SMEs and Research - European Commission - Europa

esearch, not just in niche areas that the large companies are unwilling to undertake. Small
high-tech businesses tend to be one of the most important starting points for future large
businesses and emerging economic sectors. SMEs have an increasing role in ensuring that
Europe becomes a technology trendsetter across all sectors, from environmental protection
to occupational health to trade. As such, the European Commission has placed great import on
the continued success and vitality of SMEs, and has tailored specific funding schemes to fit their
needs. Three such schemes are the CRAFT/Co-operative Research programme,
the Collective Research programme and the Economic and Technological
Intelligence (ETI) support actions.
To gain insight into the effects these schemes have upon SMEs and research institutions, DG
Research commissioned an impact assessment of the way these schemes affected those who
have taken part. This is the first time such an appraisal of SME-specific schemes has been
conducted, and from it we can better understand how SMEs benefit while also identifying
areas that merit fine-tuning. In a nutshell, each scheme has received an enthusiastic response,
and participants have testified that these funding programmes are facilitating research initiatives
that wouldn’t otherwise have been undertaken. This booklet is designed to highlight the main
findings of the impact assessment, and present a real life snapshot of the schemes through
individual case studies.
Through each case study we are able to perceive how the idea for a particular project
originated, how a consortium coalesced around the idea, executed their innovative solution
and, finally, the impact the project had on the participants and the market they operate within.
Six case studies have been chosen – three Co-operative projects, two
Collective projects and one ETI action – to illustrate project life
cycles from beginning to end.
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