When Queens University founded PARTEQ in 1987, they envisioned a not-for-profit organization that would bridge the gap between technological innovation and the marketplace. There was no hidden venture capitalist agenda here, just a group of people who wanted to nurture a few brilliant ideas that had the potential to improve the lives of many.
One of the people from the beginning was John Molloy, current President and CEO of PARTEQ. After a stint in Cyprus with the Canadian Armed Forces and completing his MBA at Queen’s, Molloy came to the organization ready to help PARTEQ discoveries get out into the real world.
“There’s about $6 billion spent on research in this country every year, and there’s a certain expectation that it’s going to be able to benefit the public at some point,” explains Molloy.
“And that can’t happen unless you have a commercialization program.”
Since PARTEQ opened its doors almost 25 years ago, the organization has cemented a reputation as one of the most successful commercialization
programs in the country. They’ve turned more than $1 billion from investors into 407 issued patents, almost 50 licensed products, and 45 total startup companies. Those figures don’t even show the more than 800 new jobs.
“We’ve been successful because we have the right structure,” says Molloy. “We are not-for-profit, so we can take more risks. Plus, we have a great team with extensive industry experience.”
Every individual technology that comes to PARTEQ is assigned a commercialization manager who can ask the right questions and put the money in the right places.
“I’m a firm believer that you have to do things properly,” says Molloy, explaining that the key to seeing an idea through is being thorough and strategic. “That’s why we have patent agents on staff who work very closely with our commercial managers. It’s important to have your intellectual
property in order, especially for small companies; they need to have protection.”
Smaller companies is where Carol Miernicki Steeg, Vice President of Intellectual Property gets involved. Armed with a PhD from Cornell in biochemistry, she arrived at PARTEQ in 1995 well suited to her job as a patent agent. “I came to PARTEQ 16 years ago, andI could probably make more money on Bay Street. But it’s too good here to leave. The work is consistently challenging and there’s something new every day,” she says.
Miernicki Steeg, along with Angela Lyon and Stephen Scribner make up the onsite team of patent agents at the disposal of startup companies and
product developers. Having a dedicated team of agents is not something unique to an organization like PARTEQ, but it’s how you get the best results.
“External patent agents outside of the building have a different relationship to the whole endeavour because they don’t depend as much
on their clients being successful,” says Miernicki Steeg. “Being close to the projects has its advantages too; you can strategize on the patent
portfolio as the developments grow.”
Agents deal with patent examiners all over the world. A patent is almost always rejected by an examiner when first submitted, so it’s the job of
Miernicki Steeg, Lyon and Scribner to argue back. The process can take years, and the amount of paperwork involved would make a boreal forest
nervous. But acquiring a patent is integral to attracting investors.  With so much at stake and an average of 100 patent applications to juggle every academic year, the key to not getting overwhelmed is to stay focused on the task at hand.
According to Miernicki Steeg, “You have to be thinking about today and not getting wrapped up in yesterday or what you have to do tomorrow.”
Focus isn’t always easy because PARTEQ covers so many different areas of technology, from biomedical to electrical engineering, to computer
hardware – they all live in the realm of possibility. That’s why PARTEQ is founding national, sector-specific affiliates to handle particular types
of research. For example, research involving “green chemistry”, the production on chemical products with an emphasis of environmental protection and sustainability, is directed to the GreenCentre Canada.  It’s a model that Molloy thinks will be important moving forward. “You need to have different divisions covering different sectors… that’s the future of commercialization in universities.”
PARTEQ has been able to perfect the commercialization process, positioning itself as a 21st century leader in the commercialization business, a trend that will surely continue in the future Molloy envisions. DG
 

Parteq Innovations , Innovation Park at Queen’s University, Kingston, Ontario