We are pleased to announce that the second JDI Roundtable on Manufacturing Competitiveness in New Brunswick Forum will be a series of interactive webinars. Launching Oct. 30, the first webinar will feature Robert Falconer from the University of Calgary discussing how Atlantic Canadian producers and processors are handling labour supply issues as well as the long-term viability of this sector. Also, the JDI Roundtable’s Manufacturing Competitiveness Survey is now live, and we welcome leaders from New Brunswick manufacturing firms to share their voice.
In this webinar, Dr. Robert Falconer of the School of Public Policy at the University of Calgary will examine production trends and labour challenges in Atlantic Canada's food sectors. At present, producers and processors in agricultural sectors, as well as in aquaculture and fisheries, have an abundance of relatively low-paying jobs that are difficult to fill using local labour supply. This has led to trends in wage growth, capital investment, and employment of temporary foreign workers. Recently, the pandemic has raised questions about how to accommodate labour shortages amid large domestic unemployment. What is the long-term viability of local producers and processors, and what policy options could help them respond or adapt to pressing labour supply challenges? Register now!
What is the state of innovation and productivity in New Brunswick, and where do we go from here? In this webinar, Dr. Andrew Sharpe of the Centre for the Study of Living Standards (CSLS) will analyze trends in innovation indicators (such as R&D spending, patents, and investment) and examine the province’s productivity performance as reflected by labour productivity and growth rates at the aggregate and industry level. He will discuss the linkages between innovation and productivity growth, including both the impact of R&D on productivity and the role of the adoption of best practice technologies in productivity growth. The presentation will conclude with discussion of public policy directions to address innovation and productivity in the province. Register now!
We are asking the leadership of NB manufacturing firms to complete a new survey on manufacturing competitiveness in the province. The survey will gauge the climate of NB manufacturing and assess the readiness of local firms to remain competitive. Using Industry 4.0 concepts as a guide, we hope to get an idea of where local firms are performing well, and where they could use some help. This will allow us to identify policy levers that could help NB manufacturers become more competitive. Take the survey
Did you know, since 2016, there has been little to no increase in the total annual value of NB exports? Despite this, over the past ten years the total value of New Brunswick's fisheries and agriculture product exports has more than doubled. These statistics are among many new findings from BoostNB that are relevant for NB manufacturers. BoostNB is a student-run initiative of the University of New Brunswick. The online dashboard, launched in 2018 and updated each year, aims to provide an accessible starting point for important policy discussions by providing easy access to straight-forward, fact-based information about the New Brunswick economy. Read more
By Herb Emery
What does it take to develop innovation into industrial opportunities? JDI Roundtable director Dr. Herb Emery explores this question in his of review Gordon Pitts’s new book “Unicorn in the Woods: How East Coast Geeks and Dreamers Are Changing the Game.” According to Emery, the stories of successful NB-born tech startups Q1 Labs and Radian6 shows us that success in innovation takes "the coordinated commitment of a wide array of people, institutions and government." The rise of Q1 Labs and Radian6 may be "the origin story of the province’s cybersecurity industrial development opportunity," but Emery suggests that in recent years it feels as though the province's lead on business innovation has been lost. Read more
The JDI Roundtable on Manufacturing Competitiveness in New Brunswick is an independent research program made possible through the generosity of J.D. Irving, Ltd. The funding supports arms-length research conducted at UNB.
