mfg - enabling innovation with ict and media © mfg baden-württemberg | 1 workshop b – ict...
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MFG - Enabling Innovation with ICT and Media © MFG Baden-Württemberg | 1
Workshop B – ICT Innovation Vouchers: The Case of Baden-Württemberg
Corinna VossUnit ICT and Knowledge Networks, MFG Innovation Agency
Digital Innovation for Regional Growth
Thessaloniki, Greece
29th April 2014
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MFG Baden-Württemberg
Objectives: Driving forward innovation and enhancing the
competitiveness of Baden-Württemberg
Strengthening Baden-Württemberg as a business location for IT media and creative industries
Supporting entrepreneurship especially among SMEs and connect them with application oriented research and public funding programs
Promoting of regional national and international cooperations
Public Innovation Agency for ICT, Creative Industries and Knowledge based Services
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Innovation Vouchers in Baden-Württemberg
Baden-Württemberg was the first state in Germany to award innovation vouchers to small and medium-sized enterprises
The scheme was launched in 2008
central aim: support the design engineering, development and implementation of new products, services or processes or a substantial qualitative improvement of existing products, services or production processes -> mainly R&D cooperation vouchers
eligible for SMEs (< 100 empl., < 20 Mio € turnover)
open to all sectors, specific provisions for ICT provided:
Voucher B Hightech
Voucher C
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Voucher A
all sectors
preparatory: Research /Studies, e.g. • technology and
market research• feasibility studies• materials studies• design studies
Funding max 2.500 € funding quota 80%
Eligible: research and technology services
Voucher B
all sectors
implementation-orientated, e.g.• market or
production maturity, • design engineering• service engineering• prototype
construction• product testing for
quality assurance.
max. 5.000 €, funding quota 50%
Eligible: research and technology services
Combinable with Voucher A
Voucher B Hightech
4 key areas:
• ICT, Green IT, smart products
• Sustainable mobility
• Green Tech: Renewable energies
• Life Sciences, Health
Early stage Support for Hightech-startups
max. 20.000 €. Max. funding quota 50%
Eligible costs: research and technology services and material costs (for own prototype construction) early stages
Voucher C
Creative Industries (including Software/Games)
Commercialisation / Marketing of new products
Micro companies of the CI (< 9 employ., turnover < 2 mio. €)
Eligible costs: external costs, service providers
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Scholarships for Students and Researchers
Projects with an high innovation potential
Training- and Coaching Programmes
Rising Awareness: Initiate Entpreneurial Thinking
Commercialisation of Technologies via Matching with market experts in early stages
Business Coaching, Business Plan Challenge
Support the access to international markets
Accompanying consultancy services by MFG Baden-Württemberg
Student and Research Entrepreneurship
Business Idea Generation
Incubation Acceleration Internationalisation
Innovation voucher
H2020 Projects
MFG – Enabling Innovation with ICT and Media
What happens after the Voucher?
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Matchmaking event for early innovation phases, connecting researchers, start-ups and investors
The CyberOne Award is one of the most important business plan competitions for the high-tech sector in Baden-Württemberg
Exi founding vouchers offer support for founders: a first check-up and later intensive coaching for hightech start-ups
The Innovation Prize of Baden-Württemberg was given to the 5 most successful start-ups having received the innovation voucher – the winner receives 10.000 Euro
MFG – Enabling Innovation with ICT and Media
Examples of SMEs having received the Voucher
NOTION SYSTEMS PICCURE
Printer for hightech surfaces such as solar cells
Innovation Voucher B Hightech
Winner of the CyberOne Award 2013
→ Prototype built
Foto correction/ high definition pictures
Innovation Voucher B Hightech
Winner of the innovation prize 2013
→ Product and software development
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MFG – Enabling Innovation with ICT and Media
Examples of SMEs having received the Voucher
IPO.PLAN WEIGHT WORKS
Robot ipo.eye creates 3D models in realtime
Voucher A for feasibility study
Voucher B Hightech for prototype
→ 2nd place Innovation Price 2013
Rapid mold making within seconds
Innovation Voucher A for market, material and technology research
Innovation Voucher B Hightech for building mold machine
→ Selected for Heidelberg Innovation Forum→ Finalist CyberOne Award
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Follow-up
Coaching Programmes
Business Plan Competitions – Open Innovation Awards
Pitching events and matchmaking, access to equity financing
Access to loans and grants
IPR consulting
Find first clients and customers
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Evaluation by Centre for European Economic Research
2.525 applications for innovation vouchers - 1.900 granted(2008 to December 2012); Approval rate: 85 %
Most of the applicants are micro companies: 62 % SMEs up to 10 employees
The vouchers help supporting cooperation:
70 % have no previous experience in cooperating with an R&D institution
30 % of all corporate again with an R&D institution within a year The SMEs favor local service providers: 78 % of the service
providers are from BW
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Evaluation by Centre for European Economic Research
The vouchers are mostly used for product diversification (49 %) or optimization of products (31 %) – only 8 % develop total new products.
More than 50 % of projects are in the market after one year
Experience shows: Companies who get accompanying consultancy are more successful
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Lessons Learned
Vouchers per theme/sector or free ? do not restrict to a technical topic
Size: High-Tech innovation where infrastructure is needed requires bigger vouchers
Vouchers are a good concept. Embedding vouchers into an overall innovation process is a key success factor
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Conclusion
Innovation Vouchers at the European level are a good idea, but some conditions need to be taken into account:
Innovation vouchers need to be embedded in a global context
The vouchers have to be connected to other complementary initiatives and programmes
A continuous and integrated approach taking into account the European and the regional level needs to be developed
Participants in EU research projects at the early stage of entrepreneurship could be integrated
Thank YouCorinna Voss
Unit ICT and Knowledge Networks, European [email protected]