Academics and industry tackle “big data” challenges at U of S-led AIMday™ event
SASKATOON — How can you extract the most value from volumes of data to better use Saskatchewan-grown crops for health and wellness applications? How can you use “big data” to improve short-term weather forecasting, optimize insurance pricing models and increase workplace safety in mining?
These were some of the questions from industry that were addressed April 11 at a University of Saskatchewan (U of S)-led event where Saskatchewan academic researchers and industry representatives met to discuss challenges in managing big data and to develop pathways to new collaborations.
U of S Innovation Enterprise (IE) and the province’s Innovation Saskatchewan hosted the AIMday™ Big Data event at Innovation Place—the first step in a process that is expected to lead to joint research projects that will address specific industry needs. AIMday Big Data generated 16 new partnerships which companies and scientists are now exploring further to expand the boundaries of knowledge and create economic advantages.
“Innovation is a core priority for Saskatchewan and is vital for the province’s future economic success,” said Minister Responsible for Innovation Saskatchewan Tina Beaudry-Mellor. “This year’s first AIMday was an excellent opportunity to bring together industry and researchers to discuss how big data drives decision making and attracts better outcomes for Saskatchewan’s economic sectors.”
Researchers from the U of S, University of Regina and Saskatchewan Polytechnic met with representatives of 12 organizations in various sectors (including Federated Co-Operatives, The Mosaic Company, POS Bio-Sciences, International Road Dynamics, SGI Canada, and the Canadian Light Source) to discuss innovative solutions to industry issues.
Questions submitted by companies were the basis for company-led discussions with academics from various disciplines. A structured one-hour discussion around each question enabled industry representatives and academics to assess whether they can work together to find a solution to the specific challenge presented by the company.
Of the 55 proposals submitted by researchers in response to specific industry questions, 16 were selected by the companies to receive initial funding of $1,000 each. Upon successful collaboration, additional funding may be available to the researchers in the fall of 2018 to further advance their projects with industry.
“Decades before the term ‘big data’ was uttered, organizations were using basic analytics to develop insights and uncover trends,” said U of S IE Managing Director Johannes Dyring. “Today, new benefits of speed, scale and efficiency that are possible in this era of massive data availability affect every aspect of a business process in every industry. At the same time, these benefits come with challenges in handling the volume, relevance and complexity of data collected.”
“AIMday Big Data accelerated the process of finding innovative solutions to these challenges by allowing industry to meet and discuss specific R&D needs and ideas for solutions with academics. We are excited to see the interest in the AIMday concept and are confident the newly formed collaborations will add value to our economy, society and environment,” he added.
The event received financial support from the federal Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council’s (NSERC) Connect Grant program, which provides targeted financial support to encourage post-secondary researchers to connect with industry and form new partnerships. Some of the research collaborations that emerge from AIMday may also be eligible for NSERC Engage program funding, which has supported over 10,000 such academy-industry collaborations since 2009. Event-day funding was also provided by Western Economic Diversification Canada and by ISM Canada.
The following research teams were selected by the industry organizations to receive initial funding:
|
Researcher(s) |
Department(s) |
Institution(s) |
|
Andrei Volodin Asif Manzoor Abdul Bais |
Mathematics and Statistics Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science |
University of Regina |
|
Lifeng Zhang Reza Haghgoo |
Chemical & Biological Engineering Mechanical Engineering |
University of Saskatchewan |
|
Xulin Guo |
Geography and Planning |
University of Saskatchewan |
|
Tony Kusalik |
Computer Science |
University of Saskatchewan |
|
Orland Hoeber |
Computer Science |
University of Regina |
|
Howard Hamilton |
Computer Science |
University of Regina |
|
Syed Aamir Ali Shah Abdul Bais |
Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science |
University of Regina |
|
Banani Roy
|
Computer Science and Global Institute for Food Security |
University of Saskatchewan |
|
Matthew Links |
Animal and Poultry Science & Computer Science |
University of Saskatchewan |
|
Yan Yan Michael Horsch |
Computer Science |
University of Saskatchewan |
|
Lifeng Zhang |
Chemical and Biological Engineering |
University of Saskatchewan |
|
Andrei Volodin Syed Aamir Ali Shah Abdul Bais |
Mathematics and Statistics Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science |
University of Regina |
|
CJ Pelletier |
Geomatics and Surveying Engineering |
Saskatchewan Polytechnic |
About AIMday™:
AIMday was originally initiated and successfully developed by Uppsala University in Sweden. The U of S, through Innovation Enterprise, has initiated and signed a collaboration agreement with Uppsala University to implement the internationally acclaimed and highly successful concept, and is now approved by Uppsala as the Canadian AIMday hub, enabling Innovation Enterprise to help facilitate AIMday events at other Canadian institutions.
About Innovation Enterprise:
The U of S Innovation Enterprise manages a wide variety of intellectual properties arising from the university’s comprehensive research enterprise. In striving for excellence and engaging in growing the local and global entrepreneurial ecosystem, IE maximizes the impact of knowledge-intensive innovations. For more information, visit our website: research.usask.ca/ie
About Innovation Saskatchewan:
Innovation Saskatchewan is an innovation catalyst serving the needs of individuals, companies and institutions, as well as enhancing the role and benefits of innovation in Saskatchewan through:
- Developing an environment that encourages and accelerates innovation;
- Enhancing the ability of the private sector to innovate and implement innovations, leading to the commercialization of new, high value-added products and improved competitiveness; and
- Fostering co-ordinated public-sector research, development and technology transfer targeted at economic growth for Saskatchewan.
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For more information, contact:
|
Johannes Dyring |
Deb Young |