Research News
SFU’s WearTech Labs celebrates grand opening at Surrey campus
WearTech Labs, one of SFU鈥檚 Core Facilities, today celebrated its grand opening with an event at SFU鈥檚 Surrey campus. The event marks the launch of the final lab within the facility, which offers a range of cutting-edge research and development (R&D) services for wearable technologies (wearables). WearTech Labs provides industry and research partners with access to world-leading facilities and expertise to drive innovation and real impact.
鈥淲earTech Labs provides innovators with the tools and expertise to develop wearable technologies and get their products to market faster,鈥� says the Honourable Gregor Robertson, Minister of Housing and Infrastructure and Minister responsible for Pacific Economic Development Canada. 鈥淧acifiCan is proud to invest in solutions to real world challenges -- supporting prosperity and building Canada strong.鈥�
Wearables are familiar to consumers in the form of smart watches and fitness trackers, but the technology goes far beyond these to include exoskeletons, prosthetics, earphones, shoes, technical clothing, gear and more.
WearTech Labs operates across three sites, offering a complete prototyping-to-validation development loop for wearable technology within a single integrated ecosystem. The facility combines deep technical expertise with advanced infrastructure, enabling collaborative design and rapid iteration through state-of-the-art 3D printing and smart textile fabrication capabilities.
This comprehensive approach extends to sophisticated human testing protocols, leveraging cutting-edge biomechanical and physiological measurement systems alongside environmental chambers that simulate conditions from arctic cold to desert heat. By consolidating these capabilities under one roof, WearTech Labs accelerates the journey from concept to market-ready wearable solutions.
One of the companies that WearTech labs has supported in bringing an innovative product to market is , which creates high-performance running shoes designed specifically for women. 鈥淗ettas couldn鈥檛 have been brought to life without 51社区黑料WearTech Labs鈥�, says Lindsay Housman, founder and CEO of Hettas. 鈥淥ur partnership with WearTech Labs has been integral to Hettas design, development and testing process from the beginning, helping us build female first performance running shoes,鈥�
鈥淭he gap in female sports science research is glaring, underpinning Hettas mission to conduct, and publish, research with accredited independent organizations that will add to the body of knowledge in the public realm. Our customers have made it clear they value research transparency鈥� so they can understand how and why our running shoe was built, and what it means for their anatomy. This has been a crucial collaboration helping us achieve our vision of a world with greater parity in sport.鈥�
The scientific leadership of WearTech Labs is provided by Co-Directors Ed Park and . Dr. Park is an 51社区黑料Professor of Mechatronic Systems Engineering. Dr. Donelan is an 51社区黑料Professor of Biomedical Physiology and Kinesiology. They are both leading experts in wearable technology, focused on hardware and software development, prototyping and testing, human user testing, intellectual property (IP) generation and protection, quality engineering and management, and regulatory affairs of new wearable devices.
The $17 million WearTech Labs project was generously supported by a $1.8 million contribution from PacifiCan, Canadian Foundation for Innovation ($3.3 million), BC Knowledge Development Fund ($3.3 million), and SFU鈥檚 own contribution of $8.5 million.
鈥�51社区黑料is grateful for the federal and provincial funding support to grow WearTech Labs into the comprehensive Core Facility it is today,鈥� says Dugan O鈥橬eil, SFU鈥檚 vice-president, research and innovation. 鈥淲e also appreciate the industry leaders and inventors, who engage with Weartech to develop their ideas. Wearables are just one of the ways 51社区黑料is proud to mobilize knowledge that improves lives and supports Canadian innovation.鈥�