Celebration September: Springboard Impact
September 13th, 2017
We are kicking the month off with a ‘by the numbers’ look at the impact of Springboard on the Atlantic Canadian economy in the last 3 years.
You can see that our impact is significant. Let’s dig into the numbers a bit further:
– From 2014-2017 35 people did 6237 contracts with companies. So think again when you think about universities and colleges as ivory towers. Our network is out there working hard to ensure companies get a ton of value out of the research capacity in their backyards. This number is also 24% OVER the goal we set for ourselves in 2014.
– Not impressed yet? Well, we also contributed over a BILLION in research dollars to the regional economy. Anytime you can put that B in front of -illion you can feel pretty good about going home at the end of the day.
– In addition to contracts and dollars, the network was also responsible for 1300 intellectual property transfers in the last 3 years. We know intellectual property remains a controversial subject. But the fact remains that protecting ideas is a major part of building businesses. We’ve enabled the protection and transfer of over 1300 ideas into the hands of capable business owners large and small to help their businesses grow.
– This intellectual property is the seed that many of our startups grow from. We are excited to see the startup growth in our ecosystem and we’re proud to see how many of these ideas are being fostered at our member institutions. 149 new companies grown in the last 3 years is something to be very proud of. We continue to try and do more to facilitate start-up growth, including the launch of our Investment Opportunities Program. This pilot program will help startups partner with potential investors at that crucial stage when early seed investment can take a business to the next level.
– One of the major tools we have to help facilitate the development of ideas is our Innovation Mobilization Program. This program is one of our core tools. It allows us to prove, protect, and develop new ideas at the final bench stage through to market prototyping. We’ve spent 1.5 million doing just that. You will see as we share more of our successes, many of our stories have theirs roots in this program.
These numbers speak for themselves and we are very proud to celebrate the success and impact of this network. None of this would be possible without the continued support of the Atlantic Canadian Opportunities Agency (ACOA). We appreciate not only their financial contribution to Springboard but also our shared vision for the region. Which you can see articulated in the Atlantic Growth Strategy.
We hope we’ve peaked your interest in joining us in #springboarding Atlantic growth. Click here to chat with us about how we can help you grow.