WinterTech Development

The eligibility criteria for this grant specify conditions that the applicant company must meet to qualify for funding.

• The applicant must be a small- and medium-sized enterprise (SME) with fewer than 500 global full-time employees.
• The applicant may only participate in one R&D Partnership Fund project at a time.
• The applicant must have registered operations (R&D, manufacturing, product management, etc.) in Ontario.
• Applicants who have received over $500,000 of funding from OCI administered programs (excluding TalentEdge) in their lifetime are required to obtain OCI approval before starting a new funding application.
• The applicant is a co-signatory to the Funding Agreement.

Who is eligible?

Who is not eligible

This grant's eligibility criteria are focused on fostering innovation in transportation under severe winter conditions. Specific exclusions are not outlined in the available material; thus, it is assumed any general restrictions are typical to grant programs.

Eligible expenses

The grant is designed to support projects emphasizing technological advancements in adverse winter conditions, primarily targeting Ontario's transportation network. It aids in the advancement and exhibition of products and services that cater to specific mobility and infrastructure needs in severe winter weather.

• Development of mobility products and services designed for severe winter weather conditions.
• Validation and testing of transportation technologies in winter scenarios.
• Pilot and demonstration projects for mass light vehicles and heavy-duty vehicles under winter conditions.
• Commercialization of transit-supportive systems and intelligent transportation systems.
• Deployment of newly developed products and services within Ontario.

Eligible geographic areas

The grant covers specific expenses directly related to the development, testing, and commercialization of mobility products and services.

• Technology or product development costs.
• Validation and testing expenses.
• Piloting and demonstration costs.
• Commercialization expenses of mobility products and services.
• Deployment costs in severe winter weather conditions.

There are evaluation and selection criteria for this grant. The criteria include:

• Commercialization of Ontario-made technologies
• Demonstration of Ontario-made technologies to potential customers
• Relationships with researchers to extend company R&D
• Marketable solutions to current challenges
• Public/private partnerships and collaboration
• Increased road safety
• Better road condition monitoring
• Better collection and analysis of transportation-related information
• Innovative new products and services to improve driver performance
• Reduced environmental and carbon footprint

Here are additional relevant details for this grant:

• Applicants and Partners are required to disclose all sources of funding being applied for and/or received for the project.
• Funding recipients are required to demonstrate their projects through public showcases and communications, which require prior approval from the Ontario Centre of Innovation (OCI).
• All project activities must be performed within Ontario unless exceptional approval is granted by OCI.
• The OCI holds a discretionary right to an advance payment of up to 10%, which is released upon activation of the project.
• Applicants must retain all documentation of expenditures for reporting and reimbursement purposes.
• A rigorous reporting process is mandated, including quarterly interim progress reports, a final report, and retrospective surveys post-project completion to evaluate ongoing impacts.
• Funding agreements must be executed within 30 days of the project award announcement, or else the offer may be retracted.