Grant: College and Community Innovation Program

""Algonquin College's Full Spectra Centre (FSC) will leverage the Ottawa region's strengths in ICT and photonics. The FSC will help to mobilize the College's entrepreneurial attitude, deep technical knowledge, and unique positioning in the regional innovation ecosystem in order to assist local entrepreneurs, small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) and large companies to develop new products, processes, and services that rely on ICT and photonics technologies. FSC projects will allow the College to work collaboratively with industry partners in applied research aimed at solving concrete problems, expanding markets, developing new products, and reducing time-to-market. By engaging College students in the projects, the FSC will provide real-life learning opportunities, create greater alignment between College curricula and industry needs, and stimulate job creation and economic growth in our region. Core FSC projects will be positioned in traditional ICT and photonics application niches. At the same time, the FSC will assist the increasing numbers of industrial partners who seek assistance to translate their traditional ICT and photonics skills into new and emerging markets such as medical, smart-grid, advanced optical systems, bio-photonics, and other applications. In this way, the FSC will leverage the region's historical strengths while acting as a catalyst for innovation and change.""