The Honourable Dr. K. Kellie Leitch, Minister of Labour and Minister of Status of Women congratulated Toronto Western Hospital today on the opening of the Krembil Discovery Tower, a facility dedicated to research excellence, training the next generation of medical professionals and improving health care for patients across Canada.
The new nine-storey building, a $174-million endeavor, has four floors dedicated to University Health Network (UHN) research space, in addition to one floor for the University of Toronto's Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, and an additional 1.5 floors dedicated to Altum Health, a University Health Network (UHN) enterprise that provides unique solutions for injured workers and clients.
The Krembil Discovery Tower will foster research in neural and visual sciences, musculoskeletal disease, and illnesses and disorders such as spinal cord injury, Parkinson's disease, epilepsy, Alzheimer's disease, arthritis and age-related blindness.
"Our Government is proud of our investment in the researchers, their important work and the modern infrastructure that is needed to support them, like the Krembil Discovery Tower," said Minister Leitch. "As a surgeon with many years of experience who has seen the impact of scientific advances first-hand, I can say without hesitation that the innovations of science and technology lead directly to better health and longevity for some, and are the difference in survival for others."
"The Krembil Discovery Tower brings us to a new level in how research is conducted, what we can offer researchers, the latest in design of research space and an environment where collaboration and innovation will help us make a significant impact on so many diseases that are debilitating to our aging population," said Dr. Christopher Paige, Vice President of Research at UHN.
The world-class Krembil Discovery Tower was funded by a combination of hospital financing, generous research grants from the Government of Canada, and the support of many philanthropists, including the lead gift of $30 million from Bob and Linda Krembil and their family.
"Today we are celebrating the tremendous contribution of the Government of Canada towards the support of UHN Research, as well as the Krembil Discovery Tower, which will have an impact on generations of researchers, and on the lives of patients in this community, in Canada and the world," said Dr. Paige. "We are very grateful to the Government of Canada for its ongoing support of our research programs."
The Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) gave approximately $33 million in grant funding to support the development of the space and research infrastructure within the Krembil Discovery Tower. A further $10.9 million was awarded specifically for the latest imaging and other equipment in the Toronto Western Research Institute based here in the Krembil Discovery Tower.
Both these grants were part of a larger overall grant of more than $91 million from the CFI to help build the UHN Advanced Therapeutics Research Platform - the largest grant ever made by CFI.
The Government of Canada is also investing more than $3 million annually in 22 Canada Research Chairs here at UHN, including several with labs in the Krembil Discovery Tower.
The Ontario Ministry of Research and Innovation has contributed $800,000 towards the creation of research laboratories in vision and neuroscience.
Select Facts about the Krembil Discovery Tower (KDT)
•KDT will draw upon Canada's largest concentration of - more than 150 - neurologists, neurosurgeons, neuroradiologists and neuroscientists from TWH and TWRI
•KDT is 30,193.5 square meters (a little more than 19 NHL ice rink surfaces)
•KDT is 56.5 m tall (185 feet - about 36 smart cars stacked up end to end)
•KDT contains 16,500 cubic metres of concrete (could fill more than six Olympic swimming pools)
•KDT contains 550,000 kg of reinforcing steel (equal to the weight of 101 African elephants)
•KDT recycled 75% of its construction waste
•KDT is expected to use about 25% less energy than a similar building, with its use of occupancy sensors and heat recovery system
•KDT has 120 indoor bike spots, with nearby showers and lockers
•KDT is expected to use 60% less water, by using rainwater and low flow fixtures
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