Implementation
In Brandenburg, the concept of innovation system is used to indicate the implementation and future development of the federal innovation policy.
Summary of Brandenburg's innovation system.
The concept includes two main issues. At first it sets a frame for politics, administration, and science. Secondly it addresses entrepreneurs and investors directly by demonstrating the region’s potential. In a middle-term view, Brandenburg’s strategy to complement the regional innovation system aims to transform the business structure of the Capital Region into an innovative and technology-oriented and sustainable business landscape.
Key players within Brandenburg's innovation system are the following partnering organisations (among others):
Brandenburg Economic Development Board (ZukunftsAgentur Brandenburg GmbH, ZAB) is the main player in regional innovation (evaluation of regional R&D funds, cluster initiatives etc.). As a One-Stop-Agency the Brandenburg Economic Development Board provides a large number of services for economic enhancement of the region. Beside consultancy and promotion for innovative and technology-oriented entrepreneurs, investors and founders of businesses, the agency accompanies medium-sized enterprises from idea to business, fosters technology-transfer, participates in specific national and international fairs, informs about subsidies and cares for the commercialisation of patents. A new department, the Centre for Entrepreneurship, Innovation and Networks was established in 2002 with the objective to pool and coordinate the activities technology transfer. The access of small and medium-sized enterprises to the technology and innovation potentials of Brandenburg’s research institutes, universities and colleges shall be significantly improved in that way. ZAB closely cooperates in this area with the Ministry for Economy and European Affairs of the State of Brandenburg, the Brandenburg Foundation of Technology, and with iq Brandenburg (cf. below).
The purpose of the Technologiestiftung Brandenburg (Foundation of Technology) is to support science and research especially in branches of innovative technologies. The foundation is deeply involved in the implementation of the innovation concept. Central functions are to organize and execute regional events (e.g. technology-transfer-award), workshops and fairs for the specific technology-branches and technology-transfer.
The Investment Bank Brandenburg (ILB) offers a wide spectrum of loan programs that enable founder of new business and SME’s investing in future-technology, to launch new products as well as enable access to export-markets. Beside public institutions (ILB, BC), private investors like Peppermint Financial Partners and Gradus Venture GmbH offer venture capital participations and consulting. Modern innovation policy requires new and appropriate financial instruments and therefore optimal cooperation and adjustment between public and private capital provider.
iq brandenburg is a network of the technology-transfer offices at regional universities and other strategic locations in Brandeburg: The network provides an interface between re-search and economy, especially endeavours aiming at small and medium-sized enterprises. It offers entrepreneurs a direct and immediate access to research results, information on state of the art of science, technology and intellectual property rights as well as the initiation of R&D projects. The large transfer platform enables enterprises to initiate specific cooperations with Brandenburg’s universities and research institutions.