The announcement was made in Moncton, N.B., Thursday by Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development, and the Minister responsible for ACOA.
“The Government of Canada, through ACOA, is making strategic investments in innovation that build on competitive regional advantages and support diversification of Atlantic communities. By investing in projects like those announced today, we will help Canadian businesses grow, innovate and export so that they can create good quality jobs and generate wealth for Canadians,” Bains said in a release.
In Newfoundland and Labrador, two businesses will benefit from the money.
The Centre for Cold Ocean Resources Engineering (C-Core) will receive up to $3 million in AIF funding for a radar-based system to help the oil and gas and shipping industries manage ice. The Airborne Ice Thickness Measurement system will help reduce risk associated with ice in those industries and will also support search and rescue operations in environments where ice is a factor.
Working with a number of partners, C CORE will develop and commercialize the new system, which uses ice-penetrating radar data to provide ice thickness maps over large areas.
Canatec Associates International Ltd. has offices in St. John’s, Calgary, and The Hague. It is receiving $853,127 to aid in the development of a search and rescue (SAR) personal locator beacon prototype system.
The new system will consist of an improved alarm and location personnel beacons, biometrics to measure conditions of victims, two-way communications, and web-enabled situational awareness displays with almost real-time communications.
There are also companies in New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia that will receive funding.
This is an edited version
