The DEVISE project is arriving to the end. After having exchanged good practices and experiences, inspired each other within the partnership and developed 10 Regional Action Plans, it's time to review the changes achieved in each of the policy instruments thanks to this project. This week, we speak with Jorge Muyo, General Director of Innovation, Technology Development and Industrial Entrepreneurship at Cantabrian Government.
What policy instrument were you addressing when the DEVISE project commenced? Why?
The policy instrument addressed when commencing and developing the DEVISE project has been the Cantabria ERDF. Additionally and due to the impact of COVID19 and the possibility to develop further resources we have influenced in the REACT Programme, part of our ERDF in the period 2020-2022. Cantabria is one of the regions, which have received and implement the REACT-EU package and specifically in the Innovation, Industrial and Digitalisation has received further resources. Although regional ERDF programme is finishing, the project has helped us to find inspiration from other regions and to design new projects to be financed within next regional programme.
What has specifically changed in your policies and your region thanks to the project?
Our experience in the DEVISE project has helped us to improve on three important strategic aspects:
- Accelerate the investment of companies in the region, especially SMEs in Cantabria of all productive sectors, promoting the efficient use of aid for the development and implementation of new technologies in traditional production systems.
- Increase the number of employees who possess the necessary skills to be able to develop their skills in the productive environment demanded by advanced manufacturing.
- Create an environment in which companies know the potential in the implementation of advanced manufacturing technologies in their production, management and manufacturing systems.
Which good practices have inspired these changes?
GOBCAN has developed actions in line with the best practices studied during the project. The most important ones have been:
- Imec.icon (Partner: West Flanders - Belgium): This research programme is focused on demand-driven, cooperative research on hardware-, software- and combined hardware/software innovations.
- Apollo programme (Partner: Laval – France): This best practice has inspired GOBCAN in the way that the main target of this programme is to support companies in their innovation process by adapting methods usually used by startups.
- Regional Manufacturing Digital Innovation Hub IoT-Compass (Partner: South Ostrobothnia – Finland): This best practice has been followed in the action plan because of the impact of the new digitalization processes and the development of Industry 4.0 can impact in the Innovation actions of the regional companies.
In global terms, all experiences and best practices analysed and studied during the DEVISE project have had some impact in the Action Plan.
Would you like to highlight any other improvements?
The exchange of information, the knowledge we have acquired from other European partners and regions and the possibility to interact with other territories including the management authorities from the INTERREG Europe secretariat.
