Abdeali Saherwala | Staff Writer
Featured image: The Initiative is a government- and private-funded initiative, which will increase Canada’s GDP, expand the job market, and is expected to improve Canada’s economy as a whole. | Basma Elbahnasawy
The Government of Canada has created the Innovation Superclusters Initiative, in which post-secondary education institutions across southern Ontario and Québec are participating in a joint private-public effort to boost the economy, create jobs, and increase innovation within Canada’s manufacturing sector.
This will be done by encouraging research and education, and increasing Ontario’s technological strength.
York is contributing to the Advanced Manufacturing Supercluster, joining more than 100 leading Canadian companies and other post-secondary institutions.
This initiative plans to help companies create newer tools, technologies, and information centres. It will bring individuals, information, knowledge, and talents from all across the world in an attempt to diversify Canada’s economy—specifically the manufacturing sector.
The ultimate goal is to help manufacturers across Canada become world leaders in the development, adoption, and production of advanced technologies, and to sustain Canada’s current economic development.
“We are working with universities and colleges across southern Ontario and Québec. Our objective is to connect the researchers and students with the capabilities that companies require to those companies that need them, so we are partnering with people, not institutions.
“York is a supporter because of the quality of the research, and the capabilities that students bring to our initiative,” says Jayson Myers, CEO of Next Generation Manufacturing Canada.
The federal government is investing $950 million in this initiative—an investment that will be matched by the private sector.
“The Supercluster initiative will provide federal funding to leverage approximately $800 million in private sector investments, in projects that will: make our existing assets more visible; connect companies, research, and education infrastructure; build collaboration across the advanced manufacturing ecosystem; deploy advanced technologies to transform production processes in key manufacturing sectors like auto, steel, food, and high value wood products; lead to the development and production of new manufacturing technologies in Canada; develop entirely new industries based on advanced technologies like Internet of Things devices, smart materials, and textiles; and help smaller companies de-risk the scale-up and adoption of new technologies,” adds Myers.
The federal government estimates over $13 billion will be added to the economy, and more than 13,500 jobs will be created over the next 10 years.
“The projects that will be led by the Supercluster will help define the competencies needed by the next generation workforce in manufacturing.
“We will be partnering with universities and colleges to support the research and skills development that will be necessary to achieve our project objectives,” he says.
A large investment by the private sector suggests that companies are attempting to innovate continuously in order to stay competitive within the global capitalist economy. This creates an urgency to innovate newer technologies to further Canada’s economy and job market.
Myers adds: “The very large contribution that our private sector partners have made shows how important it is to accelerate the adoption, scale-up, and production of advanced technologies, if manufacturers are to compete and grow in today’s global economy.
“It also shows how willing companies are to step up to make investments, if there are partners they can work with to help defray some of the risks and costs associated with the deployment and scale-up of new technologies.”
