INDUSTRIAL
RESEARCH
ASSISTANCE
PROGRAM (IRAP)Helping small and medium-sized businesses grow
LSBC McCarthy Spotlight Series: Non-Dilutive Funding.
June 25, 2020
Industrial Research Assistance Program
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STIMULATE WEALTH CREATION for Canada
through innovation
ACCELERATE THE GROWTH of small and medium-
sized businesses by providing them with a
comprehensive suite of innovation services and
funding
NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL CANADA
MANDATE
MISSION
Industrial Research Assistance Program • NRC IRAP
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SERVE OVER 8,000
CLIENTS ANNUALLY (advisory services + funding)
across all industry sectors
and fund over 3,000 clients
PROVIDE ADVICE,
CONNECTIONS,
AND FUNDING to help Canadian
small and medium-sized
businesses increase their
innovation capacity and
take ideas to market
NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL CANADA
Industrial Technology Advisors (ITAs)
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• Private sector experience
• Later in career cycle (typically 20+
years experience)
• Senior managers and entrepreneurs
• Most have an engineering or science
background
• 255 advisors across Canada
NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL CANADA
IRAP Pacific Region Life Science ITAs
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Biological / Biochemical Sciences
• Eric Atkinson, PhD
• Paul Barran, PhD
• Cynthia Shippam, PhD
• Mac Parmar, PhD
• Deana Dryhurst, PhD
Digital Health Technologies and/or Medical Devices
• Alexei Doudkine, PhD
• David Phillips, MSc
• Trevor MoatNATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL CANADA
Building a Trusting Relationship with
Clients to Help Their Business Prosper
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WE HELP REMOVE PAIN POINTS FOR BUSINESSES INCLUDING:
• Capital and financing
• Human resource talent
• Export market access and knowledge
• Technology (adaptation and insight)
• Market knowledge/intelligence
• CxO talent
• Productivity enhancement
• Strategy development
NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL CANADA
…..and (sometimes) funding for R&D
Federal Transfer Payments:
Contributions vs. Grants
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Contribution
Is a transfer payment. IRAP Funding is a Financial Contribution specified in a funding agreement (the “Contribution Agreement”).
A contribution is to be accounted for and is subject to audit.
Grant
Is a transfer payment subject to pre-established eligibility and other entitlement criteria. A grant is not subject to being accounted for by a recipient nor normally subject to audit. The recipient may be required to report on results achieved.
All IRAP funding is a Financial Contribution
IRAP Funding is Provided as a
Reimbursement
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• Client needs to have incurred the expense first, and then
claim for reimbursement
• IRAP reimbursement level is only partial and only covers
some of the costs of the project
• Therefore the client must demonstrate they have the
financial capability to fund their share of the project costs
AND be able to financially bridge the gap between
incurring the expense and being reimbursed for it
IRAP projects are usually for growth-stage companies
with money in the bank or a revenue stream
What IRAP Can Support
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IRAP Can Contribute Partially Towards These Project Costs
• Technical salaries (T4’d employees)
• Contractor costs (can include self-employed technical staff)
We Do NOT support
• Employee Benefits
• Equipment Costs
• Consumables Costs
• Patenting and Legal Costs
• Clinical Trials
• Manufacturing
• Travel*
Who can we select?
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BASIC ELIGIBILITY
• Incorporated SME operating in Canada
• 500 or fewer employees
• Objective to grow through innovation
CONTACT IRAP TO DETERMINE ELIGIBILITY
• Call toll-free: 1-877-994-4724
• Connection to Client Engagement Advisor• Will get a basic understanding of your firm
• Will determine if suitable for IRAP engagement at this
time (may also suggest alternative programs)
• Will connect with an ITA if appropriate.
Project Assessments
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• Business opportunity and market demand
• Management & financial capabilities
• Potential to achieve expected outcomes
• Plan to commercialize results
ASSESSMENT OF THE BUSINESS
• Project plan and technical challenges
• R&D team’s capacity to achieve uccess
• Capacity for IP generation
• Potential impact on the firm and Canada
ASSESSMENT OF THE Project
Types of IRAP Projects
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Technical Expertise
$
• “Regular” IRAP R&D Projects
• Accelerated Review Process (ARP) Projects
• Youth Employment Projects
• International Collaborative Projects
Helping SMEs succeed globally:
Support for International Collaborations
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SUPPORTED PROGRAMS:
NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL CANADA
• EUREKA
• Eurostars™
• Canadian International Innovation Program (CIIP)
• CanExport
https://nrc.canada.ca/en/irap/about/international
Other Types of IRAP Support
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Technical Expertise
$
• NRC R&D Certificate
• Makes access to NRC’s facilities and expertise simpler and more affordable to IRAP clients
• NRC Researcher – SME Interaction
• Covers cost of 3-5 days of an NRC Researcher’s time to consult for an IRAP client
COVID-19 and NRC IRAP
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• IRAP program is continuing on with “business as usual
• Virtual meetings with clients vs site visits
• Certain high priority COVID-19 projects have been fast-tracked for
funding from national (not regional) budget
• Assisting OGDs with COVID-19 priorities
• Innovation Assistance Program (Wage Subsidy)
NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL CANADA
NRC IRAP DISRUPT COVID-19 PITCH SESSIONS
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DISRUPT COVID-19 PITCH SESSIONS
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Initiated and Organized by NRC IRAP
• Allowed multiple key government departments and agencies
to get a quick appreciation for Canadian SMEs with
innovative technology for the fight against COVID-19
• SMEs and IRAP obtained feedback regarding interest and
priority areas from key government departments and
agencies
• Facilitated introductions between SMEs and interested
government departments
• Helped to inform NRC COVID-19 Challenge Program
NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL CANADA
NRC IRAP ISC COVID-19 Challenge Program
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https://nrc.canada.ca/en/support-technology-innovation/industrial-research-
assistance-program-innovative-solutions-canada-covid-19-challenge-program
COVID-19 Program Support Summary
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• The document at the DROP BOX link below is a collection of information compiled by the NRC IRAP
Client Engagement Advisors (CEA) located in the IRAP Pacific Region (BC and Yukon).
• It contains a summary of various COVID-19 support programs (not just IRAP) collected from numerous
sources circulating within the technology community and elsewhere.
• This is NOT a complete or official list of programs. Rather, it is a best effort by the IRAP Pacific CEA team
as service to our innovative SME community. As such, none of the content is guaranteed to be accurate
or up to date.
• There may be some errors and associated links within the document may change or expire. Summary
information may also become outdated. Always check the associated links for any real time changes.
• The document has been updated many times so far (Version 16 as of June 12, 2020). Updates will likely
be made less often now unless the COVID-19 situation in BC and Canada changes dramatically. The most
recent update will be accessible at the link below, but the document may be removed at any time without
notice.
DROP BOX:
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/ujqkl0dfbuv6h3a/AADvGHmfA2VWjtUtITkbQLeva?dl=0
NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL CANADA
CONTACT IRAP
Call toll-free:
1-877-994-4727A Client Engagement Advisor will Assist You!