepreneur services

22. Innovator & entrepreneur services
Programs:
5. Mentoring/Coaching
• provides clients with assistance "I only wish that I'd run into
and advice on various aspects of CRI earlier. They're a
their innovation-based business tremendous ally!"
endeavors.
• CRI uses internal expertise and -David Forseth, President
brings together experienced Cataflow Technologies Inc.
industry leaders to provide
valuable input to clients as
needed.

23. Innovator & entrepreneur services
Programs:
6. Market Analysis
• works with clients by providing advice on
marketing, sales and distribution of new
innovation products and services.
• CRI uses internal and external expertise to
access intelligence and contacts through a
network of Market Intermediaries in the
region and beyond.

24. Innovator & entrepreneur services
Programs:
7. Learning Opportunities
• engaged in a host of learning opportunities via applied
research, business training and demonstration projects on
innovation, commercialization, and entrepreneurship.
• CRI topics include for example: Idea to Implementation: The
Innovation Workshop; Researching Products and Markets;
Critical Marketing Techniques; Investment Capital;
Intellectual Property 101; Inventors Workshop; Market
Intermediaries, Foresight Scenario Planning.
• Hosted topics include: SR&ED, AMFI, AB Government
program information sessions

25. Jim Letersky – former CRI Adjunct Staff
with Murray Smith – Long-time CRI Client

26. Client Quotes
• “Your team (at the CRI) has provided our business with
more support than we could have ever imagined! Thank
you so much!"
- Julie Boucher NordicPac Ltd.
• The innovation voucher program helped us to establish
our new brand (The WoodPad Inc.), create a marketing
plan, develop a number of our glulam timberframe
product designs and drawings complete with engineering
sign-off.
Julie Boucher, President The WoodPad Inc.

27. Client Quotes
• The CRI has been instrumental in helping me
network with the right people in the industry to
challenge some of my thought processes, develop
my ideas from paper to prototype to patent
“pending” and of course fund and assist funding.
Richard VanderZee – OnTrack Supplies & Equipment –
Grande Prairie AB.

28. Client Quotes
• “The CRI and its staff have proved themselves
invaluable to us, business owners and inventors, time
and time again. Without their passion, dedication
and knowledge we would not be in the position we
are today; Ready to market. We at Golden Sheep
whole heartedly thank the staff at the CRI for all their
hard work”.
- Golden Sheep Power

29. Client Quotes
• "Through the CRI with the Innovation Voucher
Program, Endeavour Equipment was able to take
our conceptual design to a prototype stage. The
CRI had the services, network & expertise to
ensure this challenging transition was handled
efficiently & professionally while meeting our
requirements with a personalized approach. I
recommend the CRI's professional innovation
services to business of any size & any field of
work..."
Adam Corfe, VP, Endeavour Equipment Inc.

30. About the Centre for
Research & Innovation…
“Wow what can we say... we
met you (CRI) when we had hit
2nd Base Originals a brick wall. We had a great
is a web based business idea and followed it through as
offering creative & far as we could and then stalled
because we had no idea how to
fashionable accessories for proceed. Left to our own, we
breast cancer survivors. may have given up… You
provided us with sound
professional advice on
marketing and production and
patenting. You encouraged us
to harness our enthusiasm and
believed in us which still carries
us through this new adventure.
- Katherine Fleming
Co CEO 2nd Base Originals

31. Intel Energy Systems Ltd.
Intel Energy Systems
Intel Energy Systems provides
renewable energy generation systems
for homes, commercial, industrial and
public sector. Their hybrid solar wind
generation system can provide greater
than 100 per cent of the electricity
required to run a house or a
commercial building.
CRI Service provided: innovation voucher
Sam Perera

32. CRI Client Randy Hanson

33. The most reliable, economical,
‘start it & forget it’
Heat Trace System on the market!
The Cataflow system is a flameless, self-powered hydronic heating system,
designed to operate away from the power grid.
Perfect for flow lines, pipelines, well heads and BOP’s.
"I only wish that I'd run into
CRI earlier. They're a
tremendous ally!"
- David Forseth, President
Cataflow Technologies Inc.

34. A number of different sources and surveys tell us that innovation
in the Peace rates near the highest per capita in all of Canada.
That is a “warm and fuzzy” statistic to know, but since I have lived
here most my life, it seems quite normal to me. I have always
known someone who is tinkering with something to come up with
a better way. Why wouldn’t we look for a better way? It may
make life easier and besides, exploration is fun!
Recent CRI Client – Kim Kinderwater with his prototypes

35. Pollutants to Products (P2P)
Concept – Reframes waste from a problem to a useful resource and
turns pollutants into industrial products
There are currently 20 major industry and 5 government partners
Total funding of $3,500,000
Major researchers
Dr. Weixing Tan – Principal Investigator
Dr. Melissa Day – Research Coordinator
Dr. Bruce Rutley – Director of CRI
Mr. Langji Lin – Research Engineer
GPRC Faculty members – Dr. Phil Johnson, Dr. Les Rawluk, Dr. George Ding, Dr. Ali Al-
Asadi, Dr. Georgia Goth, Mr. Rick Scott, Ms. Audrey Wells
GPRC Students - various

36. Turning Air Pollutants into Microalgae
• Microalgae are aquatic plants that need CO2
to live
• Flue gas from a boiler is pumped to the algae
• Algae then remove most of the CO2 from the
gas
Project partners
ConocoPhillips, NSERC,
EnEco Systems Inc,
Woodmere Nursery,
Rheaume Engineering,
Pond Biolfuels, Converted
Chlorella vulgaris: Carbon Technologies
Pilot Plant - algae tubes;
Pilot Plant algal species artificial light

37. Wastewater to Industrial Fiber (poplar)
• Wastewater contains nutrients trees can use (particularly
nitrogen and phosphorus)
• Wastewater is used to fertilise hybrid poplar trees
• Reduces need for storing/extreme treatment of wastewater
and (hopefully) increase tree growth
Hybrid Poplar
Project partners
Clairmont site
County of Grande Prairie
Aquatera
Ainsworth Eng LLP
NSERC
Canadian Forest Services

38. Hardening of White Spruce
• Arrival of spring is not consistent year to year
• A late spring frost can cost forestry industry
millions in mortality
• Seedlings are ‘hardened’ prior to planting as a
method to prevent/reduce frost losses
White spruce
Project partners Evidence of frost
Manning Diversified Forest
Products, Tolko Industries,
Vanderwell Construction,
Weyerhaeuser, CANFOR, PRT
Nursery, NSERC

39. Winter Planting – Wetland Reclamation
• Resource companies must reforest
• Wetlands in northern Alberta cannot be reforested in
spring (too soft for heavy machinery)
• Winter planted black spruce (<95% survival rate)
Black spruce (8 months old) Project partners
OSLI; Nexen, Global Winter planting: high hoe
Restoration Alberta, Alberta making mounds for seedling
Environment, Sustainable
Research Development,
Next Generation; Centre for
Resource Excellence

40. Centre for Research & Innovation
Contact:
Center for Research & Innovation
Grande Prairie Regional College
DIRECTOR and APPLIED RESEARCH
780-539-2054
INNOVATION SERVICES
780-539-2807
Toll Free: 1-877-539-2808
40