Investing in Automotive Research and Development Pays Off for Canada

OTTAWA, Oct. 26 /CNW/ - Recent investments in automotive research and development by the Government of Canada and the nation's automotive sector have generated more than $1.1 billion in estimated economic and social benefits* for Canada. An independent assessment of the AUTO21 Network of Centres of Excellence, Canada's automotive research and development program, discovered that its projects have provided a 12 to one return on investment for the investors as well as numerous benefits to Canadians at large through the development of safer, cleaner vehicles. 

Economic Impact Study Highlights*:

• A 12:1 return on investment (ROI) based on the total of $90.5 million of public and private sector funding from 2001-2010.
• $1.124 billion in total economic and societal benefits, of which:
• $700 million from prevention of life loss, personal injury and property damages;
• $125 million associated with employment and the formation of household income;
• $100 million in industrial process improvements;
• $75 million in fuel savings.
• 2,200 jobs created or retained annually in Canada, including 600 R&D personnel and 1,600 indirect jobs.

"AUTO21 research is saving lives, reducing greenhouse gases, increasing fuel efficiency and advancing the competitiveness of the Canadian automotive sector," said Gerry Fedchun, chair of the AUTO21 board of directors and executive director, Automotive Parts Manufacturers' Association. "Our researchers strive to meet the needs of our investors and provide results that can be used."

AUTO21 was established through the Networks of Centres of Excellence program by the Government of Canada in 2001 to help advance the country's automotive R&D capabilities. Since then, AUTO21 has developed a national community of automotive research experts at more than 45 universities, and partnered with more than 300 private and public sector companies on over 90 research projects. To assess the impacts of its nine years of funding, AUTO21 contracted the services of the Center for Automotive Research (CAR), an internationally-recognized automotive think-tank to independently assess the impacts of selected projects. The full report is available for download at www.auto21.ca.

"For over 20 years, the Networks of Centres of Excellence have been mobilizing Canada's best research talents to help advance Canada's economy and improve the quality of life of Canadians," said Jean-Claude Gavrel, associate vice-president, Networks of Centres of Excellence. "The impacts of the NCEs are far reaching as demonstrated by today's announcement from AUTO21 which we are proudly supporting since 2001."

With an annual research budget of approximately $11 million in public and private-sector funding, the AUTO21 Network of Centres of Excellence currently supports 39 auto-related research and development projects. Research is conducted in the areas of health, safety and injury prevention; societal issues; materials and manufacturing; design processes; powertrains, fuels and emissions; and intelligent systems and sensors. AUTO21 is supported by the Government of Canada through a Networks of Centres of Excellence program, and its administrative centre is located at the University of Windsor.

* Estimated savings and benefits are based on an impact assessment of selected AUTO21 projects from 2001-2009, completed by the Center for Automotive Research (CAR), an internationally-recognized automotive think-tank. CAR analyses are conducted independently, with assumptions and decisions that are conservative, factual, defensible and reasonable. CAR reports are used by policy-makers throughout the U.S. and Canada, and at all levels - federal, state/provincial and local.  For this reason, and also because CAR reports often are visible in various media, as a general guideline, CAR research states only those benefits it can independently verify. For more information on CAR, please visit www.cargroup.org.  

Backgrounder
Executive Summary of Benefits Generated by AUTO21 Research

Estimated savings and benefits are based on an impact assessment of selected AUTO21 projects from 2001-2009, completed by the Center for Automotive Research (CAR), an internationally-recognized automotive think-tank. CAR analyses are conducted independently, with assumptions and decisions that are conservative, factual, defensible and reasonable. CAR reports are used by policy-makers throughout the U.S. and Canada, and at all levels - federal, state/provincial and local.  For this reason, as a general guideline, CAR research states only those benefits it can independently verify.

Social and Health Benefits

Measured Impact	Quantity	Estimated Economic Value
Lives saved	400	$250 million
Injuries prevented	20,000	$480 million
Accidents prevented	70,000	$70 million
Worker injury compensation claims avoided	50	$100,000
Annual value of prevented auto thefts		$15 million
Total Social and Economic Benefits		$815 million

Canadian Employment Benefits

Measured Impact	Quantity
Total HQP trained	1,600
Current HQP (2009/10)	600
Jobs created or retained	500
Spin-off jobs impacted	1,100
Total employment created or retained	2,200
Estimated employment and income	$125 million

Environmental Benefits

Measured Impact	Quantity	Estimated Economic Value
Fuel savings (litres)	75,000,000	$75 million
Metric ton reduction in carbon dioxide emissions per year	174,000	$2.6 million
Metric ton reduction in carbon monoxide emissions per year	4,480	--
Metric ton reduction in nitrogen oxides emissions per year	3,360	$1.3 million
Total environmental benefits		$78.9 million

Benefits to Industry

Measured Impact	Quantity	Estimated Economic Value
Industrial process improvements - measured savings		$100 million
Product and design improvements	300	$4.5 million
Total industry benefits		$104.5 million

The full report is available for download at www.auto21.ca or by contacting the AUTO21 Administrative Centre at [email protected].

For further information:

Stephanie Campeau
Communications Manager
AUTO21 Network of Centres of Excellence
Tel: [phone] ext. 4129
Cell: 519.890.6830