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The PCB joins a European project to promote the activities of biotech spin-offs in the VI Framework Programme

By 18 June 2004November 18th, 2020No Comments
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 18.06.2004

The PCB joins a European project to promote the activities of biotech spin-offs in the VI Framework Programme

The PCB has joined the Natibs project (New approaches and tools for incubated biotech SMEs), developed in the VI Framework Programme (VI FP) of the European Union. The project intends to define and develop new initiatives in order to incorporate newly founded biotech and technological companies and spin-offs in the VI FP. The objective is to achieve that these companies participate in the 15% of the programme devotes to this end. Natibs also aims to increase innovation in these spin-offs, thereby fostering their development and capacity.

The Natibs project, which was established in a meeting in Paris on 24 and 25 May and falls within the VI FP priority area of “Structuring the European Research Area”, will run for thirty months and has been assigned a total budget of more than 2.4 million Euros. Nine organisations, mainly bioincubators, from six countries are involved (France, Germany, Spain, Sweden, Estonia and Israel).

By performing technology audits in the biotech spin-offs, the project will analyze their needs in order to include them in the most appropriate structures of the VI FP. These companies, whose activities are based mainly on research, have the most adequate characteristics to be included in this FP; however, they are unable to devote human resources to FP activities because of the lack of financial support, among others.

To promote this participation, the project will foster the establishment of groups or clusters of biotech companies with similar innovation needs. It will also stimulate transregional cooperation between them and the development of business incubator networks. Furthermore, to link the VI FP instruments with biotech spin-offs, but always in function of their needs and possibilities, Natibs will address the technological and know-how requirements of the entities and will study future networks of excellence and integrated projects.

The PCB also participates in the VI FP through several projects related to the priority areas of “Health sciences, genomics and biotechnology for health” and “Nanotechnologies”.