At the Centre for Craft Beverage Innovation (CCBI), we understand that running a brewery can be challenging. Creating innovative products is a key strategy for attracting new customers and retaining existing ones.

Some new products come with higher risks, but we’ve got you covered! Our 50L brew house features tanks much smaller than the average craft brewery, allowing you to experiment with innovative products at a fraction of the risk and cost. This means you can explore those creative ideas that are a bit outside your usual production without the usual worries.

The CCBI brew house and fermentation tanks offer the same level of control as a commercial craft brewery, complemented by one of the top beer labs in Canada. Our skilled team is available to collaborate with you on a project-by-project basis, acting as an extension of your own. When you partner with us, we take the time to fully understand your goals, provide technical insights, and align on the desired outcomes for your final product.

In addition to brewing notes, we provide key characteristic test results that help you quickly scale up to production volumes, reducing the risk of blending or, even worse, losing a batch.

If your project qualifies for government funding, we can assist with grant writing, manage the project development and budget, all as an extension of your team. We also offer fee-for-service projects and can provide a quote tailored to your needs.

Selling samples through your taproom can significantly offset development costs without occupying valuable production tank space. This approach also saves time by minimizing trial and error.

If experimentation is part of your brand’s DNA, CCBI can assist with new product development that rapidly scales to your profitability targets. This not only boosts sales at healthy margins but also optimizes your production team’s time and capacity for making sellable products instead of just experimenting.

The CCBI also offers QC product lab testing and brewery quality management support, all aimed at improving your bottom line.

If you’re interested in exploring how CCBI can help you achieve your brewery goals, email chris.gillis@durhamcollege.ca.

The Mixed Reality Capture (MRC) Studio at Durham College boasts one of only three state-of-the-art Motion Capture (MoCap) stages in Canada. Equipped with Captury technology and expert staff capable of supporting projects to develop solutions using; immersive experiences, motion capture, gamified training, augmented reality, virtual asset creation, product prototyping & visualization, interactive story telling & simulation and training. The research facility allows small and medium businesses in a wide cross section of sectors and industries to leverage these advanced technologies to enhance their innovation capabilities and market competitiveness.

MRC Studio is offering eligible organizations access to The Contribution to Organization (CTO) funding to support innovation and technology development in Canadian businesses. This funding is offered through the National Research Council of Canada Industrial Research Assistance Program (NRC IRAP) and is designed to assist small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) by providing financial support for research and development projects that lead to new or improved products, services, or processes.

The program offers financial contributions that cover a portion of salaries, related to R&D activities. This support enables businesses to accelerate their development timelines and reduce financial risks associated with innovation.

Businesses can undertake a variety of innovative projects at the Mixed Reality Capture (MRC) Studio at Durham College, including:

1. Immersive Experiences: Create immersive mixed reality experiences for marketing, education, entertainment, and simulation purposes.
2. Motion Capture (MoCap) Projects: Capturing and applying precise motion data for character animation in games, films, and other digital media.
3. Gamified Training Programs: Designing interactive and engaging training modules that utilize gamification principles to enhance learning experiences.
4. Augmented Reality (AR) Applications: Developing AR apps that overlay digital information on the physical world for various industries, including retail, healthcare, and education.
5. Asset Creation: Developing high-quality 3D models, environments, and animations for films, games, and mixed reality applications.
6. Product Prototyping and Visualization: Using mixed reality to create and visualize prototypes, allowing for better design and development processes.
7. Interactive Storytelling: Crafting compelling, interactive narratives that utilize virtual and augmented reality to engage audiences in new ways.
8. Simulation and Training Scenarios: Developing complex simulation environments for training purposes in fields such as healthcare, aviation, and emergency response.
9. Next-Gen Content Creation: Develop workflows using AI-supported content creation, enabling businesses to produce innovative and automated digital assets, expand service offerings and reach new markets.

Strategic Interactions

Are you working on an innovative new solution that leverages both Virtual/Augmented Reality and Artificial Intelligence?

Take advantage of Strategic Interactions, a collaboration with both the AI Hub and MRC Studio at Durham College on low-cost, short-term and high impact project that explores your innovation.

ELIGIBILITY:

Strategic Interactions are available to small and medium businesses that are incorporated with Canada and working in collaboration with two applied research centres (e.g., AI Hub & MRC Studio). $500 unlocks 55 hours of advisory services with the AI Hub and Mixed Reality Capture Studio, funded by the Industrial Research Assistance Program (IRAP).

Check your eligibility and get started: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/AIHub_Intake.

Interactive Visits

The AI Hub specializes in helping companies unlock the potential in their data to build new and custom AI solutions.

As a Technology Access Centre (TAC), the AI Hub is pleased to offer Interactive Visits.

WHAT ARE THEY?

Interactive Visits are a low-cost, short-term and high impact engagements that allow you to tap into the expertise and computing infrastructure available at the AI Hub.

If you’ve been experimenting with building an AI solution, the Interactive Visits program will connect with you the expertise and resources you need and help you develop a strategy to turn your idea into reality.

ELIGIBILITY:

Interactive Visits are available to small and medium businesses that are incorporated in Canada and a $250 investment unlocks 20 hours of advisory services with the AI Hub, funded by the Industrial Research Assistance Program (IRAP).

CONNECT with us to check your eligibility and get started here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/AIHub_Intake.

Supported by Durham College’s Social Impact Hub, the Building Bridges Together project team, including the research steering committee, people with lived experience of poverty and community service providers, co-created three social innovations that breakdown access barriers to financial literacy and services for people experiencing low income.

Financial Help Hub (FHH) innovation is rooted in the research data that pointed to a lack of inclusive access to already existing financial help information. The FHH is a free, walk-up, touch screen kiosk that provides information on financial aid supports in the Durham Region including information on food, shelter and financial aid. It also provides financial literacy advice from Prosper Canada and access to the 211 helpline, connecting people to further social services, programs and community supports. It was launched in March 2024 at the McLaughlin Branch of the Oshawa Public Library and includes data analytics and a short survey for users.

Tax Tycoon™ board game is a tax literacy game for youth. This innovation came from research data that indicated people living with low income are often not engaged in the tax filing system even though their engagement would see them realize many financial benefits. The research also pointed to a multi-generational pattern of disengagement and misconception about the tax system. The Tax Tycoon™ board game is a proactive approach to demystifying the tax system and reducing tax fear by engaging youth in a fun and interactive board game. The game was piloted in April 2024 by two youth groups and data about its effectiveness is being collected.

Tax Tycoon™ video game. The tax literacy board game was converted into a fun and interactive video game where youth can learn about taxes, solve tax obstacles and understand how life events affect your tax return.

This project is supported by the College and Community Social Innovation Fund – Social Science and Humanities Research Council of Canada.

To connect with us, please visit our website: Durham College Social Impact Hub

The Social Impact Hub is proud to support the Surviving Addiction docuseries created by Chris Cull and the Canadian Society of Addiction Medicine. A Durham College alumni, Chris has made remarkable accomplishments in raising awareness of addictions and mental health through his activities at Inspire by Example and sharing his own battle with addiction. The docuseries highlights the humanity behind addiction and how it affects individuals and those surrounding them. The series aims to educate the audience about the devastating effects of addiction and the power of compassion and understanding. Through the Hub, Durham College students and staff filmed and produced the series alongside Chris over the summer and fall of 2023. The first episode will be screened at the Canadian Society of Addiction Medicine conference Wednesday October 19, 2023 with episodes to be released regularly in the following months.

WARNING – This video series discusses mental health, addiction, substance use and suicide among other challenging topics. Some viewers may find the content emotionally distressing. Viewer discretion is advised.

Partners:

Inspire By Example:
https://inspirebyexample.ca/
Inspire By Example shares the stories of lived experience related to addiction with the goal of reducing stigma and providing hope to those in need.

Canadian Society of Addiction Medicine:
https://csam-smca.org/
CSAM is a national society of medical professionals and scientists committed to helping Canadians understand and recover with dignity from substance use disorders.

Surviving Addiction | Episode 1: Chris Cull – Social Impact Hub

Surviving Addiction | Episode 2: Dr. Sajida Afridi – Social Impact Hub

Surviving Addiction | Episode 3: Kim Wazny – Social Impact Hub

Surviving Addiction | Episode 4: Nathan Gardner – Social Impact Hub

Surviving Addiction | Episode 5: Aly Crawford – Social Impact Hub

Surviving Addiction | Episode 6: Dr. Lisa Lefebvre – Social Impact Hub

Surviving Addiction | Episode 7: Angie – Social Impact Hub

Surviving Addiction | Episode 8: Kim Pare – Social Impact Hub

Surviving Addiction | Episode 9: Morgan Zack – Social Impact Hub

The Office of Research Services, Innovation and Entrepreneurship is pleased to share that Research Coordinators have developed a new self-directed learning module that is now available on DC Connect:  Introduction to Applied Research at Durham College.

This module has been designed specifically for students or faculty members interested in learning about applied research at Durham College, as well as entry-level student research assistants and researchers. Students can self-register and faculty can add the module to their curriculum.  Topics include: 

1. Introduction to Applied Research
   • Defining research (basic, applied, SoTL)
2. The Role of Research Assistants at Durham College
   • Exploring the value of student collaborators in research; role of research assistants
3. Transitioning from Research Idea to Research Question
   • Generating and refining research ideas
4. The Research Process 
   • Designing a research project (life cycle), including research ethics
5. Dissemination of Results
   • Sharing the results of research projects with others

To find this self-directed module on DC Connect, go to Register for Resources in the top right corner of the homepage.   Click the hyperlink “Click for Support Resources…” just below “Success Matters- Start Here” and the green icon of the two screens.  This will take you to a list of Self Registering Course Offerings where you will findIntroduction to Applied Research at Durham College.

If you have any questions, please reach out to your Research Coordinator.