SEREX

What SEREX does

SEREX is a non-profit College Technology Transfer Center (Centre collégial de transfert de technologie, CCTT) founded in 1998 and headquartered in Amqui, in the MRC de La Matapédia, Bas-Saint-Laurent region of Quebec. Affiliated with Cégep de Rimouski (its parent institution) and co-founded with the Centre matapédien d'études collégiales (CMÉC), SEREX has held CCTT designation since 2007 and has been recognized as a Technology Access Centre (CAT) by Tech-Accès Canada since 2019. It operates from a single facility housing approximately 20 staff — researchers, technicians, industrial advisors, and administrative personnel — and serves small and medium enterprises in Quebec's forest products industry. Its mission is to help companies validate innovation ideas, develop new wood-based products and processes, solve operational problems, and upskill their workforce within a low-carbon, circular-economy framework.

The center's core offering is organized around four integrated technology platforms: wood transformation, sustainable chemistry, eco-construction, and forest bioenergy. The underlying technology comprises specialized laboratory equipment — a Dieffenbacher panel press (max pressure 4000 kN), cone calorimeter, biclimate chamber for building envelope testing, ultrasonic imaging for defect detection, pyrolysis/gasification units, GC/MS, FT-NIR, DSC, TGA, accelerated aging chambers, and CNC machining equipment — supporting mechanical, physical, environmental, and chemical characterization of wood-based materials and biomass. SEREX delivers three integrated services: applied research (validating innovation concepts and commercialization potential), technical assistance (process optimization, quality and productivity problem-solving), and customized training (co-developed with Formabois and the Cégep de Rimouski Continuing Education Service). Marketing and dissemination channels include the "Tout sur le bois" blog, a French-language newsletter, live and on-demand webinars, scientific conference participation (ACFAS, CIFQ), YouTube content, and ecosystem-network referrals.

SEREX generates revenue through fee-for-service applied research and technical-assistance contracts with enterprises, augmented by government research grants and public-funding leverage available through its CCTT and CAT designations. All engagements are quote-based and project-specific; there is no self-serve, transactional, or marketplace channel. Clients are engaged through direct relationship-based outreach and exploratory meetings, with projects co-designed to each company's innovation needs. Go-to-market is enterprise field-sales led, focused almost exclusively on the Quebec forest products sector. Beyond enterprise engagement, SEREX benefits from referrals within the Réseau des CCTT–Synchronex (59 centers), Tech-Accès Canada (30 centers), the Créneau Écoconstruction cluster (hosted at SEREX since 2010), and partner introductions through its industry-represented board of directors.

Name

SEREX

Legal name

SEREX

Website

https://serex.ca

Company type

Private

Founded year

1998

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

SEREX is a non-profit College Technology Transfer Center (CCTT) affiliated with Cégep de Rimouski, providing applied research, technical assistance, and specialized laboratory testing in wood transformation, sustainable chemistry, eco-construction, and forest bioenergy to small and medium forest-products enterprises in Quebec.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Forest Products R&D and Technology Transfer Services

NAICS

Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services (54), All Other Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services (54199), Technical and Trade Schools (6115)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731), Services-Testing Laboratories (8734), Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Wood Grading, Testing & Certification Services (IMAMABAK)

Keywords

• Wood transformation research
• Forest products testing
• Applied research services
• Technology transfer services
• Biomass characterization

Headquarters

HQ city

Amqui

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Operations, Others

Revenue model

1. Technology Transfer Services (Applied Research and Technical Assistance): SEREX generates revenue through fee-for-service contracts for applied research and technical aid to enterprises. Projects are co-designed with client companies and funded through a combination of client fees and leveraged financing structures available through its CCTT and Technology Access Centre (CAT) designations.
2. Government Grants and Public Funding: As a CCTT affiliated with Cégep de Rimouski and a member of the Réseau des CCTT and Tech-Accès Canada networks, SEREX accesses government research funding and financial leverage programs. These public funding mechanisms support its non-profit mission and reduce the cost barrier for client companies.
3. Customized Training Services: SEREX offers bespoke training programs developed in collaboration with the Continuing Education Service of Cégep de Rimouski and Formabois, addressing workforce development needs for client companies facing growth or labor shortages.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

SEREX is a non-profit college technology transfer center (CCTT) that delivers applied research, technical assistance, and customized training services to enterprises in Quebec's wood and forest products sector. Its services are organized around four expertise domains—wood transformation, sustainable chemistry, eco-construction, and forest bioenergy—and supported by four specialized laboratory platforms providing mechanical, physical, environmental, and chemical testing of wood-based materials and biomass.

Product overview

SEREX is a College Technology Transfer Center (CCTT) affiliated with Cégep de Rimouski, offering a portfolio of services organized around four main expertise domains: Wood Transformation, Sustainable Chemistry, Eco-construction, and Forest Bioenergy. The core service offering consists of three integrated services: Applied Research Service (for validating innovation ideas and discovering commercialization potential), Technical Assistance Service (for solving operational difficulties and optimizing processes), and Training and Information Dissemination Service (for developing workforce competencies). These services are supported by four specialized laboratory equipment platforms providing testing, characterization, and research capabilities. The organization also provides specific training courses such as "Découverte du matériau bois" and "Granules énergétiques" for industry professionals. The portfolio is delivered as a unified suite of technology transfer services rather than discrete software products, with all offerings interconnected through the shared expertise and laboratory infrastructure.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Applied Research Service Applied research service that allows enterprises to validate innovation ideas and discover commercialization potential, resolve particular problems, develop new products, or explore new opportunities in the wood and forest products industry. Projects are co-designed with client companies and delivered using SEREX's specialized laboratory platforms.
• Technical Assistance Service Technical assistance service that helps manufacturing enterprises in the forest sector solve operational difficulties, improve existing processes, correct quality or productivity problems, and optimize wood transformation operations in factories. Deliverables include studies, expert opinions, analyses, reports, strategies, tools, plans, procedures, testing, and advisory support across innovation phases.
• Training and Information Dissemination Service Customized training delivered in collaboration with the Continuing Education Service of Cégep de Rimouski and Formabois, enabling forest products companies to develop personnel competencies through bespoke training sessions, webinars, and workshops to address growth or labor shortages. The service also disseminates research results through scientific articles, research reports, newsletters, technology watch outputs, and conference or webinar presentations.
• Testing and Characterization Services Comprehensive testing and characterization services covering mechanical tests (flexion, traction, compression, hardness), physical tests (thermal performance, acoustic behavior, dimensional stability), environmental tests (UV exposure, fire behavior, aging), and lignocellulosic biomass characterization (chemical composition, calorific value, pellet quality, pyrolytic co-product analysis).
• Découverte du matériau bois (Wood Material Discovery Training) Training course providing a comprehensive understanding of wood as a material through a practical and immersive approach, targeted at industry and construction professionals.
• Granules énergétiques: De la matière première à l'énergie verte (Energy Pellets Training) Training course covering the entire process from raw lignocellulosic biomass to final energy product, designed for engineers, technicians, researchers, and entrepreneurs involved in biomass valorization and pellet production.

Quantifiable outcome

• Validated innovation potential for new wood-based products or processes, enabling companies to make informed go/no-go decisions on commercialization.
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature12 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Tech-Accès CanadacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019SEREX has been recognized as a Technology Access Centre (CAT) by Tech-Accès Canada since 2019. The network connects 30 technology access centres across Canada, enabling SEREX to participate in national innovation initiatives and provide Canadian companies with access to its specialized wood transformation expertise.
• Créneau ÉcoconstructioncoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2010The Créneau Écoconstruction is a regional excellence cluster (ACCORD) launched in 2010 and hosted at SEREX. It focuses on sustainable construction and serves as an ecosystem connector for eco-construction companies in the Bas-Saint-Laurent region. Since 2019, it has also hosted the Écoleader Fund for the region.
• Cégep de RimouskicoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2007Cégep de Rimouski is the founding institution and parent college of SEREX. SEREX is affiliated with the cégep as a CCTT (centre collégial de transfert de technologie) and receives institutional support, academic integration, and student internship placements through this relationship.
• Réseau des CCTT - SynchronexcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2007SEREX has been a member of the Quebec CCTT network (Réseau des CCTT - Synchronex) since 2007. The network comprises 59 innovation centers across Quebec with specialized expertise. Membership provides cross-center collaboration opportunities, shared best practices, and collective advocacy for technology transfer in the college network.
• Centre matapédien d'études collégiales (CMÉC)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1998CMÉC co-founded SEREX in 1998 with Cégep de Rimouski. Located in Amqui (same town as SEREX), CMÉC provides student interns and academic resources to support the center's applied research and technical assistance activities.
• FormaboisminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFormabois is a training partner with which SEREX collaborates to deliver customized training programs for the wood processing and forest products industry, addressing workforce development needs and skilled labor shortages.
• Formation continue du Cégep de RimouskiminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSEREX works with the Continuing Education Service of Cégep de Rimouski to develop and deliver customized training programs for industry, integrating content from its applied research activities into workforce development offerings.
• Université du Québec à Rimouski (UQAR)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerUQAR is represented on SEREX's board of directors (as of 2025–2026) and provides academic-research linkage. Professor Éric Hudier from UQAR's Department of Mathematics, Computer Science, and Engineering serves as a board member.
• MRC de La MatapédiaminorOthersThe MRC de La Matapédia is represented on SEREX's board of directors and is a key regional institutional stakeholder. SEREX is located in the MRC de La Matapédia, a territory shaped by the forest industry, and serves as a regional innovation anchor.
• SADC de La MatapédiaminorOthersThe SADC (Société d'aide au développement de la collectivité) de La Matapédia is co-represented with MRC on SEREX's board and serves as a connector between SEREX and local SMEs seeking innovation support.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Regional players

• InnoTech Alberta: Alberta's technology access centre operating applied research and testing laboratories for industrial clients. Comparable as a publicly funded Canadian technology access center offering fee-for-service applied research and equipment access, but in a different province and without SEREX's wood-specialization.

Direct peers

• FPInnovations: Canada's largest forest products research institute, operating pulp, paper, wood products, and bioenergy laboratories. Directly comparable to SEREX in mission and offerings, but at a national scale and with a much larger equipment park and headcount.
• Biopterre: CCTT affiliated with Cégep de La Pocatière, focused on bioeconomy, biomass, and biotechnology. Closely comparable as a Québec CCTT serving forest and biomass clients with applied research and technology transfer services.

Others

• Conseil de l'industrie forestière du Québec (CIFQ): Industry association representing Québec forest products companies. Adjacent rather than directly competitive—SEREX presents at CIFQ conferences and CIFQ connects SEREX to potential client enterprises.
• Vision Biomasse Québec: Québec biomass energy cluster shown on SEREX's partner ecosystem. Adjacent ecosystem enabler that connects SEREX to bioenergy projects and complements its forest bioenergy platform.

Broad incumbents

• NRC Canadian Forest Service: Federal research branch within the National Research Council focused on forest science. Operates as a much larger, federally funded research provider in the same subject domain, with deeper basic-research capabilities but less SME-focused technology transfer than SEREX.
• Synchronex (Réseau des CCTT): The 59-center Québec network of college technology transfer centers (CCTT). Sister centers offer the same applied research and technology transfer model for different industries; SEREX differentiates within the network through its wood and forest products specialization.
• Centre de recherche industrielle du Québec (CRIQ): Québec's applied research center providing technical assistance, testing, and technology transfer to manufacturers across multiple industries. Like SEREX, it serves as a CCTT-style gateway, but with a broader industrial mandate beyond wood and forest products.
• Tech-Accès Canada: National network of 30 Technology Access Centres (CAT) recognized by NSERC. SEREX participates as a CAT for wood and forest products; the network aggregates service offerings across Canadian colleges and serves as a referral channel and federal funding pathway.

Emerging players

• Centre d'étude de la forêt (CEF): Québec forest research consortium hosted at universitie´s. Comparable in subject-matter focus on forest science, but operates as a university-affiliated research consortium rather than as a college technology transfer center serving industrial SMEs.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/SEREX-349549502155285
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/serex-cctt

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about SEREX