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Issue 02| |
January 2008 |
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Greetings
The second issue of this newsletter informs you
on the progress that the COMPERA project has made towards further implementation of its activities.
These activities range from offering support to managers of
Competence Research Centres (CRCs) in the management of
their centres to activities focused on improvement of the support measures of the funding
agencies/ministries. In this context COMPERA aims also to stimulate the international cooperation
both on the level of funding agencies/ministries as well as the CRCs that are funded by these
agencies/ministries.
In addition, this newsletter brings you information on the pilot call of the
INNET project, which focuses on the internationalisation of clusters. It also presents you the
results of several studies related to CRCs. In Germany, two studies were published on the
internationalisation of clusters and networks. Ireland and Northern Ireland performed a mapping study
of RTD-centres. This study resulted in several recommendations towards the cross-border cooperation
on the island, which are also very applicable for cross-border cooperation in the rest of the world.
A new report of VINNOVA will learn you more about the impact measurements and analysis methods in
Sweden.
We hope that the information in this newsletter is of interest to you. We are
looking forward to meet you through our e-tools or in person at one of our events.
Please contact us if you have any comments or questions or if
you would like
to have your news listed in our next issue or website. And of course we wish you a very innovative
and successful 2008! |
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01 Further implementation of joint activities
for CRCs
The joint activities selected this summer by the Board of COMPERA
have now entered a new phase. The activities that had already started before summer, like the
developed website
www.competence-research-centres.eu and the workshops for CRCs, have been further
tested and professionalised. Due to our first newsletter, we received many new requests from
centres to be listed on this CRC-website. Consequently, this site has been updated with other
CRCs in Europe and further improved.
A new workshop for CRC-managers is planned for 5 March 2008, to discuss the
topic of continuity of CRC-activities and the related long-term strategies. The first version
of the toolbox for CRCs, an online guide on best practices concerning the
setup and running of CRCs, is expected to be published early next year. This toolbox will
provide the CRCs with information related to legal aspects (including contractual matters,
IPR,
…), governance & research management and financial models & public private
partnerships. More specific information on the status of these and the other joint activities
going on in COMPERA are now available in the published progress report. |
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02 Workshop for centre managers : long term
strategies for durability of CRCs
Are you the manager of a Competence Research Centre? If yes, block
5 March 2008 in your agenda. On this day,
COMPERA organises a workshop in Brussels which is dedicated to the issue of continuity and
long-term
strategies for Competence Research Centres (CRCs). Most CRCs in Europe receive their funding
by programmes of limited duration. What happens after this initial funding period? How do
CRCs make sure that their achievements are not lost? How to ensure that the results are taken
up and further used by companies,
research institutes, etc? Is long-term continuation desired? Which strategies are possible
for long-term continuation? What are the differences in Europe towards the long-term
strategies of CRCs? What is the role of developed research agenda's, impact measurements?
These questions will be discussed during the workshop.
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03 COMPERA website further raises awareness for
the competitiveness of European CRCs
Sometimes it is numbers that illustrate the attractiveness of an
internet tool: in October 2007 alone, the web portrait of the Spanish CRC IBV has been
viewed 325 times, of the Belgian VITO 286 times and of the Dutch DSTI 216 times. These
figures illustrate: visitors of the COMPERA website search for qualified information on
selected CRCs and they find the information they are looking for. This enhances the
visibility of the CRCs and contributes to the building up of an international profile of
these CRCs. Are you already listed? Do you already use this website to publish your
success stories, news, events, etc.?
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04 A trans-European call for proposals
focussing on internationalisation for technology clusters and SMEs
In January 2008 the INNET project will launch its first pilot call
"Innovation Express". This call aims to foster the support for innovation
activities between European clusters and/or between SMEs belonging to these clusters. The
activities of the proposals should focus on identifying, initiating, or developing a
trans-European cooperation in view of increasing the clusters future joint innovation support
or research, development and innovation activity. The call will be open for about six months.
Currently, the INNET-consortium is finalising the calls procedures. The final call documents
will be published on the INNET-website.
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05 New studies related to CRCs
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Internationalisation of clusters and networks centres around human capital
issues (Germany)
The international embeddedness of successful R&D locations is no self runner.
Rather, international R&D clusters increasingly develop strategies and activities to
meet the challenges that, among others, result from the rise of new R&D locations and
a growing international division of labour in R&D. This is the core result of an
international comparative analysis on internationalisation activities of R&D-oriented
clusters and networks.
Read more...
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Internationalisation of Networks – Barriers and Enablers (Germany).
For this empirical
study altogether 91 networks from 10 European countries have been interviewed to improve the
understanding of needs, strategies, enablers and barriers of networks concerning their actual
or intended paths towards globalization. The results of the survey show that persistent great
demand to adjust to an international orientation. But it will also become clear that
conventional supporting instruments of grant policy cannot meet the real needs of networks
because the specific problems, requirements and measures applied are not taken into account.
Customized supporting measures and tools have to be realized to provide support both more
effective and more efficient for networks and their members on their paths towards
internationalization.
Read more...
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Mapping Study Summary for COMPERA (Northern Ireland/Ireland).
In February 2006, the
British Irish Intergovernmental Conference instituted a review of areas for potential
North/South economic cooperation. The importance of innovation for future international
competitiveness was recognised and the resulting report, “Comprehensive Study on the
All-Island Economy”, called for an all-island mapping study with a view to facilitating
the development of greater collaboration.
This study is designed to contribute to the North/South policy debate on science, technology
and innovation by profiling the research and technological development (RTD) centres on the
island, exploring the nature and extent of cross-border collaboration, exploring
opportunities for collaboration and making recommendations to address those opportunities.
Read more...
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VINNOVA’s Focus on Impact: A Joint Approach for Impact Logic Assessment,
Monitoring, Evaluation and Impact Analysis (Sweden)
This report describes the VINNOVA ambitions and activities that aim to understanding and
increasing the effects of the VINNOVA commitment to research, innovation and sustainable
growth in Sweden. The report briefly describes the different processes used by VINNOVA to
secure the quality in the alignment and implementation from an impact perspective.
However, the report focuses on the descriptions of and conclusions from the impact analysis
made by VINNOVA since the start in 2001. From an international perspective, certain aspects
are unique. The report will be available in end of January 2008 at
http://www.vinnova.se/In-English/Publications/VINNOVA-Analysis/
Two preliminary
figures : impact measurement scheme and time-based evolution of impact logic assessment.
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