cooperation in manufacturing through cooperation in innovation

V I L N I U S 2 0 1 3

East - West: Cooperation in Manufacturing through Cooperation in Innovations Semen Musher Russian Foundation for Technological Development Managing Director

RUSSIAN FOUNDATION FOR TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENT

There is insufficient cooperation between the developed countries and Russia in the creation of modern production facilities.

The usual approach has been the purchase of turnkey facilities by large Russian companies. The same scenario as in the times of the USSR:

• the VAZ automobile plant in cooperation with the Italian company FIAT;

• the construction of long-distance oil and gas pipelines in cooperation with American companies;

• the Nadezhdinsky Metallurgical Plant, the main facility of Norilsk Nickel – in cooperation with Finnish companies.

This level of industrial cooperation does not facilitate the mutual exchange of innovations and creation of competitive Russian industry.

2 THE RUSSIAN FOUNDATION FOR TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENT

Western engineering companies experience difficulties operating in Russia: • different legal basis for technical regulation; • different standards and approaches for preparing design and

construction documentation; • lack of knowledge of Russian procedures for approval on

project documentation in state agencies at the federal and regional level.


Western engineering companies often win tenders (especially for the construction of large-scale mining and metallurgical facilities – green-field projects), but serious problems arise when operations are underway:

• their Feasibility Studies are insufficient regarding the Russian decision making process for construction and the requirements of technical regulation.

• they don’t know longstanding Russian practices and the results of technological, geological or ecological surveys of the deposits.

• as a result, they need to hire Russian design and research institutes for collaboration, but: ‒ they don’t do it in time, there are long delays; ‒ they don’t know how to effectively work with them; ‒ they don’t hire the best; ‒ they don’t know how best to divide areas of responsibility between Western

and Russian entities.


The operational results of western engineering companies in Russia are often negative: • A Russian contractor will agree to undertake the operations for

a western engineering company, but then they have to transfer the development of the technical and design documentation to a Russian company that will handle it further, making decisions characteristic of the Soviet period, and providing a level of quality to match.

• No technological exchange takes place. Technological cooperation is minimal. We need to find other tools.

The optimum basis for long-term development of East-West

industrial cooperation is cooperation at the earliest stages, directed toward joint creation of innovations.


The Russian Foundation for Technological Development (RFTD) is a state foundation established for the support of innovative companies • The RFTD was founded in 1992 with the aim of creating a

favourable environment for the development of Russian scientific and technological potential.

• The RFTD invests in applied R&D in priority fields as determined by the Russian government.

• Since its organization, the RFTD has supported about 900 projects. Total investment has been about 50,000,000 euros in 2012 - 2013.

• The RFTD supports R&D in small and medium-size companies working on the development of high-tech, innovative production.


RFTD is the only way to obtain funding in situations where the credit system is underdeveloped • The value of a loan may vary from $ 0.35 up to $10 million • The loan term is up to 60 months • Applicants are legal entities registered in the Russian

Federation and participants in technology platforms • The RFTD is the coordinator of all Russian technology

platforms.


RFTD experience in working on projects shows that:

• Russia possesses advanced technologies whose origins date

back to the Soviet period. • Quite often, Russian inventions and developments passed to

the West and, thanks to the efficient support system for innovation and active business backing available there, they developed into well-known products and technological Know-How.

• The level of awareness in Russia with advanced western solutions is quite low. Russians often try to create something that already exists in the West. Not a single one of our projects has good cooperation with western partners.

• One difficult problem is staffing. Soviet-trained specialists are no longer young; the middle-aged generation of engineers left the hi-tech sector in the 1990’s due to the poor economic situation at the time.


We have noted a positive trend in recent years:

An influx of young people into engineering, into design. This is directly related to active support of innovation by the President and Government of the Russian Federation. Young teams are appearing in:

‒ Aircraft design – the Sukhoi Superjet project, ‒ Polymers (composite materials), ‒ Biotechnologies, ‒ etc.

These young specialists are well educated, ambitious and prepared to collaborate with colleagues from developed countries.

Prospects for cooperation exist in the area of innovation. Opportunities for collaboration are not being exploited. Whoever gets seriously involved in this on a long term basis will have a

competitive advantage.


Members of the European Union from the former USSR (Lithuania, etc) may serve as an reliable organizational

“bridge”: • They are already familiar with western approaches and

international standards for project management • They haven’t forgotten the technological approach of the Soviet

period • A sufficiently large number of ethnic Russians, which is

important for communications • As of yet there is no language barrier with Russian colleagues.


The Proposed Communication Medium is Community of

Technology Platforms The RFTD is the coordinator of Russian technology platforms on behalf of the Ministry for Economic Development of the Russian Federation. Representatives of three platforms are members of the Russian delegation at the conference.



industry

priority

Technology Platforms

Tool for bringing together various parties - government, business, science & education - to

identify innovative challenges, develop a program of strategic research and identify ways

to implement it Basic principles of

Technology Platforms Combining the efforts of the

most significant stakeholders (government, business, science

& education)

Ensuring the development and implementation of long-term

(strategic) priorities across the main sectors of the economy

Government

Science Business

EVALUATION OF

CHALLENGES

DEVELOP RESEARCH PROGRAMS

DEFINITION OF MEANS OF REALIZATION

THE CONCEPT OF RUSSIAN TECHNOLOGY PLATFORMS

34 technology platforms have been launched in Russia since 2011, including such platforms as “Future Medicine”, “Bio-industry and Bio-resources”, “Future Industry”, “BioTech 2030”, “Prospective Technologies for Renewable Energy”, “Deep Processing of Hydrocarbon Resources”, “Lightweight and Robust Constructions”.

12


Technology Platforms: EU versus Russia

International Forum «Open Innovations» and «Open Innovations Expo».

31 October – 2 November, 2013, Moscow, Crocus Expo

Leading Russian forum in the area of innovative development.

• The RFTD organizes a joint exposition of all 34 technology platforms at the event.

• At this forum, we are ready to provide all necessary assistance in organizing practical contacts between European technological platforms and leading representatives of Russian platforms.


Contacts

The Russian Foundation for Technological Development

www.rftr.ru [email protected]

+7 (916) 713 6347

Thank you for your attention !


http://www.rftr.ru/

mailto:[email protected]