1. Building upon Regional Smart Specialisation and Interregional Cooperation
Along Value Chains
Jena, 11 Nov. 2016
Valentina PINNA
Lombardy Region
Vanguard Coordination Group

2. What is the Vanguard Initiative?
Smart Specialisation
as coordination principle
Alliance of 30 EU regions
striving for industrial modernisation, competitiveness and internationalisation of
European value chains

3. What is the Vanguard Initiative?
A political initiative of European regions applying smart specialisation as a strategic coordination principle in EU Innovation and Industrial Policy to promote new growth based on bottom-up regional dynamics.
A framework for collaboration with the EC, mapping cooperation potential of regional eco-systems , matching partners, co-investing in demonstrators and pilots for emerging and transforming industries (Smart Specialisation Platforms).
A methodology to leverage the entrepreneurial dynamics of regional partnerships and clusters by combining support instruments at all policy levels (Multilevel Synergies).

4. MEMBERS Asturias Baden-Württemberg Basque Country Cantabria Catalonia
Dalarna
East-Netherlands
Emilia-Romagna
Flanders
Galicia
Ile-de-France
Lombardy
Malopolska
Navarra
Nord-Pas de Calais
Norte
North Rhine-Westphalia
Pays de la loire
Ostrobothnia
Randstad Region
Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
Saxony
Scotland
Skåne
South-Denmark
South-Netherlands
Tampere Region
Upper Austria
Wales
Wallonia

5. Smart Specialisation on the European Agenda
“…. the Commission proposes to Member States to combine regional and industrial policy tools to create Smart Specialisation Platforms to help regions roll out smart specialisation programmes by facilitating contacts between firms and clusters, enabling access to the innovative technologies
and market opportunities.” EC Communication ‘For a European Industrial Renaissance’,
22 January 2014
“ … smart specialisation should be promoted at all levels, including through the efficient use of public investment in research. This will facilitate contacts between firms and clusters and improve access to innovative technologies.” Conclusions of the European Council, March 2014
Mainstreaming of smart specialisation as key principle for efficient and effective innovation and industrial policies, facilitated by interregional cooperation.

6. The political commitment
Engagement for a European Industrial Rennaissance
Letter to the Council
Jan. 2014
The Milan Declaration
Nov. 2014

7. Key features of the Vanguard Initiative
Strong political commitment and ambition
Interregional cooperation based on S3
Multilevel: collaboration between regional authorities, clusters, business, knowledge institutes
Speed up the market uptake of innovative technologies/ solutions
Exploring and facilitating Public-Private investment and co-funding possibilities
Structured dialogue with EU institutions
Bottom up

8. Vanguard cooperation framework
Interregional cooperation with a strong operational orientation
Brussels based coordination of the network
Clusters and PPP
Smart Specialisation Platform on Industry Modernisation

10. Vanguard core activities: the Pilots
Currently 5 thematic pilots:
Nano-enabled products,
Efficient and Sustainable Manufacturing,
3D-Printing,
ADMA for Energy related applications in harsh environments
Bioeconomy
Challenge driven or technology driven pilot

11. Features of the Pilot Projects
What: To explore opportunities for developing
interregional joint-demonstration and co investment
Why: to accelerate industrial uptake of innovative solutions and market development for existing and emerging industries with competitive and value added products
How: Developing concrete demo cases within the pilots
Who: Clusters, mobilising companies and knowledge institutes
Validation criteria for democases:
- Demonstration projects (>TRL 5)
- Business involvement
- European dimension of the value chain
- Added-value of joint demonstration

12. Vanguard Initiative methodology
Launch of new ventures / start - ups
New value chains to bring research results to the market
TRL 9
COMMERCIALISE
UPSCALE
Networked demonstration
(Joint Demonstration Initiatives)
Pilot lines and first of a kind factories
TRL 6 –
DEMONSTRATE
Matching events for complementary partners
Project development for new value chains
CONNECT
Scoping paper
(common vision and methodology)
Identifying lead regions
Mapping questionnaire (potential/gaps)
Identifying lead-actors
(capability, capacity, opportunity)
LEARN

13. Five Pilots and multiple democases
Pilot Project
Lead Regions
Democases 1
BIO - economy
Interregional cooperation on innovative use of non - food biomass
Lombardy
Randstad/ South Holland Region
Biobased aromatics
Lignocellulose refinery: European value chains for second-generation sugar and lignin
Turning (waste) gas into value
Biogas beyond energy
Aviation biofuel
High value food and feed from agro-food waste 2
Efficient and Sustainable Manufacturing (ESM)
Catalonia
De- and Remanufacturing
Adaptive & intelligent Manufacturing
Advanced surface & coating Manufacturing
Digital and Virtual Manufacturing
Energy and Environmentally Efficient Manufacturing

14. Pilot and demo cases Pilot Project Lead regions Democases 3
High performance production through 3D-printing
Flanders
Norte
South-Netherlands
Multi-materials components by hybrid 3D-printing manufacturing.
Metal products 3D-Printing for automotive components, tools and moulds for large (>2500 mm), medium and small complex parts
Machine, tooling and complex parts
Additive subtractive high precision & high finish pilot production hubs.
Customised consumer goods in creative industries
Adding a dimension to 2D-printed textiles
3D-printing in health-care
3D-printed smart bike

15. Pilot and demo cases Pilot Project Lead regions Democases 4
Advanced Manufacturing for energy applications in harsh environments
Basque Country
Scotland
Real condition testing of new
materials for offshore
Cost-effective power transfer
Optimised corrosion management, including modelling, sensing and design

16. Pilots and Demo cases 5 Pilot Project Lead regions Democases
New Nano – Enabled Products
Skåne
Tampere
Nano wires for ICT and energy applications
Manufacturing nano-enabled microsystems
Medtech
Printed nano-electronics: integrated energy harvesting/ cross-technology application platform
Industrial pilot production of nanomaterials establishing new value chains

17. Vanguard Initiative: exemple from ESM Pilot Process toward business planning & investment

18. 27 demo cases at different maturity level
Differtent Maturity Level in Demo cases
LEARN
CONNECT
DEMONSTRATE
COMMERCIALISE
5 pilots:
27 demo cases at different maturity level
3D-printing
UPSCALE
Bio-economy
ADMA-Energy
2 Demo cases developed a business plan and started the dialogue with the EIB
Nano- technology
ESM

19. EXEMPLE from ESM Pilot: Application Domain De - Re Manufacturing
The main goal of the pilot is to integrate a multidisciplinary set of advanced and innovative enabling technologies using regional smart specialization.
Specific objective: to offer demo services to European end-users (mainly manufacturing companies) in order to solve specific sustainability- oriented problems related to their products or processes.

20. Geographic Configuration and Regional Specialization
within the demo case
Mechanical remanufacturing and in-use product monitoring in the automotive industry.
Laser-based remanufacturing of the mechanical parts in large machinery.
Tampere
Tampere
Tampere
Scotland
Scotland
Re-use of composites by thermal processes from aeronautic sector and wind energy system. Recovery and re-use of metal scrap by plasma process.
Re-production of steel sheets by Hydroforming and CNC-bulk metal forming.
Norte
Saxony
Saxony
Basque Country
Lombardy
Saxony
Basque Country
Lombardy
Sustainable demanufacturing processes including human-robot cooperation for disassembly, electronics remanufacturing, key-metals and composite recovery and re-use by mechanical processes, for the automotive and electronics industry.
Norte
Robotics handling systems supporting disassembly and reassembly operations in the automotive industry
Norte
Scotland
Vanguard Pilot Network on De- and Remanufacturing

21. Parameters of the business model
A detailed analysis of identified Sectorial Use Cases, with industrial associated partners and several regions involved.
For each specific Use Case, a business case has been detailed including a business plan for the industrial uptake of the developed solutions.
Regional/Cross-Regional Use Case
Involved Regions
Composite Recovery from Wind Energy System
Basque Countries, Saxony, Lombardy, Tampere
Heavy machinery components remanufacturing
Tampere, Basque Countries, Lombardy, Saxony
Automotive parts remanufacturing
Scotland, Lombardy, Saxony, Norte
High-value TLC systems and Electronics Recovery
Lombardy, Tampere
Metal components reprocessing
Saxony, Tampere, Lombardy
Remanufacturing of e-motors
Saxony, Lombardy, Norte

22. Business Model of the Pilot Network
Procedure for Business Model development

23. Business Model of the Pilot Network
This pilot network is designed to be a “generator” of new industrial pilots for European circular economy solutions.

24. Vanguard pilots contribution to the KETs agenda
Demonstrators and pilot lines address Advanced Manufacturing Technologies and other cross-cutting KETs. They contribute to overcome the Valley of death
Technology push:
Demonstrators will be built based on research capabilities and results
Market pull:
Demonstrators will be driven by industry and market applications
Vanguard demonstrators and pilot lines

25. Vanguard Initiative structure and governance
Political level
Operational level
Leading by example
Structured dialogue with
EC and JRC
Annual Meetings of Political leaders (Brussels, Jan 2014 – Milan, Nov 2015, Brussels, Feb 2016) Innovation Policy Directors Meetings (Skane Spring2014, Edinburgh, Autumn 2015, Brussels, Nov )
Reg. Representatives (30 regions) Coordination Group (5 regions) Chair Secretariat Task Groups: - Policy Influencing - Funding synergies..
Vanguard Pilot Monitoring -
Pilot SSP + Pilot projects
&
Demo cases
Regional Public Private Partnerships / Cluster platforms Companies and innovation actors in the regions
Engaging: Policy Officers Experts Lead-companies
S3 Platform on Industrial Modernisation

26. Vanguard Initiative: pilot structure and governance
Demo Case
Concrete Business Plans
Structured dialogue with
EC , JRC, EIB
2-3
Leading Regions
Demo Case leaders Steering Group
- Meetings at
demo case level
- Plenary Meetings
at pilot level
Thematic Smart Specialisation Platforms
Regional Public Private Partnerships / Cluster platforms Companies and innovation actors in the regions
Engaging: Policy Officers Experts Lead-companies
S3 Platform on Industrial Modernisation

27. Vanguard Initiative Match Making event – February 2016
VIDEO (voice of companies): 3min 23
1min 26

28. Mainstreaming of the Vanguard Methodology

29. Conclusion
The Vanguard Initiative is a clear example of the power of interregional cooperation and of the added value that can be achieved if regional innovation ecosystems are connected together.

30. @VI_Brussels #Vanguardinitiative

31. Thank you for your attention!
Valentina PINNA