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Milan - A region of excellence for innovative start-ups
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Investment in Research & Development
Regional ISTAT data show that expenditures in R&D are concerned were up to € 2,380 milliard in 1996, divided as follows: universities and other public institutions: 25%, and enterprises: 75%. The Innovation potential of the Milan Area is based on a well-structured university system and on the high number of public and private research centres. There are 7 universities; Politecnico of Milan, the Catholic University of Milan, Bocconi University, Milan State University, Bicocca University, IULM (Modern Languages) and St Raphael University. There are 24 National Research Centres, roughly 70 universities carrying out research for third parties, 4 test labs and 2 Nuclear Physics Institutes. The Milan region is the most qualified Italian scientific district. Almost a quarter of the Italian business enterprise research is carried out in the Milan area (Lombardy 34% of Italy). In Italy, Milan is the most important city for the numbers of organisations that promote innovation and the relationships between scientific research and production. There are 4 development agencies (ASNM, Euroimpresa, CRAA, Agency for Brianza Area) and 4 incubators (Concordia Multimedia Lab, Euroimpresa incubator, Bovisa Incubator and La Bottega di Leonardo). There are also 8 technology transfer centres, 3 consortia of universities and enterprises. |
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Labour market
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The province of Milan is 1,981 sq. km in size and has a total population of 3,728,223 inhabitants with a per capita GDP of €22,000. There are 1.5 million people employed in the Province of Milan, some 24% of whom are self-employed. The Milan area attracts highly specialised and skilled workers from both Italy and abroad, and its labour market is marked by a continually changing supply. Employment data reflects the transformation of production structures over recent decades: the service sector now absorbs some 63% of the workforce; industrial employment, after years of heavy reduction, especially in the traditional steel, chemical and mechanical sectors, has now stabilised and represents about 36% of the workforce. The dynamic nature and the capacity of Milan's labour force to adapt, have kept unemployment in the province down (at 6.6% in 1998), notably lower than the national rate (11.8%) and the European rate [10% (15 UE) in 1998, Eurostat]. The Province of Milan has a female employment rate that is significantly higher than the national average. |
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Technological and scientific potential
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The sectors of Excellence in the public research are; electronic engineering (Politecnico) and computer sciences, biotechnology and new materials (Bicocca University, CNR Labs), robotics and meccatronics (Politecnico, CNR Labs), economy and management (Bocconi University), medicine (State University and St Raffaele University). There is also a developed system of private research is based on company research and on a dense network of private research centres and testing laboratories. Research and innovation are so important for Milan's businesses that more than 75% of patent demands presented in Lombardy between 1986 and 1997 were made by enterprises whose head offices were located in the Province of Milan (around 6,600 patents). |
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Innovation culture
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Milanese technological competitiveness is a consequence not only of the presence of important public research institutions and the innovative activity carried out by large enterprises, but also due to the presence of a widespread innovation capacity threaded through the SME system. Indeed, the SMEs from the Milan area have a high level of technical ability, whose advantage not only lies in the capacity to sell and produce at reduced costs but also in their capacity for innovation and in their ability to offer operative responses, machinery and services suited to the requirements of companies that make finished products. The capacity for innovation is based on the ability of innovative enterprises to adapt production processes to the more specific products of SMEs; a factor which is also welcomed by the different Italian and foreign competitors. Two illustrative examples are the SMEs of the fashion industry and the machine tool industry, which represent two global level sectors of the Milanese industry. |
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The Milanese services network
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The whole Province of Milan is covered by a thick network of routes, which lead mainly to the capital. It also has an outstanding highway and railway network, which directly connects Milan's area with the rest of Italy and Europe. Its central position, running along north/south and east/west European trade routes, provides it with an integrated transport system consisting of a rail network stretching some 1,600 km, a 40,000 km road and highway network (carrying 20% of all Italian goods) and one of Europe's most important airport systems. |
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Creation of SMEs/NTBF/Spin-off
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Almost all the 340,000 active businesses currently in the area are small companies. On average, around 2,500 new businesses are born in the Province of Milan only in the manufacture sector every year. The company birth rate rose to 8.4% in 1998 and the death rate rose to 7.4%. The registered figures for the birth rate of companies for the sector of office automation and computers was 9.7%, data processing at 9.8%, R&D activities at 9.2% and financial activities such as brokerage at 16.2%. To be more precise, in 1998, there were 31 new enterprises in the sector related to computers, 647 new brokerage companies, 712 in the data processing sector and 28 in the R&D sector. |
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Collaboration of companies with the science / research community
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Large Milanese enterprises and universities have been directly involved in the creation of three Consortia that are operative in the training and research field (MIP and CEFRIEL with the Politecnico and Milano Ricerche with both the State University and Bicocca University). Milan Politecnico has recently created its own liaison office Politecnico Innovation (a consortium on technology transfer and promotion on technology innovation in SME). Employers' associations play a substantial linking role between research and enterprises, for instance: Assolombarda, Federchimica and UCIMU, which in some cases have created their own technology transfer centres (ASSOTEC, CIRC). Centres for technology transfer have also been created by the Region (CESTEC) and by the CNR. There have also been innovative enterprise financing initiatives started up by various influential banks by means of venture capital funds. Two Venture Capital funds are currently being created, which plan to involve some banks, some universities (Milan Politecnico and Bocconi University) and some development agencies (ASNM). Some Business Angels initiatives have also recently been started by La Fucina BIC located in Sesto San Giovanni. |
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Other regional policy measures.
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The Lombardy Region has its own measures for the support of innovation through a series of regional laws that help finance SMEs in innovative activity. The major role of the Province in the economic sector is to test actions and tools for local development. The Province has strengthened:
- the co-ordination of active employment policies, within the framework of decentralisation of competencies from the State to the Provinces in these fields.
- the provision of advanced services to enterprises and policies for the diffusion of technological innovation in the Milan's area and for territorial promotion.
- the promotion of initiatives and projects for improving the competitiveness of local production systems and industrial renovation.
- the management of professional training systems.
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Contact details
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Dott. Marcello Correra
General Director
Provincia di Milano
Direzione Centrale Sviluppo Economico e Sociale
Viale Piceno, 60
I- 20129 Milano, Italy
Tel : +39.02.77.40.32.80
Fax : +39.02.77.40.32.90
E-mail : economialavoro@provincia.milano.it
Dott. Giorgio Monaci
PANELBMM Project Manager
Provincia di Milano
Direzione Centrale Sviluppo Economico e Sociale
Viale Piceno, 60
I- 20129 Milano, Italy
Tel : +39.02.77.40.32.82
Fax : +39.02.77.40.32.90
E-mail : economialavoro@provincia.milano.it |
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