Premier Kathleen Wynne was at Henry of Pelham Family Estate Winery today in Pelham in Niagara Region, as Bell announced a new partnership with Ontario-based BeWhere, an Internet of Things (IoT) solutions company, and China-based tech company Huawei, the world's largest telecommunications equipment maker.
Together, the companies have developed an environmental monitoring solution to help improve the health and quality of plants at the vineyard. The product will use sensors connected to Bell's LTE-M wireless network to remotely monitor temperature and water levels, automatically adjusting as weather conditions change. The innovative IoT solution will help lower costs, keep more vines alive longer and promote greater sustainability.
The collaboration builds on Ontario's reputation for diverse, global business partnerships that fuel growth and innovation and create opportunity here at home. International business missions are a major driver for economic and research partnerships. Premier Wynne met with Huawei representatives during her business missions to China in 2014 and 2015. As a result of these meetings, Huawei committed up to $303 million for research initiatives in Ontario over five years, creating hundreds of R&D jobs for Ontario's highly skilled workers.
Premier Wynne will continue strengthening ties with international partners on her upcoming business mission to China and Vietnam. The mission will connect more than 100 Ontario companies and institutions with global partners, opening doors to expand their businesses, develop world-leading technology and create good jobs for people in Ontario.
Creating the conditions for global investment and innovation is part of Ontario's plan to create fairness and opportunity during this period of rapid economic change. The plan includes a higher minimum wage and better working conditions, free tuition for hundreds of thousands of students, easier access to affordable child care, and free prescription drugs for everyone under 25 through the biggest expansion of medicare in a generation.
Source: ONTARIO.ca