SAGUENAY, QUE. — A3 Surfaces, a company based in Saguenay, Que., conducted research to test antimicrobial anodized aluminum against COVID-19 and in reviewing its research, the company recently issued a release saying it’s “confident that its product will position Canada as a leader in technology to help curb the spread of coronavirus.”
The product is currently in the process of pre-submission for registration under the pest control products (pesticides) acts and regulation, therefore the company cannot disclose the final results nor distribute or use the products in Canada at this time, the release indicates.
The tests were conducted by the CL3 laboratory at the University of Toronto and were carried out through the collaboration of Dr. Gary Kobinger and Guard RX’s team of research and clinical development experts. Company officials are calling the research “a breakthrough.”
Kobinger, founder and CEO of Guard RX, is a regular researcher with the Research Center of the CHU de Québec-Université Laval and Professor in the Department of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases and Immunology.
The company is also currently working on completing its installation in its new plant located in the industrial park of Haut-Saguenay, in Chicoutimi borough, which should be fully operational by the end of May.
A3 Surfaces was recently granted a refundable loan of $1.5 million by the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec, which is in addition to the $3.2 million allocated by Investissement Québec last November. The capital will be used to develop the new plant, go towards the certification and marketing process and help consolidate the 10 existing jobs and create about 15 new positions between now and 2022.
Over the past few months, the company has received loans of $1.7 million from Desjardins, $50,000 from the Fonds local d’investissement de Promotion Saguenay and $50,000 from the Fonds régional de transformation de l’aluminium, which will contribute to increasing production.
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