For immediate release
May 9, 2013
Hamilton, Ontario—The Honourable Gary Goodyear, Minister of State for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario), officially opened the new McMaster Automotive Resource Centre (MARC) today during the Hamilton Economic Summit.
"Our Government is committed to bringing together the right tools and resources for businesses and manufacturers to succeed and for communities to prosper,"
said Minister Goodyear. "Our investment is creating high-quality jobs here in Hamilton and is helping put southern Ontario at the forefront of green automotive technology development, as well as advanced manufacturing."
Funding, announced by the Minister in August 2011, was provided through FedDev Ontario's Prosperity Initiative. McMaster University received up to $11.5 million toward a $26.4 million project to create the MARC for the research and development of innovations such as hybrid and electric powertrains, batteries and lightweight materials.
The MARC is expected to be home to approximately 120 to 150 workers in high-quality jobs related to research and development within the centre itself, and contribute to making the auto sector more competitive by providing southern Ontario businesses access to state-of-the-art equipment and teams of international experts in powertrain technology, automotive software, materials development, manufacturing processes, engineering design and sustainable infrastructure that will envision and prototype the next generation of vehicles.
MARC will move institutional research from the lab bench to the production line in commercialized products and accelerate innovation and productivity in small- and medium-sized enterprises, resulting in sales, exports and growth.
"The opening of this centre is especially gratifying because it brings together several important principles that are the focus of our work at the university,"
said McMaster president Patrick Deane. "It will allow our researchers to undertake exciting new projects and share new knowledge with our students. In creating modern manufacturing jobs, the centre will benefit the broader community, and will enable the development of cleaner, more efficient cars for drivers everywhere. Finally, in keeping with our commitment to sustainability, this will all happen in a reclaimed building."
Created in 2009, FedDev Ontario supports the southern Ontario economy by building on the region's strengths and creating opportunities for jobs and economic growth. In Economic Action Plan 2013, the Government of Canada demonstrated its continued commitment to workers, families and communities in southern Ontario with the renewal of FedDev Ontario. Economic Action Plan 2013 provides $920 million over five years for the Agency, starting on April 1, 2014. As part of the renewal, FedDev Ontario will be allocating $200 million over five years for a new Advanced Manufacturing Fund in Ontario.
As outlined by the Prime Minister, the Government of Canada remains focused on what Canadians care most about: their families, the safety of our streets and communities, their pride in being a citizen of this country, and their personal financial security.
To learn more, please visit www.FedDevOntario.gc.ca or call 1-866-593-5505.
Follow us on Twitter @FedDevOntario
– 30 –
For more information, contact:
Michele-Jamali Paquette
Director of Communications
Office of the Honourable Gary Goodyear
613-947-2956
Media Relations
FedDev Ontario
416-954-6652
Backgrounder
Contribution to the McMaster Automotive Resource Centre
With a Prosperity Initiative contribution of up to $11.5 million, a former warehouse space has been renovated and equipped into a "green" automotive research facility that houses the McMaster Automotive Resource Centre – MARC. The new facility provides a total of approximately 80,000-square feet of space for new development, prototyping, and large-scale product trials to market newly developed automotive technology for mass production. This project will see approximately 120 to 150 people working in leading edge research, development and knowledge transfer. In addition, this project is fostering new partnerships between post-secondary and industry experts; and is providing training opportunities for hundreds of students in the field of innovative automotive technology.
The Centre is drawing upon McMaster University's automotive research strengths, which include the $10-million Canada Excellence Research Chair in Hybrid Powertrain (held by Dr. Ali Emadi), and MacAUTO, the University's coordinating body for automotive research and development. These assets will work in tandem with expertise found at CANMET, a federal government materials technology lab, which opened at the McMaster Innovation Park in February 2011 to assist academic and industry partners with developing new materials and metal technologies.
Prosperity Initiative
FedDev Ontario's Prosperity Initiative, as part of the Southern Ontario Advantage initiatives, is encouraging businesses, not-for-profit organizations and post-secondary institutions in southern Ontario to undertake projects resulting in a more productive, diversified and competitive economy in the region.
To date, over $420 million in funding has been committed to 240 projects under the Southern Ontario Advantage initiatives, resulting in partnerships with more than 5,000 organizations, and over $1.2 billion in additional leveraged investments from almost exclusively non-government sources.
For more information, please visit the website at www.FedDevOntario.gc.ca.
