Morguard Corporation has partnered with Canada’s Centre of Excellence in Next Generation Networks (CENGN) and Nokia to launch three Smart Building Living Labs in Montreal, Toronto and Ottawa. 

The $6.5-million project gives Canadian startups and scale-ups a unique opportunity to advance technologies designed to make buildings safer, more efficient and more connected.

“The partnership was formed to help Canadian companies start up, scale up and innovate in that space while collaborating in a real world environment and getting feedback,” Morguard chief information officer John Chung told RENX during a phone interview after an Oct. 6 launch event in Montreal.

Smart Building Living Labs are part of a CENGN initiative supported by a $45-million federal government investment through the Strategic Response Fund. It was created to empower over 100 Canadian startups and scale-ups to prepare their technology solutions for market-readiness and scaled growth.

Startups and scale-ups can apply to take part

CENGN vice-president of business development and marketing Chris Joyce said, during the same interview, there are two aspects to the program:

• companies can submit applications for innovation projects to receive upwards of $250,000 in support of their technology development; and
• scale-up companies can bring in end-users for testing and potential adoption of their technology and be eligible to receive upwards of $500,000.

“We see Canada falling behind from a tech adoption commercialization perspective in comparison to other nations and we're really focused on that commercialization piece,” Joyce said. “There's lots of great technology out there, but if it’s not commercially viable and there's not an economic model, it will go nowhere.”

Startups and scale-ups interested in participating in the Smart Building Living Labs initiative can apply here.

Morguard’s three Smart Building Living Labs locations

Smart Building Living Labs will transform three Morguard properties across different commercial real estate sectors into real-world innovation environments: 

• Place Innovation, a four-building, 890,000-square-foot interconnected office complex located within Technoparc Montréal in Saint-Laurent, Que.;
• The Bay Club, a 32-storey rental apartment building with approximately 300 units at 925 Bay St. in Toronto;
• and the 868,294-square-foot St. Laurent Shopping Centre, a retail property with more than 175 stores at 1200 St. Laurent Blvd. in Ottawa.

“The idea was to pick three asset classes, so that's why we chose these different properties specifically,” Morguard president and chief operating officer Angela Sahi — who was promoted to that role from executive VP of residential, office and industrial in March 2024 — told RENX during the same interview.

“We're looking for solutions in every sector for some of the problems we find and we're hoping to create a testing hub for some of these startups. It's a win-win situation for us as well because we'll have the opportunity to look for innovative technology to assist in maintenance, efficiency, energy, ESG (environmental, social and governance) and that type of thing.”

“You get to see firsthand some of those proof points from a de-risking perspective in terms of making future investments in a technology field or a company moving forward,” Joyce added. 

Nokia, CENGN and Morguard

Nokia’s 5G and advanced connectivity technology will enable program participants to validate solutions such as artificial intelligence systems that predict equipment failures, robotics that automate maintenance and sensors that reduce energy use in real time. All projects will be designed to integrate into the buildings' daily operations.

Ottawa-based CENGN drives innovation and adoption of applied artificial intelligence, Internet of Things and advanced networking technologies through its Living Labs initiative, technical expertise and partner ecosystem. 

It provides access to end-to-end testing services, end-user environments and the support needed to accelerate the validation, demonstration, commercialization and adoption of digital innovation solutions.

Mississauga-based Morguard, which is marking its 50th anniversary this year, is a real estate and property management company with extensive retail, office, industrial, hotel and residential holdings owned directly and through its investments in Morguard Real Estate Investment Trust and Morguard North American Residential REIT.

Morguard also provides real estate management services to investors. The company’s owned and managed portfolio of assets is valued at $18.7 billion.

“We’re looking to grow our portfolio and to stay in tune with technology that can move that forward in a more efficient way,” Sahi said. 

“We're very bullish on data,” Chung added. “We think the industry as a whole hasn't leveraged data out of the built environment, and we see the future there.”