Research & Development

Manitoba Grows and Markets New Knowledge

Growing clusters of public research institutions and research-based private sector firms give Manitoba a growing international profile in agriculture and health biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, medical and diagnostic devices and industrial research.

The $142-million Canadian Science Centre for Human and Animal Health is Canada’s only Level 4 research facility for the study of human and animal disease organisms, and and is the home of Canada’s new International Centre for Infectious Diseases (ICID).

Just down the street are the Health Sciences Centre and the University of Manitoba’s medical campus, home to the Institute of Cell Biology. A few minutes away, the St. Boniface General Hospital Research Centre is a leading Canadian research institute in the new field of nutraceuticals as well as a leader in cardiology, gerontology and magnetic resonance imaging research. Adjacent to the Research Centre, the new I.H. Asper Clinical Research Institute provides researchers with the technology to develop basic research discoveries into new and innovative treatments for heart and vascular disease.

At the University of Manitoba’s main campus, the Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada research station, the U of M Faculty of Agriculture, and the Monsanto Crop Development Centre bring together expertise in the development of new varieties of and uses for crops such as canola, wheat, oats, barley, rye and pulses. The Faculty of Engineering is developing a similar profile in telecommunications and advanced manufacturing.

The new Composites Innovation Centre, located near the University of Manitoba, is jointly funded by the private and public sector. The Centre supports research, education, training and project management in the field of advanced composite materials, with applications for aerospace, automotive, civil infrastructure, sporting goods equipment, electronics, household appliances, furniture and other industries. The Centre provides access to advanced research tools, including highly sophisticated testing equipment.

Researchers in Manitoba are committed to taking their ideas to market.

The St. Boniface General Hospital Research Centre has launched several companies to commercialize the research discoveries of scientists at the centre in the fields of cardiology, biotechnology, minimally invasive surgery, and medical devices.

The National Research Council’s Institute of Biodiagnostics – a world leader in developing new kinds of medical imaging equipment – is the site of a new, $14 million business incubation centre. The Institute has spun off five companies to date to market its discoveries.

Research at the University of Manitoba has been making a big impact in the marketplace for decades. Scientists at the U of M were the first to modify low-value rapeseed to develop the multi-billion dollar  oilseed crop canola. The Universityhas developed a 100-acre multi-tenant research and technology park – known as SmartPark – to allow Manitoba's knowledge-based industries to benefit from close university-industry interaction. Tenants of SmartPark include organizations in the fields of information technology, wireless communication, advanced manufacturing and materials, functional foods and nutraceuticals, and biotechnology and life sciences.

Cangene Corporation, adjacent to the university, produces WinRho, the substance given to Rh-negative pregnant women around the world to prevent potentially fatal Rh disease in their children. It grew out of a discovery by University of Manitoba researchers and has since saved numerous lives around the world. A world leader in specialty hyper-immune plasma and biotechnology products, Cangene has been awarded a number of contracts by the U.S. government to develop drugs to respond to potential biological attacks, with recent contracts valued at over $500 million.

Manitoba researchers have been generating world-class discoveries for decades, and through funds such as the Western Life Sciences Venture Fund and the Ensis Growth Fund – new companies continue to be developed to commercialize those discoveries close to home.

The tax environment in Manitoba encourages industry to continuously develop new and innovative products and processes. Programs like the Manitoba Research and Development Tax Credit and the federal Scientific Research and Experimental Development Tax Credit provide Manitoba companies with considerable leverage for their R&D investments. Over the years, studies by various agencies have repeatedly confirmed that Canada’s income tax treatment of research is among the most generous in the world, especially when coupled with provincial incentives. In 2007, after considering both Manitoba’s R&D tax credit and the federal credit, the after-tax cost of one dollar of qualifying R&D expenditure in Manitoba is between 40¢ and 44¢, depending on a firm’s size and corporate structure. 

Business Facts - Research & Development | Industry Sector Summaries