Access for manufacturing SMEs on KETs services for clean production

The European project KET4CleanProduction will ensure access of manufacturing SMEs to technology services and facilities situated in other European member states and enable cross-border cooperation. The project will also foster the use of advanced manufacturing technologies and related key KETs by SMEs to upgrade their production processes towards resource- and energy efficiency and sustainability.

Advanced manufacturing technologies and related key enabling technologies (KET) can upgrade production processes of manufacturing SMEs towards resource- and energy efficiency. Clean production innovation has the potential for increased product quality, productivity and environmental performance and thereby to enhance SMEs’ competitiveness.

SMEs’ access to technology services as well as service offered by KET Technology Centres (KET TC) remains heterogeneous across the different regions of the European Union (EU) and its potential is not fully exploited yet. To address this challenge, KET4CleanProduction aims to create an open innovation ecosystem witha one-stop-shop via an online platform for a Pan-European and cross-border access to innovation services for SME through a network of superior KET Technology Centres in clean production.

KET4CleanProduction will ensure access of manufacturing SMEs to technology services and facilities situated in other European member states and enable cross-border cooperation. The project will also foster the use of advanced manufacturing technologies and related key KETs by SMEs to upgrade their production processes towards resource- and energy efficiency and sustainability. Finally, the project will call for discourse with policy makers on RIS3 and the potential of interregional collaboration to cover specific SME needs for clean production technologies reducing the existing KET TC disparities across Europe.

The project objectives will be achieved by
- reaching out to manufacturing SME all over EU-28 with the support of the Enterprise Europe Network
- raising their awareness on the potential of clean production innovation for increased product quality, productivity and environmental performance,
- facilitating SMEs connectivity to KET TC into joint project proposals for micro grants.

After a pilot phase with 20 SME innovation projects supported by micro grants, the plan is to scale up the network adding more KET TCs and members of the Enterprise Europe Network, to reach a critical mass of clean production technology deployment in SME. The final aim is, by 2020 KET4CleanProduction, to create a sustainable platform facilitating SMEs’ clean resource- and energy efficiency production and strengthening their competitiveness.

KET4CleanProduction is a three-year project (01/2018 – 02/2021) funded under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme. Steinbeis 2i GmbH is coordinating the project in partnership with 13-premier KET TC and 7 partners of the Enterprise Europe Network from 18 different European countries.

Contact:

Dr. Kristin Dallinger
dallinger@steinbeis-europa.de

Dr. Anastasiia Konstantynova
konstantynova@steinbeis-europa.de