Province Invests in Innovation and Productivity

NOTE: A social media version of this release, with downloadable, hi-res photos, is available at http://gov.ns.ca/news/smr/2011-04-21-PIP-Investment/ . Video and audio clips will be added after the event.

The province is helping Nova Scotia companies purchase advanced equipment to become more competitive with a new $25-million Productivity Investment Program, part of jobsHere, the province's plan to grow the economy.

"The Productivity Investment Program will help Nova Scotia companies become more competitive on a global scale, which is essential to growing our economy," said Premier Darrell Dexter.

Since the program was announced in December 2010, more than two dozen projects across the province have been approved to purchase advanced equipment and training, including McGregor GeoScience Ltd.

McGregor GeoScience Ltd. plans, manages, and executes hydrographic and marine geoscience projects worldwide. The company will invest $298,000, provided through the PIP program, in new equipment that will decrease data processing time and allow the company to collect data at various depths across the ocean floor. With this new equipment, the company will be able to bid on additional environmental contracts and intercontinental routing survey jobs for fibre optic and sub-sea electrical cables.

"This program will allow McGregor GeoScience to expand our innovative seabed sampling and mapping technology through enhanced habitat identification and ground truthing innovations," Les MacIntyre, president, McGregor GeoScience Ltd.

The incentive was recently amended to allow more companies to buy advanced capital equipment by lowering the threshold to $25,000. It provides a 20 per cent incentive for businesses to acquire new technology and equipment to improve business competitiveness and productivity.

More information on the Productivity Investment Program, including guidelines and application forms, is available at www.gov.ns.ca/econ/pip .

jobsHere will strengthen the workforce with the right skills for good jobs, increase productivity and advance global competitiveness to grow the economy and make life better for Nova Scotia families.

For more information on jobsHere, visit gov.ns.ca/jobsHere .