Commissioner Androulla Vassiliou has put forward a Strategic Innovation Agenda for the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT), which will receive €2.8 billion of funding under Horizon 2020. In parallel, Vice-President Antonio Tajani has announced a complementary new programme to boost competitiveness and innovation in SMEs, with an additional budget of €2.5 billion. The funding programmes run from 2014 to 2020.

Horizon 2020 will focus funds on three key objectives. It will support the EU’s position as a world leader in science with a dedicated budget of €24.6 billion, including an increase in funding of 77% for the very successful European Research Council (ERC). It will help secure industrial leadership in innovation with a budget of €17.9 billion. This includes a major investment of €13.7 billion in key technologies, as well as greater access to capital and support for SMEs.

Finally, €31.7 billion will go towards addressing major concerns shared by all Europeans, across six key themes: Health, demographic change and well-being; Food security, sustainable agriculture, marine and maritime research and the bio-economy; Secure, clean and efficient energy; Smart, green and integrated transport; Climate action, resource efficiency and raw materials; and Inclusive, innovative and secure societies.

Read more…

The award will contribute towards a combined strategic investment of £14M by the consortium, over a three year period, to establish a Centre of Excellence in Methods and New Technologies for Surface Modification and Cleaning (CEMENT) in the North East of England. The consortium comprises P&G’s Newcastle Innovation Centre, The Centre for Process Innovation (CPI), Durham University and Peerless Systems.

Drawing upon a wealth of expertise, the consortium will drive cutting-edge research and innovation to develop new cleaning and surface modification technologies. In particular, the centre aims to develop technologies that will bring new, more environmentally friendly household care products to market in order to; reduce energy consumption during washing/cleaning cycles, minimise the water usage without compromising the high performance, value, freshness and convenience expected by increasingly demanding consumers.

Shak Gohir, Practice Director for CPI’s Innovation and Growth Services team said,

“New cleaning and surface modification technologies are vital to almost all consumer and industrial settings, from home care to manufacturing of high-value products. Working closely with partners, CPI will help establish new projects with industry and raise further funds for the Centre in order to ensure its ongoing sustainability and wider economic benefit for the region.”

The new Centre will form a strategic hub for building new research projects and technology transfer initiatives in the North East and the UK. The consortium will establish additional collaborative partnerships with companies that are not competing with P&G in the marketplace but can benefit from the knowledge, expertise, facilities and capabilities of the new Centre. The Centre will therefore assist many UK companies looking to invest, research, develop and commercialise new surface modification and cleaning solutions for industrial application in the oil & gas, renewables, chemicals, aerospace, automotive, pharmaceutical, electronics, construction and other sectors.

Charles Bragg, Research & Development Director for P&G Newcastle, said,

“The project investment recognises the skills and expertise of the Newcastle Innovation Centre (NIC), which is a key part of the P&G global R&D organisation. The project continues the significant investment in the region by P&G and, together with our partners, will bring exciting possibilities in the area of surface modification across several industries. Through our Connect & Develop innovation strategy, P&G aims to work with outside organisations on 50% of all new initiatives, and this project brings the strengths of our North East partners to this critical area of our work on household products.”

Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Research) Professor Tom McLeish, at Durham University, which recently won the Global Business Development University Partner of the Year award from Procter & Gamble, said,

“This grant recognises the quality of Durham University’s continued partnership with P&G as well as the technical and scientific depth we can bring to collaborative research with commercial partners. The project is a major investment in the educational and business opportunities that the University can support to help to enhance the region’s economic well-being.”

Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg said:

“Creating long term jobs and long term growth is our number one priority for Britain right now. “For too long the UK economy has been too focused on the City of London, ignoring places like Newcastle, Blyth and North Shields in the North East.

“I want the North East to be a place to build and make things again.

“The Regional Growth Fund is helping the economy grow in every region and across a range of industries.”

END

About the Regional Growth Fund
The Regional Growth Fund (RGF) is a £1.4bn fund operating across England from 2011 to 2014. It supports projects and programmes that lever private sector investment creating economic growth and sustainable employment. It aims particularly to help those areas and communities currently dependent on the public sector to make the transition to sustainable private sector-led growth and prosperity. http://www.bis.gov.uk/policies/economic-development/regional-growth-fund

About Procter and Gamble
P&G touches and improves the lives of about 4.4 billion people around the world with its portfolio of trusted, quality brands. The Company’s leadership brands include Pampers(R), Tide(R), Ariel(R), Always(R), Whisper(R), Pantene(R), Mach3(R), Bounty(R), Dawn(R), Fairy(R), Gain(R), Pringles(R), Charmin(R), Downy(R), Lenor(R), Iams(R), Crest(R), Oral-B(R), Duracell(R), Olay(R), Head & Shoulders(R), Wella(R), Gillette(R), Braun(R), Fusion(R), Ace(R), Febreze(R), and Ambi Pur(R). With operations in about 80 countries, P&G brands are available in more than 180 countries worldwide. Please visit http://www.pg.com for the latest news and in-depth information about P&G and its brands.

About Durham University
Durham University is a World Top-100 university with a global reputation in research and education across the arts and humanities, sciences and social sciences. It is England’s third oldest university and Durham has been a leading centre of scholarship for a thousand years. At the University’s heart is a UNESCO World Heritage site which it owns, together with Durham Cathedral. Durham is consistently ranked in the top few universities in the UK and the leading university in the North. Its residential Collegiate system enables the University to recruit some of the most talented and motivated students from around the world to develop transferable skills such as leadership, alongside academic excellence, which place Durham graduates in the World Top-15 for global student employability.*
* 2011 QS World University Rankings

About Centre for Process Innovation
The Centre for Process Innovation (CPI) is a key part of the Government’s first elite technology innovation centre, focusing in the area of high value manufacturing. It offers market and technology expertise along with cutting-edge development assets to help its public and private sector clients build and prototype the next generation of products, processes and services quickly and efficiently, and with minimal risk.

CPI has designed and established national technology centres in Printable Electronics and Industrial Biotechnology. The centres are equipped with development laboratories, prototyping facilities and pilot plants that enable clients to prove and scale up processes from the laboratory stage through to commercial reality. There are commercially experienced scientists and engineers on site to offer expertise and guidance. CPI also offers a multi-disciplined team who work together on project management, investment and market opportunities to ensure each business fulfils its potential.

For more information, please visit www.uk-cpi.com

About Peerless Systems
Peerless Systems has specialised in laboratory automation solutions since 1982, providing standard and bespoke systems for a huge range of industries – from healthcare to pharmaceutical – for use in the handling, sampling, analysis and dispensing of liquids, solids and powders. Its products are in use throughout the world, including Japan, the US and Europe, as well as the UK. Peerless is part of the Whiteley Murphy Group, which encompasses some of the UK’s leading automation and special purpose machine builders.

Contact:
Lindsay Gill
CPI Communications
01740 625 783 / 07766 780 782
Lindsay.gill@uk-cpi.com

James Williams
P&G External Relations
+447769164142
Williams.j.38@pg.com

Future Hydrogen Production event brings together key industrial stakeholders and policy makers, 

This event will provide a forum to discuss the developments and potential business opportunities, arising from the SUPERGEN DoSH2 project’s research as well as the opportunity to debate the future short and medium-term hydrogen reseach and investment needs. Speakers presenting include:

• John Irine, SuperGen DoSH2 Project Coordinator, St Andrews University
• Martin Smith, SuperGen DoSH2 Project Manager, St Andrews University
• Alastair Rennie, Project Director for Renewables , AMEC
• Graham Cooley, Chief Executive Officer, ITM Power
• Robert Evans, Chief Executive Officer, CENEX
• David Wails, Principal Scientist, Johnson Matthey
• Mark Crowther, General Manager, GASTEC
• Andrew Haslett, Director of Strategy Development for the Energy Technologies Institute
• Amanda Lyne, VP Strategic Business Development, ACAL Energy
• Natalia Zglobisz, Energy Generation and Supply KTN
• Richard Kemp-Harper, Lead Technologist at the Technology Strategy Board

For more information and to register visit: http://supergendosh2.wordpress.com/

Date:17th October 2011
Venue:Muckle LLP
Location: Time Central, Gallowgate, Newcastle Upon Tyne, NE1 4BFPrice:FREE

Find out more information and to book your place at this event go to www.thescienceof.co.uk .

Alternatively you can email newcastlebipc@newcastle.gov.uk or contact 0191 277 4000.

Projects should look at how industrial biotechnology and/or biorefining can be competitively applied to the production of high value chemicals.  The competition aims to stimulate collaboration between industrial biotechnology developers, higher education institutions and, in particular, the chemicals sector.  The chemicals and chemistry-using sectors are encouraged to use this initiative to pilot industrial biotechnological routes to replace existing thermochemical processes or to address new challenges.

Following the signing of an agreement between the UK and Norway that encourages UK-Norwegian projects incorporating industrial biotechnology and/or biorefining, Innovation Norway intends to provide the public funding element for any Norwegian SMEs engaged in successful projects meeting their normal criteria for eligibility.  Innovation Norway’s main funding instrument is the Industrial Research and Development Contracts (IFU) which supports a SME to work with an end user and their programme on upscaling and demonstration of new processes.

• For more information visit the Technology Strategy Board Competition Website.

In terms of scope, this report covers four product segments, namely bio-plastics, bio-lubricants, bio-solvents and bio-surfactants.

The total volume growth of major bio-based chemical groups between 2008-2020 is estimated at 2.1 Mt (5.3% pa). Assuming similar market value growth, the market is estimated to grow from current (2008) 21 billion EUR to 40 billion EUR in 2020. This will increase the market share of bio-based products from 4% in 2008 to 6% in 2020, providing 43,600 new jobs within the biochemical industry only. Future growth will be affected by the cost of biomass feedstocks but also by fossil fuel prices and by the level of public support. For more insight follow the link below:

• Assessment of the Bio-Based Products Market Potential for Innovation

Investing in bio-based products in the chemical sector?

Or you want to contribute to the growth in the Bio-based market?                                                       

The BIOCHEM Accelerator Forum will provide you with a unique opportunity to promote your company and meet face-to-face with European Biotech investors, corporations and other industry players.  By participating in the BIOCHEM Accelerator Forum you will :

• Have the chance to attend Keynote speeches from high valued experts and entrepreneurs
• Benefit from networking and funding opportunities with corporates, VCs and fast-growing companies.
• Have the opportunity to create partnerships with international industry experts and investors.
• Gain valuable insights of the bio-based industry.
• Increase your visibility on the international stage during the company presentations

We hope you will take advantage of this unique opportunity!

Register at: www.e-unlimited.com/BIOCHEM

“Horizon 2020″ is the winner of our “You Name it” online vote to name the future EU-funding programme for research and innovation. Three names were shortlisted. Horizon 2020 received 3,055 votes against 2,785 for Imagine 2020 and 2,478 for Discover 2020. 8,318 votes were received in total.

The full name that will be put forward towards the end of this year as part of the legislative proposal for the new programme will therefore be: “Horizon 2020 – the Framework Programme for Research and Innovation”. The competition winners Marcela Endlova, a teacher from the Czech Republic, and Beata Zyngier, also a teacher, from Poland both suggested the name.  The new name marks another step in Europe’s endeavour to place research and innovation at the centre of EU policy making.

Horizon 2020 is not just a new name for the same Framework Programme. It is the name for the new, integrated funding system that will cover all research and innovation funding currently provided through the:

• Framework Programme for Research and Technical Development
• Competitiveness and Innovation Framework Programme (CIP)
• European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT)

These different types of funding are to be brought together in a coherent and flexible manner. Hence the future versions of Eco-Innovation and Intelligent Energy Europe (IEE), are likely to form part of Horizon 2o2o.

Mrs. Máire Geoghegan-Quinn, European Commissioner for Research and Innovation says “….this will be a smarter way to support researchers and innovators in Europe – so as to further boost excellence and to help ensure that good ideas reach the market and generate sustainable economic growth and new jobs. Research and innovation funding will focus more clearly on addressing global challenges. Needless red tape will be cut out and participation made simpler.

However, there is also, in the longer title, a certain continuity. We will not lose sight of the fact that the Framework Programmes have been a big success and that there has been much to be proud of. We are not going to throw the baby out with the bathwater. Europe is currently facing very serious economic challenges. But there are reasons for optimism. High on that list is the enormous and still largely untapped research and innovation capacity that we have in Europe”

What improvements should the Commission embrass, as it develops the scope and structure of Horizon 2020?

• Join the Horizon 2020 debate on LinkedIn

In September 2009, both the European Union (EU) and G8 leaders agreed that CO2 emissions must be cut by 80% by 2050 if atmospheric CO2 is to stabilise at 450 parts per million – and global warming stay below the safe level of 2ºC. But 80% decarbonisation overall by 2050 may require 95% decarbonisation of the road transport sector.

According to a report published by the International Partnership for Hydrogen and Fuel Cells in the Economy (IPHE):

With the number of passenger cars set to rise to 273 million in Europe – and to 2.5 billion worldwide – by 2050, this may not be achievable through improvements to the traditional internal combustion engine or alternative fuels: the traditional combustion engine is expected to improve by 30%, so achieving full decarbonisation is not possible through efficiency alone.

There is also uncertainty as to whether large amounts of (sustainably produced) biofuels – i.e. more than 50% of demand – will be available for passenger cars, given the potential demand for biofuels6 from other sectors, such as goods vehicles, aviation, marine, power and heavy industry.

Combined with the increasing scarcity and cost of energy resources, it is therefore vital to develop a range of technologies that will ensure the long-term sustainability of mobility in Europe.

• Download Full Report: A Portfolio of Power Trains for Europe

Eco-Innovation Call Opened during May 2011 and will be closing on the 8th September 2011.

Eco-innovation aims to support projects concerned with the first application or market replication of eco-innovative techniques, products, services or practices of EU relevance, which have already been technically demonstrated with success but which, owing to residual risk, have not yet penetrated the market. They should contribute to remove obstacles to the development and wide application of eco-innovation, create or enlarge markets for related products and improve the competitiveness of EU enterprises on world markets. The projects should also aim at reducing environmental impacts, increasing resource efficiency or improve environmental performance of enterprises, in particular SMEs.

The three main aspects of Eco-innovation are:

• Environmental benefits
• Economic benefits (including wide replication)
• Contribution of projects to innovation

For example, the wider application of environmentally friendly technologies and innovations is expected to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions and to achieve greater resource efficiency.

The main priority areas for this years call is materials recycling, sustainable building products, food and drink sector, water and green businesses

• Read more…

Looking for a website page from which you can download all the 2012 Work Programmes directly onto your computer, laptop, iPad or tablet? Use the links below to quickly download each of the programmes:

Cooperation

• General Introduction [PDF]
• Health [PDF]
• Food, Agriculture and Fisheries, and Biotechnology [PDF]
• Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) [PDF]
• Nanosciences, Nanotechnologies, Materials and New Production Technologies (NMP) [PDF]
• Energy [PDF]
• Environment (including Climate Change) [PDF]
  
• Transport (including Aeronautics) [PDF]
• Socio-Economic Sciences and Humanities [PDF]
  
• Space [PDF]
• Security [PDF]
• Annexes [PDF]
  

Ideas

• Ideas work programme [PDF]

People

• People work programme [PDF]
  

Capacities

• General Introduction [PDF]
• Research Infrastructures [PDF]
• Research for the benefit of SMEs work programme [PDF]
• Regions of Knowledge [PDF]
• Research Potential [PDF]
• Science in Society [PDF]
• Support for the Coherent development of Research policies [PDF]
  
• International Cooperation [PDF]
• Annexes [PDF]

July has seen the opening of over 60 new  FP7 Calls for Proposals for funding cutting-edge research and innovation project. The Work Programme for 2012 with about €7 billion is the European Commission’s biggest ever funding package under the EU’s Seventh Framework Programme for Research (FP7). It is expected to create around 174 000 jobs in the short-term and nearly 450 000 jobs and nearly €80 billion in GDP growth over 15 years.  Calls for Proposals include:

• Health / 3 open calls

• Information and Communication Technologies / 5 open calls

• Nanosciences, Nanotechnologies, Materials and new Production Technologies – NMP / 8 open calls

• Energy / 6 open calls

• Environment (including Climate Change) / 4 open calls

• Transport (including Aeronautics) / 8 open calls

• Food, Agriculture and Fisheries, and Biotechnology / 2 open calls

• General Activities / 1 open call

• Socio-economic sciences and Humanities / 3 open calls

• Space / 1 open calls

• Security / 1 open calls

• Joint Technology Initiatives / 5 open calls

• European Research Council / 4 calls

• Marie Curie Actions / 6 calls

• Research Infrastructures / 1 open calls

• Research for the benefit of SMEs / 1 open calls

• Regions of Knowledge / 1 open calls

• Research Potential / 1 open calls

• Science in Society / 1 open calls

• Support for the coherent development of research policies / 1 open calls

• Activities of International Cooperation / 2 open calls

For more details visit the new official source for FP7 calls for proposals, the Participant Portal.

The ICT VentureGate team invites Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) and Investors to attend the event which will be dedicated to one of the most challenging themes – ‘Moving EU SMEs to Investor Readiness’!  After thematic discussions, the particiating SMEs will be provided with coaching and advice, by experts,  in order to help them prepare and improve their presentations and pitch to investors. The following day, the same particiating SMEs will be given the opportunity to present their pitch to private sector  investors.
For more details and registration, please click here.

There are relatively few large global IT companies in Europe. A widening gap is observable in the success rate of VC backed startups between the US and Europe in the IT sector.

This gap could be attributable to the differences in the VC financing of IT startups in the US, UK, Germany and France. The comparison is conducted on the venture capital firm level. The differences are analyzed for the whole VC investment cycle: contact phase, initial screening phase, due diligence phase, deal structuring and negotiation phase, management phase, value adding services and exit phase. The study that gathered the following information looked at the following differences in the VC investment cycle:

Europe is in a political crisis. The rejection of the European Union’s proposed constitution by France and the Netherlands was followed by an acrimonious meeting of EU leaders that culminated in a stalemate on the European Commission’s budget. This development, in turn, has led to finger-pointing and vitriolic criticism of individual leaders.

Voters rejected the proposed constitution for many reasons, but the biggest factor was discontent over Europe’s economic performance. The pace of growth in the European Union’s core economies has been dismal, and the budgets of some countries are in deficit—a problem that threatens to get worse as the population ages.  In a recent speech, Vladimir Spidla, a member of the European Commission, summed up the problem: “We cannot accept 17 million unemployed, average economic growth of 0.6 percent in the old member states, and youth unemployment of 18.6 percent in the 25-member European Union. Change begins in our own minds.”

To address the political crisis, Europe’s leaders must improve the region’s economic performance—but no one can agree how. Many European officials believe that competition and market forces are actually hindering economic growth and that reform will mean the elimination of Europe’s social safety net. Their solution is to protect the region against competition, to maintain regulations that prevent companies from restructuring and making layoffs, and, perhaps, to invest more money in research and development.

>> Read the full report

A decade later Tide’s revenues have nearly doubled, helping push annual division revenues from $12 billion to almost $24 billion. The brand is surging in emerging markets, and its iconic bull’s-eye logo is turning up on an array of new products and even new businesses, from instant clothes fresheners to neighborhood dry cleaners. This isn’t accidental. It’s the result of a strategic effort by P&G over the past decade to systematize innovation and growth

>> Read more…

Not all entrepreneurs have this option.  How should governments encourage entrepreneurs to take what can be significant risks in establishing and driving forward new businesses exploiting promising early-stage technologies?  Government strategies can include offering grants, investor tax credits, start-up tax credits and/or mentoring services. Often governments use a combination of policies.

If you have a view on this subject, you may be interested in taking one the latest polls posted on Linked and take the opportunity to debate your ideas:

>> Go to Linkedin Poll

Honda has been running fuel cell electric vehicles on European roads since 2009 and will support CEP activities with 2 FCX Clarity fuel cell electric vehicles. Ken Keir, Executive Vice President of Honda Motor Europe said,

“Honda firmly believes that hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles are the ultimate solution in reducing CO2 emissions from road transportation. Participation within CEP with the ground breaking FCX Clarity will demonstrate the viability of fuel cell technology and will also support the essential development of a European hydrogen refuelling infrastructure.”

The Japanese car maker joins the Partnership at the same time as the industrial gas supply company, Air Liquide, demonstrating CEP’s value in bringing together vehicle manufacturers and energy companies to support the development of hydrogen based mobility in Europe. Dr. Klaus Bonhoff, Chairman & Managing Director of NOW GmbH1, remarked:

“The CEP is the NIP’s2 nucleus for preparing the market for future proof mobility based on hydrogen and fuel cells. The partnership’s continuous growth clearly demonstrates the industry’s commitment to making zero-emissions mobility possible. We have to cooperate internationally to achieve this, which makes the addition of Air Liquide and Honda to the CEP all the more important. “

>> Read the full article on The Green Car Website

The UK Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) has published its response to the European Commission’s Green Paper From Challenges to Opportunities: Towards a Common Strategic Framework for EU Research and Innovation Funding1 published in February 2011.

BIS indicates in it’s report:

“The UK considers it timely to revisit the role and future shape of EU research and innovation instruments within the context of a Common Strategic Framework. The UK believes that research and innovation must play an increasingly vital role in promoting green growth in Europe in line with Europe 2020 and should continue to receive a high – and ideally increased – proportion of a future EU budget which is reprioritised to focus on sustainable growth and is smaller overall.

We consider that future funding should be focussed on funding actual research and innovation programmes of various scales which demonstrate excellence and EU added-value – with an increased focus on impact, evaluation, dissemination and knowledge transfer. The interests of business, education and wider society should be considered from the outset as appropriate.

We also consider there is scope for additional mainstreaming of some areas eg researcher mobility & skills, and engagement with countries outside the Framework Programme.

The twin objectives of delivering sustainable growth and addressing global challenges could benefit from funding projects which address either a challenge “pull” or a technology/knowledge “push”. This should be considered in the wider context of market frameworks, standards and access to finance.”

>> Download to read full report: FUNDING FOR EU RESEARCH AND INNOVATION FROM 2014