The Office of Research Services (ORS) at Olds College of Agriculture & Technology supports research that takes place at Olds College by providing guidance and support to researchers, faculty and students who apply for, receive and manage research funding.
Overseeing administration for research, ORS also works with industry and clients by managing contracts, research agreements, bookkeeping and accounting – setting them up for success to test their technologies and practices on the Smart Farm.e environmental impact. The Olds College Smart Ag Ecosystem is accelerating the progress and innovation needed to grow Canada’s ag industry — and the Olds College Smart Farm is at the heart of it all.
Industry partners connect with us for support in the development and testing of innovative products with the Olds College Centre for Innovation (OCCI). The core areas of research include livestock production, crop production, environmental stewardship, smart agriculture, digital agriculture and controlled environment agriculture.
Partner with the OCCI to access customized applied research solutions for your specific agricultural challenges.
With the ability to develop, validate and test products using technology and applied research in real agriculture settings, OCCI continues to bring new projects to the Smart Farm. Validate your agricultural technology, integrate systems and accelerate commercialization by working with our team.
Connect to regional and national innovation ecosystems including Alberta Innovates, Canadian Food Innovation Network, and Canadian Agri-food Automation and Intelligence Network (CAAIN).
Discover exciting student research opportunities with the Olds College Centre for Innovation (OCCI). From starting your own research project to volunteering or joining summer student and Direct Field Study internships, you’ll gain hands-on experience with cutting-edge tools, learn alongside industry experts and work with live research at the Olds College Smart Farm — all while building skills to advance your education and career.
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Each year, OCCI hires several students over the summer or for Directed Field Study positions, as well as contract students throughout the year. These seasonal positions often lead to full-time employment with the OCCI team.
Our dedicated faculty members bring a wealth of expertise from various fields, making them valuable partners for research initiatives showcasing insights and solutions for real-world challenges, fostering a culture of innovation and learning within our institution.
View our Faculty-Led Research for examples of past initiatives.
The Smart Farm was built to support start-up development, validation, scaling and demonstration of smart agriculture technologies and practices. Olds College is connected with Alberta Innovates, the Central Alberta Regional Innovation Network (CARIN), SVG Thrive and UCeed, among others, with the goals of:
Since 2018, OCCI has had discussions with 415 organizations looking to engage with the College — resulting in very high success rates. To date, almost 264 organizations have engaged on a project with OCCI, and a large percentage of those include small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
Since 1999, applied research activities have expanded significantly at Olds College Centre for Innovation (OCCI), through increased support and involvement from Olds College, learners, staff, industry partners and funding organizations. We have received support from many organizations, including the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council, Canada Foundation for Innovation, Prairies Economic Development Canada and the Government of Alberta. OCCI provides research services for industry partners on a fee-for-service basis, and will assist industry in leveraging research funding from alternate sources and funding agencies.
Intellectual property gained throughout the duration of all projects stays with the industry partner. Your organization’s intellectual property is yours and working with Olds College Centre for Innovation will not compromise or change that. Whether we are hosting a trial for you, organizing a focus group, or supporting your business under a grant, you can think of OCCI as part of your organization's research and development team. As is often the case with early-stage product development, intellectual property is not yet formally protected with patents, and must therefore be protected with confidentiality. Our staff, researchers and partners take confidentiality seriously and understand the importance of keeping your intellectual property safe.
Non-confidentiality agreements (NDA’s) are used to protect confidential information shared with College researchers or back to industry partners. Sponsored research agreements crystallize intellectual property and confidentiality terms in a legal contract as well as the statement of work for the applied research to be conducted. All of these agreements are developed and managed by the Office of Research Services (ORS) on behalf of the college.
The Canadian Tri-Agencies (NSERC, SSHRC and CIHR) created a Tri-Agency Research Data Management (RDM) Policy to ensure data and information is accessible and useful to other researchers and society. A component of this policy is to develop an RDM Institutional Strategy to foster a culture — and develop capacity — that supports researchers in adopting responsible RDM practices which follow the internationally recognized FAIR Data Principles to make research data Findable, Accessible, Interoperable and Reusable.
This strategy will continue to be updated as the implementation plan is developed and the College continues to grow. If you have comments or questions about this Institutional RDM Strategy, please reach out to occi@oldscollege.ca.
Research Data Management Institutional Strategy at Olds College
For more information on research at Olds College, please contact ORS at 403.507.7970 or occi@oldscollege.ca.
To contact someone directly, about working with Olds College on a research project, please contact Atul Nayyar, Senior Development Partner at anayyar@oldscollege.ca.