Montréal, Quebec, November 25, 2010 - Bernard Généreux, Member of Parliament for Montmagny–L'Islet–Kamouraska–Rivière-du-Loup, extended his congratulations on behalf of the Honourable Tony Clement, Minister of Industry, to the recipients of one of the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) 2010 Synergy Awards for Innovation today. The award recognizes university–industry research and development (R&D) collaborations that lead to innovative products that are key to economic growth. McGill University received the 2010 Synergy Award in recognition of its partnership with supporting companies, which has resulted in the development of the McGill Metals Processing Centre (MMPC).
"Science, technology and innovation contribute greatly to fostering productivity, competitiveness and growth in Canada," said Mr. Généreux. "The advances made by the winners of the Synergy Awards are examples of the best of Canadian innovation and showcase the types of partnerships that will drive our economy forward."
Dr. Roderick Guthrie and Dr. Mihaiela Isac of McGill University are being recognized with the prestigious Leo Derikx Award for their contributions to global advances in liquid and solid metal processing. The MMPC allows researchers to focus on the processing and production of advanced metallurgical materials and provides academic members with first-class facilities and state-of-the-art equipment that allow them to compete at the highest international levels.
This program is carried out in collaboration with the MMPC's member companies -Hatch, Novelis, Heraeus Electro-Nite, Sumitomo Metals Industries and Rio Tinto, together with its subsidiaries QIT-Fer et Titane and Alcan.
Award-winning researchers receive a $200 000 research grant, while each industry partner has an opportunity to hire an NSERC Industrial R&D Fellow for two years, with NSERC supporting the industrial portion of the fellow's salary. The recipients will be recognized at ceremonies to be held at a later date.
"The strategic investments that NSERC has made over the years have led to numerous successful collaborations such as those we are recognizing today," said Dr. Suzanne Fortier, President of NSERC. "The Synergy Awards highlight partnerships that bring together the best researchers from Canadian universities and the leading innovators from the private sector, resulting in the transfer of tangible research results to those who can translate them into economic and social benefits for Canadians."
NSERC is a federal agency which helps make Canada a country of discoverers and innovators for all Canadians. The agency supports some 29,500 university students and postdoctoral fellows in their advanced studies. NSERC promotes discovery by funding more than 11,800 university professors every year and fosters innovation by encouraging more than 1,500 Canadian companies to participate and invest in postsecondary research projects.
For more information on the NSERC 2010 Synergy Awards for Innovation, see the backgrounder.
For further information (media only), please contact:
Lynn Meahan
Press Secretary
Office of the Honourable Tony Clement
Minister of Industry
613-995-9001
Media Relations
Industry Canada
613-943-2502
Martine Perreault
Media and Public Affairs Officer
Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada
613-996-7238
martine.perreault@nserc-crsng.gc.ca
The Synergy Awards for Innovation were launched in 1995 by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) to recognize partnerships in the natural sciences and engineering research and development (R&D) between universities and industry. Since their inception, the awards have honoured the most outstanding achievements of university–industry collaboration in the natural sciences and engineering.
By working together, award-winning companies and universities have proven that effective partnerships are the foundation of achievement. Their success has enriched the academic and research programs within Canadian universities while providing tangible benefits to Canadians.
The universities each receive a $200 000 NSERC research grant. Industrial partners each receive the prestigious Synergy sculpture and an opportunity to hire an NSERC Industrial R&D Fellow for two years (NSERC will bear the cost of the industrial portion of the fellow's salary).
The Synergy Awards for Innovation showcase innovation and the benefits of pooling resources to make the most of Canadian ingenuity. Synergy Awards are offered in four categories:
- Small and Medium-Sized Companies - A partnership with a single company of up to 500 employees.
- Large Companies - A partnership with a single company of more than 500 employees.
- Two or More Companies - A partnership with two or more companies of any size.
- Leo Derikx Award - An established innovative model of a long-standing university–industry partnership in pre-competitive R&D that has improved the general well-being of an industry.
The Leo Derikx Award goes to Dr. Roderick Guthrie, Director, and Dr. Mihaiela Isac, Research Manager, of the McGill Metals Processing Centre.
Formed in 1990, the McGill Metals Processing Centre (MMPC) is a vibrant Canadian research centre created for research studies into the processing and production of advanced metallurgical materials. Led by Dr. Guthrie and Dr. Isac, the MMPC conducts a research program that is focused on the development and quantitative description of specific liquid and solid metal processing operations. Academic members pursue innovative, high-level, fundamental and applied research programs, make seminal contributions to the archival literature and produce exceptionally well-trained students. The MMPC provides its researchers with first-class facilities and state-of-the-art equipment, so as to allow them to compete at the highest international levels.
In keeping with its mandate for generic-type research in metals processing and to provide a program of current interest and concern to industrial partners, the MMPC hosts Annual Review of Progress Meetings. There, academic members, prominent guest speakers and industrial partners from around the world make presentations on the latest developments and trends in process metallurgy. Graduate students are directly involved, making presentations, displaying technical posters and providing laboratory demonstrations to International Advisory Board Members and guests.
Presently, some 20 major international companies in the ferrous and light metals industries are corporate partners. As such, the MMPC has become a true international centre for process metallurgy. Among its supporting member companies, special thanks go to Hatch, Novelis, Heraeus Electro-Nite, Sumitomo Metals Industries, and Rio Tinto, with its subsidiaries QIT-Fer et Titane and Alcan, which are all collaborators in the centre's generic research activities.
