Impact | Conestoga Applied Research

How Canadian cooperatives and mutuals approach governance and decision-making

This research examined how governance, strategy, and organizational purpose are understood and applied by boards across Canada's cooperative and mutual sector. Drawing on interviews with organizational leaders and governance professionals, the study explored decision-making practices across mutuals, credit unions, cooperative associations, and other cooperative models.

A solar-powered alternative to wood-fired cooking with Zacstar Ltd.

Zacstar Ltd. supplies solar panels to the Nigerian market. The company partnered with Conestoga’s SMART Centre to refine a solar oven prototype designed to provide households with an alternative to wood-fired cooking. The project focused on improving the oven’s functionality, durability, and affordability while preparing the design for potential manufacturing.

A new approach to solar panel recycling with Sunset Renewables

Sunset Renewables, an Indigenous-owned company based in Hamilton, Ontario, partnered with Conestoga’s SMART Centre to advance purpose-built technology for recycling waste solar panels. Building on an earlier collaboration, the project focused on preparing the company’s recycling equipment for commercial operation while improving material recovery, efficiency, and scalability.

Smarter washroom maintenance through connected technology with Dexterra

Dexterra partnered with Conestoga to develop a smart washroom monitoring system for commercial facilities and high-traffic public washrooms. The project focused on designing a scalable platform that uses connected sensor technology to monitor washroom conditions and provide facility management teams with information to support cleaning, maintenance, and supply replenishment.

Smarter battery energy management with Vortex

Vortex partnered with Conestoga’s SMART Centre to develop an intelligent building management system designed to optimize battery energy storage operations. The project focused on creating an automated controller that uses electricity pricing and battery performance data to determine when batteries should charge, discharge, or remain idle.

Finding new possibilities for sustainable land use with Uprise Impact

Uprise Impact partnered with Conestoga’s SMART Centre to develop a prototype platform that evaluates land suitability for renewable energy technologies and other sustainable uses. The project combined AI with geographic, environmental, and land-use data to help property owners and prospective developers better understand opportunities for land development.

Expanding immersive learning opportunities in northern and rural communities with XPertVR and Contact North

Conestoga partnered with XPertVR, Contact North/Nord, KelenContent, and Cultural Industries Ontario North (CION) to explore how extended reality (XR) technologies could address barriers to education and vocational training in northern and rural communities.

Supporting the health and well-being of internationally educated nurses in Canada

Conestoga’s Centre for Health Care Research & Innovation (CHCRI) brought together researchers, internationally educated nurses, and health-care professionals to explore the experiences of nurses transitioning into Canadian practice. Through a collaborative research approach, the project sought to better understand the challenges internationally educated nurses face and identify ways to support their health and well-being.

Exploring practical nursing students’ perceptions of careers in older adult care

Supported by funding from WeRPN, this research examined how practical nursing students perceive careers working with older adults, particularly in long-term care and retirement settings. The study explored students’ attitudes, career interests, and concerns to better understand the factors influencing their employment decisions and identify opportunities to support recruitment into older adult care.

Developing a non-invasive cervical cancer screening technology for CELLECT Laboratories

CELLECT Laboratories partnered with Conestoga’s SMART Centre to conceptualize and design a non-invasive technology for collecting cells from menstrual blood for cervical cancer screening. The project combined CELLECT’s nanotechnology with the SMART Centre’s prototyping expertise to develop a functional screening device.