[SatNews] COM DEV International Ltd. (TSX:CDV) has won a Premier’s Innovation Award from the Government of Ontario. COM DEV won the Company with the Best Innovation award, in the Premier’s Catalyst Awards category, for its development of a signal processing algorithm that enables the highly accurate detection of ships from microsatellites.

“We are very appreciative of being recognized by the Government of Ontario for the innovative thinking that resulted in a true breakthrough in maritime surveillance technology,” said John Keating, CEO of COM DEV. “In fact, in our efforts to demonstrate and commercialize this technology we have benefited tremendously from the support of a number of public sector agencies, including the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario, the Canadian Space Agency and Defence Research and Development Canada. Mechanisms like the federal and Ontario scientific research and experimental development (SR&ED) tax incentives help support our innovation. Our collaboration with academic institutions such as the University of Toronto Institute for Aerospace Studies has also been important to our success.”

Mr. Keating continued, “Maritime surveillance is just one of many new applications that will be made possible by microsatellites. We hope to continue to foster partnerships within the public and private sectors to help develop such applications as carbon emission monitoring, water quality monitoring and resource management.”
,br /> COM DEV has a history of being one of Ontario’s largest and most consistent investors in research and development. In the past three decades, the successful commercialization of these R&D investments has led directly to billions of dollars of exports for the Ontario economy. COM DEV currently employs over 1,000 people at its facilities in Cambridge and Ottawa. The Premier's Catalyst Awards are helping to build a culture of innovation and entrepreneurship in Ontario by recognizing leadership, celebrating success and rewarding risk-taking. The Company with the Best Innovation Award celebrates established companies who have outstanding performance, growing revenues and the potential to grow market share as a result of developing a commercially successful product or service based on a breakthrough technology.