Ref. No. 93

Memorial University researchers have been awarded funding in excess of $4.6 million from the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) to fund infrastructure projects that will give researchers access to up-to-date technology. The announcement was made by Allan Rock, minister of Industry and Dr. David W. Strangway, president and CEO of CFI on Jan. 30, 2002, in Vancouver, B.C. This is the largest amount awarded under this program, to date, to Memorial. Four out of nine Memorial proposals were successful in garnering support from CFI.

Dr. Christopher Loomis, Memorial's acting vice-president (research and international relations), expressed satisfaction at the results. "The investment by CFI will enable our investigators to undertake advanced research aided by new and much needed infrastructure," he said. "In turn, this research will have an important and positive impact on both Memorial University and the community we serve."

The four Memorial projects receiving funding are:

• $1.8 million was awarded to develop a real-time Ocean Observatory at the Bonne Bay Marine Research Centre. This observatory will be located on the Northern Peninsula and will used to understand the influence of the physical environment on marine organisms. Dr. Brad de Young, a professor of Physics and Physical Oceanography, is the program director. The facility will include an aquarium, research laboratories, meeting rooms, a multi-media lecture theatre, library, workshop and accommodation facilities.
• $1.5 million was awarded for the installation of a world-class facility for modeling, simulation and visualization in the areas of petroleum science and engineering. This project, lead by Dr. Andrew Pullham, Earth Sciences, will provide three-dimensional visualization, data processing, and imaging power and is part of Memorial's Oil and Gas Development Partnership.
• $890,800 was awarded for a project titled the Fishery By-Products Research Centre. The project will be led by Dr. Fereidoon Shahidi, Biochemistry. This centre will conduct research into alternate uses for waste material produced from the fishing and aquaculture processing industry. It will combine the pilot plant research facilities of Memorial and Dalhousie University with research laboratory capabilities at St. Francis Xavier and McGill Universities and the CFI-funded Centre for Chemical Analysis, Research and Training at Memorial.
• $400,000 was awarded for a project titled Structural and Material Testing for Offshore Applications. This project will be led by Dr. Claude Daley, Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science. The areas of research for this project include ice-structure interaction, steel structure, fatigue, concrete design, ice mechanics and geotechnical research which relate to the economic and environmental viability of existing and proposed offshore structure and facilities for oil and gas development.

CFI invested $779 million to support projects at 69 Canadian universities, colleges, hospitals, and not-for-profit research institutions. "The CFI is a key element of the Government of Canada's strategy to place our country among the most innovative nations in the world by 2010," Minister Rock said of the funding initiatives. "These projects were selected following a highly competitive and independent process, and will play a significant role in enhancing the well-being of citizens as well as Canada's reputation as an excellent place in which to invest and live." The CFI is an independent, not-for-profit corporation established in 1997 by the federal government to address an urgent need of Canada's research community for new, state-of-the-art research infrastructure. The foundation covers 40 per cent of the eligible costs of projects, with the remaining 60 per cent coming from the research institutions and their funding partners from the public, private, and voluntary sectors.

-30-

For more information, contact: Deborah Inkpen, information officer (research), Memorial University, 737-4073 or e-mail: inkpend@mun.ca

For more information, contact: Deborah Inkpen, information officer (research), Memorial University, at 737-4073 or e-mail: inkpend@mun.ca