Norbert K. Borowy Press and Public Relations
Leibniz Institute for Animal Biology (FBN)
Five Leibniz Institutes in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania – including the INP Greifswald – are developing an innovative structure for the joint use of cross-institutional services for knowledge and technology transfer in regional networks. This initiative is being funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) with 1.5 million euros over a period of three years.
New, future-proof employment opportunities and greater added value are created when research results lead to innovations through knowledge and technology transfer. The structures required for this vary greatly from region to region in Germany – they depend, among other things, on the existing economic strength and the focus of the research fields. For several years now, numerous efforts have been made to promote the transfer of research into companies, even in so-called structurally weak regions. Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania is the least densely populated state in Germany, with the local economy spread across numerous smaller centres throughout the state. The research landscape is very well developed, but heterogeneous in terms of the focus of its research fields. This makes it an interesting location for developing new concepts for knowledge and technology transfer.
The project "Model for cross-institutional services for knowledge and technology transfer in regional networks", funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) from 1 July 2017, aims to answer the question of how cooperation between research institutions with different areas of expertise can be organised in a legally compliant manner in order to carry out knowledge and technology transfer successfully and cost-efficiently without additional superordinate structures. The chosen approach is based on the definition, design and evaluation of so-called "service modules" that are made available to the network partners to promote their own transfer activities.Each of the five partners in the network is responsible for developing a service module such as "opening up new markets", "providing research infrastructure", "compliance", "knowledge transfer to schools to promote young talent" or "alumni networks for strategic orientation". During a test phase, the prototype performance modules will be used in day-to-day business and examined for their suitability. In addition to a technical evaluation, a legally compliant procedure for balancing performance between the network partners will be developed.
The five Leibniz Institutes from Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania that will explore the possibilities of an innovative structure for efficient and legally compliant cooperation over the next three years are the Leibniz Institute for Farm Animal Biology (FBN) in Dummerstorf, the Leibniz Institute for Atmospheric Physics at the University of Rostock (IAP) in Kühlungsborn, the Leibniz Institute for Plasma Science and Technology (INP) in Greifswald, the Leibniz Institute for Baltic Sea Research Warnemünde (IOW) and the Leibniz Institute for Catalysis (LIKAT) in Rostock.
