University of Manitoba - Research and International

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Research Support Fund

The Government of Canada's Research Support Fund (RSF) assists Canadian post-secondary institutions and affiliated research hospitals/institutes with indirect costs associated with federally funded research, helps them in achieving research excellence and maintaining world-class research environments.

RSF are administered by the Tri-Councils (Canadian Institutes of Health Research - CIHR, Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council - NSERC, and Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council - SSHRC).

These indirect costs of research are essential research support activities/expenses not directly traceable to specific research program/project such as:

Maintaining, repairing and upgrading research infrastructure (e.g., modern labs, equipment and libraries).
IT and operating costs (internet, custodial, heat, water, electricity).
Research and central administration (grants and contracts administration, regulatory and legislated reporting requirements, communications, payroll and accounting, research audit, environmental and occupational health, legal and insurance costs).
Intellectual property and technology transfer costs associated with transferring discoveries and innovations from academia to the private, public and not-for-profit sectors.

What are the indirect costs of research?

The University of Manitoba defines indirect costs of research as “Central and departmental costs incurred by the university to support research which are not attributable to specific research projects. These costs may be related to research facilities, research proposal development, information systems to track grant applications, payroll costs for research administration and promotion, management and administration, regulatory requirements and accreditation, and intellectual property.”

How the Federal RSF is calculated?

The University of Manitoba (UofM) must apply annually for the Federal RSF. The amount awarded is based on averaged Tri-Agency funding received by UofM (and its affiliated research hospitals and institutes) in the previous three years.

Organizations are considered an affiliate if federally funded research conducted there contributes to the applicant institution's research excellence and/or the applicant institution incurs indirect costs for federally funded research conducted at the affiliate institution.

University of Manitoba’s Research Support Funding

The University of Manitoba received $9.0 million in RSF funds for 2019/2020, and $8.6 million for 2020/2021. Since 2001, the federal government has invested almost $159 million to help support indirect costs of research at the University of Manitoba.

University of Manitoba Federal Government Grants vs Research Support Funds Rate (pdf)

2021 – 2022 Research Support Fund Distribution

The University of Manitoba received $8,579,184 in Federal RSF support.

The following chart provides an overview of how the funds are allocated under each of the five expenditure categories (including the affiliated institutions):

Affiliated Institutions

The University of Manitoba and the network of affiliated institutions have a mutual interest in achieving excellence in research activities.

This integration establishes the basic principles and objectives of an affiliation regarding the administration, regulation and accountability of research carried out by various groups of individuals with University appointments, and by others associated with the University, including students.

A comprehensive list of affiliated institutions includes:

Cancer Care Manitoba www.cancercare.mb.ca
St. Andrew’s College (MB) www.umanitoba.ca/colleges/st_andrews
St. Boniface General Hospital www.saintboniface.ca
St. John’s College http://umanitoba.ca/colleges/st_johns/
St. Paul’s College http://umanitoba.ca/colleges/st_pauls/
Winnipeg Regional Health Authority www.wrha.mb.ca
University College (UofM) umanitoba.ca/colleges/uc
Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives https://www.policyalternatives.ca

Performance Indicators and Target Outcomes

Eligible Expense Category	Performance Objectives	Performance Indicators	Target Outcomes	Outcomes Reported at Year End
Research Facilities	Strengthen researcher retention and quality of research by upgrading and maintaining research facilities and equipment Ongoing technical support for laboratories, offices and other facilities.	Specific lab renovations to attract potential research funding Annual research equipment maintenance and service contracts	Modern and dependable research facilities & equipment. Efficient and productive research activities. Attraction of potential research funding	Completed lab and research space renovations. Continuation of technical support for laboratories, research offices and facilities. Upgraded research equipment
Research Resources	Improve and manage research data information & analysis by upgrading databases and access to electronic resources	% change of data usage and downloads for research purposes Purchase of electronic resources, databases, online access to journals and upgrades to cables and wireless technologies	Enhance research with up-to-date data management systems and information	Annual data usage, page views and users. Upgraded IT projects in research areas.
Management and Administration	Provide research administrative support for processing new grants and contracts Monitor expenses and review processes to ensure research compliances are meeting external agency guidelines	• # grants • # contracts • # industry partners	Maintain success rates in research grants, contracts and industry partners	Data pertaining to the number of grants & contracts awarded. Continuation of research administration support.
Regulatory Requirements and Accreditation	Comply with regulatory requirements • Upgrade and maintain research facilities • Train faculty and other research personnel in health & safety, animal care, ethics review, handling radiation & biohazards and environmental assessments • Ongoing support for staff & technician salaries	Improved compliance with regulatory requirements as measured by laboratory inspections, incident investigations and regulator’s audits. # of certificates issued to trained faculty and research personnel	Research facilities & equipment meet regulatory requirements Trained faculty and research personnel Fewer incident investigations	Data pertaining to new protocols and renewals. Maintain compliance with CCAC.
Intellectual Property	Sustain the Technology Transfer Office Increase the institution’s research base by identifying collaborative research opportunities	• # Patents filed • % change in Disclosures • % change in Licenses • % change in Startups • $ in Royalty Revenue	Value-added growth of new research partnerships Continued support to researchers in their commercial endeavors and industry linkages	Data pertaining to disclosures, patents, licenses, royalty revenue and start-ups. Status of new initiatives.