The Manitoba government is providing more than $900,000 through the Innovation Growth Program to help Manitoba-based businesses develop and commercialize innovative products and processes.

“As a fundamental part of Manitoba’s Economic Growth Action Plan, the Innovation Growth Program provides funding to Manitoba-based small and medium-sized businesses to support the development of innovative products and processes,” said Economic Development, Investment and Trade Minister Cliff Cullen. “By mitigating some of the risks associated with developing innovative products, this program helps accelerate the economic growth of Manitoba businesses and improves their competitiveness in the global market.”

The Innovation Growth Program launched in June 2019 to augment the Manitoba government’s suite of business incentives. The program provides up to $100,000 in non-repayable grants on a 50-50 cost-sharing basis for eligible projects that develop and commercialize innovative products or processes.

Twelve projects across four sectors received over $900,000 in funding through the program’s June 2022 intake. The companies project growth of 211 new full-time jobs and $57 million in export sales over the next five years, Cullen said.

The latest recipients to receive funding in the following sectors include:

Life sciences and health

  • Novel Biotechnology Inc. (Winnipeg): $100,000 for operational testing of a new manufacturing process that builds biological plasmids, one of the key starting materials needed for production and research on all mRNA vaccines including those developed for COVID-19.
  • QDoc Inc. (Winnipeg): $100,000 to develop and commercialize a web-based medical software platform that provides real-time patient access to virtual physician medical consultation services.

ICT and new media

  • Delphi Technology Corp. (Winnipeg): $100,000 for operational trials and market outreach for a virtual aviation campus that provides remote career training in the aerospace sector.
  • Evotrux Inc. (Winnipeg): $20,000 to commercialize a proprietary software platform, which matches trucking cargo capacity with available driver and manifest resources in real-time.
  • FleetOperate Inc. (Winnipeg): $100,000 to commercialize a software platform that supports small and medium-sized truck driving businesses. The platform uses proprietary driver risk assessment software to facilitate access to performance-based insurance premiums and to promote improved road safety through corrective driving plans and training.
  • Tactile Robotics Ltd. (Winnipeg): $80,250 to commercialize a remotely operated, fully automated and artificial intelligence-assisted cage monitoring and feeding system for laboratory rodents.

Clean technology

  • Carbon Lock Technologies Inc. (Winnipeg): $65,000 to develop a commercial prototype of a portable, environmentally friendly food waste reduction system that would allow smaller municipalities to convert food waste into dry granular balls and reduce methane emissions from landfills.
  • Eco Lyter Inc. (Winnipeg): $50,000 to develop a commercial prototype and marketing materials for a new eco-conscious lighter design that combines a hemp wick with a plasma arc to spark and maintain a flame.
  • InnoVantage Inc. (Winnipeg): $75,000 to develop a fully functional prototype with a pilot municipality to demonstrate the efficacy of a system of phosphorus removal and recovery for wastewater treatment lagoons.
  • OmniLyte Enviro Inc. (Wawanesa): $27,650 to obtain certifications and conduct market testing for an economical hypochlorous acid-based biodegradable disinfectant made using a proprietary manufacturing process.

Agriculture

  • Bushel Plus (Brandon): $96,500 to commercialize an after-market device for agricultural combines that quantifies the equipment’s operational efficiency, allowing farmers to make immediate adjustments to decrease harvest losses.
  • Mode40 Ltd. (Mitchell): $100,000 for market expansion activities for a software platform that incorporates operational planning and animal science features, to optimize animal growth and the productivity of livestock facilities.

Program applications are reviewed on a quarterly basis. The current intake is open until Dec. 15.

For more information about the Innovation Growth Program visit gov.mb.ca.