On Thursday, March 19, Argenteuil—La Petite-Nation Member of Parliament (MP) Stéphane Lauzon announced a repayable contribution of $306,000 to Recytronic in Lachute. The Canada Economic Development (CED) for Québec Regions funding will support the company’s launch and is targeted towards entrepreneurs who leverage innovation to grow their business and enhance competitiveness.

Funding will go toward acquiring and installing production equipment and making leasehold improvements, enabling Recytronic to begin manufacturing. As part of the federal government’s mandate, CED supports small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Québec through similar grants.

“Recytronic will be able to acquire and install equipment thanks to CED’s support. The manufacturing industry is a pillar of our economy, which is why our government is committed to investing so that our SMEs remain innovative and competitive,” said Lauzon.

Lauzon (right) spoke to media about the federal investment in Recytronic in Lachute. Photo: Philip Oddi.

Funds through the Regional Economic Growth through Innovation Program encourage innovation and sustainable economic growth, with SMEs accounting for 99.7 per cent of Québec’s businesses and 50 per cent of its Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

Recytronic focuses on creating composite materials from recycled electronic circuit boards. It uses a zero-waste process, recovering non-metallic components from e-waste for use in other products like construction materials.

Recytronic Co-founder and Operational President Steve Chartrand showing Bigras-Denis and Lauzon Recytronic’s equipment. Photo: Philip Oddi.
Steve Chartrand (centre, holding circuit board) explains the recycling process and how the boards are made into composite materials. Photo: Philip Oddi.

Recytronic Co-founder and Operational President Steve Chartrand said the support means a great deal for the team: “It gives us the means to make our vision a reality, breathing new life into materials from circuit boards by integrating them into the new composite materials. We are proud to contribute to a more sustainable economy in Lachute.”

Municipalité régionale de comté (MRC) d’Argenteuil Prefect Bernard Bigras-Denis said, “The young start-up, located in the Synerlab facilities, stands out for its innovation in transforming electronic circuit boards, initially destined for landfill, into new composite materials. It’s not a technology that can be found anywhere else.”

“We’re very proud to have such a start-up of this calibre in our region,” Bigras-Denis added.