By Lisa Thibodeau
CMC Microsystems hopes its brand-new facility in Kanata North can help the region’s tech firms make new breakthroughs in microelectronics and nanotechnology.
The Kingston-based nanotechnology organization has leased a 2,500-square-foot facility at 400 March Rd., the first major office space for the not-for-profit in the nation’s capital. CMC previously operated a small satellite office at the National Research Council on Montreal Road, which underscored the need for a more permanent location.
In the last two years CMC Microsystems has expanded from its Kingston office, opening a location in Montreal, and now Ottawa, to better serve its clientele.
The Kanata office will be used for research and development support, microelectronic fabrication as well as as a training space for staff and clients.
“There’s a very vibrant high tech and startup community in the Kanata business park,” CMC president Gord Harling told The Kanata Networker. “We want them to come to us.”
The organization works closely with universities, colleges and researchers from across Canada, assisting them in gaining access to the software tools they need to design, develop and manufacture innovations in microelectronics and nanotechnology. The products can be used in everything from IoT software to 5G, says Harling.
CMC helps clients through each stage of that development, from product design to fabrication. They also have a logistics lab group dedicated to one-off designs in which the CMC team helps clients locate Canadian laboratories that can assist in building their product.
“We are also developing our own platform technology so that in the future we’ll be able to sell the components to someone … and when they decide they want to modify it, they can come back to us for design and fabrication services and make their own version,” says Harling, adding that having a team in Kanata North will give CMC even better access to that leading-edge technology to help it advance its business.
While approximately six staff have moved into the new office space, the goal is to grow the team to around 20 employees, with all new hires going to the Ottawa or Montreal locations. The revamp of the space is almost complete, says Harling, with an opening date expected within the next month.
“We have been very proactive in the last couple years in terms of changing the business model, and it’s going to show,” he adds. “I think you’re going to see a lot of announcements coming up about new services we’re offering and new agreements we’re signing.”