Purpose:

To provide guidance on the conditions necessary to conduct projects with the private sector.

Background:

ESS staff are increasingly exposed to opportunities to work with industry, either on behalf of a particular company or as part of a consortium of companies. In order to assist in determining a proper response to such requests, the following guidelines have been prepared keeping in mind that in certain complex cases, additional consultations with the International Division may be required before a determination can be reached.

General Guidelines:

• ESS will not compete with the Canadian private sector;
• ESS will not be involved in any project that would represent a conflict of interest or that would be outside of its mandate;
• ESS will work with all potential industry partners and clients in an equitable and open manner, while preserving commercial confidentiality;
• All projects with industrial partners or clients must be documented through either: (a) standard Departmental written agreements, or (b), client generated agreements that have been reviewed by the International Division;
• Although an industrial partner may be granted a period of privileged access, restrictions on the public accessibility and use of the results of joint projects should be minimized.

Specific Guidelines:

Domestic Projects:

In Canada, ESS will only become involved in projects with private industry that satisfy the Sector's program objectives. Such projects will be performed either under a joint (collaborative) arrangement or a contract for services, on a cost recovery basis.

When ESS participates in a joint project with industry, a written agreement indicating in detail the proportion of shared costs and/or responsibilities from all parties will be required (for assistance in writing such agreements or for a copy of the Departmental publication entitled Framework for Revenue Generation, External Funding and Collaborative Activities, contact the International Division).

In the case of cost recovery projects, when Geomatics Canada participates in such projects with industry, the rules of the Revolving Fund will apply and full cost recovery is required. Other areas of ESS achieve partial or full cost recovery under the rules of the Vote Netting Agreement with Treasury Board. In cases where costs are not fully recovered, the project manager must have on file a written justification for the reduced level of cost recovery, including documentation and valuation of other benefits that will accrue to the Sector.

ESS shall provide Canadian companies with opportunities to commercialize the Sector's intellectual property rather than undertaking commercialization on its own. In negotiating licences with the Canadian private sector, ESS shall seek a fair return on its investment while allowing the company the ability to make a profit.

International Projects:

ESS may become involved in international commercial projects under one of the following conditions:

• without Canadian industry involvement (following consultation with industry where feasible), in which case ESS must possess unique services and/or capabilities that are not available through Canadian industry;
• with Canadian industry in competition for international business if ESS can provide a product or service that would result in a competitive advantage to Canadian industry.

When ESS participates in an international commercial project, it will charge rates that are appropriate for market conditions and that will normally recover the Sector's full costs. In unusual circumstances, where full cost recovery is not achievable, the project manager must have on file a written justification for the reduced level of cost recovery, including documentation and valuation of other benefits that will accrue to the Sector.

In cases where there is more than one Canadian bid, the Sector's involvement will be restricted to supplying unique services and capabilities. ESS must be prepared to supply support to all Canadian bidders under the same terms and conditions. Where possible, ESS will encourage the formation of a single "team Canada" bid.

Internationally, ESS may participate in a commercial project in one of several ways:

(a) as a sole contractor;

• this may occur under government-to-government arrangements and in other cases where the commercial opportunity is made available only to government organizations;
• in general, the Sector will act in this type of role only where it has been specifically requested by Canadian industry or where it is clearly to the advantage of Canadian industry.

(b) working with a single company, either as equal partner, sub-contractor or prime contractor;

• ESS will act as the prime contractor only upon request of a Canadian company and where it is clearly to the advantage of Canadian industry. In this particular case, the onus will be on the company to clearly demonstrate that such ESS involvement will not be to the detriment of other Canadian companies bidding on the project.

(c) working as a part of a consortium, either as equal partner, sub-contractor or prime contractor;

• ESS will act as the prime contractor in such situations only upon request by the consortium members and where it is clearly to the advantage of Canadian industry.

Endorsement Guidelines:

In keeping with the mandate of NRCan, ESS will strive to enhance, promote, and aid in increasing the competitiveness of the Canadian earth science industry. When considering requests for "direct" endorsements to private industry as part of this promotional activity, the following guidelines should be used:

• With limited exceptions, ESS does not entertain endorsement activity of any kind;
• Exceptional cases (such as specific international projects or products in which the Sector was directly involved in developing) shall be reviewed on a case by case basis by the Sector's International Division. These exceptions will be subject to both the general "Guidelines for Working with Industry" identified above as well as the following conditions:
  • ESS will not entertain any direct endorsement of projects, products or services unless the purpose and objective of such an endorsement has been properly identified in writing and determined to be acceptable to ESS;
  • ESS will not directly endorse any products/services that have not met with ESS's satisfaction. Further to this, ESS shall consider endorsements of Canadian products and/or services only;
  • ESS will not accept any form of compensation for endorsing any project, product or service.

It is further recommended that all ESS contracts, licences, or other agreements requesting services or products from ESS contain a clause which would restrict the use of personal, Sector or the Department's name(s) for any purposes without the prior written consent of ESS.