NRC Annual Report 2001-2002

N R C – F R O M D I S C O V E R Y T O I N N O V A T I O N...32NRC’s Canada Institute for Scientificand Technical Information – vitalknowledge infrastructure for CanadaThe importance of NRC-CISTI as Canada’s sciencelibrary, largest scientific publisher and leadingscientific, technical and medical (STM) informationdissemination resource has assumedincreased importance in the knowledge economy.NRC-CISTI maintains, publishes and providesaccess to the STM information essential toCanada’s researchers. It provides access toCanadians through NRC Information Centres(NICs) across Canada as well as virtually via theInternet.In 2001-2002, NRC-CISTI provided nearly onemillion documents worldwide, with some62 percent to Canadians – 20 percent to industry,50 percent to the academic community, 7 percentto the medical community, and 11 percent topublic organizations. NRC Research Presspublished close to 6,400 peer-reviewed submissionsfrom authors in Canada and around theworld.The program’s support of NRC’s technologycluster agenda continued in 2001-2002, withinitiatives underway to open NICs in AtlanticCanada (New Brunswick and Prince EdwardIsland), in NINT and at the new NRC-AMTC inMontréal. The program also began operating theNortel Optical Knowledge Centre in April 2001,for Nortel Networks’ Optical Long Haul group inOttawa. Staffed by an NRC-CISTI informationspecialist, the centre provides Nortel staff withaccess to essential information resources. NRC-CISTI is looking at this unique operatingarrangement as a model for services to otherCanadian companies.NRC-CISTI is also adopting an integrated managementapproach for the development and deliveryof its knowledge and information products andservices. It will implement an innovativee-Business environment to provide access to,and extend the reach of, its information productsand services. It is also creating a unique“e-infostructure” which will provide Canada withpermanent electronic access to the world’s bestSTM information. In conjunction with NRC-IRAP,it extended its outreach to SMEs and industryassociations, and will offer new services such ascompetitive intelligence, technology roadmappingand technology forecasting information services.