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How we started
2007
Vision to create an R&D and advanced engineering company to ‘bridge innovation gap’
• Own capital 150 K
• Loan €100K
• 20 m2 office in Barcelona
Process engineering
company
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Our positioning
Strategically positioned between Universities and Industry: specialising in scaling up technology & processes from lab to production line
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How we grew
20073
R4SME
2008
2 R4SME projects 1 SME-
AG
2009
3 R4SMEs1 SME-AGs
2010
3 R4SMEs1 SME-Ags
2 private contracts
2011
4 R4SMEs1 SME-AGs1 MANUNET1 NMP
3 private contracts
2012
5 R4SME1 SME-AG2 DEMO1 MANUNET1 KBBE
5 private contracts
2013
5 SME projects1 SME-AG1 DEMO1 MANUNET1 KBBE
7 private contracts
New product development
‘To-market orientation’
2 staff20m2
25 staffInvestment in own laboratories & workshops
32 staffCommercial team
International-isation (Ireland)
44 staffOperations & procedures
20 staffInvestment electronics lab
Agreement to access Uni labs
14 staffMove to ‘Mediterranean Technology Park’
48 staffISO & UNE Certification
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A successful campaign in FP7
40 projects
2 KBBE1 NMP3 MANUNET31 Research SMEs/Ags3 DEMO Actions
34 led by IRIS
Knowledge
Continuous investment for Growth
• 48 staff• 2 sites (BCN, Dublin) • Engineering workshops• Labs (optics, telecos,
analytical, wet chemistry)
• Pilot facilities (Plasma, PEF, Ultrasound, Bioreactor, Coating line, HIS & NIR integrated into a conveyor line
• Innovation Hub (accelerator environment & sprint room)
Revenue
• > €40 M in total• > €14.5 M for
IRIS• €1.1 M from
projects led by third parties
Talent
25 %- PhD qualified
Engineering team• Optical • Mechatronic• Electronics• Programmers • Modellers• Software• Telecommunications• Mechanical
Scientific team• Chemists• Biologists• Microbiologists• Biochemists• Physicists
NetworksExperience
• Building test rigs • Scaling up prototypes• Integration &
demonstration in industry
• Laboratory validation • Industrialisation• Project Management• Knowledge
Management• Innovation
Management
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Examples of scaled up results in FP7
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IRIS evolution
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1. Hard work2. Continuous
improvement3. Talent4. Invest, invest,
invest5. Long-term vision
Are there any keys to our success?
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1. Ideas that make market sense
2. Make our ideas as ‘physical’ as possible
3. Strong and relevant partners (and win-win)
4. Branding5. Impact, impact, impact
What did we do well at proposal level?
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1. Good project managers and procedures
2. Operations (from automotive sector)
3. Create a ‘project team’4. Understand who the client
is5. Risk management and
quick action
What did we do well at project level?
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1. TRLs (make sure technology is ready to come out of lab)
2. Staff (right person right job)
3. Operational planning (no fire fighting!)
Lessons we learned the hard way?
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The future is bright
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We see H2020 as a great opportunity
• helping to bridge the gap between research and the market
• helping innovative enterprise to develop their technological breakthroughs into viable products with real commercial potential
• promoting activities where businesses set the agenda• prototypes, pilot implementations, demos, etc.
A strategy for GROWTH and JOBs
Innovation Union
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V2020: Building our networks and forming part of a community
A platform for meeting RTO and SME collaborators A community to share ideas, knowledge, advice and
experience A source of partners and quality proposal concepts Visibility
IRIS has recently joined as an SME member
Building opportunities
together
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What’s on the Horizon for IRIS thanks to our success in FP7?
• Product launch in 2014• Branch facility in Hong Kong• 3 patent applications• 1 joint company (WHEYLAYER Ltd.)• Joint development with global
multinational for biomaterials development
• Exclusive integrator for 2 optical hardware companies
• B2B contracts with leading food & pharmaceutical companies
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