Media Release | October 14, 2014

UBC received $3.8M for a research facility that will develop technologies for human protection, survivability and performance in extreme or remote conditions.

UBC has launched a new research innovation facility where industry and university researchers can pool their knowledge to rapidly develop novel technologies for human protection, survivability and performance in extreme or remote conditions.

On Tuesday, the Honourable Michelle Rempel, Minister of State for Western Economic Diversification, announced funding of $3.801 million to establish the Survive and Thrive Applied Research (STAR) facility at UBC’s Okanagan campus in Kelowna, BC.

STAR combines world-class research expertise and global partner networks to help commercialize innovative products and develop ideas that can be applied in a wide range of sectors, including manufacturing, natural resources, healthcare, and defense.

Paul van Donkelaar (middle) is working on a concussion-reducing sports helmet made out of impact-absorbing material

One of the first STAR projects is a collaboration between UBC, Kelowna-based Helios Global Technologies, and Imperial College London (UK) to develop a high-tech helmet that can reduce the risk of concussion in contact sports such as hockey and football.

“Collaboration with STAR greatly enhances our capacity to develop innovative products,” says Helios CEO Martin Cronin. “It gives us access to world-class research that helps us to quickly prove out concepts and explore multi-sectoral applications, and also access to funding through our research partnerships.”

STAR partnerships create important opportunities for university researchers and their students, says Prof. Paul van Donkelaar, Director of UBC’s School of Health and Exercise Sciences and Principal Investigator with the UBC Sports Concussion Research Lab.

“We’re working on compelling projects directly related to our primary research, and which also create new ideas for future research and real-world learning opportunities for students,” says van Donkelaar. The STAR partnership with Imperial College London has led to a new collaboration accord which will include student and faculty exchanges between institutions.

“British Columbia, Canada and the UK have remarkable strengths in advanced engineering and innovative technologies, so it is even more remarkable when they bring these shared strengths together,” says Howard Drake, British High Commissioner to Canada. “This facility, along with a broader collaboration between the partners on student and academic exchanges, will advance a range of exciting real-world solutions to help the security industry. I wish everyone involved all the best for what promises to be an exciting future.”

Other STAR initiatives include development of sensors for autonomous aerial vehicles (UAVs) for use in forestry and agriculture, and personal wireless stop-button technology for workers using large industrial machinery.

Learn more about the STAR facility at star.ubc.ca.

For Western Economic Diversification’s October 14 announcement, click here.

BACKGROUND

The Survive and Thrive Applied Research facility creates collaboration connections between industry and university researchers with expertise and equipment to meet the needs of industry and society. The collaborative network provides unique access to diverse interdisciplinary research, from human physiology, mental health and social work to manufacturing processes, product prototyping and marketing.

STAR’s research expertise and facilities focus on:

• New product design and rapid prototyping
• Advanced materials and fabrication
• Device and materials testing and impact assessment
• Mental health and human performance
• Small- and medium-sized enterprises, cooperation, and regional economic development

A better sports helmet is just one of the projects already underway through STAR. Other current initiatives include:

Higher tech: Seeing more from the air

The science of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) is taking off at UBC. Intelligent and increasingly autonomous, these flying devices are typically used today for visual identification — carrying sensors such as optical daylight cameras or forward-looking infrared (FLIR) systems. It’s an emerging high-tech field with tremendous potential.

That’s where STAR comes in.

Among the development projects currently underway, Assoc. Prof. Homayoun Najjaran and his team at UBC’s Advanced Control and Intelligent Systems Lab are working with partners in forestry and agriculture to develop micro-UAVs, software, and sensors for remote sensing techniques that can revolutionize precision viticulture and crop management.

This research will lead to new products and services improving crop quality and yields in British Columbia’s thriving wine industry. Specialized sensors and micro-UAVs also have application in search and rescue, mining, and the oil and gas sector.

Stop the presses: A safer industrial workplace

Industrial equipment can be big, powerful and dangerous. Often, the safety controls are in the form of mechanical buttons that can shut things down immediately.

But what if you can’t reach the button when you need to?

That’s a safety challenge taken up by Asst. Prof. Jahangir Hossain and  Asst. Prof. Thomas Johnson of UBC’s Okanagan School of Engineering and STAR industrial affiliate Helios Global Technologies. They are developing a wireless-based emergency stop system for industrial machinery.

The basic concept is to enable an individual to carry a wireless handset that communicates directly with a wireless receiver, which is in turn integrated with a standard emergency stop button.

The system will react in the same manner as a manual emergency stop system and immediately shut down any machine that currently uses an emergency stop system.

A new recording studio hand-built by a father-son team is open for business in West Kelowna.

Empire Sonic Recording Studio opened its doors last month after a year of construction. They have already worked with more than 15 bands and artists. 

Evan Ferguson graduated from the audio engineering program at Okanagan College in April of 2013. He was in the process of sending out resumes when his father asked what it would take to get a studio of their own set up. 

"I asked what he was going to get paid and he said $10 or $10.50 to start," Bill Ferguson said. "I said, 'what's it cost to get into it?'"

About $100,000 and a year later, they had converted the garage of their West Kelowna home into a "floating" studio, capable of analog and digital recording. And from the outside the public would never know a professional studio is housed inside.

The studio is floating because it is completely insulated with polyurethane strips and the interior walls are all separate from the exterior walls of the house. There are no parallel walls in any of the recording rooms to increase sound quality. 

Most of the materials are secondhand, sourced from ReStore in West Kelowna. The soundboard they are leasing from Ferguson's former instructor at Okanagan College. The electrical work was all hand-soldered by Evan. 

To raise the money Evan applied for a youth entrepreneurial loan from Community Futures Development Corporation. After a lengthy approval process, he got $40,000 plus the cost of insurance for the loan. 

"We want to be the mecca of places to make good music and get good sound," Bill said. "Over the past four or five years several studios have closed down on the coast. Kelowna is starting to fill that gap."

Bill Ferguson said he was hearing from artists that they would love to come to the Okanagan, but hotels are too expensive to make it worth their while. 

The Fergusons envision a "stay and play" concept for the studio, where travelling bands or artists could spend a night or two at the house while doing their recording. 

Empire Sonic is currently working on a three-song EP for local band Twin Towns who are going on tour to Ontario and back starting Oct. 13.

Lead engineer Zach Pentyliuk said right now they're trying to build a reputation. 

"People that come in are really impressed," he said. "We don't have to sell this."

While the studio is bringing in revenue, Evan Ferguson maintains his job delivering pizza for Canadian 2-for-1 when he needs extra cash. 

The studio is located at 3615 Empire Place in West Kelowna below Misson Hill winery.

For an unprecedented second year in a row, Kelowna has received the province’s Open For Business Award.

The B.C. Small Business Roundtable’s Open for Business Awards were presented Wednesday evening during the Union of British Columbia Municipalities (UBCM) annual convention in Whistler.

“Open for Business is an attitude that permeates our entire organization,” said Kelowna Mayor Walter Gray. “Winning this Award for a second year in a row demonstrates the Kelowna Advantage and is a testament to the positive attitude and high standard of service by valued team players at the City of Kelowna. Management and staff truly deserve this recognition.” said Kelowna Mayor Walter Gray in accepting the Award.

As a community where 94 per cent of businesses have fewer than 20 employees, the City of Kelowna has adapted and streamlined services to ensure entrepreneurs receive prompt service and advice on technical and licensing matters.

For example, the City partnered with the Ministry of Technology, Innovation and Citizens’ Services earlier this year to make the process of setting up a new business easier than ever. Under the ministry’s OneStop Business Registry service for entrepreneurs registering a new business, they can now also complete a City of Kelowna Business Licence at the same time.

“The City of Kelowna is truly blessed with such great partners including the Economic Development Commission, Tourism Kelowna, the Kelowna Chamber, our Business Improvement Areas, Accelerate Okanagan, as well as our business service providers such as the Women’s Enterprise Centre and Community Futures,” said Jim Paterson, Kelowna’s Executive Director of Business Development. “It is the Team Kelowna partnership and our collective action that demonstrates the Kelowna Advantage.”

This year’s other recipients are Grand Forks, City of Langley, Parksville, Port Coquitlam, Salmon Arm, Smithers, Surrey and Vernon. The award also comes with $10,000 as an incentive to further promote an open-for-business culture.

“Communities across our province can look to the winners for best practices and help make B.C. the most small-business friendly jurisdiction in Canada,” Minister of State for Tourism and Small Business, Naomi Yamamoto said in a statement at the presentation ceremony.

2014 CFDCCO Board of Directors

For Immediate Release – June 17^th 2014

The Central Okanagan Economic Development Commission announces the release of the Growing in the Okanagan 2020 Labour Market Outlook, the Okanagan Region’s first detailed look at the Region’s turnover rates, compensation data, and top occupations poised for growth and expected shortages by sector. 

Conducted for the Regional District of Central Okanagan (RDCO), Growing in the Okanagan is a multi-component study which assesses the nature and extent of the labour market, and demand and supply of skills training and skilled labour in the Okanagan Region. The research includes a detailed assessment of the North Okanagan, Central Okanagan, and Okanagan-Similkameen Regional Districts aimed at providing a full understanding of labour market trends, the post-secondary education needs and specific program gaps, and anticipated labour market needs within the next five years.

“The project was motivated by changing economic climates in British Columbia and the unique opportunities and challenges faced by the Okanagan Region.  The 2020 Okanagan Labour Market Outlook provides comprehensive data from multiple primary and secondary sources which provides detailed information about the future workforce needs throughout the Region.  This information can be used by various industry, training and policy stakeholders to ensure the Okanagan is poised for growth,” says Corie Griffiths, Business Development Officer for the COEDC

The Central Okanagan Economic Development Commission (COEDC) and its partners recognize the need for detailed employment forecasts in order to develop market strategies aimed at increasing the availability of skilled labour.

The COEDC is an agency of the Regional District of Central Okanagan (RDCO). The Commission is funded by and accountable to the elected board of the RDCO.

The work completed for this project was conducted in support of one initiative by the Commission to collect the information required to forecast employment and skills training requirements. 

The COEDC would like to recognize that the 2020 Labour Market Outlook study was funded and facilitated in partnership with: The Employment Program of British Columbia funded by the Government of Canada Government of Canada, Okanagan Valley Economic Development Society, University of British Columbia Okanagan and Okanagan College.

Growing in the Okanagan 2020 Labour Market Outlook can be downloaded here.

For more information please contact:

Corie Griffiths, Business Development Officer

Okanagan Economic Development Commission

Regional District of Central Okanagan

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

250.469.6280

www.investkelowna.com

Click here for information on Business Succession Workshop Wednesday, June 11, 12:00 - 1:30 pm - lunch will be served.