Commission allocates 150 million euro to development of new products and materials
The European Commission has consigned 150 million euro to research projects following the third call for proposals und the Fifth Framework Programme's Competitive and Sustainable Growth programme The financial support will assist the development of new products, process and materials in 81 projects, involving more than 1000 partners. The development of new materials should improve quality of life, safety and reliability, whilst new products with increased functionality and new technologies will ensure sustainability, cost-effectiveness and efficient use of resources. The integration of manufactured products and services into a single system from design and production, through service until end of life is a major priority, which will contribute to the objective of sustainable development. Pre-accession countries are becoming more involved in the Commission's programmes, with participation in this call being higher than ever before. High-tech SMEs are also beginning to participate more fully in the programme, although overall, there are fewer SMEs taking part in projects under this call. The selected projects combine different disciplines and the Commission hopes that they reflect a systemic approach, which they are trying to promote through the Framework Programme. Projects currently under negotiation include an adhesive developed from marine organisms, which could offer an alternative to painful and traditional wound closure devices, the development of polymer components for electronics, a toolkit for industry enabling new product-services to be analysed with regard to design and implementation, social and environmental impact and consumer acceptance. Five projects will also be involved in the ELIMA cluster, which will develop a system for eco-efficient management and acquisition of product life cycle data by closing the information loop in the different phases of the product life cycle.