FedDev Ontario Funding Supports Development of Simplified COVID-19 Ventilator

Kilmarnock Enterprise, an industrial solutions provider, has been chosen and awarded government funding for various COVID-19 solutions, including a simplified ventilator, with support from the Valley Heartland Community Futures Development Corporation (CFDC).

Through the Rural Innovation Initiative of Eastern Ontario (RIIEO), distributed through government funding from the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario), Kilmarnock will use their funding to further develop the advanced projects in their Robotics, Automations and Controls Department, and a new division for Original Equipment Manufacturing, to create safer and more cost-effective COVID-19 solutions.

“Now, more than ever, we must continue to come together to find solutions that will support the health of Canadians and our businesses. I commend Kilmarnock Enterprise and other rural organizations that are answering the call to action to provide critical support to our country during this fight against COVID-19.”
– Mélanie Joly, Minister of Economic Development and Official Languages and Minister of Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario.

As an innovative leader in the business community of Eastern Ontario, Kilmarnock has pivoted their approach to focus on pandemic solutions since March of last year. One of the biggest projects allocated with funding support has been the research and development of a simplified ventilator that can be assembled, purchased, and used by a wider variety of hospitals and care centres as a more cost-efficient solution across Canada.

About Kimarnock Enterprise’s Simplified Ventilator Project and Additional COVID-19 Solutions

Kilmarnock Enterprise has been an all-encompassing industry solutions provider for over 30 years. The company employs approximately 65 people in Ontario at their two facilities located in Smiths Falls and Trenton who provide manufacturing and industrial clients with specialized services in automation and controls, custom fabrications, design and engineering, equipment builds, robotics, 3D printing, project management, machining, preventive maintenance, plant shutdowns and startups, and the installation of new production lines.

Kilmarnock Enterprise has developed a COVID-19 simplified ventilator with the help of a local Ontario physician who has a PhD in respiratory physiology and mechanics.

With the FedDev Ontario government funding distributed by Valley Heartland CFDC, Kimarnock will be able to bring the life-saving device to commercialization. Led by Kimarnock’s President and CEO Isabelle Graveline in partnership with local physician Dr. Alain Gauthier from Perth, Ontario, the new ventilator developed has only 20-30 active parts as opposed to over 1000 currently found in standard ventilators. Kimarnock’s simplified COVID-19 ventilator is the size of a small lunch box, is inexpensive, has components easily found in any hospital setting around the world, and is easy to manufacture and deploy.

Kilmarnock’s Additional COVID-19 Projects

Along with the development of a simplified ventilator to be used by medical professionals at a more affordable cost, Kilmarnock Enterprise is also working on the following COVID-19 projects:

• The development of face shields using 3D-printed parts.
• The development of sneeze guards for emergency rooms and COVID-19 screening areas in local Canadian and American hospitals.
• The design and development of aerosol boxes, with the help of doctors from the local Belleville General Hospital, used to protect front line workers from exposure to COVID-19 infected patients.
• The development of manufacturing lines for medical ventilator tubing for Globalmed Inc, in the municipality of Quinte West.
• The installation of COVID-19-specific safety guarding for Burnbrae Farms in the United Counties of Leeds and Grenville.

FedDev Ontario Supports Businesses Across the Province

During the ongoing global pandemic, FedDev Ontario has invested and granted millions of dollars into the hands of local Ontario businesses for economic growth such as job creation and retention, innovation for various industries and entrepreneurs, and COVID-19 recovery and overall support to avoid closures.

One of the largest support efforts provided through FedDev Ontario is provision of the nationwide Regional Relief and Recovery Fund (RRRF). The RRRF provides significant financial contributions (interest-free loans) to help support the fixed operating costs of small and medium-size businesses located in Ontario that have been affected negatively by the global pandemic.

Another example of FedDev Ontario business support across the province includes economic growth opportunities and funding for women entrepreneurs in tech, to help reduce the gender inequality and barriers that still exist for women in business today. FedDev Ontario funding also regularly invests in innovative businesses in order to bring products to market and create more high-skilled jobs in Ontario, such as the recent $30 million investment in eight companies located in the Waterloo Region.

Government Funding for COVID-19 Solutions and Support

As the numbers in our province continue to grow, and lockdown restrictions stay in place in efforts to battle the spread, many businesses are continuously on the lookout for funding support, research, and recovery opportunities. Stay up to date with all news and program updates on our COVID-19 Government Funding for Canadian Businesses page so that you don’t miss any eligibility or deadline information.