Grant: Industrial Research Chairs for Colleges Grants

The Southern Alberta Institute of Technology (SAIT) has requested funding from NSERC for an Industrial Research Chair for Sports and Wellness Engineering Technology. The Chair program will build upon five years of applied research and development activity in sports and wellness equipment at SAIT. The objective of the Chair program is to fill a technology development and transfer gap in the sports, recreation and wellness industry sector in Alberta and Western Canada. With the presence of the Rocky Mountains and Alberta's history of hosting internationally recognized events such as the 1978 Commonwealth Games and 2001 World Track and Field Championships in Edmonton, the 1988 Winter Olympics, 2005 World Bobsleigh and Skeleton Championships in Calgary and annual World Cup races in Lake Louise and Calgary, along with being Calgary being headquarters for over a half dozen NSOs, the Province is a arguably Canada's centre for sports and recreation. The proposed Chair would fill the existing gap and act as a central resource in areas such as mechanical design, materials selection, prototype fabrication and testing. The Chair would also assist National Sports Organizations, health and wellness companies and others in generating test data that is essential for technology transfer and commercialization. The Chair will create a legacy of wellness and sports engineering technology development.