SR&ED Case Study: Diagnostic Technology Development
Background A diagnostics company was developing a rapid point-of-care assay for a target analyte, but the target’s low concentration in the relevant sample matrix fell below the detection limit of existing rapid-test chemistries. The Challenge It was unclear whether any combination of assay chemistry and sample preparation could achieve clinically useful sensitivity within the time […]
SR&ED in Healthcare & Biotechnology: What Qualifies?
Healthcare and biotechnology companies are natural fits for SR&ED — much of the sector’s work is, by definition, aimed at resolving genuine scientific and technological uncertainty. The challenge is usually separating eligible experimental development from the regulatory, clinical, and commercial activities that surround it. Commonly Eligible Activities What Generally Doesn’t Qualify on Its Own A […]
Can Construction Companies Claim SR&ED?
Construction companies often assume SR&ED doesn’t apply to them because the end product is a building, not a patent. But construction projects regularly involve exactly the kind of technical uncertainty the SR&ED program was designed to reward — it’s just embedded in site conditions and engineering decisions rather than a formal research project. Where Construction […]
SR&ED Case Study: Robotics and Industrial Automation
Background A manufacturer wanted to automate a part-handling process currently done manually because the parts varied significantly in shape and orientation from batch to batch. Standard pick-and-place robotic systems, designed for uniform parts, could not reliably grip or orient the variable parts. The Challenge It was unclear whether any combination of gripper design, vision guidance, […]
SR&ED Case Study: Advanced Concrete Development
Background A concrete supplier wanted to reduce the carbon footprint of a structural mix by substituting a significant portion of cement with a supplementary cementitious material, but early trials showed reduced strength development and inconsistent curing behaviour. The Challenge Existing published guidance for the substitute material did not address the specific replacement ratio and local […]
SR&ED Case Study: Earthquake Engineering
Background An engineering firm was retained to seismically retrofit a heritage building with an irregular structural layout that fell outside the configurations addressed by standard seismic retrofit guidelines. The Challenge Standard retrofit methods assumed regular structural geometries, and it was unclear whether any combination of reinforcement techniques could achieve the required seismic performance without compromising […]
SR&ED Case Study: Recycled Construction Materials
Background A building materials manufacturer wanted to incorporate a higher percentage of recycled feedstock into a structural panel product, but the recycled material’s variable composition made consistent structural performance difficult to achieve. The Challenge Existing formulation methods for the virgin-material product did not translate to the recycled feedstock, and it was unclear whether any formulation […]
SR&ED Case Study: Advanced Welding Development
Background A fabrication shop was asked to join two dissimilar metal alloys for a client application, a combination with no established welding procedure specification available through industry standards or the shop’s existing certified procedures. The Challenge Standard welding parameters produced brittle joints prone to cracking, and it was unclear whether any combination of technique, filler […]
SR&ED for Manufacturing: What Canadian Manufacturers Should Know
Manufacturing is one of the strongest-fit sectors for SR&ED, yet many manufacturers assume the program is for labs and software, not shop floors. In practice, process development, materials work, and equipment modification generate some of the most defensible SR&ED claims in the country. Common Sources of Eligible Work What Generally Doesn’t Qualify Why Documentation Matters […]
SR&ED Case Study: Distributed Database Scalability
Background A SaaS platform’s database architecture, designed for a single-region deployment, began experiencing intermittent data consistency errors as the company expanded to multi-region deployment to meet customer latency requirements. The Challenge The team needed a replication approach that maintained strong consistency for critical financial records while keeping read latency low across regions — a combination […]