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Tag ‘EASME’
Investor Day for Women in Tech
February
12
2019
The European Innovation Council (EIC) pilot of the European Commission is hosting an exclusive pitching event for Women in Tech. The event will take place on 4 April 2019 in Brussels, and will be an opportunity to meet female entrepreneurs and top tier European investors, as well as discuss the challenges facing female entrepreneurs and how to address the financing gap.
By attending this EIC Investor Day, you will have a chance to:
• Pitch your technology and business case to a renowned jury of European investors;
• Be involved in discussions about the financing gap for women entrepreneurs;
• Network with fellow EIC pilot funded SMEs and engage directly with top European investors.
Who can apply?
The application is only open for small and medium-sized enterprises funded by the EIC pilot program and with the following criteria:
• Female founder or CEO; and/or
• A management team structure well represented by women; and/or
• Development of an innovative solution with a strong gender dimension.
Deadline for applications: 20 February 2019. Apply here.
For more information on the event and applications, read the original article on the EASME website.
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Meet 20 pioneers transforming the future of healthcare
January
31
2019
On 28 and 29 November 2018, the European Innovation Council (EIC) and Medtronic, a leader in the world of medical technology, gathered 20 companies to discuss the transformation of healthcare and promote business partnerships.
However, at the stage when SMEs are growing, they need considerable financial resources to continue investments in product development and clinical trials, in order to bring their products to market faster. To tackle these challenges the EIC pilot and Medtronic promoted a matchmaking and business acceleration event in Tolochenaz, Switzerland, home of Medtronic’s EMEA headquarters.
20 companies backed by the EIC pilot took the stage and shared their innovative health care solutions for medical devices and therapies, mobile and remote health, patient engagement, diagnostics, artificial intelligence, augmented and virtual reality, data analytics and robotics.
At the event, we talked to Ger Hill, Senior Director Global Innovation at Medtronic, about Medtronic’s innovation strategy and learned that “For a company like Medtronic who has currently reached around 30B$ in revenue, maintaining revenue growth requires us to draw on innovation not only from our substantial organic internal innovation, but also from external partners. There are a lot of smart people who don’t work at Medtronic, and we want to collaborate with them to turn their ideas and concepts into products and solutions for patients and Medtronic.”
We also spoke with Charity Kufaas, Vice President, Business Development & Strategy EMEA at Medtronic, who shared her view on the quality of the companies attending: “The technologies of the companies I’ve seen today are truly innovative and address unmet needs. There were a number that we found really interesting and which I’m sure we’ll follow up after the event.”
Sourced from EASME.
Read the original article on the EASME website.
Over 1750 small businesses seek funding under the EIC SME Instrument
January
15
2019
The European Commission received 1752 proposals for the European Innovation Council pilot’s SME Instrument Phase 2 before the latest cut-off date on 9 January 2019. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) from 37 countries submitted proposals. Selected projects will be announced in early March 2019 at the latest.
The biggest number of proposals for this batch were submitted by Spanish applicants (266), followed closely by Italian (182) and Israeli applicants (136).
Since 2018, the SME Instrument is part of the European Innovation Council (EIC) pilot. A novelty under the EIC pilot is that applications are fully bottom-up. Therefore as there are no longer set topics, proposals are classified according to keywords introduced by applicants. The top keywords introduced were Health, ICT and engineering and technology.
In addition, applications are evaluated in two steps, a remote evaluation and a face-to-face interview with a Jury of business and innovation experts. These interviews will concern around 135 companies, approximately half of which will get the funding. The interviews will happen in Brussels during the week of 11-15 February 2019. For more information read the tips for applicants.
Results are expected to be announced in early March 2019 at the latest.
Read the original article on the EASME website.
Corporates and investors to look out for at #EICSummit18
June
19
2018
The European Innovation Council (EIC) pilot is inviting the small companies it funds to Berlin on 10-11 September to meet investors and big corporate players. Further investors and corporates will be announced but here are the 10 first names not to be missed in Berlin!
The EIC Innovators Summit will bring together small companies, start-ups, innovators and researchers to meet and find potential partners. The two-day conference will be filled with pitches, workshops, networking and matchmaking opportunities.
From the corporate side the following names will be present:
Microsoft, Iberdrola, Solvay, Faurecia, DOW, Airbus
The following investors will also join the event:
Balderton, EQT Ventures, Omnes Capital, GIMV
Registration and Invitees
The event is on invitation only so check out your mailbox; the event registration code is in your email invitation. The event is primarily designed for selected participants of the European Innovation Council (EIC) pilot programmes (SME Instrument, Fast Track to Innovation and FET-Open, EIC Horizon Prizes), which will receive their invitations as a priority. Other invitees will be considered should there be additional spaces avilable.
Interested in being considered for the guest list? Participate in one of our pitching contests in front of a Jury of investors and try and catch their attention with your idea! When registering you can apply to one of the pitching sessions: life science, medical devices, software, Industry 4.0, new materials, mobility, green energy, Food/Agritech. Places are limited so be sure to sell your case well!
For more information on the event, visit the event website, and follow #EICSummit18 on Twitter.
Read the full article on the EASME website.
European Innovation Council Fast Track to Innovation: 216 proposals seek funding
June
14
2018
The European Commission received 216 proposals for Fast Track to Innovation (FTI) before the latest cut-off date on 31 May 2018.
Fast Track to Innovation (FTI) is a fully-bottom-up measure that promotes close-to-the-market innovation activities that is open to all types of participants.
As there are no set topics, proposals are classified according to the keywords introduced by applicants. The top keywords introduced were engineering, health and energy.
The proposals include participants from 31 countries, the biggest number of application were submitted by project proposals coordinated in Spanish, Italian and German applicants. Most of the proposals have four participants.
The Fast Track to Innovation (FTI) is now central part of the European Innovation Council (EIC) pilot, targeting radically new, breakthrough products, services, processes or business models that open up new markets. FTI promotes close-to-the market innovation activities open to all types of participants. The programme offers € 3 million to consortia composed of 3 to 5 partners including mainly industrial participants.
The next cut-off date for FTI is 23 October 2018.
Read the original article on the EASME website.
SME Instrument companies take home the gold
May
22
2018
What can the SME Instrument do for you? The Instrument, promoted by the European Innovation Council is able to provide support through funding and access to expertise for SMEs looking to grow and innovate. Not only can the support lead to direct success, but can also contribute later down the line as was the case for companies Radisurf and Applied Nano Surfaces. 
Radisurf took home the prize for the most innovative company and Applied Nanosurfaces won best pitch at an exclusive brokerage event promoted by the European Innovation Council pilot in the world leading industry trade show in Germany. After a very demanding selection process, 70 SME Instrument funded companies were selected to pitch their ideas and vision for the future of industry, under the motto ‘Industry 4.0 and Smart Factory solutions’.
The event was organised by the EIC SME Instrument Business Acceleration Services, the Enterprise Europe Network and NBank, as part of a service promoting deals and business ventures between upcoming SMEs funded by the European Innovation Council pilot and corporate leaders.
Learn more about the winning companies:
Radisurf is developing and producing a specialised nanocoating for direct, strong, and tight adhesion between hard materials and polymer materials called Radibond. Radibond is a patented methodology and formulation for producing a nanometer thin, strongly bonded coating on metals, glass, ceramic, or carbon. With the Radibond coating on your materials, you can apply the polymer material through direct overmolding or a variety of standard welding techniques and obtain strong metal-polymer assemblies.
Applied Nano Surfaces has developed unique technologies to treat the surfaces of mechanical parts to lower friction losses, increase durability and minimise the wear in industrial machines and equipment. ANS products consist of: ANS Triboconditioning®, a mechano-chemical surface finishing process that improves the tribological properties of components made of steel and cast iron, ANS TriboNite®, an advanced thermal processing and coating technology that combines the advantages of nitriding processes with the superior properties of solid lubricant coatings and ANS Tricolit®, a series of thermocured surface coatings serving to reduce friction and wear, and suitable for use on a variety of materials.
For more information and the full article, visit the EASME website.
Could you be the next EBAN Scaleup of the Month?
April
24
2018
Are you looking for an opportunity to present your scale up on a European stage? Think you have what it takes to be recognised as a European best practice? Then look no further than the EBAN (the European Trade Association for Business Angels, Seed Funds and Early Stage Market Players), Scaleup of the Month webinar!
The SME Instrument and EBAN are looking to invite participants to the first joint EBAN Scaleup of the Month webinar, where SMEs can present their innovations to a Jury of investors and get a pass and a pitching slot at one of EBAN’s flagship events!
Every month, EBAN holds a one-hour webinar where selected entrepreneurs and the investor who backs them present their projects to a jury of investors and an international audience, for a chance to become the Scaleup of the Month. Each Scaleup of the Month and their investor receive complimentary passes and a pitching slot to one of EBAN’s flagship events as well as premium visibility within the EBAN network.
This month the webinar is organised with the SME Instrument to give visibility to companies that have received investment from an early stage investor or have received an SME Instrument grant.
Companies looking to apply to the Scaleup of the Month initiative need to satisfy the following criteria:
- Have received investment in the form of a seed round OR are a beneficiary of SME Instrument 1/SME Instrument 2;
- Were incorporated no later than 5 years ago (exceptions made for companies certain industries like life sciences);
- Are looking for a follow-on round of equity investment between 1 Million Euros – 5 Million Euros;
- Can come from all sectors and industries.
The joint EBAN/EASME Scaleup of the Month webinar is scheduled for the last week of May. The date will be announced shortly. Don’t miss this great opportunity to give your company a boost – apply here or send your investor deck to director@eban.org.
Read the original article on EASME news here.
Have your say on the SME definition!
February
13
2018
The European Commission is currently preparing for an evaluation and possible revision of some aspects of the SME definition and is inviting any interested actor to provide feedback on its evaluation and impact assessment.
The SME definition is a widely used tool in EU policies such as competition (state aid), structural funds, research and innovation (Horizon 2020).
Moreover, the SME definition is relevant for some European administrative exemptions and reduced fees, such as for Regulation on registration, evaluation, authorisation and restriction of chemicals (REACH).
If you would like to know more about this initiative please check the public consultation on the review of the SME definition. You can contribute until 6 May 2018.
Read the original article on EASME news here.
EU Sustainable Energy Awards – 2018 nominations open
January
23
2018
The EU Sustainable Energy Week (EUSEW) is back for its 13th edition and giving you the chance to encourage and nominate projects to take part in this year’s Awards competition to determine the most innovative and impactful initiatives in energy transition.
If you are working on, or know someone who is, developing projects that fit the description, it is your time to shine: you can either apply for an award or nominate your favourite activities, projects and actions.
Interested? We look forward to receiving your application for one of this year’s categories: ‘Consumers’, for actions that lead to the behavioural change of individual energy users;‘Public Sector’, for exemplary initiatives led by public and non-profit organisations; ‘Businesses’, for forward-thinking businesses; and this year for the first time there will be a ‘Young Energy Leaders’ category, which aims to recognise extraordinary young individuals, or groups of individuals (under 30 years old), who are leading by example and impacting the sustainable energy field.
Additionally, there is the ‘Citizens’ Award’ which will be granted via an online vote allowing the general public to reward their favourite project among the finalists of the aforementioned categories.
You can find further information about the awards, as well as eligibility, assessment rules and the application process, on the EUSEW2018 website.
The deadline for applications is 23 February 2018.
Organised by the European Commission (Directorate-General for Energy and EASME), EUSEW takes place every year in June. The 2018 focus is on energy transition and will cover a series of activities with an EU-wide scope. In addition to the EU Sustainable Energy Awards, event activities will feature a policy conference (5–7 June 2018), networking opportunities and local sustainable energy events, all dedicated to building a secure energy future for Europe.
Read the original article here on the EASME website.
Interested in green projects and initiatives? Read through the European Enterprise Promotion Awards submissions for the Supporting the development of green markets and resource efficiency category and discover the leading European projects in the sector.
From waste to circular economy – ecoBirdy: A European Toy Story
January
18
2018
Supported by the EU’s programme for the competitiveness of SMEs (COSME), ecoBirdy will unveil its first collection of design furniture for kids made of recycled plastic toys at the trade fair Maison & Objet in Paris from 19 January.
The launch follows an in-depth two-year study period exploring how to sustainably recycle plastic toys. ecoBirdy has created pieces that are 100% made of recycled plastic waste and can easily be recycled again.
The Antwerp-based designers, Joris Vanbriel and Vanessa Yuan, have not only created design pieces, but a whole system from the collection and recycling of old, unused plastic toys to the design and production of the furniture.
It was essential to the founders that each step be based on social and environmental responsibility. An accompanying storybook and school programme has been designed to introduce youngsters to the circular economy and inspire them to contribute to a more sustainable future. The design, recycling and production of ecoBirdy furniture is all done in Europe.
“We found that plastic toys use plastic more intensively than other consumer goods: 80% of plastic toys end up in landfills, incinerators or in the ocean. By giving old plastic a new life, our aim is to free our ecosystem from its pernicious impact. As we use innovative technologies, made for the reuse of plastic, there is no need to add any pigments or resin.”
For the first collection, the designers have aimed to create pieces that enable kids to experience creativity and at the same time raise awareness of sustainability. All items are made entirely out of recycled plastic from European waste. Due to accurate sorting, cleaning and grinding during the recycling process, the plastic of all products is absolutely free from harmful chemicals. It is clean, pure and 100% safe. The whole collection is produced in Italy and includes a chair, a table, a storage container and a lamp.
The furniture will be available on the market from the end of January and can be ordered from the ecoBirdy online shop. ecoBirdy is one of the 10 projects funded under the EU programme for the Competitiveness of SMEs (COSME) 2016 Design-based consumer goods call.
Read the original article here on the EASME website. To find out more about other European sustainability and green projects, read about past EEPA entries in the Supporting the development of green markets and resource efficiency category.
