Caplan - Canada at the Summit - (Page 19)

new KNOWLEDGE for a new economy CANADA AT THE SUM MIT UNIVERSITY OF ALBERTA gets At the University of Alberta in Edmonton, nanotechnology is a big deal. Since joining the University of Alberta faculty in 2003, Robert Burrell now Professor and Chair, Biomedical Engineering and Canada Research Council (CRC) Chair in Nanostructured Biomaterials, is carrying on his pioneering work that resulted in the introduction of Acticoat advanced dressings, the first medical therapeutic use of that technology. In the late 80s and early 90s when as a private sector researcher, he developed techniques to change the crystalline structure of silver to increase its solubility which also boosted its antimicrobial properties to heal burns. In simple terms, he was able reduce the size of silver to nanometer-size (one billion of a meter) bigger nanotechnology facilities to protect the IP, the university retains two-thirds of the value of the discovery. If researchers choose to use their own resources, then the numbers are reversed. With his past successful track record, Burrell has chosen to use his own resources. More important, as a result of his earlier commercialization experiences, Burrell has introduced standard industry product development protocols into his university research activities. “It is based on GLP (good laboratory practices) -- a specific set of rules related to record- and note-keeping for experiments, he says.” Another required industry approach that Burrell has introduced is design control. In essence, it is a process that provides an audit or paper trail for the laboratory project. “Both practices are not always used in university labs for conducting basic research,” he says. that stabilized its form and extended its shelf life while finding a suitable delivery mechanism for its bacteria-fighting capabilities. Those discoveries resulted in production of Acticoat dressing in a facility in nearby Fort Saskatchewan now owned by Smith & Nephew, the world’s largest producer of wound dressings. More recently he has been building on the foundation of his earlier discoveries to adapt their healing qualities from antimicrobial to anti-inflammatory. He plans to spin off his latest research into a new company. “We have an inhalable form in place now and are still working on an ingestible form,” he says. According to Burrell, the University Alberta’s ’s research commercialization policy allows researchers to decide how they wish capitalize on their discoveries. If they choose to use the university’s SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY Tiny Perfect TECHNOLOGY When SWITCH was being set up, the investor group decided to buy back the IP rights from SFU in return for a cash payment and a minority equity stake in the company. “The investors decided it made more economic sense to own the technology since the typical exit strategy for start-up firms is to be acquired by a larger company,” says SWITCH CEO Doug Wiggins. SWITCH conducts its research and development activities in its own laboratories and the state-of-the-art analytical and clean room facilities at 4D LABS, Simon Fraser University’s new $40 million materials science research centre. The firm currently has 15 employees. So far, after two rounds of venture capital it has raised more than $10 million. Burnaby B.C-based SWITCH Materials Inc. is actively developing revolutionary new materials based on proprietary organic molecules that “switch” optical properties on command. The technology behind the start-up was spun out of Simon Fraser University (SFU). It provides the company with the capability to create thin, light-blocking films that can duplicate at low cost the effect of photo-gray sunglasses only for full-sized windows. In the words of Simon Fraser University chemistry professor, Neil Branda and now SWITCH co-founder and chief technology officer, it is really a sun-seeking material that can block out the solar rays and heat. Under SFU’s research commercialization policy, researchers own the intellectual property (IP) rights to their discoveries. “Our job is to get new companies started,” says Mike Volker, the university’s Burnaby B.C.-based chief commercialization officer. “That involves educating researchers and business people about possible opportunities. We also help researchers access private funds seasoned entrepreneurs and ‘angel’ investors interested in working together to commercialize discoveries.” Researchers interested in commercialization receive feedback from Volker and his colleagues after they conduct an initial assessment that involves ensuring there is a real market for the discovery. “If we say yes, we then draw up an agreement to make it clear what we will do and what we receive in return,” he says. www.newknowledge.ca http://www.newknowledge.ca

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Caplan - Canada at the Summit