European Commission - Specific RTD programme in the field of Information Technologies
"Broadening the use of technologies"
Edition September 1997
updated for the March 1998 Call
(This is a revised edition for the FUSE call for continuous submission open from September 15th 1997. Those familiar with previous editions will find the possibility to submit proposals as Application Experiments focused and re-submissions restricted. This edition further describes how to benefit from the FUSE portfolio through a replication.)
The European Commission (EC) implements a hierarchy of programmes called the Framework-, Specific- and Workprogrammes. Calls are opened for specific tasks in the Workprogrammes.
The First Users Action(FUSE) is part of the Fourth Framework Programme (1994-1998) and is identified in the 1998 Work Programme of the Information Technologies Specific Programme in task 2.26 as follows:
Stimulating industrial enterprises to incorporate electronic technologies into their products in the context of an action for first users.
This specific information document is intended to aid organisations which are planning to respond to the Call published on 17th March 1998 closing on 16th June 1998 for FUSE by submitting an Application Experiment or who are interested in benefiting from the FUSE portfolio through a replication.
In case you are interested to submit, please contact for further advice and additional documentation one of the addresses in the Appendix II. Please note that some of the necessary documentation will be available from 15th December onwards
In recent years, there has been a steep increase in the utilisation of microelectronics in many industry sectors. Despite this, the majority of European enterprises, especially small and medium enterprises (SMEs), have not yet taken full advantage of existing microelectronics technologies to become more competitive and to achieve a wider penetration of their home and export markets.
Against this background, the European Commission (EC) launched FUSE. FUSE is a technology transfer project and wants to disseminate best practice in the first use of microelectronics. FUSE is designed as an action for companies facing barriers related to the use of microelectronics.
FUSE utilises the concept of a funded Application Experiment (AE) and of a Replication Exercise (RE) as instruments to enable the first use of microelectronics technologies. To help the companies a network of technology transfer nodes (TTNs) is installed.
During the AE, the enterprise, termed First User (FU), will use new technologies to conduct the specification, design, prototype, manufacture and testing of a component or system which is relevant to the improvement of its manufactured products or manufacturing processes. The AE is conducted by the FU in collaboration with subcontractors to ensure that sufficient knowledge is transferred to the enterprise and a sustained increment in its technological capabilities is achieved. The AE will be monitored by a TTN.
FUSE aims to capture and widely disseminate the essentials of the AE to encourage other enterprises to adopt electronic technologies. Replication by other enterprises will create a multiplication effect that will result in a wider take-up of new technologies in all regions of Europe. Therefore, the funded enterprises are contractually obliged to provide information on best practice in the first use of these technologies. Of particular importance are the enterprises' experiences in overcoming the barriers to the adoption of the new technologies and economic impact. This comprehensive dissemination document is held in the FUSE database, and available to interested enterprises.
Flyers will be produced to provide industrial enterprises with a brief description of the demonstrators and their results. These will be used for direct contact with companies.
The FUSE portfolio of the demonstrators is a corner stone of the project. The portfolio is utilised by a network of Technology Transfer Nodes (TTNs) to achieve a European-wide take-up of microelectronics technologies.
The portfolio can be used by companies who want to learn from experience of other FUs. A company using the information provided via the demonstrators is said to replicate AEs. To companies who wish to do so the TTNs provide guidance during proactive work and training. Companies who will share their replication experiences will have their reporting costs covered. These companies are said to execute Replication Exercises (RE).
The TTNs visit companies in their proactive work and they convince enterprises of the technical and economic benefits of using microelectronics technologies. The TTN demonstrates to a company how to overcome the problems associated with the adoption of new microelectronics technologies. They help the company choose the appropriate technology from the wide range of technologies including microprocessors, PCBs, ASICs, MCMs and Microsystems and help companies with the choice and interfacing to subcontracted suppliers.
The TTNs therefore advise the companies whether an AE submission could be successful or could propose companies to do a RE. In all cases the companies can be assisted by a TTN via training activities using the FUSE demonstrators. These training activities focus on the experiences and advice given by former FUs.
The demonstrator power of the AEs, coupled with the proactive work and dissemination activities of the TTNs, will allow FUSE to reach and convince the wider audience of European enterprises who can benefit from the utilisation of microelectronics.
Selective FUSE AE calls will be issued by the European Commission to provide targeted demonstrators throughout the duration of the FUSE project.
Industrial enterprises who have successfully responded to the FUSE calls will have to choose a TTN from the list in Appendix II. The chosen TTN will, upon accept, guide this AE and negotiate a contract. Each AE is governed by an Associated Contract to be concluded between a single First User organisation and the TTN.
The European dimension, a requirement for an ESPRIT project, is covered by the TTNs through dissemination of the results to organisations throughout Europe.
The First User may subcontract work to organisations where necessary and appropriate and as agreed by the EC.
Companies who are interested in training on the portfolio should contact one of the TTNs.
Companies wanting to report on their replication experiences (RE) should contact a TTN. TTNs organise continuous evaluations on batches of such small proposals following lean procedures. It is evaluated whether the proposed reporting will be of added value to the demonstrators. Upon approval of the EC the enterprise will receive a subcontract from a TTN.
Any company that wants to receive training on the portfolio can take part in the training activities organised by the TTNs. To take part in an AE or RE, an organisation must be eligible to participate in the IT Specific Programme as described in Appendix IV.
Although this Action is oriented towards SMEs, it is not exclusively reserved for SMEs. Submissions from larger companies are also eligible provided they fulfil the conditions laid down below.
FUSE is aimed at a broad spectrum of industrial sectors. Companies using microelectronics for the first time, as well as companies already employing microelectronics, are both targeted. Enterprises who are active in areas other than mainstream electrical and electronic engineering, and industrial manufacturing process control systems are encouraged to participate, particularly enterprises with no experience in the use of electronic technologies. However, the proposers should inform themselves on the specific focus of each call.
FUSE seeks demonstrators from companies at all steps of the technology ladder and in the whole spectrum of industry sectors. The demonstrators will have to be at the appropriate technology levels for various combinations of application area and industry sector. The call will be restricted to AE which can provide demonstrators that cover not yet existing examples in the FUSE portfolio. Three months before the closing of the call an addition to this document on the focus of the call will be issued specifying which holes are identified and consequently which demonstrators are targeted as a complement to the existing portfolio. This document can be obtained from the TTNs or the EC FUSE secretariat.
Organisations that want to propose should meet the three criteria put on conformance with the FUSE project: They must have an existing manufactured product on the market; propose to apply existing microelectronics technologies either to the product itself or to their manufacturing process and they must qualify as an industrial First User.
To the first criteria we can say that the proposer should give evidence that they manufacture a product which is already on the market. For an innovation of the manufacturing process the complete spectrum of products produced will be considered.
The requirement to use an existing microelectronics technology excludes research and development of the technology. What is important is that the technology to be used represents a significant advance for the enterprise both in experience gained and in the improved competitiveness.
Companies qualify as a First User if they will apply an existing technology for the first time. They could e.g. propose to integrate a microcontroller, ASIC or microsystem into their products or production line, or design say mixed-signal components instead of purely digital or purely analogue ones if they have not worked with these technologies before.
The company should meet the requirements for participation in an AE and demonstrate that they will replicate a (set of) demonstrator(s).
An AE or RE will deal with the innovation of an existing product through microelectronics. The full cycle of design, manufacturing and testing of a prototype device in the new technology should be covered.
The work in an AE is restricted to the incremental effort needed to work with the new technology. Thus only the part of the system innovation related to microelectronics will be funded.
Among the technologies which could be proposed are PCBs (printed circuit board), FPGAs (field programmable gate array), ASICs (application specific integrated circuit), MCMs (multi-chip module), hybrid or monolithically integrated Microsystems.
A commitment to participate to dissemination activities executed by the TTNs should form part of the proposal.
The typical duration of an AE or RE is expected to be of the order of one year. The maximum acceptable duration will be 18 months.
100% of the incremental marginal costs of the First User associated with the execution of the Application Experiment can be charged under the agreed contract. An incremental marginal cost in this context is defined to be the actual expenditure which a contractor incurs directly or through subcontracts in the execution of the task and which is solely attributable to the execution of the task. A template associated contract can be obtained from the TTNs.
Allowable costs for an AE include all marginal costs needed to perform the experiment including design, manufacture and test of a prototype component as appropriate. Furthermore it could include training costs and costs of participation to dissemination events organised by the FUSE TTNs. Hardware and software (rent or license fees) are allowable on a pro-rata basis. Pro-rata means calculating a time and usage percentage, taking the hardware and software lifetime compared with the project duration and the ratio of the usage by the AE and other users.
Marketing or commercial activities, amongst which EMC testing not influencing the design are non eligible.
The costs of an AE will depend on the complexity of the technologies being used.
The Commission makes routine checks on the financial status of prospective project partners. Depending on the result of these checks, measures to safeguard public interest may be deemed appropriate in some cases, which would be discussed with the participants prior to the contract's signature.
All companies wanting to learn from other FUs will be guided by the TTNs. They will have free access to information in the portfolio on how to implement microelectronics for the first time. This information includes work plans, profile of necessary subcontractors, advice on best practice from the FU and the economic impact possible. In Appendix VI the information addressed by the demonstrators is given.
In addition training activities on best practice will be organised by the TTNs based on the demonstrators. These workshops are free of charge.
For a RE the costs to report on the replication experiences is covered up to 2 kECU.
A submission for an AE should contain a plan of the work. The plan consists of two parts.
Part 1 consists of administrative and financial information on the proposer. It specifies their level of previous involvement in electronics technologies. It also includes details of anticipated costs. Appropriate forms are included in Appendix I.
Part 2 contains a description of the work and should be as concise as possible, organised according to the following headings:
The measure of success for a participating First User will be both the degree to which the experiment provides a more competitive prototype product and the degree to which the enterprise acquires the know-how to access and use the new technologies and to replicate the exercise in the future. Participants should be able to demonstrate after the experiment what they have learnt from the experience.
From the global perspective of FUSE the measure of success will be the increase in the number of enterprises using these new technologies, possibly via learning from the experiences of other First Users and their increase in competitiveness through the use of new technologies in their products.
It is important that the Application Experiment represents a significant advance both in the use of technology and experience for the participating enterprise. It must be viewed against the current situation of the enterprise, and should not be a minor incremental advance in technology for them nor should it be such a major step that the risks involved are too high or the potential for replication small.
It is expected that the First User should learn to execute the technical management of the experiment and to assess the technical and economic benefits of different potential solutions. This in order to enable them to execute a subsequent innovation on their own.
The following conformance criteria will be applied when judging submissions to carry out an Application Experiment:
During the selection process the added value of the AE to the FUSE portfolio will be considered. A necessary condition to pass the selection process is to score high for replication value. Each submission will be evaluated by a panel of international experts. The experts are bound by a confidentiality agreement. The evaluation will have due regards to the criteria here and will be carried out under the responsibility of the Commission. The results of the evaluation and selection will be communicated to the proposing FU. The TTNs will receive the results of successful ones and the co-ordinates of non-successful proposers.
The co-ordinates of successful proposers may also be communicated to the sister project Europractice Basic Services.
Should a submission of the same company fail to be selected on two occasions, further submissions of the same AE will not be evaluated.
Submissions for the AE should be made in response to a Call for proposals which explicitly specifies task 2.26.
All proposals submitted before 15 March, 1998 will be evaluated during the month of April, 1998.
In addition to the information provided on the forms in Appendix I, each organisation should provide a letter authorising participation in the proposal (duly signed original). Note that all boxes have to be filled in.
Please note that if the AE will be funded all information agreed to become public is to be provided in English for dissemination purposes.
One original and six copies of each proposal should be sent by courier or postal service or delivered by hand to:
IT Programme Office
Boulevard du Souverain, 191-197
B-1160 Brussels
Belgium
Please do not send submissions by fax. Do not announce by fax or telephone that submissions are in the mail. Such communications only hinder the Commission staff in their work of handling proposals.
You should clearly mark on the parcel and on the front sheet:
"Confidential: FUSE AE submission."
Information on how to participate in the training or in REs can be obtained from the TTNs.
For a RE a workplan consisting of a subset of the work plan items in the AE and a commitment to capture experiences should be produced. The link to existing AE should be explained and the added value to the portfolio of a description of the replication experiences should be demonstrated.
Should you have any specific questions on FUSE, please address them to any of the TTNs listed in Appendix II. In case the TTN cannot help, you can address them to the FUSE secretariat preferably by fax so that they can be distributed to the appropriate EC project officer:
| EC FUSE secretariat : | tel.: +32.2.295.90.75 | fax: +32.2.296.83.88 |
Form 1: Proposal Administrative Summary for an Application Experiment
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Task Name: Esprit - FUSE |
Task: 2.26 |
Action type: AE |
Duration in months: |
| Proposal Title: | |||
| Total Costs: | Total Funding: | Total Person Years: | |
| Legal name and address of proposing organisation | |||
| Organisation Name: | Reg (VAT) number | ||
| Department Name (if applicable): | |||
| Street Name: | Street No: | ||
| Post Code: | City: | Country : | |
| Project leader within organisation | |||
| First Name: | Family Name: | ||
| International Telephone: | International Fax: | ||
| E-mail: | |||
| Organisation details | |||
| Number of employees: | Is the participant an SME (Y/N)? (1) | ||
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(1) Small/medium sized enterprise. An enterprises is defined as an SME if it:
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| Additional information on First User | ||
| Please indicate your organisation's current experience of electronic systems, and the technology proposed (tick those boxes which apply) | ||
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Current Technology |
Proposed Technology | |
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PCBs |
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FPGA |
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Digital ASICs |
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Analogue ASICs |
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Mixed-signal ASICs |
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MCMs |
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Microsystem Microcontroller |
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Other:__________________ |
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| Total number of employees in the organisation | ||
| The number of engineers involved in electronic systems | ||
| Proposed technologies | ||
| Name of the technology proposed to be used |
Relevant industrial sector code (1) | |
| Preferred TTN to conclude an Associated Contract with | ||
| Subcontractors | ||
| Company name : |
Percentage of budget : | |
| Company name : |
Percentage of budget : | |
ANTICIPATED INCREMENTAL MARGINAL COSTS OF FIRST USER AND THEIR SUBCONTRACTORS
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Description of incremental marginal costs |
Costs charged to EC (KECU) | |
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Labour by first user (justifiable, additional, please specify)(1)(2) |
Effort in persondays |
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Task 1: Technical management |
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Task 2: Training |
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Task 3: Specification |
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Task 4: Design |
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Task 5: Evaluation |
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Other (please specify) |
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Subcontracts(2) |
Effort in persondays |
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Training costs to be paid to subcontractor [Name] |
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Design assistance by subcontractor [Name] |
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Production costs by foundry [Name] |
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Other (please specify) [Name] |
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Full Costs |
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Licence fees (3) |
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Purchase of software (3) |
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Purchase of hardware (3) |
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Others (please specify) |
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Total anticipated incremental marginal costs |
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(1) General company overheads are not allowable. (2))Documentary evidence of costs and effort expended will be required. (3)Payable to third parties, costs on a pro-rata basis | ||
European Commission
Directorate General III: Industry
RTD: Information Technologies
Brussels, ....................................
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Please write the name and address to |
NAME/ADDRESS |
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VERY IMPORTANT We may ask the representatives of proposers to attend meetings and/or provide further information at any time after the closing date and especially in the first two months after this date. In your own interest please ensure that representatives are available at short notice during this period. | |
| Subject: | Acknowledgement of receipt of Submission (orig. + 6 copies) |
| Ref.: | ESPRIT contiunous submission |
| Title of Proposal: |
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| Proposal Type: | (AE) FUSE Application Experiment |
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To be completed by the ESPRIT operation office: We acknowledge receipt of your FUSE proposal mentioned above on: ...../...../......
Your proposal is registered under Nr: ........................
Yours sincerely, | |
This list was valid on 15th September 1997 and may be updated. You are advised to contact the EC FUSE Secretariat or any TTN to acquire the most up-to-date version.
Mr Eskild Jensen
DELTA
Venlighedsvej 4
DK-2970 Hørsholm
Tel: +45 42 867722
Fax: +45 42 865898
e-mail: ej@delta.dk
Mr Francois Baillieu
CCIP Groupe ESIEE Paris
Cité Descartes
2 Boulevard Blaise Pascal
F-93162 Noisy-Le-Grand
Tel: +33 145 92 67 10
Fax: +33 145 92 67 03
e-mail: TTN-IDF.PIC@BART.ESIEE.fr
http://www.esiee.fr
Mr Claus Dittrich
GEMAC mbH
Matthesstraße 53
D-09113 Chemnitz
Tel: +49 371 3377 104
Fax: +49 371 3377 272
e-mail: 100144.2036@compuserve.com
e-mail:gemac.chemnitz@t-online.de
Mr Fabrizio Innocenti
CESVIT - Centro di Microelettronica
Via del Ferrone 5
I-50124 Firenze
Tel: +39 55 429 4321
Fax: +39 55 706 218
e-mail: innocenti@cesvit.it
Mr Lino Fiorentino
Consorzio Roma Ricerche
Via Orazio Raimondo 8
I-00173 Roma
Tel: +39 6 723 46 10
Fax: +39 6 723 43 05
e-mail: ttn@roma.ccr.it
Mr Mario Sartori
COREP
Corso Duca degli Abruzzi 24
I-10129 Torino
Tel: +39 11 56 44 046
Fax: +39 11 56 45 126
e-mail: ni_ttn@ccmserv.polito.it
Mr Juan Mangas
COTEC
C/ Marques de Urquijo 26, 1· C, Izq.
E-28008 Madrid
Tel: +34 1 542 01 86
Fax: +34 1 559 36 74
e-mail: juanjo.mangas@cotec.es
Mr Richard Fairbank
Bolton Institute of Higher Education
Deane Road
UK-Bolton BL3 5AB
Tel: +44 1204 903466
Fax: +44 1204 370916
e-mail: ttn@Bolton.ac.uk
Mr Mohamed Wahab
University of Glamorgan
Mid Glamorgan
UK-Pontypridd CF37 1DL
Tel: +44 1443 482542
Fax: +44 1443 482541
e-mail: mawahab@glamorgan.ac.uk
List of codes
INDUSTRIAL SECTORS
Identify the relevant industrial sector of the organisation in the proposal and include the corresponding code in the appropriate space on Form 2
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Business |
Code | |
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Finance and insurance |
FN | |
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Business, legal and management consultancy, holdings |
BC | |
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Publishing, printing and reproduction of recorded media |
PP | |
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Real estate activities |
RE | |
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Renting and leasing |
RL | |
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Lodging and restaurants |
LR | |
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Technical testing and analysis |
TA | |
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Wholesale and retail trade, repair of goods |
WR | |
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Community activities |
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Community service activities |
CS | |
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Education |
ED | |
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Energy production and distribution, gas & water supply |
EN | |
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Health and social work |
HS | |
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Recreational, cultural and sporting activities |
RC | |
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Recycling |
CY | |
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Post and telecommunications |
PT | |
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Transportation services |
TS | |
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Engineering |
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Electrical engineering & related technical consultancy |
EE | |
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Mechanical engineering & related technical consultancy |
ME | |
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IT activities |
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Audiovisual consumer electronics |
IA | |
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Electronic components & subsystems |
IC | |
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- semiconductors |
IC1 | |
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- controllers |
IC2 | |
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- PCBs |
IC3 | |
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Electronic engineering & related technical consultancy |
IE | |
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Industrial process control systems |
IP | |
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- chemical |
IP1 | |
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- mechanical |
IP2 | |
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- agricultural |
IP3 | |
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- food industries |
IP4 | |
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Office machinery and computers |
IM | |
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- computers |
IM1 | |
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- graphics & CAD/CAM |
IM2 | |
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- peripherals |
IM3 | |
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Software consultancy & supply, data processing & related services |
IS | |
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Telecom products |
IT | |
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- telephones |
IT1 | |
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- broadcasting |
IT2 | |
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- data/FAX |
IT3 | |
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- satellites |
IT4 | |
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Manufacturing |
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Aircraft and spacecraft |
AS | |
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Metals and alloys |
MA | |
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Chemical products |
CP | |
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Fabricated metal products, except machinery and equipment |
FM | |
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Food products and beverages |
FB | |
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Furniture |
FV | |
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Leather and leather products |
LL | |
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Machinery, electrical and optical equipment |
EQ | |
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- industrial fabrication equipment |
EQ1 | |
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- agricultural equipment |
EQ2 | |
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- industrial chemical equipment |
EQ3 | |
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- tools |
EQ4 | |
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- small house & home products |
EQ5 | |
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Medical, precision and optical instruments |
IN | |
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- medical |
IN1 | |
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- optical |
IN2 | |
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- precision |
IN3 | |
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Non-metallic mineral products |
MP | |
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Pharmaceuticals, medicinal chemicals and botanical products |
PH | |
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Pulp, paper and paper products |
PA | |
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Rubber and plastic products |
RU | |
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Textile and textile products |
TE | |
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Vehicles for land transportation |
VL | |
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Vehicles for sea transportation |
VS | |
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Wood and wood products |
WW | |
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Other activities |
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Agriculture and forestry |
AF | |
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Construction and building |
CB | |
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Fishing |
FI | |
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Mining and quarrying |
MQ | |
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Code not given |
NN |
The programme is open to all legal entities - i.e. people and organisations - established and carrying out RTD activities in the Member States of the European Union (industrial firms both large and small enterprises aimed at bringing products and services to the market - universities, higher education institutes, research organisations, etc.), and to the Joint Research Centre of the EC.
Participation in this programme, with financial contribution from the EU, is open to any legal entity established or carrying out RTD activities in a third country associated with and contributing financially to the implementation of this Programme.
These are currently: Iceland, Israel, Liechtenstein and Norway.
Legal entities established and carrying out RTD activities in other European countries or in countries who have concluded an S&T; agreement with the EU (not financially contributing as described above) may participate in the programme on condition that:
These states are at printing date: Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Georgia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Moldavia, Poland, Romania, Russia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Turkey and Ukraine, for which financial support by the EU, would in the case of acceptance of the proposal, normally be provided from funds other than the Esprit budget (an explicit request for such funding has to accompany the proposal).
Swiss, Australian, Canadian, South African and US organisations may participate under the above conditions, but without funding from the EC.
Legal entities established in states other than above listed, may participate on condition that:
Organisations from Japan, Korea, New Zealand and Taiwan are not eligible for funding from the EU.
For organisations from other countries, financial support by the EU may be provided from funds other than the Esprit budget. An explicit request for such funding has to accompany the proposal.
International Organisations may participate on condition that:
Financial support from the Esprit Programme may be provided to international organisations situated in Europe on a case by case basis. An explicit request for such funding has to accompany the proposal.
1. Abstract
2. Company name and address
3. Company size
4. Company business description
5. Expertise and experience of the company and staff allocated to the project
6. Company markets and competitive position at the start of the AE
7. Product to be improved and its industrial sectors
8. Description of the product improvements
9. Choices and rationale for the selected technologies and methodologies
10. Economic impact and improvement in competitive position
11. Barriers perceived by the company in the first use of the AE technology
12. Steps taken to overcome barriers and arrive at an improved product
13. Workplan and its rationale
14. Knowledge and experience acquired
15. Lessons learned
16. Target audience for dissemination
17. Subcontractor information
18. Future: industrialisation and internal replication