Industry Minister Bernier Announces Investment of $1 Million for Research Into Construction Design for Urban Environments

Ottawa, Ontario, April 27, 2006 – The Honourable Maxime Bernier, Minister of Industry, and Dr. Suzanne Fortier, President of the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), announced today a federal grant of $1 million to Dr. Paul Gauvreau, Associate Professor of Civil Engineering at the University of Toronto, to develop new structures and explore the uses of new materials for urban construction and to improve the design training of engineers at the university level.

The funds will permit the creation of a new NSERC Chair in Design Engineering for the Urban Environment. The Toronto area will serve as a source of design opportunities for the chairholder, Dr. Gauvreau, who will work in partnership with a number of local construction companies. The industrial partners include Brown and Co. Engineering, Delcan Inc., Halsall Associates Ltd., Invar Building Inc., Morrison Hershfield Ltd., Schaeffers & Associates Consulting Engineering, Stantec Consulting Ltd., and Rand Worldwide.

“Dr. Gauvreau’s research will benefit the construction industry through the design and development of new materials and urban structures that are suitable for northern climates,” said Minister Bernier. “This research will help ensure that Canada maintains a leading role in infrastructure technology.”

“Dr. Gauvreau is particularly recognized for his development of new structural systems for bridges that make effective use of new materials such as high-performance concrete,” noted Dr. Fortier. “His many years of experience in the construction industry as well as in academia make him an ideal candidate to meet the design, engineering and training demands of this Chair.”

NSERC is a federal agency whose role is to make investments in people, discovery and innovation for the benefit of all Canadians. The agency supports some 22,000 university students and postdoctoral fellows in their advanced studies. NSERC promotes discovery by funding more than 10,000 university professors every year and fosters innovation by encouraging more than 800 Canadian companies to participate and invest in university research projects.

For more information, contact:

Michael Dwyer
NSERC Public Affairs
Tel.: (613) 992-9001
Cell: (613) 794-9170
E-mail: michael.dwyer@nserc.ca

Isabelle Fontaine
Office of the Honourable Maxime Bernier
Minister of Industry
Tel.: (613) 995-9001 

For more information on Dr. Gauvreau, visit his Web site at http://www.civ.utoronto.ca/pg/.