European innovation

European Commission Directorate-General For Enterprise And Industry

Description

November 2006
Industrial research and development
Industrial policy
Target audience: Specialised/Technical

Informations

• Publié par: EUROPEAN-COMMISSION-DIRECTORATE-GENERAL-FOR-ENTERPRISE-AND-INDUSTRY
• Nombre de lectures: 53
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 14 Mo

Extrait

Innovation at play The serious world of the toy industry

 Better methods for better houses  New Structural Funds promote more innovation  IRC Newsletter

European Commission DIRECTORATE-GENERAL FOR ENTERPRISE AND INDUSTRY

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Contents

The Commission’s new Communication on Innovation FEATURE: The toy industry, a hotbed of innovation FEATURE: Traditional structures limit innovation in the construction industry IRC NEWSLETTER   Helping companies establish their own innovation action plans  Hellenic IRC’s contribution to Greece’s innovation poles Technology road maps – opening  clients’ eyes to business opportunities  Parallel computing provides answer to biotech analysis  Ultrasound techniques to measure bone health in space NEWS IN BRIEF New Structural Funds will do more to promote innovation Seventh Framework Programme – will it help SMEs? Next steps in EU patent policy BY INVITATION: the reasons behind Finnish success in innovation European Innovation Progress Report – setting out the challenges for all CONFERENCES PUBLICATIONS  INNOVATION IN FIGURES

Innovation, 3 more than child’s play 5 The toy industry in Europe is constantly looking for new products to satisfy children’s fast-moving fads and fashions. As our feature article 9 shows, cost pressures mean that much manufacturing in the sector has 13 moved to Asia, but the creative side of the toy industry remains very much at home in Europe. The range of toys on the market, their com- plexity and diversity means today’s youngsters have less and less need 14 to  invent their own games and find new uses, unintended by the manu- 16 facturers, for their toys. Childhood play fosters creativity and ingenuity, and that spirit continues into adulthood. But in today’s world, where 17 toys are more complicated and plentiful, is the spirit of creativity being extinguished? And should we have concerns about the long-term effect 19 on Europe’s innovation capacity? 20 Expanding  Europe’s innovation capacity is at the heart of the Commission’s new ‘innovation strategy’, adopted in September. The strategy aims to 21 build  on political leaders’ growing acknowledgement of the strategic 22 importance of innovation. The Commission wants to build on this momentum, reminding leaders of the commitments they have already 24 made, and reiterating the need for clear, decisive action in a range of 26 areas. None of these actions are new, but each of them needs to be addressed with higher priority, whether at European or national level. 27 And most importantly, all of them need to be tackled simultaneously. As David White, the Commission’s Director of Innovation Policy, states in 28 our interview, innovation can only flourish when all aspects of the system 30 work in harmony to support innovation in the economy. The measures 31 set out in the strategy provide a comprehensive approach to improving 32 innovation support in Europe, but unless all of them are implemented, its results will make little impact on improving our competitiveness.

European Innovation Innovation in the Enterprise and Industry DG The development of innovation policy and the imple- European Innovation (formerlyInnovation and Technology Transfer  of a range of measures is the responsibility mentation ) is published six times a year, simultaneously in English, French, German, Italian, Polish and Spanish, by the  of the Innovation policy Directorate of the European European Commission’s Enterprise and Industry DG as part of the European Community’s  Commission’s Enterprise and Industry DG.  Sixth Research Framework Programme. The next issue will be published in January 2007. Contact Legal noti Innovation policy development(D/1) Published by: ce: Fax [phone] Communication and information Unit Neither the European Commission nor any person  [e-mail] Enterprise and Industry DG acting on behalf of the Commission is respon- Support for innovation(D/2) European Commission sible for the use which might be made of the  Fax [phone] B-1049 Brussels information contained in this publication. While  [e-mail] Fax [phone] [e-mail] t i e n h v f e e o   r r o y m   p e a p f t f o i o r o r t n t u   , i   n s r i   t e i m a e d a s  e d c r e i s t     t e w o d   h   e i o n n     s w t u i h r s i e s h       t t p h o u   e f   b o a li l c l c o c a u t w i r   o a u n c p   y   s   a h o n f o   y t u   h l o d e f       sEMSncnag inFi srinnovatoand   , (   D e / n 3 t ) perenerurs  http://aoi.cordis.europa.eu/ Fax  [phone] confirm the validity of the information with the  [e-mail] Written and produced by: ef reners cetecinoctcatna sro/d 6 200ion,miss leicrt ahe tind  moC naeporuE © .s Technology for innovation; ESN, Brussels ICT industries and e-business(D/4) Lux ur : Office for Official Publications of  Fax [phone] the  e Eu m r b o o pea g n Communities, 2006 [e-mail] Cover image: StockXchng  duction is autho the source ur.ea.op/eeuerntsirp/e exe htt:p//ce Repro rised, provided  n.htminnovation/ind _ is acknowledged. Printed in Belgium nn/ieua.n/ioatovhttocdr:p//ruposie.

EuropeanInnovation

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A holistic blend for Europe’s innovation pie The European Commission’s recent Communication“Structural change must not be seen as a threat, but as on innovation does not prescribe ‘magic buttons’ butan opportunity to become more competitive,” noted outlines a broad-based strategy bringing together all theCommission Vice-President Günter Verheugen, who also major elements for success, according to David White,heads the Enterprise and Industry DG. “Europe needs to director of Innovation Policy at the Enterprise andbecome a truly knowledge-based and innovation-friendly Industry DG.society, where innovation is not feared but welcomed, is not hindered but encouraged; where it is part of our society’s core values and seen to work for the benefit of all citizens.”

David White

The Commission Communication( 1 ) was released in mid- September and formed the basis for an informal summit of EU leaders hosted by the Finnish presidency in Lahti on 20 October 2006. “We can do much more to foster inno- vation as a driver for growth of the European economy. The latest figures show once again the value added that a coherent Community-wide approach to innovation would bring,” explained European Commission President José Manuel Barroso at the launch of the strategic policy document.

The Communication is as much about urging the Member States to implement existing proposals and commitments and to make the most of existing instru- ments, as about radical new departures. In fact, the Communication comes in the context of the relaunched Lisbon Strategy, the Finnish presidency’s focus on inno- vation and the Union’s new seven-year financial perspec- tive, due to begin next year. What is required of them is to overcome the reluctance to implement in full the necessary reforms needed to transform Europe into an innovation-friendly society and economy.

November 2006

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And, given the stakes, Europe should have a strong motiv- ation to put in place a world-leading innovation system. “Innovation holds the key to helping us face our most pressing socio-economic and environmental challenges, such as global warming, globalisation and job creation, ” pointed out David White, director of Innovation Policy at the Enterprise and Industry DG.

Comprehensive solutions

The delicate and intricate manner in which various areas of innovation-related policy interweave requires decision- makers to set in motion a holistic programme covering all the necessary areas.

“There are no magic buttons,” stressed White. “In innovation policy, there are no easy solutions. You have to make sure that all the conditions are in place to sup- port innovators. If you neglect something, it may lead the crucial innovation to fail... Innovation is a process that requires all kinds of players to be involved. It requires brilliant researchers, innovative entrepreneurs, friendly regulation, accessible markets, and an education system that encourages people to be innovative and to look positively at innovative solutions.”

In addition to identifying key areas requiring attention, this comprehensive strategy also tables a ten-point pro- gramme of the most crucial elements in order to signpost clearly the way ahead. These include making European education systems and markets more innovation-friendly, establishing a sin- gle European R&D labour market, strengthening links between the research community and industry, harness- ing the whole range of EU financial instruments to boost the Union’s innovation capacity, and more.

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