Project NMP-REG: Future workshop on entrepreneurship in the field of Key Enabling Technologies was a great success

More than 60 participants attended the Future Workshop ‚Entrepreneurship & Start-ups‘ in Duesseldorf on 28 June 2017 to discuss the issue of entrepreneurship in Key Enabling Technologies (KET) in North Rhine-Westphalia from different points of view. The event was organised by the State Cluster NMWP.NRW in the framework of the Interreg Europe project NMP-REG. The project aims to improve the existing framework conditions for innovation processes based on nanotechnology, advanced materials and production technology by further developing regional policy and tailor-cut support instruments.

The workshop followed a holistic approach with regard to entrepreneurship and start-ups. In four panels, different stakeholder groups discussed good practices, bottlenecks and suggestions for improvement of entrepreneurial support: (i) entrepreneurs, (ii) support programmes at the universities, (iii) public/private capital investors and (iv) thematic networks and incubators. Each panel consisted of five high-ranking experts / insiders from the region of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW). As a result, the workshop provided a detailed, multilateral, almost representative and authentic picture of the status quo of entrepreneurs and start-ups in the field of KET in NRW.

In summary, there was a broad consensus amongst the participants on the benefits offered by state-financed support instruments for technology-oriented start-ups. NRW has launched many attractive financing and consulting programmes and set up a leading-edge innovation infrastructure for business incubation and product development in selected fields of KET. However, several bottlenecks have been identified that have to be resolved in order to effectively improve the entrepreneurial climate in NRW and make start-up processes more efficient.

In particular, the attendants saw a need for optimising networking activities between NRW actors and fostering stimulation of potential entrepreneurs. With regard to universities, major points of concern related to the standardisation of administrative processes and cutting red tape, to the establishment of sustainable, longer-term support structures for spin-offs, as well as to the exploitation of intellectual property rights.

Participants criticised the lack of structured networking between entrepreneurs and supporters / stakeholders in NRW and identified a real need for a state-wide initiative that strengthens integrated networking of all actors involved. As an example, participants suggested to create a central contact point (one-stop shop) for entrepreneurs and start-ups engaging in the field of KET, that effectively supports these target groups in establishing contacts with investors, corporates, companies, R&D institutions, thematic networks and innovation centres in order to facilitate the exchange of experience and initiate collaborations.

All attendants agreed that the dialogue between entrepreneurs and stakeholders be continued and intensified. Following the event, the Cluster NMWP.NRW will draft recommendations for optimisation measures based on the workshop outcomes and, in an ongoing process, communicate and exchange information with all relevant actors involved including the State Ministries.

The Interreg Europe project NMP-REG (Delivering Nanotechnologies, Advanced Materials and Production to Regional Manufacturing) started on 1 April 2016 and has a duration of five years. NMP-REG aims to improve regional support instruments that address innovation processes in major areas of KET. The project consortium consists of seven partners from the five European regions of Tuscany / Italy, Flanders / Belgium, Norte / Portugal, Bucharest / Romania and North Rhine-Westphalia. NRW is represented by the cluster NMWP.NRW. NMP-REG is co-financed by the European Fund of Regional Development (ERDF). (www.interregeurope.eu/nmp-reg/).

The State Cluster NanoMicroMaterialsPhotonics.NRW (NMWP.NRW) represents and supports the North Rhine-Westphalian industrial companies, SMEs and science institutions in the areas of nanotechnology, microsystems technology, photonics and innovative materials. Its overall goal is to develop NRW to the most competitive and highest dynamic knowledge-based economic area at national and international level.

Cluster NMWP.NRW
Dr. Heinz Brückelmann
Projektmanager
Merowingerplatz 1
40225 Düsseldorf
Germany
Phone +49 (0) 211 38 54 59-17
Email: heinz.brueckelmann@nmwp.de
www.nmwp.nrw.de

This release was published on openPR.