Next Gen Manufacturing Canada (NGen), the federally-backed organization running the Canadian Global Innovation Cluster for Advanced Manufacturing, has contributed $37 million CAD toward a larger $108-million investment in sustainable manufacturing technology in the country.
Another $71 million comes from âindustry contributions,â NGen said in a statement.
âThese collaborative projects highlight the power of innovation to drive real progress.”
Evan Solomon
Minister for AI and Digital Innovation
The NGen investment covers 32 companies working on 13 projects. This includes a sustainable cement project co-developed by Calgary-based Carbon Upcycling, which simultaneously broke ground the same day on a carbon capture facility at cement maker Ash Groveâs Mississauga, Ont. plant. The company said it was receiving âup toâ $10 million in federal funding that include NGenâs Sustainable Manufacturing Program, Environment and Climate Change Canadaâs Low-Carbon Economy Fund, and the National Research Councilâs Industrial Research Assistance Program (NRC IRAP).
Other projects receiving money include work on carbon nanofibre-reinforced rods (from Carbonova and Oilify), artificial intelligence-powered (AI) energy management (Panevo and Canada Bread Company), sustainable automotive manufacturing (Mosaic and Tiercon), and automated large-scale graphene production (Cobionix, Macrotek, and Universal Matter).
Evan Solomon, the minister of AI and digital innovation, attended Carbon Upcyclingâs groundbreaking ceremony and claimed in a statement that digital tech is âkeyâ to more sustainable manufacturing and that the Cluster for Advanced Manufacturing helped âaccelerateâ this development in the country so far.
âThese collaborative projects highlight the power of innovation to drive real progressâhelping Canadaâs manufacturers thrive while supporting our climate goals and enhancing our global competitiveness,â Solomon said.
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NGen CEO Jayson Meyers claimed that cleantech efforts like this also spur âsignificant productivity improvementsâ for manufacturers by creating newer, more efficient processes.
The cluster launched its $100-million Sustainable Manufacturing Challenge in March 2024. At the time, it pledged up to $35 million in funding and sought over $65 million from industry partners. To participate, companies had to collaborate with each other on projects that would stretch the limits of cleantech and manufacturing, particularly in fields like carbon capture, heat generation, and greenhouse gas tracking. A month prior to that, NGen invested $32.3 million into 15 clean manufacturing efforts.
The organization is also interested in deep tech investments, and in August 2024 invested $21.4 million in EV, quantum, and space manufacturing initiatives. Beneficiaries ranged from Sherbrooke, Que.-based quantum computing company Nord Quantique through to Ottawa-based space startup Mission Control.
Feature image courtesy Carbon Upcycling.