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WEATHERHAVEN AND SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY SIGN MOU TO FOSTER INNOVATION AND PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT FOR HQSS PROGRAM

13 July 2017

Coquitlam, British Columbia, Canada – Weatherhaven Global Resources Ltd. (“Weatherhaven”), one of the world’s leading providers of redeployable shelter systems, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (“MOU”) with Simon Fraser University (“SFU”) to support the company’s efforts to deliver on the recently won $168M Headquarters Shelter Systems (“HQSS”) for the Government of Canada.

The MOU contemplates a broad range of engineering, research and development (R&D), and other competencies that SFU will provide to Weatherhaven to support the company’s development efforts for this Department of National Defence program. The term of the $500,000 commitment will be five years and will be reviewed regularly for potential expansion of the scope, as well as duration of the agreement. This investment is being made as part of Weatherhaven’s Industrial and Technological Benefit obligations to Canada on the HQSS project.

“Through the Industrial and Technological Benefits Policy, Canada gets the economic benefits of investment from winning bidders on defence contracts,” said the Honourable Navdeep Bains, Canada’s Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development. “The investment by Weatherhaven to Simon Fraser University represents an opportunity for these partners to develop next-generation technologies in material science and engineering. It also allows students and researchers at SFU to develop the skills that equip them for the jobs of the future. That’s how defence procurement drives innovation that leads to high-value jobs for the middle class and gives Canadian companies opportunities to grow.”

“Weatherhaven has a long association with SFU, but the size of the HQSS program and the focus of the Government of Canada to encourage bidders to maximize their value proposition to Canada by committing to R&D and innovation efforts via post-secondary institutions made a more formal arrangement for the HQSS program a natural development,” said Ray Castelli, Chief Executive Officer of Weatherhaven.

“As a relatively small company, the ability to tap into a world-class university 10 minutes away from our global headquarters – for a variety of engineering, design, testing, strategy and export capabilities – significantly adds to our bench strength and ability to deliver on such an important program,” Castelli added.

Potential areas of collaboration with SFU include:

  • Material science
  • Structural engineering and design
  • Prototype testing through 4D LABS
  • “Hands-on” co-op working opportunities for students
  • In-class mentoring of SFU students by Weatherhaven engineers
  • Business, strategy and export trade analysis.

This collaboration exemplifies the objectives of SFU Innovates, a university-wide strategy that builds on SFU’s dynamic culture and seeks to strengthen the university’s commitment to innovation. The partnership is bridging the gap to create innovations that benefit society and the world. By working with industry partners, SFU integrates real-world problem solving into experiential programming and research partnerships. SFU offers world-class public facilities, such as 4D LABS, for developing and commercializing R&D.

“As Canada’s engaged university, SFU is defined by its dynamic integration of education, research and community engagement,” said Andrew Petter, President and Vice-Chancellor of SFU. “This collaboration is an opportunity for our researchers and students to help move cutting-edge ideas into action.”

HQSS is a next-generation tactical shelter system that will be used by Canada to support a number of humanitarian and peacekeeping efforts, both here in Canada and around the world.  The “next-generation” design includes a number of innovative features around modularity, speed of deployment, re-use, durability and efficiency. In addition to the Canadian program, which must be delivered by 2021, a number of other countries are evaluating the HQSS design concept for their future tactical shelter needs, generating long-term potential export market opportunities from the program as well.

 

ABOUT WEATHERHAVEN:

Weatherhaven Global Resources Ltd., headquartered in Coquitlam, B.C., Canada, is a leading international supplier of soft-wall and container-based shelter systems for key military, commercial, government and medical applications worldwide. For more than 35 years, the company has engineered, produced, and installed the highest quality structures via its global presence in strategic markets including Canada, Peru, Brazil, Africa, Australia and the United Kingdom. With deployments in over 50 countries and seven continents, Weatherhaven benefits from a growing base of customers consisting of prominent governments, militaries and commercial companies worldwide.

 

ABOUT SFU and SFU INNOVATES:

As Canada’s engaged university, SFU is defined by its dynamic integration of innovative education, cutting-edge research and far-reaching community engagement. SFU was founded 50 years ago with a mission to be a different kind of university—to bring an interdisciplinary approach to learning, embrace bold initiatives, and engage with communities near and far. Today, SFU is Canada’s leading comprehensive research university and is ranked one of the top universities in the world. With campuses in British Columbia’s three largest cities – Vancouver, Burnaby and Surrey – SFU has eight faculties, delivers almost 150 programs to over 35,000 students, and boasts more than 135,000 alumni in 130 countries around the world.

SFU Innovates is a university-wide strategy that builds on our dynamic culture and seeks to strengthen Simon Fraser University’s commitment to innovation and entrepreneurship.

Based on SFU’s vision to be Canada’s engaged university, SFU Innovates helps students and researchers mobilize their ideas for positive social and economic impact. Learn more at www.sfu.ca/innovates.

Simon Fraser University: Engaging Students. Engaging Research. Engaging Communities.

 

Media Contact:

Jennifer Davies

778-887-5367

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