Project Stories from the CENTRAL EUROPE Programme Technology Transfer and Business Innovation

Transcription

1 Project Stories from the CENTRAL EUROPE Programme Technoogy Transfer and Business Innovation

2 Pubisher: CENTRAL EUROPE Programme Joint Technica Secretariat Museumstrasse 3/A/III 1070 Vienna Austria Concept and Editing: CENTRAL EUROPE Programme Editoria Support: Tom Popper Texts and Photos: CENTRAL EUROPE Projects Artwork: Hermann Kienesberger Paper: Biotop (FSC-certified) Printed: May 2013 Athough every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of the information in this pubication, the CENTRAL EUROPE Programme cannot be hed responsibe for any information from externa sources, technica inaccuracies, typographica errors or other errors herein. Information and inks may have changed without notice. This pubication is financed by the CENTRAL EUROPE Programme under the European Regiona Deveopment Fund (ERDF)

3 Contents Editoria CENTRAL EUROPE Cooperating across borders for the regions 6 Cooperating on innovation in CENTRAL EUROPE 10 Technoogy Transfer and Business Innovation 12 ACCESS A sectora approach encourages innovation 14 ACT CLEAN Making centra Europe cean and competitive 16 AutoNet Driving the auto industry with innovation 18 CEBBIS Turning research into business 20 CENTROPE CAPACITY Cooperating to create an integrated region 22 centrope_tt Unocking research and deveopment potentias 24 CERIM Bringing high-tech innovations to the market 26 CLUSTERS-CORD Taking custers to the next eve 28 CNCB Custering ocay to compete gobay 30 C-PLUS Buiding stronger custers to improve competitiveness 32 FLAME A materia approach to innovation 34 FREE Linking innovations with businesses 36 I3SME Sparking innovation in hundreds of SMEs 38 IDEA High-potentia workers keep firms competitive 40 INNOTRAIN IT Using information technoogy to improve innovation 42 InTraMed-C2C Innovation inspired by patients probems 44 PROINCOR Priming innovation to keep smaer businesses competitive 46 Project Stories to Foow Soon 48 Innovation heps drive regiona competitiveness on a eves. As the business word becomes increasingy compex, and competition becomes more intense, companies are turning to innovation as one of the few reiabe ways to achieve a competitive advantage. Many regions in centra Europe sti face the chaenge of frai framework conditions for supporting innovation. Expenditure for research and technica deveopment is reativey ow, as is the participation of non-urban actors in cooperative custers. To take advantage of innovation, businesses need more efficient technoogy transfer, as we as ready suppies of finance and appropriate business skis. CENTRAL EUROPE projects work on these chaenges by buiding better connections between regiona actors. The centrope_tt project (p.24) for exampe improves regiona innovation management systems, whie CNCB (p.30) creates opportunities for internationaising custers. ACCESS (p.14) ooks into assessing sector-based innovation potentia and C-PLUS (p.32) heps impementing measures for custer exceence. CENTRAL EUROPE projects aso hep sma- and mediumsized enterprises to unock their innovation potentia and promote the use of research resuts to create business opportunities. This is done by testing toos for innovation and technoogy transfer ike in the CEBBIS project (p.20). PROINCOR (p.46) is a project that supports businesses in innovation management, whie INNOTRAIN IT (p.42) heps fostering human capita for the innovation process. Matching innovative ideas with funding is the objective of projects ike CERIM (p.26). This booket introduces you to the CENTRAL EUROPE story so far, showcasing in particuar those 17 innovation projects that were co-financed foowing the first two cas for proposas in 2008 and We hope that it wi serve as a vauabe starting point for discussing achievements of our projects and that it wi inspire you on what can be done further and what directions shoud be taken in view of the next programming period Christiane Breznik City of Vienna, CENTRAL EUROPE Managing Authority 4 Technoogy Transfer and Business Innovation in Centra EuropE Technoogy Transfer and Business Innovation in Centra Europe 5

4 CENTRAL EUROPE Cooperating across borders for the regions The cities and rura regions of centra Europe share a common history as we as simiar socia and cutura characteristics. The area covers more than one miion square kiometres, stretching from the Batic Sea in the north to the Mediterranean Sea in the south, with ess ceary defined borders to the west and east. It is home to 150 miion peope benefitting from transnationa cooperation through the CENTRAL EUROPE Programme. Despite their common characteristics, the regions of centra Europe are marked by diverse features: Major differences are apparent in terms of cimate conditions, and use, settement and economic structures, accessibiity, and ecoogica chaenges. There are aso big differences in centra Europe s poitica and administrative structures, which are among the most heterogeneous in the European Union. The chaenge is to use centra Europe s diversity as an opportunity to promote more sustainabe deveopment of the area by fostering increased cooperation among a wide range of actors from various countries and regions. The CENTRAL EUROPE Programme The CENTRAL EUROPE Programme generates ampe opportunities for coser cooperation among pubic authorities, institutions and private businesses from nine centra European countries: Austria, Czech Repubic, Germany, Hungary, Itay, Poand, Sovakia, Sovenia and Ukraine. By co-financing more than 120 projects, the CENTRAL EUROPE Programme heps to improve oca and regiona innovation, to increase accessibiity, to preserve the environment and to enhance the competitiveness and attractiveness of regions within centra Europe. Since 2007, which marked the start of the current programming period, the CENTRAL EUROPE Programme has invested more than E 230 miion for transnationa projects on: Technoogy transfer and business innovation Sustainabe pubic transport and ogistics Environmenta risk management and cimate change Energy efficiency and renewabe energies Demographic change and knowedge deveopment Cutura heritage and creative resources Programme: CENTRAL EUROPE ERDF funding: 231 miion Duration: Website: 6 Technoogy Transfer and Business Innovation in Centra EuropE Technoogy Transfer and Business Innovation in Centra Europe 7

5 Euros of investment being prepared by CENTRAL EUROPE projects We need to buid on the rich and vauabe experience gathered through transnationa cooperation. There is much evidence that a series of chaenges cannot be tacked soey at the eve of a singe Member State, or even at regiona eve, but ony in a cross-border context. Photo: istockphoto.com / EHStock Johannes Hahn, European Commissioner for Regiona Poicy 22 Euro cents spent per citizen per year on financing CENTRAL EUROPE projects Partners invoved in CENTRAL EUROPE projects Cooperating for citizens CENTRAL EUROPE projects a invove joint efforts by stakehoders from different countries. This approach is designed to improve peope s day-to-day ives by addressing probems that do not necessariy recognise nationa borders. Issues are tacked at the territoria eve where they occur, which is the regions in centra Europe. Transnationa cooperation aows partners to take advantage of the added vaue of doing things together, so they can prevent dupication and speed up deveopments with a higher impact. More concretey, CENTRAL EUROPE projects: carry out piot investments and actions everage additiona money and investment come up with new economic strategies and invove oca communities increase efficiency on various eves improve spending of pubic money support the adaptation of EU directives to regiona contexts strengthen regiona networks and invove oca communities infuence the poicy agenda on a poitica eves Contributing to Europe 2020 Transnationa cooperation within the CENTRAL EUROPE Programme is firmy embedded in the newy aunched strategic poicy frameworks on the European, nationa and regiona eves. Many of CENTRAL EUROPE s projects are aready contributing to the Europe 2020 Strategy and its mutuay reinforcing goas of smart, incusive and sustainabe growth in Europe. This approach to deveopment is expected to hep the EU and Member States deiver high eves of empoyment, productivity and socia cohesion. Concrete actions of the 2020 Strategy are designed to reach ambitious targets in five areas: empoyment, innovation, education, socia incusion and cimate and energy. The CENTRAL EUROPE Programme, and the transnationa cooperation it inspires between actors on the ground, pays an important roe in meeting these targets on the regiona eve even though the Programme ony uses 0.07 percent of the tota budget avaiabe for EU Cohesion Poicy. CENTRAL EUROPE In the upcoming programming period the CENTRAL EUROPE Programme wi continue to support regiona cooperation among centra European countries. The exact geography, themes, budgets and many other variabes of the new programme are currenty under discussion and consuted upon with stakehoders. It is expected that the new Operationa Programme wi be approved by the European Commission in the first haf of 2014, with a first ca for project proposas to be opened ater the same year. Photo: industriebick - Fotoia.com Photo: istockphoto.com / Fred Froese 8 Technoogy Transfer and Business Innovation in Centra EuropE Technoogy Transfer and Business Innovation in Centra Europe 9

6 COOPERATING ON INNOVATION IN CENTRAL EUROPE CENTRAL EUROPE AT A GLANCE COUNTRIES, REGIONS/CITIES, AND INHABITANTS COVERED PROJECTS miion citizens cities & regions 9 countries INNOVATION PROJECTS CO-FINANCED out of themes innovation projects partners in innovation out of 124 projects out of 1331 in tota partners in tota DURATION OF PROGRAMME PUBLIC MONEY WELL INVESTED BUDGET INVESTED CONTRIBUTING TO EUROPE 2020 Future investment prepared by projects 11 miion euros 0.34 miion euros Tota investment carried out by projects of the tota programme 54 = 23 % budget of 231 miion euros miion euros With roughy 0.05 spent per citizen per year, the programme achieves: Permanent cooperation networks estabished Loca piot activities carried out by projects 370 Jobs created Agenda for new skis and jobs 4 Digita agenda 13 Innovation Union Number of project contributions to EU 2020 fagship initiatives 5 Resource efficient Europe 17 Industria poicy for gobaisation Incusive growth CENTRAL EUROPE contributes to the European Union 2020 Strategy and reaching its goas of smart, incusive and sustainabe growth. Concrete targets for empoyment, innovation, education, socia incusion as we as cimate change and energy were set on the European eve and CENTRAL EUROPE project resuts hep to meet them on the oca and regiona eves. Number of project contributions to EU 2020 priorities 1 Smart growth 17 Sustainabe growth 22 Design: studioq.at 10 Technoogy Transfer and Business Innovation in Centra EuropE Technoogy Transfer and Business Innovation in Centra Europe 11 Data: March 2013

7 Technoogy transfer and business innovation Cooperating to buid better connections between regiona actors Cooperating to increase innovation in regiona businesses Project Stories 12 Technoogy Transfer and Business Innovation in Centra EuropE Technoogy Transfer and Business Innovation in Centra Europe 13

8 Photo: istockphoto.com / DNY59 The project can serve as a good orientation for nationa and regiona reguators, and other stakehoders in the sector, to form a supportive environment encouraging innovativeness. Janja Kokoj Prošek, Ministry of Agricuture and Environment - Comprehensive Countryside Deveopment and Viage Renovation (CCDVR) Programme, Sovenia 99 Percent of a enterprises in the EU-27 food sector are sma- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) 200 Fied interviews conducted by ACCESS researchers A sectora approach encourages innovation Sma- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are often drivers of innovation, especiay in certain technoogy-dependent sectors. But in the face of economic sowdown, it is difficut to maintain the momentum of innovation in SMEs. The ACCESS project attempts a different soution to this chaenge: taking a sector-specific approach to encourage innovation that can spur the economy. The ACCESS project focuses on three sectors where innovation has historicay made a big difference: biotech, mechatronics and agro-food. Eeven partners from eight centra European countries are working through the project to foster innovation by seeking the answers to two key questions: What toos and techniques of regiona innovation management might hep to improve the capacity for innovation? What is the potentia of a sector-based focus to improve innovation management? More specificay, the project seeks to revea what kind of impact innovation makes in these sectors, how innovation is currenty being encouraged and what is being achieved by these efforts. It aso tries to determine what support actors in these sectors reay need to assist them in innovation. Because the project is transnationa, ACCESS can perform a region-wide knowedge audit of innovation capabiities in specific sectors. This approach is used to identify the best innovation management toos and techniques for encouraging new ideas in each sector. These toos and techniques can be presented to the reevant target groups. Sharing the knowedge ACCESS makes it a priority to share the findings of its sector-specific research into innovation with the appropriate stakehoders in centra Europe, incuding government reguators, researchers and managers invoved in the industries being studied. Using the information they gathered, participants in the ACCESS project offer a specia Transnationa Innovation Management Training course, to hep ensure that the knowedge is disseminated widey. The skied experts emerging from this course are abe to make recommendations to competent ministries and other actors about how to support innovation systems. Furthermore, the experts offer managers in the three sectors of biotech, mechatronics and agro-food information on how to improve innovation systems and introduce supportive measures in the future. The researchers for the various sectors aso heped share their knowedge through the ACCESS project s Peer Review Methodoogy, in which professionas who examined innovation in the region meet and discuss their findings with their peers oca government and administrative actors, universities and private research institutes, innovation and technoogy intermediary organisations, venture capita investors and private enterprises. Knowedge was shared through events ike three regiona meetings invoving food sector professionas, four meetings invoving mechatronics professionas and three meetings for the biotech sector. These, and other activities in the fied, encourage a systematic approach to fostering innovation, whie aso bringing together a range of different stakehoders who can cooperate to support continued knowedge transfer we beyond the ifetime of the project. Photo: istockphoto.com / RainerPend 3 Piot actions by ACCESS in the biotech, mechatronics and agro-food sectors Project: ACCESS ERDF funding: Duration: Website: 14 Technoogy Transfer and Business Innovation in Centra EuropE Technoogy Transfer and Business Innovation in Centra Europe 15

9 Making centra Europe cean and competitive Companies in centra Europe can greaty reduce any negative environmenta impacts created by industry and business if they know how to take advantage of the atest technoogy. To hep ensure that oca businesses have the knowedge they need to be more environmentay friendy, the ACT CLEAN project created the first area-wide network for ceaner production. The ACT CLEAN network works through the cooperation of ACT CLEAN nationa contact points (NCPs), which have deveoped stabe cooperation structures and permanent services for supporting sma- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in using and appying ceaner production technoogies and management systems. Stony path towards EU compiance Ceaner production is not just a good way to become more efficient whie reducing poution, it is aso a ega obiga- tion: EU directives and reguations require enterprises to compy with environmenta standards and ensure ecoefficient production processes. Many SMEs ack access to ceaner production technoogy that has been deveoped and put to use in other regions. At the same time, those SMEs that can provide customers with ceaner production technoogy often ack access to the reevant market payers. ACT CLEAN addresses these probems by offering SMEs a range of products and services to make their production processes more eco-efficient and to ensure that they compy with reevant EU egisation. Photo: istock Through the ACT CLEAN network, our companies were introduced to highy innovative issues and are currenty foowing up on them. The concept of eco-design proved to be especiay interesting and resuted in concrete initiatives, such as reguar organisation of trainings. Carotta Ranieri, CNA Boogna, Nationa Confederation for the Craft Sector and Sma and Medium Enterprises, Coordinator Poicy, Energy, Environment, Itay For exampe, as part of this project, Corvinus University in Hungary adapted one of the toos provided by the Sovak Ceaner Production Center: a database on EU reguations caed Compex. This concept was converted into a simper database caed Greenex, which is an interactive too that aows SMEs to easiy check which EU and Hungarian reguations are reevant for them and to check that they are in compiance with those reguations. No need to reinvent the whee Aong with coecting such toos in the ACT CLEAN too box, the project has aso identified and pubicised good-practice exampes. Much can be earned from a transnationa exchange of these good practices, which are caed Ceaner Production Highights. In one exampe, a German company deveoped an adsorption chier soar cooing technoogy that uses much ess eectricity compared to standard room air conditioning techniques. Water is used to repace the usua refrigerant, hydrofuorocarbon, which has a high goba-warming potentia. In the winter time, the device can be operated as a heat pump, to support heating. The resut is not ony a safer environment but aso energy efficiency, which produces immediate savings for SMEs. ACT CLEAN has coected and assessed exampes ike this one and buit up a shared poo of innovative soutions for SMEs. Around 500 exampes have been seected for the project database, and they are aso promoted via brochures and other dissemination means. Matchmaking events provide direct support The ACT CLEAN network has estabished a continuing programme of industry workshops and business-to-business training on ceaner production. In the ast three years, the main subjects covered by this training work have incuded resource efficiency, waste management and environmenta management systems, but the network can aso meet specific requests of SMEs by addressing any important topics pertaining to ceaner production. Encouraging ceaner production on a regiona scae The project aso deveoped the ACT CLEAN transnationa agenda, which is currenty being promoted as a way to support poicy for fostering, deveoping and depoying ceaner production. The agenda s action pan focuses on three areas: faciitating networking activities; improving awareness of ceaner production soutions; improving the financia framework. Each of the action pan s recommendations is addressed to the specific institution responsibe for acting on the suggestion. The way forward The cooperation mechanism of the ACT CLEAN network is now we estabished and sufficienty robust to endure beyond the initia project. The project website wi continue to operate as an interface between various centra European countries and enterprises. Recommendations in the action pan shoud be taken up, to further shape and improve the framework for ceaner production in centra Europe. In addition, continued awareness raising is needed to educate SMEs about ceaner production and to promote and market the toos and instruments that have aready been deveoped Year in which the term ceaner production was coined by the United Nations Environment Programmes Project: ACT CLEAN ERDF funding: Duration: Website: 16 Technoogy Transfer and Business Innovation in Centra EuropE Technoogy Transfer and Business Innovation in Centra Europe 17

10 Photo: istockphoto.com / mattjeacock The EU is the word s argest producer of motor vehices; the industry is a huge empoyer of skied workers and a key driver of knowedge and innovation. I beieve that AutoNet provides one of the best opportunities for networking and cooperation in centra Europe. As the initia project s duration wound down, AutoNet was ensuring that its opportunities for networking are carried on, through continuation of the MatchMaking database and other sustainabe networking efforts. 470 Entries in the MatchMaking database Andrea Hrčková, Project Manager, SIM PLAN, Sovakia 800 Trained MatchMaking database users Driving the auto industry with innovation When it comes to steering centra Europe s automotive industry in the right direction for the future, innovation is the best driver. Forward-thinking automotive firms and research institutes can keep their regions competitive by working together to deveop new processes, materias or products. AutoNet heps jump-start innovation by uniting actors in the industry, in centra Europe and beyond. The project s MatchMaking database makes it fast and easy to search for partners onine. The database currenty consists of more than 470 registered organisations, and this number is continuousy growing, thanks to new entries from smaand medium-sized enterprises, research and deveopment institutions, universities and other organisations invoved in the automotive industry. The potentia partners joining the database are not ony from the European Union, but aso other countries with strong automotive industries, such as Ukraine, Turkey and Russia. To hep users get the most out of the MatchMaking database, AutoNet hed 27 specia training sessions in nine regions around centra Europe. More than 800 participants had the opportunity to receive a first-hand overview of the database and its functionaity. The project aso faciitated in-person networking that ead to rea cooperation by hoding 12 MatchMaking events incuding nine events in different regions of the EU and one event each in Turkey, Ukraine and Russia. These events brought together more than 550 participants and resuted in the signing of six agreements to create ong-term partnerships intended to deveop innovative soutions in the automotive industry Biatera meetings at MatchMaking events AutoNet does its own networking The goa of AutoNet is to create a stabe network of companies, research centres, universities, internationa organisations and pubic institutions, who can work together to promote innovation in various aspects of the automotive industry. The project introduces key actors in the sector, aowing them to exchange knowedge and work with one another. AutoNet s activities incuded the organisation of three internationa Exchange of Experience Seminars, hed in Nitra (Sovakia), Reggio-Emiia (Itay), and Rzeszow (Poand). These meetings aowed for thematic discussions between 172 participants incuding representatives of enterprises, managers, poicy makers and intermediary bodies that are interested in innovation-oriented, network-based deveopment of the automotive industry. Making matches AutoNet aso speciaises in toos and meetings aimed at matchmaking, to hep create ong-term partnerships between European actors invoved in the automotive industries. In seeking to improve cooperation among actors in the auto industry, AutoNet aso engages in cooperation for exampe by working on deveoping synergies with AUTOCLUSTERS (see aso In addition, AutoNet signed agreements with CLEPA (European Association of Automotive Suppiers), which represents the officia voice of the automotive suppiers industry, and EASN (European Automotive Strategy Network), which aims to strengthen the EU automotive industry by improving its competitiveness and ong-term sustainabiity. Project: AutoNet ERDF funding: Duration: Website: 18 Technoogy Transfer and Business Innovation in Centra EuropE Technoogy Transfer and Business Innovation in Centra Europe 19

11 Turning research into business Scientific and technoogica breakthroughs being made in Europe s universities can provide exciting new business opportunities for forward-thinking sma- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). But companies can ony take advantage of the atest innovations if they know about them. The CEBBIS project is seeking to promote innovation in SMEs by improving communication between universities and industry. Made up of a partnership of research centres and technoogy parks in seven centra European countries, CEBBIS was created to break down barriers of communication between researchers and business peope. As the project s research has shown, these barriers incude a ack of understanding between researchers and entrepreneurs, inappropriate systems for funding universities or scientific institutions and improper systems for managing universities. To address these probems, CEBBIS is organising a series of workshops and conferences that encourage better communication whie aowing professionas and stakehoders from around the region to share their knowedge on how to improve communication in a way that can boost innovation. Sharing experiences Photo: istockphoto.com / Stefan Thamm In a the partnering countries we now have the option to use the experience gained in other partnering countries. We reguary exchange information and experience in the area of innovation. The internationa network aso brings new opportunities for cooperation. Stephen Tayor, Executive Director of Technoogy Transfer in the AREA Science Park in Trieste, Itay The project opened with a gathering dubbed the Prague Summer Conference on Inteectua Property & Innovation, which was attended by eading professionas in technoogy transfer as we as representatives of industry and venture capita. Participants in that conference heped identify the chaenges invoved in ensuring that universities and businesses communicate more effectivey in order to turn new ideas into commerciay viabe ventures. The conference aowed participants from around the region to share their ideas on technoogy transfer, and initiated activities that CEBBIS partners coud carry out in their home countries. For exampe, the project enabed the creation of a Strategic Technoogy Roadmapping service, offered to pubic and private sector organisations by the AREA Business Park in Itay. Technoogy roadmapping is an approach that invoves creating specific pans to take advantage of new technoogies it constitutes a strategic approach to bringing science into practice. AREA deveoped 16 different instruments to hep with this work, incuding toos that assist with product design management, demand evauation, 3D-visuaisation and business inteigence. Another project initiative was the organisation of roundtabe discussions among representatives of major oca and internationa businesses and experts from the Czech Technica University. Inovacentrum, the university s technoogy transfer office, put together seven discussions invoving more than 200 participants from companies ike Siemens, Skoda, Bosch, etc. The opportunity for open conversation between academic and industria professionas promoted better understanding among the two sectors and resuted in a number of commercia orders. The countries partnering in the project Austria, the Czech Repubic, Germany, Hungary, Itay, Poand and Sovenia hed a number of meetings and conferences to exchange good practices. To hep share the knowedge generated through these gatherings, members of the CEBBIS network kept one another informed about the resuts of their undertakings. Participants in the CEBBIS project overcome the gaps between universities and industry and bring the best innovations to commercia appication. 5 Competence centres created by CEBBIS to offer innovation to business 16 New toos deveoped to improve technoogy transfer 38 Workshops and seminars encouraging commercia use of new technoogies Project: CEBBIS ERDF funding: Duration: Website: 20 Technoogy Transfer and Business Innovation in Centra EuropE Technoogy Transfer and Business Innovation in Centra Europe 21

12 Photo: centrope agency In the beginning, we agreed that infrastructure and mutua accessibiity shoud be major concerns for the Centrope region. Now we move forward with an ambitious agenda, and our citizens wi soon be abe to enjoy improved and customer-friendy pubic transport services between our regions. Pavo Frešo, President of the Bratisava Sef-Governing Region, Sovakia These piots aso support the overa poitica process of strengthening ties within the Centrope region. For exampe, resuts of the INAT piot were used for a paper that cas for formuation and impementation of a comprehensive transport strategy. Likewise, RDR resuts wi faciitate activities to strengthen cross-border cooperation in research, technoogy and innovation. 16 Regions and cities cooperating in Centrope Cooperating to create an integrated region At the intersection of Austria, the Czech Repubic, Hungary and Sovakia, Centrope is emerging as a new transnationa region. Since the first partners got together to initiate the idea of Centrope in 2003, a tota of 16 regions and cities have been committed to strengthening cooperation in the region. The CENTROPE CAPACITY project further deveops the overa framework for this cooperation and sets up ead initiatives in key thematic fieds where regions can work together. Activities focus on four areas of strategic cooperation: Regiona knowedge Human capita Spatia integration Tourism and cuture The CENTROPE CAPACITY project provides the patform for working groups, symposia and expert circes to deveop a set of mutiatera ead projects ready to be impemented in the years to come. A professiona branding process was used to define the cornerstones of a cohesive regiona brand that specifies core eements of the Centrope identity (unique seing points, brand vaues) and resuted in the sogan Meet Europe. Meet Centrope. Future marketing efforts of the Centrope partners can buid on this emerging brand. Piots boosting the project at arge Inhabitants iving in the Centrope region 60 Distance in km between the two Centrope capitas Bratisava and Vienna 2003 Year when the Centrope region was initiated With 6.5 miion inhabitants, compementary markets and cross-border mobiity, the Centrope region offers a mode of successfu European integration. The region boasts the knowedge of 25 universities and hundreds of research institutes, the competitive edge of innovative, outward-ooking entrepreneurship and the creativity of peope iving in a confuence of anguages and cutures. The centra European region of Centrope has the potentia to achieve sustainabe growth and high iveabiity through baanced deveopment in a borderess, poycentric area. To hep uneash this potentia, CENTROPE CAPACITY organised top-eve semi-annua summit meetings that have created a new poitica framework for forging a common agenda. Supported by a transnationa agency with dedicated offices in a four partner countries as we as a coordination office Centrope cooperation aows the regions and cities invoved to transate their eadership into a muti-faceted deveopment programme. In the process, the agency generates ideas for new projects, deveops pans, invoves stakehoders and pubicy promotes the Centrope concept. Three arge-scae piot activities have been undertaken to encourage the deveopment of the Centrope agenda: Regiona Deveopment Report (RDR) providing reguar anaysis and poicy recommendations for a highy integrated economic area. Infrastructure Needs Assessment Too (INAT) aiming to point out the most pressing bottenecks in cross-border transport connections and to take the first steps towards an integrated pubic transport association in the Centrope region. Centrope tourism porta representing a new too for marketing the destination to residents and visitors aike. Project: CENTROPE CAPACITY ERDF funding: Duration: Website: 22 Technoogy Transfer and Business Innovation in Centra EuropE Technoogy Transfer and Business Innovation in Centra Europe 23

13 Photo: istock centrope_tt voucher a cross-border financing instrument It is not enough to know that cutting-edge research is avaiabe; businesses aso have to be ready to invest in innovative ideas. To that end, centrope_tt deveoped a voucher, which functions as a financing too to promote cross-border cooperation between business and researchers. Within 10 months of receiving the vouchers, SMEs coud appy to finance activities, such as deveoping new products or prototypes, creating business pans, taioring training in new technoogies or anaysing technoogy transfer potentia. In tota, centrope_tt financed around 35 cooperative initiatives, and it is now panning to maintain simiar services after the end of the project. centrope_tt academy a training too for R&D experts 40 Experts trained to become research, technoogy and innovation (RTI) managers Research and deveopment institutes and enterprises in Centrope database Unocking research and deveopment potentias The region known as Centrope a border quadrange that incudes Austria, the Czech Repubic, Hungary and Sovakia is characterised by a high density of research institutions, universities, innovation centres and research and deveopment (R&D) oriented enterprises. This weath of knowedge can be used to hep the four Centrope countries face their current chaenges. However, reaising the region s true potentia requires a coordinated approach. In order to tap into Centrope s knowedge base, the project centrope_tt estabished an internationa expert community to support innovation and encourage transfer of technoogy in the region. Backed by E 2 miion in EU funding, and under the project eadership of the business agency of Lower Austria (ecopus), 13 centrope_tt partner institutions estabished different toos to stimuate transnationa technoogy transfer between enterprises and universities or research institutes. To make it easier to visuaise the great potentia of R&D contacts in the Centrope region, the centrope_tt experts deveoped an onine database isting more than 2,400 R&D institutes and reated enterprises. Company executives and scientists of research institutes can search the database by region and discipine, to obtain quick and targeted information about research providers in adjoining regions. Based on this database, the project prepared a brochure caed the centrope_tt SME Innovation Guide, which comprises around 100 detaied profies of R&D institutions from Centrope and incudes vauabe information about contact data, research focus, main projects, achievements, etc. In order to estabish successfu transnationa and interdiscipinary cooperation, it is often necessary to have intermediaries who are famiiar with the unique needs of different branches of research and industry. For this reason, the centrope_tt network founded an academy, which trains R&D experts on how to estabish transnationa partnerships, how to overcome intercutura obstaces and where to find potentia financing sources for projects in the Centrope region. The courses are hed in four sessions in a four Centrope countries, and a courses are accompanied by innovation cubs, which incude site excursions to meet innovation eaders and meetings with oca experts and successfu start-ups. So far more than 40 R&D experts have passed the training and were invited to take an onine exam to earn certifications as research, technoogy and innovation (RTI) managers. Efforts are currenty being taken to estabish the centrope_tt academy as a permanent quaification too in Europe. Using the centrope_tt voucher, we were abe to estabish a virtua network of companies that are currenty active in aerospace in Centrope. With this financia support, we obtained a detaied overview about the different aerospace markets, their demands and cooperation needs. Heike Koch, CEO of MD-K Consuting and Mechanica Engineering, Germany Photo: STU Bratisava 35 companies and institutions financed by centrope_tt vouchers Project: centrope_tt ERDF funding: Duration: Website: 24 Technoogy Transfer and Business Innovation in Centra EuropE Technoogy Transfer and Business Innovation in Centra Europe 25

14 Photo: Nikoaj Kondratenko - Fotoia.com Thanks to CERIM we made huge steps in the commerciaisation process of our inventions. We benefited to a arge extent from the partners expert knowedge with regard to technoogy transfer and wi continue cooperating with them in the future. Prof. Dr. Saeh Ibrahim, Head of Research at the start-up company Immungenetics, Germany 10 Start-up companies estabished with support from CERIM 100 Commerciaisation cases assessed by CERIM, with 15 cases seected for further strategy deveopment Bringing high-tech innovations to the market can make a vita contribution to the European economy. Athough countries and regions of centra Europe have a strong interest in creating innovation systems that can enabe commerciaisation of academic research, experience shows that the process is chaenging. In particuar, there are probems reated to uncear poicy and ega frameworks, a situation that creates uncertainty in the distribution of responsibiity for technoogy transfer. Furthermore, there is a ack of motivation in pubicy funded research institutions to engage in technoogy transfer, and there is a pronounced absence of quaified personne managing technoogy transfer. Meanwhie, there are few strong networks that bring together regiona, nationa and internationa support organisations, industria partners, technoogy transfer experts and venture capitaists. Businesses can benefit from the work of researchers, but ony if they are aware of the research that is out there. To encourage commercia use of new innovations, ten technoogy transfer organisations came together in the CERIM project to jointy work on improving conditions for bringing research resuts to the market. The project partners screened and evauated more than 100 studies containing research resuts and identified 20 with commercia potentia. The project heped deveop inteectua property and commerciaisation strategies and supported the estabishment of ten start-up companies. Transferring technoogy: desirabe but chaenging Given the importance of innovation when it comes to remaining competitive in the goba economy, it is widey understood that higher education and research institutions Strong partnerships necessary for effective tech transfer The partners in CERIM have been facing simiar chaenges. In particuar they note the ack of a seamess service package for technoogy transfer one that ranges from screening of innovations to identifying buyers and/or venture capita. The project heped address this chaenge: the partners noted that their abiity to offer more and better service has increased markedy due to the project. Evidence of the improvement incudes the arge number of high-potentia cases anaysed and the promising start-ups that have been supported. Most of key outputs of CERIM are comprised of toos and instruments that aready have been taken up by the project partners. A good exampe of this is the University of Žiina, which benefited from CERIM by increasing its knowedge with regard to technoogy transfer. Athough it had a good background in the area of technoogy foresight, the university sti acked a conceptua approach for the whoe process from idea seection to commerciaisation. Through participation in CERIM, the University of Žiina received usefu information on how to seect innovative ideas, how to prioritise these ideas and how to promote high-potentia innovation projects. Based on CERIM methodoogies, the University of Žiina further deveoped its own commerciaisation index for evauating the commercia potentia of innovation. Photo: Pave Losevsky - Fotoia.com Project: CERIM ERDF funding: Duration: Website: 26 Technoogy Transfer and Business Innovation in Centra EuropE Technoogy Transfer and Business Innovation in Centra Europe 27

15 Photo: istockphoto.com / Wittesbach bernd CLUSTERS-CORD gave me the chance to get in touch with other custer managers in the energy and environment sector and opened new possibiities for internationa cooperation and exchange of experiences. Břetisav Skáce, Chairman of CREA Hydro&Energy Custer, Brno, Czech Repubic 5 Number of meta-custers created by CLUSTERS-CORD 32 Custers invoved in the project s five working groups Taking custers to the next eve Since its popuarisation in the eary 1990s, the concept of a business custer a group of reated companies and institutions that work together to increase innovation and competitiveness has generay impied that the partners are in geographic proximity. But CLUSTERS-CORD is seeking to use the proven innovative power of custers internationay, through the creation of meta custers. Governments have come to see the wisdom of encouraging business custers, which aow businesses and researchers working in the same fied to feed off one another, thereby fostering competitive innovation. The potentia of custers to strengthen innovative industries is demonstrated in high-tech centres ike the Siicone Vaey in the United States or Baden-Württemberg in Germany. For the most part, custers have been credited with heping particuar regions stay competitive in the goba economy. As the European Union seeks to remain competitive, it needs to consider the possibiity of spreading the benefits of custers beyond singe regions. Cooperation among professionas in the same industry can invove partners in severa countries who work in meta-custers, which buid internationa cooperation whie aso assisting oca custer managers. This is the concept promoted by CLUSTERS-CORD. Cooperation serves innovation The project s genera objective is to strengthen cooperation among stakehoders who are geographicay distant but are working in the same thematic fied, as a way to support internationa cooperation on research and deveopment whie encouraging transfer of innovative concepts into commercia products. This goa is being reached through the deveopment of five Strategic Cooperation pans that resut in the creation of five meta-custers. Based on an anaysis of 70 custers in ten European regions, the project has seected five key industries for coser examination: informationcommunication technoogy, tourism, heath sciences, food processing, and energy and environment. Thirty-two custer managers were among the diverse participants in the project, which provided a patform for increasing internationa cooperation on research and deveopment projects and commerciaisation of new innovations. Exchange of ideas The project organised thematic exchange forums for the various fieds covered. These meetings brought together custer managers and other interested stakehoders, so they coud discuss the estabishment of internationa cooperation as we as ways to strengthen competitiveness on the goba market. Participants in the project aso work to enhance the environment for innovation, and to improve conditions for research and deveopment in different regions. They exchange their know-how and experience regarding regiona custer poicies, which are essentia to creating better conditions for regiona innovation, and work with oca decision makers on improving these poicies. Among the asting resuts of the project is the creation of five meta-custers, whose members signed future cooperation agreements that define main goas for continued deveopment. These meta-custers are open for new members, who can increase the opportunities for enhanced cooperation. Another key resut shoud be providing inspiration for simiar cooperative efforts in different industria sectors, to increase innovation throughout the European Union. 70 Custers anaysed in a benchmarking study Project: CLUSTERS-CORD ERDF funding: Duration: Website: 28 Technoogy Transfer and Business Innovation in Centra EuropE Technoogy Transfer and Business Innovation in Centra Europe 29

16 Photo: istockphoto.com / Fred Froese The CNCB piot optimisation pan was very usefu for improving our organisationa and management skis, as we as internationa reations with centra European partners. Petra Papp, BIB Custer Coordinator, Hungary 275 Custers mapped by CNCB 96 Custer surveys anaysed by CNCB Custering ocay to compete gobay A custer encourages companies and research institutes that work in a reated fied to cooperate, thereby promoting innovation and making a the custer participants more competitive. In an effort to hep reaise the fu potentia of custers in centra Europe, CNCB supports custer managers and seeks benefits through internationa networks. Training for custer managers is important because a custer can be more effective when the cooperation among its partners is coordinated carefuy by a quaified professiona. The effort to encourage internationa cooperation is an attempt to give custers new toos for improvement. Custers tend to be grouped in one geographica region, ike the automotive industry around Baden-Württemberg in Germany, because proximity makes it easier to form centres of innovation. But custer managers aso see benefits in internationaisation bringing in partners from neighbouring countries. To get a better picture of the needs of custers, the project used an onine survey that aowed it to anayse 96 different custers from Austria, the Czech Repubic, Hungary, Itay, Poand, Sovakia and Sovenia. The information geaned from this anaysis was used to produce a manua to act as the basis for deveoping the curricuum for a custer managers training course. Ideay, the course coud ead to a standardised form of certification. Creating recognisabe standards is an important way to strengthen the profession of custer manager, and make the fied a more attractive area for taented managers. A desire for training The resuts of the survey showed a rea need for this kind of speciaised training: 57 percent of the responding custer managers expressed a strong interest in immediate training, so that they can do their job better, whie another 37 percent said they saw the benefits of more education in the future. The respondents said that the most important topics for education on custer management woud be: management of innovation; strategic panning; internationaisation; project management; and marketing and pubic reations. The survey aso indicated a desire for more internationaisation among custers: custer managers hoped to take advantage of the benefits of cooperation with custers in other countries. Further work with three custers Based on the survey, the CNCB project chose the foowing three custers for further piot initiatives: Biotechnoogy Innovation Base Custer in Pécs, Hungary; Tourism Custer in Smoenice, Sovakia; Euro Centrum Custer of Energy Saving Technoogies in Katowice, Poand. The project put together a group of experts who support these custers in deveoping their own action pans and future strategies. These strategies hep the custers optimise their activities, processes and performance, so they can better position themseves on the market. These custers were aso supported in internationaisation through an expert group set up by the CNCB project. The custers were encouraged to recruit transnationa members, to create a transnationa custer out of two or more regiona custers and/or to initiate internationa practices in a regiona custer. 57 Percent of custer managers participating in the CNCB survey indicate a strong interest in immediate training Project: CNCB ERDF funding: Duration: Website: 30 Technoogy Transfer and Business Innovation in Centra EuropE Technoogy Transfer and Business Innovation in Centra Europe 31

17 Buiding stronger custers to improve competitiveness By cooperating in a regiona custer, reated businesses and institutions can act as a singe unit so that each individua component becomes more competitive and innovative. Unfortunatey, many European custers ack the critica mass and innovation capacity needed to create true centres of exceence. C-PLUS seeks to hep by encouraging more effective integration among potentia innovators. There are about 2,000 regiona custers in Europe according to the European Custer Observatory, but many of these are not as effective as they coud be at creating regiona hubs for innovation. The main weaknesses of custers incude market segmentation, which means businesses working in reated industries are not taking advantage of the benefits they coud achieve by cooperating with one another. Poor connections between the words of business and research constitute another weakness, which prevents academic innovations from being transformed into moneymaking ideas. Furthermore, a ack or inadequacy of profes- siona custer managers weakens custers. With the understanding that custers can improve innovation and competitiveness by integrating businesses, C-PLUS empoys a variety of methodoogies to investigate cooperation in custers and revea the best practices that others can foow. Researching the custers Eight custers were studied in Austria, the Czech Repubic, Germany, Itay, Hungary and Poand, and 25 SMEs were Photo: istockphoto.com / EHStock San Mauro Pascoi boasts a very strong custer for semi-finished products that represent added vaue for contemporary and modern footwear. If we ook at the Mian, Paris, London or New York runways, many of the shoes featured there have eements coming from our territory. Cesare Casadei, CEO and Creative Director of Casadei Cazaturificio SpA, Itay investigated in each custer. The custers and businesses were compared through a benchmarking anaysis aimed at identifying each company s practices and performances. The custers were aso investigated through other means, incuding: methodoogies investigating territoria coordination; the European Scenario Workshop Methodoogy for Participatory Panning and Increased Awareness ; focus groups; and interviews designed to investigate the characteristics of the territoria system, network reations and oca deveopment poicies. Aong with coecting data through its research, the project aso gathered knowedge by aowing exchanges of good practices between various custers from around centra Europe. Using a of this information, the project defined a common action pan and formed a task force comprised of the custer managers. The task force aims to monitor the custers, to ensure that they are in good working order, and to ensure that strong reationships within each custer are effective in transferring knowedge that is based on research and on appications of good practices among oca production systems. The project incudes severa oca piot activities to stimuate innovation. Typica activities are isted beow, grouped according to the five piars of the transnationa action pan: Custer exceency: promoting better representation of the sector, strengthening cooperation among sector actors, improving services for custer members and improving custer management. Custer marketing: mastering custer marketing activities, promoting custer members and promoting the region. Research and innovation: fostering innovation by a custer s SMEs and setting up a matchmaking patform for technoogy transfer. Foster cooperation inside an innovation triange : invoving firms, researchers and custer managers. Training and education: training custer members and matching students with companies. Photo: istockphoto.com / BanksPhotos 257 Companies investigated through benchmarking anaysis 29 Concrete piot actions impemented at the oca eve 300 Stakehoders invoved through European Awareness Scenario Workshops for a common panning strategy Project: C-PLUS ERDF funding: Duration: Website: 32 Technoogy Transfer and Business Innovation in Centra EuropE Technoogy Transfer and Business Innovation in Centra Europe 33