Southern Ontario Spotlight - July 2020

On July 17, the Honourable Mary Ng, Minister of Small Business, Export Promotion and International Trade, visited Venture13 in Cobourg, where she announced a FedDev Ontario investment of $4 million to support women entrepreneurs in southern Ontario, on behalf of the Honourable Melanie Joly, Minister of Economic Development and Official Languages.

With this investment through the Regional Relief and Recovery Fund (RRRF), the Northumberland CFDC and WindsorEssex Economic Development Corporation, in collaboration with regional partners, will deliver the Rebuild Reopen Revive Initiative to support women-led SMEs across southern Ontario. Both organizations will receive $2 million to provide contributions of up to $5,000 to help eligible businesses with key reopening expenditures, including acquiring PPE, reconfiguring workspaces to accommodate physical distancing, and enhancing their online capacity.

Over 700 women-led businesses will be supported through this initiative.

Interested SMEs can visit Northumberland CFDC (eastern Ontario) or WindsorEssex Economic Development Corporation (southwestern Ontario) for more details or to apply.

As part of her visit, Minister Ng also saw firsthand the impact of a $1.43 million FedDev Ontario investment for the Northumberland CFDC to develop an automated financial lending platform with an algorithm that removes gender bias. Successful applicants are enrolled automatically into a program offering advisory and support services, networking, and access to office space through Venture13. The CFDC is supporting the growth of 30 women-led businesses through this initiative.

Later joined by Minister Monsef, Minister Ng announced an additional $380,000 in FedDev Ontario investments to support four women-led businesses in Peterborough, delivered through the Women Entrepreneurship Strategy.

Read the news release to learn more.

The Government of Canada recognizes that the future of southern Ontario’s economy relies on the talent and skills of our young people. As nations around the world celebrated World Youth Skills Day on July 15, Minister Joly announced a $2.9 million investment to support Oro-Medonte manufacturer Molded Precision Components, a company that is committed to youth employment and skills development. The company currently employs 65 students, offering internships, co-ops, apprenticeships and training programs to support these workers to develop technical skills that position them for meaningful skilled employment.

With this FedDev Ontario investment, Molded Precision Components will expand its production facility by 45,000 sq. ft. and purchase three Cube-Injection Molding Systems over the next four years. This new technology, developed in collaboration with Niigon Machines Ltd., produces complex molded parts for the medical and automotive industries twice as fast as traditional methods. This expansion will result in the creation of over 30 high-skilled jobs.

In the face of COVID-19, Molded Precision Components quickly pivoted its operations and collaborated with leading medical equipment manufacturer Sterling Industries to produce over 27 million Health Canada-approved Shield-U protective face shields. This shift enabled the company to keep its team of 55 employed, while adding 40 new permanent positions and 65 student positions since March.

With this expansion, MPC is planning to increase its production capacity of protective face shields to 450,000 per day as part of the continued response to COVID-19. MPC also expects that its strong collaborative relationships within southern Ontario, including with 12 local businesses, will strengthen the local supply chain, laying the foundation for continued growth.

The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the critical importance of technology and propelled new technological developments and trends. With workplaces and industries shifting online and the need for virtual solutions greater than ever, tech firms are finding ways to adapt their models to continue to service their clients, while finding opportunities for development and growth.

On July 14, MP McCrimmon announced a combined FedDev Ontario investment of nearly $11.2 million to support three leading tech firms from the Ottawa Region as they expand capabilities, tap into new markets and create more than 140 skilled jobs.

 

Lytica Inc. uses artificial intelligence (AI) to provide real-time market insights to help companies find competitive prices and suppliers for electronic components. With a $1.08-million contribution from FedDev Ontario, Lytica will transition its current web-based portal to a Software as a Service (SaaS) model, enabling customers to integrate Lytica’s pricing analysis tools into their existing procurement software. This shift to a more customized, on-demand service will increase the platform’s value and global presence, bringing its customer base to over 500 clients worldwide. Through this project, 16 skilled jobs will be created in the Ottawa region.

Solace Corp. enables the smart, secure and efficient movement of data for large global banks, telecommunications providers, and gaming companies. With nearly 20 years of experience and more than 350 employees, its technology is an essential tool for large corporations with high volumes of data looking to connect across a wide range of platforms, Clouds, time zones and locations. Its recently launched PubSub+ event streaming and management platform will enable Solace to address new users through various new industries like automotive, manufacturing and healthcare. A $7-million contribution from FedDev Ontario will allow the company to promote its new software solution across new industries, significantly accelerating Solace’s growth. Through this investment, the company will secure its position as one of the first-to-market in this new category of modern technology and create 67 skilled jobs in the Ottawa region.

You.i TV is a leading Canadian technology company that provides a video streaming development platform that helps the world's leading TV and media brands distribute content across multiple digital media devices (including mobile, set-top boxes, game consoles, smart TVs and streaming devices). With FedDev Ontario’s $3.1-million repayable contribution, You.i TV will adapt its products and expand its market reach to new segments organically and through partnerships. The company expects to double its revenues in the next three years by increasing its market development beyond North America and television and media market segments, resulting in a new global clientele. In addition, You.i TV will develop a world-class innovation space to foster engagement with local universities and customers to push new technology boundaries and develop local talent. The project will create 55 skilled jobs in the Ottawa region.

On July 9, Minister Joly announced $4.5 million in funding to support businesses and organizations in Franco-Ontarian communities to rebuild and recover. Like many others, these businesses and organizations have experienced revenue reductions and financial hardship due to the COVID-19 crisis. With Ontario’s economy reopening, they need assistance to support operating costs, rebuild their revenues and support new re-opening expenditures, such as acquiring personal protective equipment (PPE) and re-tooling physical storefronts to adopt social distancing measures.

 

L’Assemblée de la francophonie de l’Ontario and the Prescott Russell Community Development Corporation (CDC) will each receive a $1.5-million investment to deliver funding support to SMEs, social enterprises and not-for profits, while Societé Économique de l’Ontario (SÉO) will receive a $1.5-million investment to provide advisory services to help businesses pivot for success and viability in the post-COVID-19 economy. Over 450 Franco-Ontarian organizations and SMEs will be supported across southern Ontario through this investment.

 

Social enterprises and not-for-profit organizations can find information and funding application instructions on l’Assemblée de la francophonie de l’Ontario’s website. 

 

SMEs can find information and funding application instructions on Prescott Russell CDC’s website.

 

Businesses and organizations seeking advisory services can find more information on SÉO’s website.

Waterloo-based KA Imaging is seeking expedited approval from Health Canada and the FDA for its innovative dual-energy subtraction (DES) x-ray detector, Reveal™, a portable device that could provide enhanced imaging for early detection of COVID-19, as well as pneumonia in the lungs of COVID-19 patients.

 

Reveal™ is a more economical and portable alternative to traditional CAT scan and x-ray technologies, and it provides higher-quality images. By capturing multiple energies within a single x-ray shot, the device enables doctors to simultaneously view conventional, lung and bone radiographs by differentiating between tissue types. In the case of COVID-19 patients, doctors can bring Reveal™ to a hospital room and clearly visualize patients’ lungs without the obstruction of bone for early detection of pneumonia while reducing radiation exposure. With a $1-million contribution from FedDev Ontario, KA Imaging’s $6-million project will expedite the commercialization of the company’s technology in the medical, industrial, veterinary and security sectors and create 10 jobs.

 

“As we unite the public and private sector to fight COVID-19, homegrown innovations and medical advancements are more important than ever. That is why the Government of Canada is pleased to support companies like KA Imaging, that are developing made-in-Canada solutions to help us fight this global crisis and improve healthcare moving forward, all while creating good jobs and supporting our economy.”

- The Honourable Mélanie Joly, Minister of Economic Development and Official Languages, and Minister responsible for FedDev Ontario

The Government of Canada continues to announce measures to help stabilize the economy as part of its COVID-19 Economic Response Plan. Updates from the last month include:

 

• On June 26, the eligibility criteria for the Canada Emergency Business Account (CEBA) was expanded to support more owner-operated businesses.
• A new Canada Student Service Grant, which will provide one-time payments of $1,000 to $5,000 to post-secondary students and recent graduates who volunteer to serve in their communities’ COVID-19 response;
• An eight-week extension of the Canada Emergency Response Benefit, making the benefit available to eligible workers for up to a total of 24 weeks;
• Announcement of a special one-time, tax-free payment to individuals who are certificate holders of the Disability Tax Credit as of June 1, 2020;
• Announcement of a one-time, tax-free, automatic payment for senior citizens who are eligible for the Old Age Security pension and the Guaranteed Income Supplement to help Canadian seniors cover increased costs caused by COVID-19.

 

For more information, visit the Government of Canada’s COVID-19 Economic Response Plan.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced the upcoming launch of a nation-wide mobile app that will notify users of potential exposure to COVID-19. If someone tests positive for COVID-19, a healthcare provider will give them a unique temporary code so the user can upload their status anonymously to a national network. Other users will receive a notification through the app if they have come in contact with someone who has tested positive for COVID-19, and will receive information on steps they can take to keep themselves and others safe. The app will help Canadians and public health officials identify and isolate the spread of the virus more quickly. Use of the app will be voluntary.

 

The Canadian Digital Service is leading the development of the app, in collaboration with the Ontario Digital Service and building upon technology developed by Shopify volunteers. To protect confidentiality and privacy, the app will not collect personal information, track user location, or disclose the identity of users.

 

The app will be available for Canadians to download for free on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store in the coming weeks.