European materials community comes together
In 2010, six European Technology Platforms (ETPs), with a strong material agenda in their respective strategies, joined efforts by improving coordination in their strategies in Materials. The two largest European Materials Associations (E-MRS and FEMS) joined soon too with the idea to create the largest industrial and academia join effort never realised in Materials R&I. Teamwork that safeguards individual interests could ensure the effective use of their resources. The Alliance for Materials (A4M) was created, an unprecedented move to improve the way materials research is being carried out in Europe. Since 2012, the EU-funded project MATVAL (Alliance for materials – A value chain approach to materials research and innovation) has supported A4M into entering its implementation phase. MATVAL created the conditions necessary to facilitate a significant enlargement of the network to represent interests in engineering materials, chemicals manufacturing, steel and mineral resources. MATVAL brought on board more ETPs and research societies as well as external partners with renowned expertise. The aim was to bridge the gap between the scientific community on materials research with the energy, transport, construction, health and creative industries. These five sectors were identified as encompassing the most pressing challenges of the 21st century. The MATVAL partners developed a cross-sectorial and cross-material framework facilitating the identification of drivers and barriers to innovation. Their next step was to identify stakeholder actions and support measures that would solidify a successful EU-level innovation policy. Outcomes were included in a research and development action plan. The logic behind this strategy was based on the observation that end-users of the same materials are from different industry sectors. Consequently, the MATVAL team conducted case studies to identify best practices that can be advantageous when designing research and funding models for industrial or business innovation. Full implementation of A4M through MATVAL is expected to guarantee effective implementation of future research and innovation initiatives on nanostructured and nano-enabled materials. The project findings will benefit a plethora of industrial sectors addressing some of the most important issues in the working relationships between industry and academia.