By BRENDAN MILLER on September 4, 2026.

bmiller@medicinehatnews.com
Researchers from Medicine Hat College held a national webinar Thursday to present new research examining how communities can strengthen their role in Canada’s defence sector, expand research and encourage collaboration among stakeholders to create opportunities and push Canadian technology and innovation forward.
Dozens of industry leaders, government officials, academia and key members of the defence sector heard from local researchers from MHC’s Centre for Innovation (C4i) on insights gained after completing a year-long research project into supporting defence ecosystems in Canada and allied nations.
Dr. Vika Rai is the research co-ordinator at C4i and led the presentation, sharing information gathered from research conducted locally that was funded through a grant from the Department of National Defence.
More than 50 interviews were conducted throughout research with industry stakeholders in Canada and allied nations, as well as officials from government and other research organizations part of the national defence sector.
The key theme of Rai’s presentation was highlighting the impact and value of regional collaboration between defence, industry, research institutions and support organizations that can create a “defence innovation hub” to strengthen national defence and attract defence-related business and industry to the region.
“So having secure collaborative spaces that can bring smaller companies, researchers, defence, everyone in the space working together on sensitive technologies is a great way to expedite and speed up our process in this sense,” explains Rai. “Ultimately the goal is moving promising Canadian technologies more quickly from development to testing, validation and defence use.”
Rai used southeast Alberta as an example of a defence innovation hub and cited partnerships between existing entities around Medicine Hat like CFB Suffield and its defence research centre, the Foremost UAS testing range, the regional airport, as well as local manufacturers like Landing Zones, regional research partnerships and collaborations.
“Rather than creating just a standalone program for the hub, it is important to establish connectors and liaisons,” said Rai. “This would provide a very clear bridge between the industry and the defence users, connecting companies, programs, partners and helping navigate the requirement and engagement with military end users.”
Rai says ideal conditions for a regional innovation hub include a sufficient scale for regional capabilities and connectivity, close access to defence installations and testing environment and a regional supply chain with shared capabilities.
Rai believes the development of more defence innovation hubs could have a positive impact on improving testing access, establish regional connectors, secure spaces and increase diversified funding toward defence spending.
Hubs would also be effective to navigate procurement processes and national security clearances and improve cybersecurity and technology and readiness requirements.
Key barriers that remain in the industry include a complex procurement process, security and compliance requirements and limited specialized talent, as well as difficulty accessing defence end users.
A hub could provide concierge support and procurement guidance through collaboration and lead to stronger relationships within the industry and government.
15
-14