I-SITE laureates meet in Biarritz

I-SITE Laureates Meet in Biarritz

03/18/2019

The goal of the “Investments for the future” government programs (PIA) is to involve all university sites in the fight against territorial inequalities, develop collective ambition by creating research networks and bring innovation to the general public.

The University of Pau and Pays de l'Adour (UPPA) has, in this framework, been labeled I-SITE (Initiative Science / Innovation / Territories / Economy) in March 2017 for its project Solutions for Energy and the Environment (E2S).

On Wednesday, March 6, 2019, under the patronage of the city of Biarritz, UPPA brought together for the first time the 9 national initiatives of excellence I-SITE, around the theme “Partnerships and R&D Strategies - Innovation-Valorization-Transfer within Universities labeled I-Site.”

This meeting was organized around three panels:

• partnerships within I-SITEs ;
• the vision of industrial partners, their objectives, their strategies;
• the international approach.

The presentations and discussions addressed many issues such as cooperation with the industrial world and in particular partnerships with SMEs, the definition and implementation of agile and sustainable tools for more dynamic partnerships, the education of doctoral students, who need to deepen their business culture, and stronger support in the creation of start-ups.

During these discussions, it was noted that the structuring of partnership research within the 9 I-SITEs made it possible to better develop the scientific potential of the institutions.

However, for the companies attending, whether they are large groups such as Total, Solvay or Enedis, an intermediate-sized company such as Terég,a or SMEs such as Emac and M2I, the I-SITE label has not necessarily intensified their research collaborations with the academic world. They still use traditional channels: Cifre theses, UMRs, joint laboratories, chairs, etc., but it has changed their view of institutions and the way they approach collaboration in the medium to long term by having a common language and shared objectives.

Companies appreciate the responsiveness of these accredited universities, which are able to meet their expectations. For example, the University has been able to adapt to some of their needs by opening instrumental platforms (such as UPPA TECH at UPPA) and business reception offices (“Innovation Center” at the University of Nantes, “Liaison Office” at UPPA, etc.), which helps strengthen local ties.

The I-SITEs constitute an innovation ecosystem that promotes territorial excellence through the mobilization of local authorities and all socio-economic players. They now need to articulate research in order to market more technologies or products with a greater economic value.

This first meeting ended with the project to create a network of I-SITEs to continue the exchanges initiated on March 6 and share good practices.