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Cabinet officials

Ontario Government Invests $2.3 Million in Research for Next-Generation Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)

Strategic Insights

— 2 min read

The Ontario government is providing more than $2.3 million to McMaster University and the University of Toronto through the Ontario Together Fund to carry out research, development, and testing of next-generation Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). This investment aims to improve technology and better protect frontline workers. The funding will support projects at the University of Toronto's Dalla Lana School of Public Health's testing facility and McMaster University's Centre of Excellence in Protective Equipment and Materials (CEPEM).

Key Takeaways:

  • The Ontario government is investing $2.3 million in research, development, and testing of next-generation PPE at McMaster University and the University of Toronto.
  • The University of Toronto received $1,122,000 to support its Dalla Lana School of Public Health's testing facility for filtration efficiency testing of N95, surgical, and procedure masks.
  • The project at the University of Toronto will increase the capability to assist with the rapid development and validation of new masks and decontamination technologies, providing evidence for decision-making on issues related to mask performance, decontamination, and reuse.
  • McMaster University received $1,212,000 to accelerate the work at its new Centre of Excellence in Protective Equipment and Materials (CEPEM) to work with Canadian manufacturers with their R&D needs in designing, manufacturing, and testing of PPE.
  • The investment will support the centre's collaboration with its industry partners in developing and optimizing their products, getting them to market faster, and thereby protecting the community and frontline workers.
  • The centre's new testing and manufacturing facility will also help generate new technology that will increase the competitive edge of made-in-Ontario PPE over products from other jurisdictions.
  • The centre is part of the university's Global Nexus for Pandemics and Biological Threats, an international network of scientists, clinical health experts, engineers, social scientists, and other experts working collaboratively to prevent future pandemics and mitigate global health threats.
  • Ontario's colleges and universities have been critical actors in providing PPE to the province's frontline workers throughout the global pandemic and will be essential in helping Ontario thrive and recover coming out of the pandemic.

Statistics:

  • $2,318,000: Total investment by the Ontario government through the Ontario Together Fund.
  • $1,122,000: Investment in the University of Toronto's Dalla Lana School of Public Health's testing facility.
  • $1,212,000: Investment in McMaster University's Centre of Excellence in Protective Equipment and Materials (CEPEM).

Sources:

  • Ontario Together Fund: website not provided.
  • Vic Fedeli, Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade: quoted in the article.
  • James Scott, Professor, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, Occupational and Environmental Health Division: quoted in the article.
  • Karen Mossman, McMaster's Vice-President, Research: quoted in the article.
  • Ross Romano, Minster of Colleges and Universities: quoted in the article.
  • Donna Skelly, MPP for Flamborough-Glanbrook: quoted in the article.

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