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Local knowledge helps |
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Opening up new foreign markets can be time consuming and costly, but with assistance from its local Innovation Relay Centre an Italian software company has found partners to help extend its presence across Europe. |
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A winning team |
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The IRC network provides an effective route to establishing business partnerships across Europe, as one English company which developed a new metal-coating technology has shown. |
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Spreading value |
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Whilst many cross-border technology transfers brokered by Innovation Relay Centres are of technologies developed by organisations working alone, a key aspect of the IRCs' remit is to promote the exploitation of results from EU-funded research projects. As this side of their work takes on greater importance, IRCs are developing new tools and methods to foster exploitation. |
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Clinching the deal |
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Organisers of a brokerage event at Europe's leading microtechnology fair found that follow-up meetings between prospective technology partners facilitate successful transnational technology transfer. |
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Low-tech innovators |
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Technology transfer is not limited to new industry sectors. Recent international visits made by members of traditional manufacturing industries, mediated by IRCs, revealed unexpected possibilities for co-operation. French cutlery makers visited Germany, and Spanish makers of upholstered furniture went to Italy. |
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Wanted: users for interactive windows |
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An Anglo-French partnership is marketing new types of touch-sensitive windows and tabletops, a novel technology shown on television in both France and the UK. Despite the excitement surrounding these products, their success will depend on strong support from distributors and investors throughout Europe. |
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Venturing east |
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Accessing venture capital is critical to the success of entrepreneurs and small companies. Access to - and understanding of - venture capital markets needs to be built up in the candidate countries of central and eastern Europe, eight of which will join the EU in less than a year's time. Innovation Relay Centres have taken the lead in learning about capital markets, and their client firms are already benefiting. |
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March 2003 
