Ontario Research Fund Research Excellence Round 6

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Ontario Research FundResearch ExcellenceRound 6

• September 2011

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Introduction

• The Ontario Research Fund Research Excellence
  (ORF-RE) program promotes research excellence in
  Ontario by supporting transformative,
  internationally significant research
• The ORF-RE focuses on scientific excellence and
  strong commercialization, and targets new
  leading-edge research initiatives

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Comprehensive Research Investments Create
Capacity and a Strong
Knowledge Base
Post-Doctoral Fellowship Program (PDF) Early
Researcher Awards (ERA)
MRI DIRECT DELIVERY builds capacity by providing
comprehensive research support in all research
disciplines PEOPLE Research talent programs, a
central part of the knowledge creation ecosystem,
support attraction/retention of researchers
throughout their career development
INFRASTRUCTURE Ontario Research Fund Research
Infrastructure (ORF-RI) supports modernization,
development and acquisition of new infrastructure
(small/individual to large/institutional) and is
administered in concert with Canada Foundation
for Innovation (CFI) OPERATIONS Ontario
Research Fund Research Excellence (ORF-RE)
supports transformative, internationally
significant research projects INSTITUTE MODEL,
funded by MRI to advance translational and
focused research in specific research areas The
Ontario Institute for Cancer Research (OICR) is
an internationally renowned hub for
multi-disciplinary, multi-institutional
collaborations in translational cancer
research The Ontario Brain Institute (OBI)
facilitates multi-disciplinary,
multi-institutional research collaborations in
neuroscience
ORF-RI Small Infrastructure Grants to Attract
and Retain Researchers
 ORF-RI Large-Scale Infrastructure Grants for
Transformative Research
Capacity, Range of Disciplines and
Commercialization Potential
ORF-RE Builds research teams (graduate
students, PDFs) led by established scientists
(principal investigators and co-investigators)
OICR, OBI, PI Continue to raise Ontarios global
reputation in research community
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ONTARIO RESEARCH FUND (ORF) is Ontarios
Flagship, Best-in-Class, Research Program

• Supports scientific excellence that can be
  developed into innovative goods and services that
  will boost Ontario's economy
• Provides talented researchers with the support
  they need to undertake cutting-edge research
• Designed to provide Ontarios research community
  with one window access for research funding
• A key component of the provinces Innovation
  Agenda, the ORF keeps Ontario researchers at the
  leading-edge by supporting
• the operational costs (direct and indirect) of
  research through RESEARCH EXCELLENCE program
• the capital costs of research through its
  RESEARCH INFRASTRUCTURE program

ORF Share of Funding by Focus Areas
Since 2004, 1.17B committed towards 1,500
research projects in OIA focus areas, leveraging
2.5B leveraged from partner funding from
institutions, federal government and the private
sector.
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ORF-RESEARCH EXCELLENCE Supports Large Scale
Research Operations With Commercialization
Potential

• To date, 556.6 million committed for 140
  research projects through 5 ORF-RE rounds,
  leveraging 1.1B in private sector and
  institutional contributions. Results include
  5,450 highly qualified people and 625 industrial
  and institutional partnerships

• Represents a unique opportunity for Ontario
  researchers to conduct large scale,
  transformational research with commercial
  potential
• Provides research institutions 1M-4M for
  operating and indirect costs
• Combines public research push with a market pull
  by requiring partnerships with industry. ORF-RE
  funding formula requires partnership of
• ORF-RE one-third total project cost
• Industry one-third of total project cost
• Institutions one-third total project cost
• Open to all disciplines, but focuses on OIA focus
  areas

ORF-RE Share of Funding by Focus Areas
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ORF-RE Application Requirements Are Designed to
Promote Commercialization of Scientific Excellence
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Government
Requires Partnerships for Funding
Industry
Academia

• APPLICATION REQUIREMENT
• Pathway to Commercial, Health Systems or other
  application
• Strategic Value of Research Results

Community Benefits Market Need

• APPLICATION REQUIREMENT
• Research Excellence
• Strategic Value of Science

Talent
Technology
Know How
Capital
Value-Added Tech-Transfer And Business Community
Recommended in Application Instructions and Road
Shows
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ORF-RE Round 6

• ORF-RE Round 6 was posted on August 11, 2011
• Submission deadlines are
• Notice of Intent (NoI) October 14, 2011
• Where applicable, NOIs that will be posted on our
  website will enable institutions to identify
  opportunities for collaboration prior to applying
• Applications January 27, 2012
• As a general rule, the minimum support provided
  by the ORF-RE to a project is 1 million and the
  maximum support provided is 4 million
• Only in exceptional circumstances will requests
  over 4 million be considered

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ORF-RE Round 6 Mandate

• ORF-RE Round 6 will focus on
• Scientific excellence
• Strong commercialization
• Strategic value to Ontario (new knowledge,
  industrial application or potential for economic
  or societal benefit)
• Attraction, retention and fostering of research
  talent
• Projects supported by the ORF-RE are expected to
  produce results that may have an impact on
  Ontarios economy and/or society and raise its
  profile in the global scientific community

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Eligibility

• The ORF-RE funding is open, on a competitive
  basis, to Ontarios
• Publicly assisted universities
• Colleges of applied arts and technology
• Hospital research institutes
• Not-for-profit research institutes affiliated
  with the above
• Consortia of the above, with one institution as
  lead applicant, assuming responsibility and
  accountability for the consortium
• Other Ontario not-for-profit research
  institutions at the discretion of the ORF
  Advisory Board
• Where an institution's eligibility to apply
  for ORF-RE funding may be in question, such
  institutions must request and receive
  confirmation of eligibility from the ORF
  Advisory Board
• RE will not support proposals seeking funding
  for
• Contract RD where the private sector owns the IP
• Clinical trials
• Endowed research chairs
• High performance computing platforms

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Eligible Projects

• While research proposals in all disciplines
  are eligible for ORF-RE Round 6, the Ministry
  particularly encourages collaborative projects
  across disciplines and institutions from the
  following focus areas
• Bio-economy and clean technologies
• Advanced health technologies
• Digital media and information communications
  technologies
• Sustainable communities (multidisciplinary
  research including but not limited to the
  topic(s) of ageing, energy, health, environmental
  sustainability, regional economic development
  and/or economic prosperity for all).

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Funding Formula

• ORF-RE supports total operating costs, including
  an indirect cost component of up to 40 of a
  projects direct costs
• Project funding is achieved through contributions
  of the Ministry, institutions and private sector
  on a 1/3 basis
• ORF maximum of one-third of the total cost
• Private Sector/Institutions one-third each
• The ORF Board may consider a blended funding
  formula in cases of exceptional scientific merit
  where the institution and its private sector
  partners, in combination, make up 2/3 of the
  required funding
• When constructing the budget please ensure the
  cash flow is close to the spending profile i.e
  not divided equally over four years

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Conditions Of Funding

• Institutions will be also required to have in
  place
• Plan for youth outreach/mentorship activities
  (Successful applicants may use up to 1 of the
  ORF contribution to undertake annual youth
  science and technology outreach activities)
• Commercialization plan outlining projects
  commercialization pathway
• Intellectual Property (IP) arrangement

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ORF-RE Round 6 Selection Criteria

• In Round 6, the ORF-RE proposals will be judged
  on
• Research quality
• Strategic value of the research
• Commercialization
• Development of research talent
• Project management
• To be considered for funding, all proposals must
  meet the minimum threshold of excellence in the
  following criteria
• Quality of research
• Commercialization AND/OR Strategic Value to
  Ontario

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Application Process

• Institutions submit Notices of Intent (NoI) by
  October 14, 2011
• NoIs are posted on the Ministry website to
• Help institutions identify opportunities for
  collaboration (where applicable)
• Allow Ministry staff to conduct early searches
  for external reviewers
• Institutions submit applications by January 27,
  2012
• Applications must be received and/or postmarked
  no later than January 27, 2012.
• Late and incomplete applications will not be
  accepted

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Adjudication Process

• MRI staff review applications for completeness
• Applications are forwarded to external expert
  reviewers for assessment of scientific merit and
  quality of research
• Applications and external reviews are forwarded
  to peer review panels for a review against the
  full set of criteria
• Review panels make recommendations to the ORF
  Advisory Board
• ORF Advisory Board makes recommendations to the
  Minister
• MRI Minister makes final decisions
• Decisions are communicated to institutions by way
  of a letter to the Vice-President, Research, Lead
  Institutional contact and the Principal
  Investigator of the lead institution

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Common Application Errors and Weaknesses

• failure to meet scientific excellence criterion
• failure to indicate how the proposal differs from
  the current state of the art research in the
  field, within the Ontario context as well as
  nationally and internationally
• failure to indicate how the proposed research
  differs from research previously funded by the
  Ontario government
• proposed research lacks focus (numerous,
  unrelated or loosely related projects)
• failure to make the case, i.e. to explain the
  steps that led to the proposed research concept
• failure to demonstrate the strategic value of the
  research to Ontario
• proposed research is not ground-breaking or
  innovative (e.g. small scale, single experiment
  focused)
• proposed research has weak commercialization
  potential and/or weak research capacity building
  (HQP)
• the budget appears inflated and/or expenses are
  not adequately justified
• the management structure is poorly defined
• the governance structure lacks autonomy
• sustainability is questionable beyond government
  funding

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• For more information on ORF-RE or other MRI
  programs please visit our web-site at
• http//www.mri.gov.on.ca/english/programs
• Or
• http//www.mri.gov.on.ca/english/programs/orf/re/p
  rogram.asp
• Contacts
• Lyn Doering [phone]
• lyn.doering_at_ontario.ca
• Mima Vulovic [phone]
• mima.vulovic_at_ontario.ca

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FAQs - Start-date for Eligible Expenditures

• Q. What is the "Start-date" for eligible
  expenditures under the ORF-RE program?
• A. The "Start-date" for eligible expenditures of
  ORF-RE projects is fixed as of the date of the
  Award Notification Letter. In exceptional
  circumstances and depending on the merits of the
  proposal and recommendation from the review
  panels, the ORF Board may advise and direct
  Ministry staff to negotiate an earlier
  Start-date. If an earlier Start-date is
  allowed it will not be any earlier than the date
  of the call for proposals for that round of
  competition. For ORF-RE Round 6, this date is
  August 11, 2011.

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FAQs - Philanthropic and Foundation
Contributions

• Q. Do philanthropic and foundation contributions
  qualify as private sector contributions?
• A. No, in Round 6 philanthropic and foundation
  contributions do not qualify as private sector
  contributions. However, they may be used as part
  of the institutional contribution. Please note
  that the ORF Board may consider a blended
  funding formula in cases of exceptional
  scientific merit where the institution and its
  private sector partners, in combination, make up
  2/3 of the required funding.

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FAQs - Matching of Federal Program Funding

• Q. Will the ORF-RE match money received through
  federal government agencies such as the Canada
  Foundation for Innovation Infrastructure
  Operating Fund (IOF)?
• A. Yes, these grants will be matched by ORF-RE
  and considered as an institutional contribution.
• Q. Would the industrial portion of an NSERC
  Collaborative Research and Development
  (NSERC-CRD) grant be considered an eligible
  private sector partner contribution for an ORF-RE
  project?
• A. Yes, the industry portion of an NSERC CRD and
  an NSERC Industrial Research Chair (NSERC- IRC)
  will be considered as an eligible private sector
  contribution to an ORF-RE project. The NSERC
  portion will be considered as an institutional
  contribution. This funding arrangement must be
  disclosed at the time of application.
•  

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FAQs Top Ups

• Q. Will the ORF allow awardees, who have
  received operating funding at a reduced level in
  an ORF competition, to seek additional funding in
  order to top up their existing grant in a later
  competition?
• A.  No. The Ontario Research Fund Research
  Excellence (ORF-RE) program seeks to fund only
  new and transformative research projects, not
  incremental research.
• To that effect applicants must provide a
  justification of the relevance of the research
  proposed, both within the national/international
  context, and within the context of previous
  Ontario government funding or ongoing Ontario
  research initiatives.
• In addition the research proposals should
  indicate the percentage of each investigators
  time on a proposed project and identify whether a
  co-investigator is also working on another
  project submitted to the ORF.
•  

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FAQs Overhead Calculation

• Q. How do you calculate the maximum amount that
  can be taken from the ORF contribution toward
  overhead (indirect costs)?
• A. No more than 40 of the direct cost portion
  of the ORF contribution can be used for indirect
  costs.
• To determine the maximum amount that can be
  taken from the ORF contribution toward overhead,
  please use the following formula
• Overhead amount grant amount / 1.4 x 40
• For example, for a grant of 1,000,000, the
  maximum that can be taken for overhead purposes
  is (1,000,000 / 1.4) x 40 285,714.

Overall Project Budget Indirect costs 40 of direct costs ORF Funds Institutional contribution Private sector contribution
Overall Project Budget Direct costs ORF Funds Institutional contribution Private sector Contribution
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FAQs Peer Review Panels

• Q. In the case of a proposal re-submission to a
  current or later round, do the peer-review panels
  get to see the comments made on proposals from
  the previous rounds and/or does the Ministry
  re-use the comments provided by reviewers in the
  previous round?
• A. No.  Written comments provided by expert and
  Panel reviewers in one round are not re-used from
  round to round.  ORF-RE applications stand on
  their own merits in each Round.  Applicants who
  are re-submitting an application to a later round
  may choose to refer to comments made by
  peer-review panels in a previous round, to
  demonstrate that concerns expressed by the panel
  have been addressed in the new application.  This
  may be done in the applications cover letter.

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A Complex Program With Significant Industry
Participation

• Industry is an integral part of program policies
• Applicants are required to include private sector
  partners (PSP) in their project proposals
• Program evaluation criteria includes strategic
  value to Ontario and commercialization
• Industry representatives and commercialization
  experts are a part of adjudication
• MRI funding is contingent on industry
  participation