Labs+: Activating Québec’s CCTT Ecosystem to Accelerate Research to Market

Canada is rich in research, but finding pathways to bring good ideas to market remains a national challenge. In Québec, a new innovation hub is tackling that gap head-on.

Labs+ is the province’s hub of Labs4, a pan-Canadian initiative that helps student-researchers and early-stage innovators move their work out of the lab and into the market by embedding commercialization support early in the innovation journey. At the heart of this effort is the Technology Readiness Level-Up (TRL) program, which connects participants with applied research support to advance, test and validate their ideas.

Labs+ integrates TRL into this network, enhancing an already proven system for real-world impact. The result? A model that pairs national ambition with regional infrastructure — giving participants access to the people, tools and environments they need to move their ideas forward.

A Hub Shaped by Québec’s Innovation Context

Rather than applying a one-size-fits-all national model, Labs+ adapts to Québec’s diverse innovation landscape — where some regions focus on AI and digital tech, and others are anchored in manufacturing, energy, and process industries.

“What makes Labs+ so effective is its approach: embedding commercialization support within a trusted, province-wide applied research network,” says Dr. Jolen Galaugher, Labs4 board chair. “By delivering national programming through Cégep de Thetford and Québec’s CCTTs, we’re reaching innovators early, surrounding them with the right expertise and helping them make real progress toward the market. That’s the power of building on local strengths.”

Québec’s 59 College Centres for Technology Transfer (CCTTs), embedded in cégeps and coordinated through the Réseau des CCTT, work directly with industry and communities to deliver applied research, prototyping, testing, and technical support that reflects regional economic realities. Together, they bring more than 2,400 specialists to bear across diverse sectors.

“From the outset, Labs+ was designed to complement Québec’s existing entrepreneurship ecosystem,” says Chantal Piché, Associate Director of Innovation and Research at Cégep de Thetford and executive lead for Labs+. “Through consultations, we identified a clear gap between early-stage R&D and commercialization — and that’s where this initiative responds. The strength of our model lies in bridging that space through the CCTT network.”

Cégeps and their affiliated CCTTs play a central role in delivery. As hub lead, Cégep de Thetford connects Labs4 programming to the CCTT network and community partners, ensuring national standards are delivered through trusted local institutions.

“Collaboration is a vital part of our college ecosystem,” says Labs+ Hub Manager Olivier Bélanger Laurin. “Trust and local knowledge are essential. We’ve connected with more than 20 partners so far, and we continue to expand the network to ensure participants have the best possible conditions.”

A consultative committee — including Axelys, the Réseau des CCTT, and representatives from Université de Sherbrooke and Concordia University (via V1 Studio and District 3) — helps ensure the program complements existing supports, aligns with industry needs, and adapts as priorities shift.

Matching Innovation Needs with the Right Expertise

Labs+ deliberately supports a wide range of participants and projects, recognizing that innovation challenges and solutions vary across sectors, backgrounds and lived experience.

This process is led in collaboration with Réseau des CCTT and supported by Meryem Bouchoucha, a research and innovation development advisor with more than a decade of industry experience. An engineer by training, Bouchoucha works directly with participants to understand their technical and operational needs, then pinpoints the expertise most likely to move the project forward.

“In more than 70 per cent of cases, I recommend a CCTT with complementary expertise,” she explains. “Researchers often think they need a centre with the same expertise they already have. But what really helps are people who can challenge assumptions, identify constraints, and adapt the work for real-world conditions.”

This reflects Québec’s industrial landscape, where challenges often require cross-disciplinary solutions.

Applied Research in Practice

Matching participants with the right CCTT isn’t just about expertise — it’s about providing access to environments for real-world testing.

Many student-researchers enter TRL with lab-scale prototypes but little experience testing them under market conditions. Several CCTTs offer pilot-scale infrastructure and industrial-grade equipment that simulate production realities.

These environments surface challenges early, showing what breaks, what needs redesign, and which assumptions don’t hold. Because CCTTs operate on industry timelines, participants confront the commercial realities of applied research from the outset, not as a late-stage adjustment.

Labs+ gives participants access to research capacity that’s typically out of reach for early-stage innovators. Working within centres that serve established companies lowers barriers and shortens the learning curve at a critical stage of development.

Current TRL participants are tackling a wide range of challenges. One placement at C2T3 focuses on developing a photonic switch for optical and telecommunications. Others are working with Centre Kemitek, a CCTT specializing in green chemistry and scale-up, on chemical processes, continuous manufacturing and AI-integrated modelling to accelerate product development.

Labs+ also supports community-based research. Cégep de Thetford and their CCTTs, COALIA and Kemitek, are partnering with 3R Minerals to explore the recovery and valorization of historic mining residues containing critical and strategic minerals. While COALIA is not yet hosting Labs+ participants, its mineralogy and plastics expertise signals clear potential for future collaboration as the Hub evolves.

TRL isn’t a finish line — it’s a launch point. By working inside industry-facing centres, many participants develop ongoing relationships, a sharper understanding of industry expectations and clear pathways to pursue applied research through follow-on projects, funding or future partnerships.

What Comes Next

Though still early in its rollout, Labs+ is already gaining traction. The hub supports up to 15 participants annually and continues to draw strong interest. This demand keeps the focus on projects where applied research can make the biggest difference.

For participants, the impact often continues well beyond the TRL placement. Many build lasting relationships with CCTTs, pursue follow-on collaborations and secure provincial innovation funding to advance their work. Labs+ is emerging as a clear entry point into Québec’s applied research ecosystem — not a one-off experience, but the beginning of a broader innovation journey.

CCTTs are also seeing increased engagement. Labs+ gives them a chance to engage earlier, working with student researchers to apply insights that can shape a project before it hits the market or major funding stages. For many centres, it expands their role in the innovation pipeline, complementing work with established SMEs while deepening connections with emerging talent. As interest grows, so does institutional buy-in. More CCTTs are looking to host participants and take a more active role.

“Labs+ works because it builds on what’s already here — strong expertise, trusted relationships, and a willingness to work together,” says Bélanger Laurin. “We hope this approach will make programs like TRL a perennial part of the innovation landscape.”

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