Technology Transfer Ecosystem
Published on 27 November 2018
Portugal
Norte
This is the good practice's implementation level. It can be national, regional or local.
About this good practice
The Centre for Nanotechnology and Smart Materials - CeNTI, is a research institute, placed in Portugal, that provides, in a business to business approach, applied R&D, engineering and scaling-up production of innovative functional & smart materials and devices. The technological ecosystem, of which CeNTI forms an integral part, aims to enhance and increase the competitiveness of Portuguese products/companies in national and international markets, through innovation, increased productivity, value creation and incorporation of technology into the productive processes of national companies, by means of knowledge and technology transfer from academia to industry players, in multisectorial technology lines. The dynamization of this regional ecosystem, namely in the NUTII region Norte, stems from coordinated actions promoted by Academia, RTOs and industrial stakeholders (ranging from industrial clusters, to industrial associations and industrial stakeholders), also Municipalities and Societies associations promoting high-level technical and scientific employment, joined in clustering activities for individual industrial sectors, but also from the promotion of continuous inter clustering activities.
Expert opinion
CeNTI—Centre for Nanotechnology and Technical, Functional and Intelligent Materials—is a private non-for-profit competence centre established in North Portugal through the joint leadership and partnership of 3 Universities (Minho, Porto and Aveiro) and 3 Technological Centres (CITEVE—Technological Centre for the Textile and Clothing Industries of Portugal, the CTIC—Technological Centre for the Leather Industries, and the CEIIA—Centre for Excellence and Innovation in the Automotive Industry). The competence centre aims at supporting the industrial sector to develop, validate and scale up new technologies for smart materials and systems, functional materials and solutions, and design and engineering in three main sectors automotive/aeronautics, architecture/construction, and sports/health. The competence centre works in multi-sector and multi-technological areas, boosting national knowledge and technology transfer from academia to industry players, to enhance the competitiveness of Portuguese companies in national and international markets.
Some insights from the good practice:
The good practice provides a successful example of cooperation between scientific/research and business/industry that can inspire other regions with existing research and innovation infrastructures. The competence centre offers a broad range of services—ranging from R&D, prototyping to pre-series and co-production—that can also inspire the design of competence centres services.
Some insights from the good practice:
The good practice provides a successful example of cooperation between scientific/research and business/industry that can inspire other regions with existing research and innovation infrastructures. The competence centre offers a broad range of services—ranging from R&D, prototyping to pre-series and co-production—that can also inspire the design of competence centres services.
Works at
Interreg Europe Policy Learning Platform
Resources needed
Financing of Clusters and Inter Clustering must be promoted via implementation of funded thematic cross-networking and workshops (typically linked with the dissemination of KETs), and linked with base-funding programs for academic research centres and Interface Centres (CITs).
Evidence of success
- The practice showcases the need to create critical mass in NUTSII regions based on a mutual technological support network, i.e., combining the more dynamic industrial sectors with researchers from academia and CITs, integrating and promoting activities jointly the municipalities and industrial clusters, and searching for opportunities via routinely inter-clustering activities that bind the several stakeholders;
- Furthermore, to implement such dynamics, the regional RIS3 strategy must contemp
- Furthermore, to implement such dynamics, the regional RIS3 strategy must contemp
Potential for learning or transfer
This practice is for sure potentially interesting to be applied in other regions. The network generated by the continuous synergies being established between technology providers and industrial technology integrators, promoting swift and oriented KET dissemination and integration into new industrial applications and products for the market, is an excellent showcase how scientific/research and business/industry can positive and dynamically cooperate.
Further information
Website
Good practice owner
You can contact the good practice owner below for more detailed information.
Organisation
CeNTI - Centre for Nanotechnology and Smart Materials
Portugal
Norte
Contact
Head of department