
To support research and innovation on campus, Queen’s University developed the Dunin-Deshpande Queen’s Innovation Centre (DDQIC), providing programs, services, and resources to students, researchers, entrepreneurs, and companies to support their innovation and entrepreneurship activities. Local partnerships include the Kingston Economic Development Corporation and the Southeastern Ontario Angel Network.
Through the DDQIC, the Queen’s Innovation Connector Summer Initiative (QICSI) was developed, offering a valuable opportunity for students to start their own businesses and receive seed funding. The 17-week paid summer internship provides an experiential learning opportunity for Queen’s students with a capacity for creativity, a tolerance for risk, and an interest in entrepreneurship, corporate or social innovation.
Through this initiative, RockMass Technologies was formed—a joint venture between two Queen’s University researchers and three undergraduate students. Researchers Joshua Marshall and Marc Gallant had created a new geological mapping technology, patented through PARTEQ Innovations (a not-for-profit corporation formed to help researchers market their innovations).
Collaborating with the researchers, undergraduate students, Stuart Bourne, Shelby Yee, and Matt Gubasta, formed RockMass through the QICSI, where they licensed the technology and received $30,000 in seed funding to further develop the company. The technology is now being used to improve the safety and efficiency of geological mapping in the mining, civil engineering, and exploration industries.