INNOVATION MANDATES:Els Tourwé

27/06/2016

Flanders Innovation & Entrepreneurship

370 employees

510 mio euro for funding

30 mio euro operational resources

Flanders Innovation & Entrepreneurship is a

government agency, charged with implementing the

economic, innovation and enterprise policy in Flanders

Overview

• Purpose• General terms and conditions• Different types of IM-grants• Consortium• Budget and support• Intellectual property rights• Application• Evaluation• Timing

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Purpose

Purpose

• Postdoctoral researchers who want to execute a project in close collaboration with a company, either with an existing company, either with the aim of founding a new company.

• Main target of the research project is: - strategic basic research with scientific challenges of which the

risks are too high to be executed within the companies, but resulting in the applicability of the research results in the industry

- the economical valorisation of research• niche between university research and research in industry• strong input from the research institutes, but with a valorisation

in business

General terms andconditions

General terms and conditions

• Funding is granted on a project basis to individual researchers

• Supported by one or more:- Scientific promotor(s):

- responsible for the scientific supervision (scientific quality and progress of the project)

- Industrial mentor(s): - involved in the strategic orientation of the project and guidance in

valorisation aspects

- co-responsible for the financing in phase 2

• The mandate holder is an employee of the knowlegde centre, or an employee of the company

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Different types

Spin-off mandates

• leading to the establishment of a spin-off company

• main target of this type of innovationmandates is research (and activities) directed towards the creation of a spin-off company with an industrialactivity in Flanders

• Prior to application: consult TechTransfer dept. of university

Cooperation with existing company

• with co-financing

• phased model

• First phase:

• assess the applicability in a business context

• define milestone(s), and the theretorelated scientific objectives, whichshould be achieved before a transfer of results to the industrywill be possible

• Second phase: (Baekeland sr)

• The company is the applicant andis responsible for the strategicorientation of the research and forco-financing

Partners

Company withactivties in Flanders

Post-doctoral

researcher

Flemishknowledge

centre

Applicant for

IM phase 2

Applicant for IM phase

1 and spin-off

Candidate mandate holder

• The scheme is open to anyone who holds a doctoraldiploma

• In case the PhD defense is planned in the short term, we need a written declaration of the scientificpromotor with the planned date of the PhD defense + no contra-indications

• The same candidate can only be granted an innovationmandate once

• A candidate can apply max. 2 times

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Company

All companies with activities in the Flemishregion

Sufficient added value for Flanders remainsimportant and is an evaluation criterion

Commitment for the whole project period Assignment of an industrial mentor Cooperation between companies is possible In phase 2, the company can be the

employer of the mandate holder

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Knowlegde centres

- Employer of the mandate holder (mostly)- Responsible for the scientific supervision- Publications/protection of knowledge e.g. by patent

applications

cooperation agreement

interface offices

- Spin-off mandates: prior consultation of the interface offices

- Cooperation with different knowledge centres: goodagreements are necessary

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Budget and funding

Duration

- 2-years mandates, maximum 3 years (with co-financingof a company)

- Mandates with 2 phases can only be extended in phase2 (12 + 24 months)

- The funding programme is open to all nationalitiesand all academic disciplines, to anyone who holds a doctorate diploma

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Budget

• Basis = payroll of the mandate holder (based on the real salary cost) + the other costs associated with this one employee

• Other costs = (fixed costs + operating costs + equipment costs) 40 keuro/FTE- Overhead (max. 20.000 euro/year)- Operating costs (materials, licencies, travelling costs, …)- Depreciation of equipment (% occupation, depreciation period)

No fixed sum but a maximum (details)

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Funding

• In phase 1 and for spin-off mandates: support = 100%• In phase 2:

• Support of 50%, 60 or 70% for SME’s• 10% extra support for well-balanced collaboration between several

independent companies of which none of the companies contributes more than 70% of the cost, and at least one partner is an SME.

Processing the project application

Eligibility

• All participants have to be known

• Principal agreement on IPR and use of results: can, exceptionally, be submitted later on.

• PhD diploma, can exceptionally be submitted later on(declaration by the scientific promotor)

• Candidate: max 2x

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Assessment

• Oral defence before a panel of experts, only the candidate mandate holder is invited

• Experts: 50/50 academic/industry

• Confidentiality & experts to be avoided (max. 5 names and because of industrial competition)

• Application: English or Dutch: oral defence in the same language

• Introduction (1 min.)

• Interactive discussion (30 min.)

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Evaluation criteria

• Divided in four quadrants: Scientific quality vs utilisation quality candidate vs project

• Scores: excellent-good-moderate- weak (critical)

• Basis: explanatory document available at the website

• Panel with experts: score per criterion and per set (=quadrant), final appreciation by the Hermes comity

• Always: GO/NO GO, Hermes comity decides on the cut-off, in case of # > budget

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Evaluation criteria I. Scientific qualityA. Candidate

1. Reasoning skills and critical-scientific mindset of the candidate

2. Scientific knowledge and insight into the project

B. Project

1. Scientific quality level and challenges2. Quality of the research approach and feasibility

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Selection criteria II. Utilisation qualityA. Candidate

1. Insight and vision on the strategic importance of the project for the valorisation objectives 2. Knowledge and insight in the valorization path

B. Project

1. Strategic importance2. Size and probability of the expected valorization (in case of scientific success)

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Funding agreement and follow-up

Funding agreement

• Funding agreement VLAIO-knowledge centre or VLAIO-company(phase 2) Specific for one mandate holder (cannot change)

• Mutual cooperation agreement Company-knowledge centre(s) Mutual payments IPR & use of the results

• The funding agreement can only be signed after the approval of the cooperation agreement

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Intellectual property rights

Spin-off mandates and mandates in phase 1:100% funding to the knowledge centre

The companies only take on a coaching role and they do notacquire any rights to the research results;

In Phase 1, it is possible to agree on a “Right Of First Negotiation”

Upon transferring IPR to a company, the knowledge centrereceives a fee in accordance with the market price for the transfer of intellectual property rights;

The company acting as an industrial mentor has no guaranteeon the possible licensing/exploitation of the project results.

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Intellectual property rights

If the company also contributes its own knowledge/ models/tools, animmediate start with Phase 2 is highly recommended

Mutual consent concerning the distribution of IPR. Different options are possible, e.g:

Shared rights

Property rights to the results would belong to the knowledge centre

Company would acquire property rights on results with a specific target

Obviously, partners need to agree on acces to background knowledge

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Start date

• Start date At the latest, 6 months after the decision by the

Board of Directors

• Retro-activity is possible: Earliest possible start date = 1st of the month

following the deadline for submission Period before the decision: at the risk of either the

knowledge centre or the company

• Only possible to start if all requirements are met

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Phase 1 to phase 2

- No discontinuity- No additional overhead- Evaluation of the project proposal:

advice by external experts about phase 1advice by external experts about phase 2

- By the end of phase 1: agreement between the knowledge centre and the company about the transfer of results

- New decision and new funding agreement with the company

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Follow up

• Progress report every six months

• The funding is paid in instalments every six months, in the form of advance payments.

• Final report

• Financial report at the end of the project: corresponding to the real costs and committed funding rate, last payment = accepted funding minus the instalments already paid

• Changes within the scope of the innovation goal: OK

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2nd call in 2017Deadline for submission: September 4th, 2017 at 12.00 noon

• submit an electronic version to Baekeland-IM@vlaio.be

• 3 different application forms:• Spin-off mandate• Phase 1, followed by phase 2• Directly start in phase 2

• separate files: • 1 file with the application form (parts 1 – 4)• 1 file with the signed declarations (appendices): copy of doctoral diploma,

declaration of cooperation, term sheet/ cooperation agreement, (financial data of the company)

• 1 file with the budget

• The application will be checked for eligibility upon receipt (14 workingdays)

• Oral defence: between 30/10 and 21/11/2017

• Decision: December 14th, 2017

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Contact persons

Programme: Els Tourwé Secretary: Ann Voets

Questions: mail to Baekeland-IM@vlaio.be

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