UK Trade & Investment's Coventry & Warwickshire international trade team is organising a high level market visit to Toronto and Waterloo for West Midlands Information and Communications Technology (ICT) companies from 27 September to 1 October. The closing date for applications is Friday 27 August.

The companies will be researching the marketplace with a view to gaining new clients and developing partner relationships.

Louise Bennett OBE, Chief Executive of Coventry & Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce, will be leading the market visit.

The event will include a visit to technology event Technicity in Toronto, which will bring together key players in the sector for a day of panel discussions, displays and networking.

UK Trade & Investment will also be arranging networking meetings with local ICT associations at Canada's Technology Triangle in the Waterloo region and introducing the delegates to potential partners and clients.

International Trade Adviser Bineet Desai, based at Coventry & Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce, is UK Trade & Investment's West Midlands lead for the ICT cluster.

He said: "Canada is a hugely important market for the ICT sector and its reputation for developing innovative technology solutions is world-renowned. Research and development in this field represents 39 per cent of all R&D investment in Canada and drives more than CAD$140 billion in annual revenue amongst the country's 30,000 ICT firms.

"Businesses such as Research in Motion (RIM) - the company behind the BlackBerry brand - have emerged from Canada and many leading international technology firms, including IBM, Ericsson, Cisco, Dell, Microsoft and Nokia, either operate in the country or work closely with Canadian partners.

"The size and range of the market mean there are many opportunities for West Midlands firms, particularly in wireless and mobile telecommunications, ICT security, healthcare ICT, enterprise applications, social networking, digital media, software and services.

"The UK Trade & Investment visit is an ideal platform for companies to research the market and make vital business contacts. There are still some places available and I would urge anyone interested in taking part to contact us as soon as possible to avoid disappointment."

Companies joining the visit will also benefit from the following support from UK Trade & Investment:

* Pre-visit and in market briefing by UK Trade & Investment staff, who will introduce them to key government contacts and major players in the industry;

* Visit grant of £600 to eligible West Midlands ICT companies;

* Excellent networking opportunities through the support of the British Consulate in Toronto;

* Official UK Trade & Investment reception at Her Majesty's Consul-General's Residence, enabling companies to meet potential clients, prospective business partners, members of leading ICT companies and heads of industrial associations;

* Company visits to major organisations (BlackBerry, Rogers Telecom and IBM are examples from previous visits to Canada) to gain access to the key decision makers and find out how to collaborate with them and their supply chain;

* Pre-arranged one to one meetings with potential clients or partners;

* New contacts and shared intelligence within the market visit group; and

* Reduced costs through group travel and financial package.

To book your place on the market visit, please contact Bineet Desai at UK Trade & Investment's Coventry & Warwickshire international trade team on bineetd@cw-chamber.co.uk or Tel: 02476 654191.