Wednesday, 14. October 2009

Innovation Management from Bayer Technology Services as a research funding companion

New ideas can change the world – provided that they mature into a product that finds its way to market. Politicians at the European, federal and state level know this, too, and have therefore established a number of research funding programs. Unfortunately, the funding landscape is a confusing one and it is easy to get lost if you try to go it alone. The experts at Bayer Technology Services (BTS) know their way around the funding jungle, however, and offer their know-how as a service.

The path from an innovative idea to a marketable product or an economical process is long and fraught with numerous risks. Small and medium-sized businesses in particular can easily run out of money by the halfway point. But even large, well-financed companies may also be well advised to seek support. “Public funds generally go to joint projects in which various companies along the value-added chain are collaborating. Independent researchers are often also involved. The close collaboration benefits all the partners because it increases the probability that the project will be successful,” says Thomas Goergen, an innovation manager at Bayer Technology Services (BTS) in summarizing the advantages.

He and his colleagues concentrate exclusively on monitoring the funding landscape and working with internal and external customers to find the most promising path through the underbrush. Regardless of whether it’s innovative materials from the nanoworld, energy-efficient processes for the protection of the climate, the optimization of biotechnology processes or some other innovative project – the BTS experts can provide their customers with an initial overview of suitable funding programs, point out the advantages and disadvantages of the individual measures and much more.

Only then do they begin the targeted search through the world of funding from the Federal Ministry of Education and Research, the EU Framework Program and other potential funding institutions. “You rarely find something right off the bat, however," says Dr. Jochen Norwig, one of the public funding specialists at BTS. No wonder, when there are more than 1,000 funding programs with constantly shifting research focuses. “It more often happens that we know the ideas our customers have for projects and subsequently come across a new announcement that fits with the idea,” explains Norwig.

If the customer agrees, things really begin happening at this point. Suitable partners for a gapless value-added chain must be found. “This includes vendors who can supply key subcomponents, potential customers who will process an innovative material or university research groups that will expand the spectrum of ideas,” says Norwig, quoting just a few examples. The innovation managers at BTS also assist their customers with the preparation of the project description, which is required for the funding application. “Our customers, of course, are responsible for the natural sciences side of things,” adds Norwig. But it takes more than that to deliver a viable overall concept. The macroeconomic benefits must be outlined, the collaboration of the consortium and others must be described in detail. The figures show that the BTS experts have the delicate touch required to enhance the probability of success. “On average, the EU approves seven to ten percent of the applications received. The success rate over the last two years for projects that we supported is roughly 50 percent,” says Goergen.

BTS Innovation Management continues to support its customers even after approval of the funding, if desired, e.g. with the formal collaboration with the project sponsor or the ongoing documentation of the use of funds during the term of the project. “This takes the burden off small to medium-size enterprises, in particular, and allows them to concentrate their narrow resources on their core competences,” says Norwig.

The comprehensive service offered by the BTS experts is appreciated at CHEMPARK – by partners large and small. They are supporting a number of Bayer MaterialScience projects funded by the Federal Ministry for Education and Research (BMBF), for example. One such project has twelve partners collaborating to develop a NaCl oxygen depolarized cathode to increase the energy efficiency of a fundamental process for the production of plastic. And the BMBF-funded “Integrated Rubber Development Center” (INTEK) recently commissioned at CHEMPARK Dormagen is among the most successful projects involving BTS Innovation Management.