Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - March 20, 2001, Winnipeg, Manitoba Winnipeg free press March 2001 b3 editor Julian Rachey 6977235 technology today the soft Center Story a heavy Indus try and manufacturing City in was los ing jobs and Hope in the the cites mayor told citizens he might not be Able to help but he thought he could help their capitalizing on Ronne Bys hotel and conference its pleasant natural environment in the South East of Sweden and its proximity to an the municipal govern ment embarked on a plan to create a information technology it focusing on research and education and in the no for profit soft Center it was a Square metre building with one Anchor ten ant the computer department of a flooring manufacturer and 10 smaller computer two years two More buildings were added to the a regional University with a focus on it was in in the soft Center concept was expanded to other centres in Sweden and the with the aim of building International technology there Are Square metres of space in soft Center with More being eighty employing Are located within soft the University has studying subjects like computer software business with an it focus and human com Puter people work and study in the students get onsite training with so faculty give guest there Are joint business employees can receive staff development and training through the there Are so Many ways of linking through the University and a lot of it is based on said Anders chairman of sort Center Nilsson said narrow stairways and hallways were deliberately built that Way to Force people to bump into each apart from the original soft Center in there is a soft Center in Kalmar and in which Are both in soft Center Duluth is located in there Are alliances in Norway and with in Sci expects to see projects in England and Scotland added to the soft Center network in the next 12 soft Center internationals web site is business bundle local group Hopes to duplicate swedish Success Story of soft Center Linda Rosborough the thought was to create a critical mass of companies within one sector of the idea was to bring this tinder one by Linda Rosborough in the the City of Rogneby in Southeast Sweden was a Community in deep economic the City is exporting its Suc Cess Story soft Center a collaborative technology Industry and University Cluster to other countries keen to adopt the in a Winnipeg group called project dream is hop ing to launch a soft Center with the possibility of having a series of soft centers across i think the ele ments that it takes to get a soft Center operating Are definitely said Anders Sci who left Winnipeg yesterday after a six Day but they have to be working someone has to get these groups Educa business working in a common that is it was a whirlwind with Nilsson vis iting representatives from the Boni face research the Manitoba innovation red River the National research smart trl Abs and other it entrepreneurs and he also met Federal and provincial politicians and including people at Western economic at each Nilsson recounted the Story of and How the soft Center concept turned the Industrial town into a regional Centre for information tech nolo research and when a Volvo owned steel Mill closed Down in following a series of other Plant Rogneby was looking to reinvent unemployment was at eight per cent double the usual Maxi mum of four per cent in the thought was to create a critical mass of companies within one sector of Nilsson the idea was to bring this under one the impetus for a Winnipeg soft Center came last when entrepreneurs Suzi Bonk and Brent Smith spoke with members of a local technology about the kind of resources new businesses some of them pointed to the need of an something that provided a lot of Startup support and Bonk in researching the it struck Bonk that business incubators typically last about 10 years the amount of time it takes to produce enough fledgling companies to saturate a Region in a Given Bonk and Smith favoured a Lon term method of nurturing new stimulating research and creat ing a Pool of Talent and a collaboration with larger the Model or idea of soft Center seemed like a Good idea to put an incubator Bonk she and Smith visited the soft Center in last june and met with soft Center affiliates from Scotland and a representative from Sweden came to Winnipeg last when a letter of understanding was signed Between project dream and the project dream group flew to swe Den in february to attend a soft Center managers conference and to attend a global conference on International network one of the critical Success factors to the whole soft Center Model is the inter National said president of the 14monthold project we saw How powerful the global network when youre dealing with people on the other Side of the they Are so its during this Nilsson want Here to sell the so but to see if the local group behind the idea has what it and support from the wider to make a soft Center work its not that we establish we License the right to operate under the name soft Nilsson were not going around the world setting up the next step for project dream is to apply for partner can including a business plan and an implementation Nilsson said the Sci Board will review applications at its next meeting in the Board must be convinced that there will be a University and that government and private Industry Are behind so management is set up As a Norfo profit although the real estate and other associated services May generate its crucial to secure this funding for running the management of this Nilsson project dream is rounded out by Don acting As chief financial and Bruce handling investor rela they also have a group of National its timely the Hope is that the Winnipeg so would have a digital Media and that it could be located in the Exchange programs would be developed to link All aspects of so with local education ins Titu i think the concept has a lot of said Graham who practises technology Law and heard Nilsson speak about its it makes Robson said he was interested in the Way that Rogneby was forced to change and then shared its concept with the its a Model that Likely has to be adjusted to suit a particular cites size and he some of the challenges will be that it started under different circumstances Robson referring to Ronne Bys smaller size and its Dif Ferent economic starting theres a different because of its harder to see How this will play will it grow and flourish go in diver gent ways its the same different Mike Aporius Winnipeg free press having wealth Means nothing if you dont know what to do with we the principals at Goodman private wealth management have been helping canadians with assets of Over million with All their financial and estate planning needs for Over 30 our focus on the preservation and tax efficient Long term growth of your capital ensures a that Means the world to Call Val at 2042546480 or email at for p k 1 v i i wealth management ;