The Interreg Europe project NMP-REG - Delivering Nanotechnologies, advanced Materials and Production (NMP) to REGional manufacturing – held an Interregional Workshop in Leuven (Belgium) on 24th January, in collaboration with the ERRIN Network andwiththe participation of Watify (Boosting Technological Transformation).
The event used the Regional Smart Specialisation (RIS3) Mid Term Reviews happening across Europe as a framework for interregional debate about technology transfer of nano and new materials to industry. The workshop provided participating regions with the opportunity to use the RIS3 Mid-Term Review to strengthen and specify this strategic priority, by learning about other regions’ activities, about their visions for material application in regional manufacturing and about the potential for interregional cooperation in this field. The workshop brought together regional authorities and stakeholders working in the field of new and advanced materials.
The Workshop was held at the Leuven Flemish Administrative Centre and was structured into two main sessions. The first, moderated by Richard Tuffs (Senior Advisor of the ERRIN Network), was a plenary session discussing European initiatives related to regional smart specialisation strategies, with interventions from:
- Mrs Annie Renders, Head of Unit Cluster Policy - Flanders Innovation and Enterprise - The region of Flanders and the S3
- Mr. Marek Przeor - Smart and Sustainable Growth Unit, DG Regional and Urban Policy - European Commission’s Vision of the RIS3 and reviewing processes
- Mr. Nikos Pantalos - Innovation Policy and Investment for Growth Unit, DG Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs - Advanced materials in the S3 Industrial Modernisation Platform
The second part of the workshop was entitled “Consolidating NMP in regional Smart Specialisation” and was divided in two interactive working sessions. In each session, participants were separated in subgroups with a facilitator to support discussion and summarise content. The first session laid emphasis on how NMP are addressed in each regional smart specialisation and how the RIS3 Mid Term Review could strengthen their presence and impact. During the second session, participants worked on ideas for Interregional Cooperation in the field of NMP. Each group looked at ideas within a specific area of application, ranging from health, to traditional manufacturing sectors, to smart manufacturing.
A selection of pictures taken during the event are available here.
Posters on regional RIS3 priorities and NMP exposed during the event are available by clicking here.
