A growing number of high technology companies with roots at the
University of British Columbia are generating rewards for the province
as well as for the university, a report released today by the UBC
University-Industry Liaison Office (UILO) shows.
Survey results included in the Report on UBC Spin-off Company
Formation and Growth indicate that the number of jobs created
by UBC’s 71 spin-offs more than doubled to 1,502 in 1997 from 673
in 1994, and combined annual revenues for the companies jumped to
$42.4 million from $20.9 million in the same period. Sixty-seven
of the 71 companies are located in B.C.
“Without spin-off company creation, the potential economic and
social benefits of many university research discoveries would never
reach the public,” said UILO associate director Angus Livingstone.
“There is simply a lack of established companies that are willing
to adopt early-stage technologies, so instead, UBC partners with
government and the private sector to provide the resources necessary
to form ventures around these opportunities.”
Creating spin-offs is one way that UBC is maximizing the local
benefit of UBC research in terms of job creation and revenue. Private
investment in UBC spin-offs climbed to $633.8 million in 1997 from
$248.9 million in 1994, while government investment reached $24.1
million up from $17.4 million during the same period. Market capitalization
of the 11 spin-offs that are publicly traded is estimated at $1.1
billion.
UBC spin-off companies also have become an important revenue stream
for the university bringing in a total of $17.5 million in research
contracts and $3.4 million in royalties as of March 31, 1997. At
the same time, UBC’s equity holdings in 27 spin-off companies were
valued at $5.6 million.
According to a 1997 report prepared by Canada’s Natural Science
and Engineering Research Council in conjunction with the Conference
Board of Canada, B.C. accounts for 36 per cent of the country’s
university-based spin-offs. UBC leads this effort and participates
in the start-up of approximately five to seven new companies each
year.
The majority of companies (45 per cent) operate in the life sciences
sector, while 39 per cent are based in the physical sciences and
15 per cent in information technology.
The UILO is the technology transfer centre of UBC and its affiliated
hospitals. It builds strategic partnerships among industry, UBC
researchers, the investment community and government to target opportunities
for research collaboration and technology commercialization.
-30-
