I fortunately manage that program so I can speak to it a little bit more closely.
You are correct in what you are saying. There are certain things that have been done. You will recall the Emerson report on aerospace that was recently released. One of the recommendations was in fact to improve some aspects of the program. We did do that. There were things like reducing the administrative burden. We've also made changes. For example, we've simplified the formula; we've increased the percentage of the federal sharing portion. We used to support 30% of eligible costs and now we are able to support 40%.
Also, one of the things we heard was that typically an R and D project will span over a five-year period, and we used to require that companies begin repaying the contribution one year after they were done completing their research and development. Companies were telling us that this doesn't give them enough time to turn around and commercialize that research and development or the results of it. We've extended the grace period before repayments begin for an additional year so that companies get two years before they are required to begin making repayments.
On a more practical level, we've also increased our outreach to companies. We've established close relationships with not only the aerospace and defence industry associations and stakeholders across the country but we also work closely with our federal partners to make sure that we are cross-referencing referrals. We'll work with the regional development agencies and their staff to ensure that we're in touch with the companies within their regions. Similarly, we'll do the same thing with the NRC industrial research assistance program officers.
We are working on a number of different fronts to make sure that our program is known and is responding to the needs and opportunities that businesses face.