CASE STUDY 7: St Lawrence College: Sustainable Energy Applied Research Centre (SEARC)

The Sustainable Energy Applied Research Centre (SEARC), located at the Kingston campus of St. Lawrence College, is dedicated to sustainable technology development and testing, including energy systems (e.g. solar power) and clean technologies. To grow to its potential, the program and projects must adapt to the changing demands of businesses across Ontario and abroad.

Doran conducted a Program Review that involved interviews with faculty and staff and external consultations with stakeholders including: past clients, progam partners, and funding agencies. An asset review was also conducted to look at the state of technologies and facilities with respect to the program’s ability to deliver its mandate.

The Program Review identified strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats facing SEARC. Three go-forward options were explored. Doran worked with SEARC leadership to develop a Strategic Outlook document and Business Plan that detailed and justified the resources, partners, infrastructure, and funding requirements for the Centre over a five-year period.

The Strategic Outlook and Business Plan reorganized SLC’s sustainability, agritech and environmental research and trades under a new umbrella called the Sustainable Trades & Technology Research Program (STTRP). The proposed STTRP would deliver collaborative solutions to business, technology, and innovation challenges, by leveraging the College’s applied research talent, students, technicians, and faculty experts. STTRP would draw on talent and resources from all three SLC campuses—Kingston, Cornwall, and Brockville—and from three on-campus programs: The Sustainable Energy Applied Research Centre (SEARC), the Environmental Technologies Program, and the Agri-Business Centre (ABC). The program’s core talent comes from the students, faculty and staff associated with the Construction and Industrial Trades & Technology program, Engineering Technology Program, Environmental Technologies, the Sciences (biology, chemistry, biochemistry, and microbiology), Computer Programming and Networking, the Applied Arts & Business (including User Design Experience), and other cross-disciplinary programs at the College.

This project was also tied to the development of a new delivery Model for Applied Research at St. Lawrence College. (See CASE STUDY 4: St Lawrence College Applied Research Program) and the development of new low-carbon building skills curriculum (CASE STUDY 14: St Lawrence College – Low-Carbon Building Skills Programs: Apprenticeship, Engineering Technology, Green Building, Smart House, Curriculum development)