On the 22nd of May the Smart CHEM summit 2018 attracted over 200 participants into the new Visitor and Innovation Centre Joki in Turku, Finland. The participants from over 100 organizations active in bioeconomy and located in eight different European countries took the chance to discuss and develop new possibilities of the bio-based and circular industry. Important topics like plastic recycling, wood-based feedstocks for renewable products and bio-based business building were addressed in presentations held by start-ups, multinational companies and service providers. A very informative talk on the development of bio- and circular economy was given by Sirpa Pietikäinen, a member of the European Parliament. The audience enriched the presentations with inspiring questions and discussions.
The event was also attended by seven partners from the BBI JU project BiOPEN, who used the summit and the unique set of stakeholders active in the bio-based industry to validate one out of five perspective studies conducted in the framework of the project. Patrizia Circelli, the project coordinator and senior innovation manager at PNO, Italy, presented the project and the recently published BiOPEN (Open-innovation Platform) platform to the audience. Anthanassios Nikolakopulos, a BiOPEN partner, from the National Technical University of Athens moderated a BiOPEN workshop at the IBC Finland HACKATON on the perspective study on biochemicals from wood based feedstocks. In short discussion rounds the participants rotated through different questions and talked about which feedstocks are available, how to gain and produce intermediate and end-products and which conditions and requirements – chemically, economically and politically – are needed for a sustainable usage of wood-based feedstocks.
The Smart CHEM summit 2018 and IBC Finland HACKATON/ BiOpen WORKSHOP were finished by an amazing closing event in the old Aboa Vetus Ars Nova museum of Turku, where a diner with finish specialities was given between the exhibits. The project team of BiOPEN spent their evening together, networking and refining project ideas for Europe’s bioeconomy.
The BIOPEN Project
The BiOPEN project is a CSA project funded under BBI JU and coordinated by Ciaotech (PNO Group B.V.), Italy. The consortium involves 9 partners from seven EU countries (Italy, Belgium, Finland, Germany, Greece, The Netherlands, and Poland) and is highly specialized in the bio-based industry. It comprises five European bio-based clusters (Bioeconomy Cluster, Biobased Delta, CLIB2021, Smart Chemistry Park operated by Turku Science Park, West Pomeranian Chemical Cluster Green Chemistry), three open innovation expert companies (Ciaotech, Europe Unlimited, Innovation Engineering), and one research centre (National Technical University of Athens). The project partners will reach a large number of stakeholders and involve them actively through workshops, direct support to find collaboration partners or co-funding and online matchmaking. They will also deliver five perspective studies on new bio-based products and markets, encompassing both downstream sectors and brand owners. This project has received funding from the Bio Based Industries Joint Undertaking under the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No. 745719.
Contact details
BioEconomy Cluster, Germany
Contact: Steffen Ullmann MA, steffen.ullmann@bioeconomy.de (www.bioeconomy.de)
Biobased Delta, The Netherlands
Contact: Dr. Ir. Willem Sederel, willem.sederel@biobaseddelta.nl (www.biobaseddelta.nl)
Ciaotech, Italy (Coordinator)
Contact: Patrizia Circelli, p.circelli@ciaotech.com (www.ciaotech.com)
CLIB2021, Germany, is the competence network for industrial biotechnology with a strong base in the German Federal State of NRW and an extensive national and international network. The cluster has around 100 members from academia, small and medium sized enterprises and the chemical industry.
Contact: Dr. Sarah Refai, refai@clib2021.de (www.clib2021.com)
Europe Unlimited, Belgium
Contact: Youssef Sabbah, youssef@e-unlimited.com (www.e-unlimited.com)
Innovation Engineering, Italy.
Contact: Valeria Marino, v.marino@innovationengineering.eu (www.innovationengineering.eu)
National Technical University of Athens (NTUA), Greece
Contact: Prof Antonios Kokosis, akokossis@mail.ntua.gr (ipsen.ntua.gr)
Smart Chemistry Park, Turku Science Park Ltd, Finland, is an innovation platform and a cluster for startups and SMEs within the fields of process chemistry and technology. Smart Chemistry Park in operated by Turku Science Park Ltd. It offers for bio economy companies laboratory, pilot and office spaces, as well as a broad network with the industry, universities and public sector.
Contact: Reeta Huhtinen, reeta.huhtinen@turkubusinessregion.com (http://www.smartchemistrypark.com; http://www.turkubusinessregion.com)
The Association West Pomeranian Chemical Cluster “Green Chemistry”, Poland
Contact: Marcin Krawczyk, marcin@zielonachemia.eu (www.zielonachemia.eu)
BiOPEN has received funding from the Bio Based Industries Joint Undertaking under the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No. 745719.
BBI JU
Biobased Industries Joint Undertaking. https://www.bbi-europe.eu/
BiOPEN is coordinated by
Ciaotech, Member of PNO Group. Contact: Patrizia Circelli, p.circelli@ciaotech.com
BiOPEN website
www.biopen-project.eu
BiOPEN has received funding from the Bio Based Industries Joint Undertaking under the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No. 745719.
BBI JU
Biobased Industries Joint Undertaking. https://www.bbi-europe.eu/
BiOPEN is coordinated by
Ciaotech, Member of PNO Group. Contact: Patrizia Circelli, p.circelli@ciaotech.com
BiOPEN website
www.biopen-project.eu
