Innovation Canada: A Call to Action

Filling the GapsBox 7.2 Canadian Innovation CommercializationProgram (CICP)The CICP is a $40-million, two-year pilot program announced by the federal government in2010 and administered by Public Works and Government Services Canada. The program wascreated to help Canadian businesses bridge the pre-commercialization gap by procuring andtesting innovations. The current calls for proposals require innovations to be valued at$500 000 or less, to have yet to be sold commercially, to be provided by Canadian bidders,and to include at least 80 percent Canadian content. The products must fit into one of thefollowing categories: environment, safety and security, health and enabling technologies.Innovations are pre-selected based on their degree of innovation, the testing plan and thecommercialization strategy. They are matched to federal departments that then test themand provide feedback on their operation. The program covers the costs of the innovation,delivery, installation and maintenance services, as well as any other direct costs required totest the innovative product. The program’s process is fully competitive and consistent withtrade agreements.would provide incentives for solving operationalproblems identified by departments. Making therevised CICP a permanent program, onceperformance of a revised pilot can be evaluated,would help change the procurement culture.3.4 Globally competitive capabilities —Plan and design major Crown procurementsto provide opportunities for Canadiancompanies to become globally competitivesubcontractors.The currently planned procurement of defenceand security-related equipment and servicespresents a significant opportunity to greatlyincrease the technological readiness ofCanadian industry. 3 There is a need for theDepartment of National Defence to be moreproactive in promoting a defence industrialcapability domestically. The key is to implementa long-term technology capability plan for eachmajor procurement, jointly developed bygovernment and industry and supported bytailored programs. For the Department ofNational Defence, this would mean acceleratingits Project ACCORD with industry as well asDefence Research and Development Canada’sTechnology Demonstration Program. 4 As theexperience of other countries has shown, evenconcerted efforts to promote global supplychain participation takes many years to produceresults. Canada therefore needs to startimmediately. It is emphasized that incrementalinvestment for such improved long-termcapability is scalable. Decisions on amountsshould be relative to opportunities.While the recent Industrial Research Benefits(IRB) policy enhancements — with multipliersfor investments in innovation — are largelyuntested, an additional incentive to invest intechnology commercialization would helpincrease global value chain participation for3 The Canada First Defence Strategy sets out a new long-term funding framework for the Canadian Forces, with projectedpurchases of $240 billion of equipment, infrastructure, and operations and maintenance services between 2008–09 and2027–28.4 Project ACCORD is a Department of National Defence mechanism to bring together industry, academia and government inidentifying Canadian Forces deficiencies and proposed approaches to solutions. Defence Research and DevelopmentCanada’s Technology Demonstration Project funds contracted out R&D in collaboration with private sector partners, valuedat $25.5 million in 2010–11.7-5