Its main objective is to give support for business associations (clusters) formed by SMEs, aiming to innovation and knowledge exchange. Furthermore, it aims to detect innovation opportunities in the main fields of economic activities of the region through a network of professionals working as a think tank.

The Regional Ministry has invested 5,6 million Euro in this initiative that hasgrown in presence since 2006 from the initial 15 to 23 sectors today.

The I-Creo network has been able to generate 650 innovation opportunities for SMEs of the region, which in their turn have articulated the participation of enterprises in 900 national and international projects after 2.500 direct contacts.

Download the ideas for mainstreaming here.

Apart from the good practice descrition, the catalogue also contains a judgement on the transferability of the practices.

The practices are now available here:  Mini Europe good practice catalogue update May 2011

“The moment is good” said Ismael Abel Vallés, expert in Innovation and Entrepreneurship, as “the actual crisis and economic situation forces everyone to find out new solutions” and moreover “ the commitment of our policy makers is very high”. Valencia region is in fact planning, on one hand, to structure a fund to sustain innovative enterprises and, on the other, to assess the ongoing industrial clusters in order to select the new regional priorities.

Veneto and Valencia share similar economic systems: high number of micro companies, traditional manufacture sectors,  low rate of investment in research, incremental innovation. This was also why the Veneto Region decided to structure a support system to facilitate the credit access (“financial engineering” programme) in particular to SMEs and to foster the investments in research and innovation. The financial aid in fact concerns only investment in industrial research, organisational innovation, cooperative research (also in collaboration with Universities and Innovation Centres) and technology transfer. The programme includes three synergic tools: revolving soft loans, guarantee system, venture capital fund. The “Financial Engineering” programme is an efficient system because “it is consistent in time as the financial resources are reinvested in the fund and then keep available for more companies” said Michele Pelloso, Director of the Industry Department at the Veneto Region, and “ the private and public partnership multiplies the effect, sharing at the same time the investment risk ”.

In this system an important role is also played by the Confidi, which, as pointed out by Marco Ronconi, in charge of the business area in Neafidi, “are private consortia, acting as intermediaries among the banks and the companies, giving advices, coaching entrepreneurs and providing the necessary guarantees”.  Another way to overcome the dimensional barrier is also enhancing the cooperation among SMEs.

This is also the aim of the “Clusters programme” currently running in the Veneto Region. Pier Antonio Nicoletti, in charge of the District Office at the Veneto Region, introduced to the Spanish delegation the main features of the “District Act” as well as the annual calls to support the Venetian clusters.

Together with the positive aspects of the programme also the weaknesses were arisen and then discussed; in particular the issue of monitoring and assessing the clusters. The Valencia Region is tackling just in this period this topic and a methodology is on process. Maybe the next time will be the turn of the Veneto Region to import practices from Valencia!

The practice consists on the contract by the enterprise of technological technical assistance for an amount of up to €6,000 in a matter that would imply the acquiring of new knowledge needed for the innovation of a product, process or service.
The technical assistance shall be given by an authorized service provider centre (these are those included recognized by the Spanish Government as an ‘Innovation and Technology Centre’, and that have applied to IMPIVA to become an authorised provider.