By leveraging our cutting-edge resources, partners can access specialized equipment, advanced technology, and expert faculty guidance to address industry challenges, conduct research, and develop innovative solutions. Our facilities provide a unique environment for experimentation, prototyping, and testing, allowing partners to refine their products and processes with confidence.

Moreover, collaborating with us grants industry partners access to a pool of talented students and faculty members who can contribute fresh perspectives, skills, and insights to their projects. Through partnership with Red River College Polytechnic, industry partners can accelerate innovation, enhance competitiveness, and drive sustainable growth in their respective sectors.

Whether you’re a for-profit company, non-profit, entrepreneur, post-secondary, or other research institution, we are willing to assist in applied research projects, technical services and providing customized training support.

First, you may contact the Industry Liaison Manager directly to assess the needs for the project and subsequently arrange an introductory meeting with the relevant contacts within RRC Polytech. During the intro meeting, the team has the opportunity to ask questions to confirm we have the capabilities to help, and to come to an agreement on a project scope.

RPIs research centres operate on a cost-recovery basis. There may be costs to be recovered for certain staff time, materials and supplies required for the project, and/or machine run time. The college may assist the organization in identifying funding to contribute towards the cost of the project through government funding programs, philanthropic donations, or a combination of sources. Government funding programs will often require a cash contribution from the client.

Note that there is often a turnaround time for grant applications to be reviewed and approved. If timing is of the essence, the client may choose to skip a grant application and cover the full cost.

At RRC Polytech, industry and community partners typically retain the IP developed in the course of collaborative applied research projects.

Research undertaken in colleges and polytechnics rarely results in the development of IP by our researchers that is typically protected and overseen within Technology Transfer offices in many Canadian research universities.

Rather, it is central to the polytechnic applied research enterprise facilitated by RPI and OARS that applied research is carried out with an industry or community partners to:

• advance R&D around the partner’s patents and IP (often at TRL 4- 8), and
• advance research commercialization by de-risking research and innovation.

This is supported by adopting IP practices which are favourable to industry.

This industry-friendly approach to intellectual property enables industry to immediately apply the applied research results to their product, process or service idea and get to market in a timely manner since IP rights have been dealt with up front with a minimum (if any) amount of negotiation.

It varies based on the nature of the project, and this will be agreed upon during the scoping of the project and as a plan is developed. There is usually a dedicated contact from the client’s side that a project manager (e.g., a Research Technologist) can connect with as the project progresses. This could be in the form of a weekly or biweekly meeting, or on more of a casual basis.