Through the Sixth Research Framework Programme and its predecessors, the European Union supports thousands of research projects. Each of these projects involves partners from three or more countries. Since the projects are funded with public money, the partners have an obligation to exploit their results - either themselves or by licensing to other organisations. As Europe is less successful at converting research results into new products and processes than the USA or Japan, the Commission has placed ever-increasing importance on the exploitation of results from EU programmes.
Partners are required to plan for the exploitation of the expected results at the proposal stage, and a technology implementation plan detailing the measures to be taken to exploit the results has to be provided to the Commission towards the end of the project. In order to follow up this plan, which will often mean transferring the results to third parties, finding potential new partners is crucial.
Across Europe, Innovation Relay Centres (IRCs) provide local help to organisations - in particular small companies - seeking either new technologies for their own work or to find buyers or users for their research results. So for organisations involved in a EU-funded research project, their local IRC offers a valuable resource to help them market and transfer their results to potential users.
IRCs have extensive knowledge of the market for technologies and can advise clients on how best to exploit their results. One of the services IRCs offer their clients is 'technology watch', where an IRC consultant advises clients on the market potential of their research results, and identifies those which may be suitable for licensing to third parties. Through the range of contacts within the IRC network they can then help the client identify possible partners throughout Europe.
Concrete examples of RTD result exploitation process
The variety of approaches which IRCs may bring to the identification of potential partners for their clients is a significant asset. In the course of several EU-funded research projects, VTT - the Finnish Technical Research Centre - has developed an automated system for manufacturing prototype moulds and patterns used in foundries. This system has the potential to save both time and money for foundries, enabling them to bring new products on to the market more simply.
VTT used IRC Finland to help find users to take their new process to the production stage. According to Irja Ruokamo of IRC Finland, "Consultants working for VTT identified the north of Italy as the biggest market for the new process, as there are many small foundries there". "We put a technology offer out to the IRC network, and we also made direct contact with our colleagues at IRC Lombardy. We organised a visit to Italy for VTT to show their process, and were very surprised by the interest from the target companies. Now we are organising a visit by several of the Italian companies to Finland to see a demonstration of the process. With the interest already shown, we hope that this visit will lead to a first agreement".
Another pilot project is currently underway, where IRCs are assisting in the preparation of the technology implementation plan (TIP) for a project which concluded earlier this year to develop high-altitude traffic and environmental monitoring platforms. The nine partners are working together with their respective IRCs, co-ordinated by Turin-based IRC Alps (whose client is the project leader) to demonstrate the added value which IRCs can bring to the TIP process.
Once partners for exploitation have been identified, another area of IRC expertise is of great value in helping clients transfer their results to other organisations. Because IRCs' daily business involves cross-border contacts, their advice can be very useful for clients not used to negotiating with an organisation in a different country. IRC staff can ensure that potential partners sign confidentiality agreements before negotiations start, to protect their clients, and they will also advise on the best types of deal for each individual circumstance.
IRC network and the IPR-Helpdesk
In order to proceed with exploitation, it is first essential to know who is the owner of the research result, who has the right to exploit and/or transfer the results to a third party, and who should be informed about such a transfer. IPR issues therefore play a significant and crucial role in the exploitation and transfer process. IPR and technology transfer are therefore very closely related.
It is for this reason that the IRC network and the IPR-Helpdesk have been collaborating closely together for many years. One recent development in this collaboration is the co-organisation of events for SMEs interested in technology transfer and the exploitation of RTD results. IPR-Helpdesk expertise will be offered through providing speakers for workshops organised at the local level by the IRCs.
These seminars will start in October and will be held during the next few months. The schedule is currently being prepared and will shortly be made available on both the IRC network's public website and the IPR-Helpdesk website.
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