MATCH Materials Newsletter published

The latest newsletter of the Horizon 2020 MATCH project was published at the end of December.  The MATCH project aims to strengthen and deepen the Alliance4Materials strategy by building a broad stakeholder network.

This third issue of the newsletter has a focus on Europe’s strategy for metallurgy, profiles open R&D materials company FIMECC Ltd, explores Additive Manufacturing for Metallurgy in Austria, and the describes the production of porous copper for use in applications such as water purification amongst much more. You can download and subscribe to the MATCH newsletters here.

Metallurgy is a core activity underpinning primary metal production, processing and reuse and recycling of metallic materials. In total these activities account for 46% of total manufacturing value and some 11% of GDP in the EU. The lead newsletter article features the EU roadmap ‘Metallurgy made in and for Europe’ outlining its objectives and main recommendations.

Material objectives
One of the key objectives of MATCH is to enable improved connectivity between scientific creativity represented by academia and European enterprises focusing on market needs. The European Commission has set an ambitious goal to re-industrialise Europe and to raise industry's share of EU GDP to 20% by 2020. Innovation in cross-cutting applications of advanced materials provides an excellent opportunity for Europe to reindustrialise and secure jobs.

Another important objective of MATCH is to promote the alignment of national and European materials research policies and funding. MATCH has the goal of creating a single interactive and informative platform for the international materials research community.

The project is coordinated by Italian Centro Sviluppo Materiali and the consortium consists of 18 partners from nine countries representing six related European Technology Platforms (including SusChem) and several major European material research organisations.

Material targets
MATCH focuses on four main targets, crucial for the promotion of European sustainable development and innovation actions. These are:

• The enlargement and improvement of the Materials network at EU level
• The multidisciplinary connection of Materials to a large number of fields relevant for European growth and where concerted management actions are needed
• The integration with existing and/or promotion of new Materials networks at National and Regional levels
• The integration of EU and national and regional networks in sustainable and effectively aligned network hubs

Through the MATCH project all organisations interested in materials research in Europe will have a single reference network through which to obtain information, contacts and guidance in an efficient and transparent way. Established and well-connected material research stakeholders will be able to intensify their activities and extend their collaborative activities at European level, realising the A4M concept for the “The Materials Common House”.

The project started in January 2015 and will continue until June 2017. MATCH is funded under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme. It follows on from the previous Alliance for Materials initiative, the MatVal project, in which SusChem was also an active partner.

MATCH for Materials

The latest newsletter of the MATCH Horizon 2020 project has been published.  The MATCH project was initiated to strengthen and deepen the Alliance4Materials strategy by building a broader stakeholder network. The project is coordinated by Italian Centro Sviluppo Materiali and the consortium consists of 18 partners from nine countries representing the six related European Technology Platforms (including SusChem) and several major European material research organisations.

This second issue of the newsletter highlights some recent European materials research and innovation news including features on research group activities, the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) Raw Materials initiative, and events. You can download and subscribe to the MATCH newsletter here.

Material foundation
The European Commission has set the ambitious goal to re-industrialise Europe and to raise industry's share of the GDP to 20% by 2020. Innovation in cross-cutting applications of advanced materials, including in the transportation, health care, energy and consumer goods sectors, provides an opportunity for Europe to reindustrialise and secure jobs. One of the key objectives of MATCH is to enable the connections between the scientific creativity represented by academia and European enterprises focusing on market needs.

Another important objective of MATCH is to promote the alignment of national and European materials research policies and funding. MATCH has the goal of creating a single interactive and informative platform for the international materials research community.

MATCH is pushing for the creation of a strong, sustainable, inclusive network where any European Materials players, whether from Industry, Research or academia, can feel comfortable and gain real value for their interests and expectations in respect of materials research, development and innovation. The MATCH partnership promotes the integration of concerted and strategic challenges of national, regional and European needs in the field.

Material targets 
MATCH focuses on four main targets, crucial for the promotion of European sustainable development and innovation actions. These are:

• The enlargement and improvement of the Materials network at EU level
• The multidisciplinary connection of Materials to a large number of fields relevant for European growth and where concerted management actions are needed
• The integration with existing and/or promotion of new Materials networks at National and Inter/Regional levels
• The integration of EU and national and regional networks in sustainable and effectively aligned network hubs

Through the MATCH project all organisations interested in materials research in Europe will have a single reference network through which to obtain information, contacts and guidance in an efficient and transparent way. Established and well-connected material research stakeholders will be able to intensify their activities and extend their collaborative activities at European level, realising the A4M concept for the “The Materials Common House”.

The project started in January 2015 and will continue for 30 months until June 2017. MATCH is funded under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme. It follows on from the previous Alliance4Materials initiative, the MatVal project, in which SusChem was also an active partner.

SusChem 2014 in Review

2014 was another great year for the European Technology Platform for Sustainable Chemistry: SusChem.  This year we celebrated our 10th anniversary with an extra special stakeholder event in Brussels. Over the past decade SusChem has inspired research and innovation projects worth well over one billion euros: the vast majority part-funded via the European Commission’s FP7 programme.

The launch of Horizon 2020 on 1 January 2014 saw SusChem proud to have inspired two major new public-private-partnerships (PPPs) that are already playing a major role in 2014 in delivering real competitive advantage for Europe via the new programme: the Sustainable Process Industry through Resource and Energy Efficiency (SPIRE) PPP and the Bio-based Industries (BBI) Joint Technology Initiative (JTI).

SusChem itself was also ‘quick off the blocks’ for Horizon 2020 by organising its first SusChem brokerage event on 31 January. The event attracted some 200 participants who heard about results from existing projects and started the process of initiating new consortia for the new Horizon 2020 calls.

On April 9 – 11 SusChem was at the Industrial Technologies 2014 event in Athens one of the highlights of the Greek Presidency of the European Union.

And on 6 May the European Commission gave the formal greenlight for the BBI JTI with the first calls for the Euros 3.7 billion joint venture announced on 9 July. Our other major PPP saw its second major call brokerage event on 23 May. The SPIRE Brokerage event was extremely successful and profiled its second wave of calls under Horizon 2020.

SusChem#10
June 11 and 12 saw the event of the year for SusChem - SusChem#10 - our 10th anniversary stakeholder event. To mark the occasion a series of videos were produced to celebrate our first decade.



At the June stakeholder meeting as well as celebrating our 10th birthday we discussed and augmented the new SusChem Strategic Innovation and Research Agenda (SIRA). This new agenda shows how the platform can help Europe to bridge the so-called ‘innovation valley of death’ and tackle some of the societal challenges addressed Horizon 2020.

You can access a series of seven videos produced around SusChem#10 to celebrate our achievements and look forward to the next ten years here on the SusChem YouTube channel.

Material innovation
At the end of September the SusChem FP7 project MatVal held its closing conference within the large LETS 2014 event in Bologna, Italy. SusChem and SPIRE were also featured in many other LETS 2014 sessions.

Bringing an exciting year to a very successful end SusChem had a big role in Knowledge for Innovation’s (K4I) Sixth European Innovation Summit at the European Parliament in Brussels from 17 - 20 November. As well has organising and participating in many of the conference sessions the SusChem stand in the exhibition area was a big hit with two 3D printing machines showing how chemistry is supporting the next industrial revolution: additive manufacturing.

A short video (below) gives a brief overview of SusChem’s involvement and the excitement generated at the event.



Great job!
When SusChem was established in 2004 the sustainable chemistry community in Europe faced a difficult task: to bring stakeholders in the chemical and the biotechnological industries, along with other important European industries, research organisations and academics together to formulate a strategy and a plan. This strategy and plan outlined how we could rejuvenate our industries through research and innovation and improve the competitiveness of our industries.

This was not an easy job, but together over the past decade we have shaped a lively, creative organisation, open for all interested stakeholders, that has made a huge impact.

But there is more to do. In early 2015 the full SIRA will be published setting out SusChem’s research and innovation priorities for the medium term under Horizon 2020 and other funding programmes. The document will add value to the societal, scientific and industrial debate in Europe and help all SusChem stakeholders to concentrate on the real challenges that we all face. Our work will be fully justified if we can simultaneously create jobs, improve the environment and generate greater economic success and well-being.

We look forward to working together to take SusChem to the next level in 2015.

MatVal: Concrete Actions from Closing Conference

On 30 September 2014 the MatVal FP7 project held its closing conference as part of the major European Commission LETS 2014 event in Bologna, Italy. The conference brought together policymakers, R&D experts, material manufacturers and end users under a unifying theme - 'Shaping the future of Europe’s Materials research and innovation through a value chain approach' - to explore how materials R&D in Europe can be more innovation focus, be clustered along the value chain and create strong partnerships in the overall European materials community.

Materials research and innovation is a technology area that affects almost every industrial sector. Starting in 2012, MatVal (a value chain approach to materials research & innovation) has worked to identify the success and failure factors in this area. This two-year FP7 project was initiated by the Alliance for Materials (A4M) that brings together major European Technology Platforms (industry-led) and materials research societies (Academia-led) involved in materials research and innovation activities in Europe.

Roadmap
Working initially with the technology platform’s roadmaps and the materials research agendas of different industry sectors it was clear that the value-chain concept was widely recognised and used and the integration of the manufacturing aspects for a material has to be an integral part of any materials research agenda. Other factors identified included the importance of regulations, the need for coherent long-term visions and road-maps (technology planning), and the rising importance of recycling issues.

The project has identified a number of key findings in materials research for innovation including some issues in the working relationships between industry and academia and how to resolve them. Aspects of public funding for materials research and innovation have also been identified; in particular the need for continuity of funding of projects. In addition there is a need to establish a ‘common house’ to continue the work of MatVal in facilitating interaction between industry and the materials research community in Europe.

Speaking at the conference, MatVal project co-ordinator Dr Marco Falzetti (above), Manager of EU Research Affairs at Centro Sviluppo Materiali, said: “this conference is the public closure event of the MatVal project and a crucial moment to discuss the achievements and the future actions needed to ensure the continuity of the groundwork laid for the construction of a unified policy on Materials R&D as real enabler of the European industrial renaissance, through its promotion of jobs, growth and competitiveness.”

Opening the conference Clara de la Torre (above) Director of Key Enabling Technologies (KETs) at the European Commission's DG Research and Innovation said that: "Advanced materials was one of the six key enabling technologies supported and promoted by the Commission that were essential for competitiveness and growth." She looked forward to MatVal's conclusions to reduce fragmentation of European research efforts and reduce resource waste and its suggestions for prioritisation of future projects.

Main findings
The main findings from the project were presented by Michal Basista (research aspects), Lutz Walter (innovation aspects) and SusChem co-ordinator Jacques Komornicki (the Strategic Report document).

One of the key findings in materials research for innovation relate to issues in the working relationships between industry and academia and how to resolve them. Aspects of public funding for materials research and innovation have also been identified - in particular the need for continuity of funding of projects. These findings support the need to establish a ‘common house’ to continue the work of MatVal in facilitating interaction between industry and the materials research community in Europe. A follow-on project is being formulated.

On the innovation side, it is recommended that high tech materials be supported through public funding on a continuous base – this is pulled directly by high-tech markets with an immediate need of these materials (e.g. aerospace) with the vision that other markets will benefit from these materials at a later stage. This can be facilitated by some efficient technology transfer structures.

For smart materials market needs, performance/cost ratios and time-to market are key success factors with strong collaboration within the value-chain vital. Manufacturing aspects are very important and public-private partnerships oriented towards value-chain innovation can offer good support.

The event was rounded up with a panel discussion moderated by SusChem Blog Editor Tim Reynolds involving Gernot Klotz of Cefic and SusChem, Fabrice Stassin of EMRI, Matteo Santin, President of the European Society for Biomaterials, Mike Clinch of LUXFER cylinders and Jean-Pierre Birat, General Secretary of the European Steel Technology Platform (ESTEP).

A comprehensive conclusions report from the project of the project will be published in the near future and will shape future European initiatives in materials research and innovation – a key enabler for sustainable competitive growth. For more information, please visit the MatVal website.

LETS contributions

SusChem and SPIRE were also featured in the main LETS (Leading Enabling Technologies for Societal Challenges) conference programme in Bologna.

Loredana Ghinea (above), executive director of A.SPIRE the industry body supporting the SPIRE PPP, spoke about this cross-sectorial initiative for resource and energy efficiency in the session on 'New industrial networks based on cross-cutting technologies.'

While Gernot Klotz (above, right) of SusChem made a number of contributions in his role as Chairman of the Horizon 2020 Advisory Group for Nanotechnologies, Advanced Materials, Biotechnology and Advanced Manufacturing and Processing (NMBP) including the session entitled on 'From science to market through FET (Future and Emerging Technologies), KET and more.'

Shaping the Future of Europe’s Materials Research & Innovation through a Value Chain Approach

To celebrate the end of a very successful FP7 project, the MatVal team will present its final findings and recommendations at its closing conference on September 30, 2014 in Bologna, Italy. The event will take place during the LETS (Leading Enabling Technologies for Societal Challenges) 2014 Conference organized by the European Commission and the Italian Presidency of the European Union. 

The LETS 2014 conference addresses how Key Enabling Technologies (KETs) can address the Societal Challenges facing Europe and bring about a new European Renaissance. The conference will focus on the potential use of nanotechnologies, advanced materials, advanced manufacturing, processing and biotechnology.

Closure and continuity
The Bologna MatVal workshop will be the public closure event of the MatVal project and a critical moment to discuss the achievements and the future actions Europe should take to ensure the continuity of the groundwork laid for the construction of a unified policy on Materials R&D. Specifically, Materials R&D as a real enabler of the European industrial renaissance through its promotion of jobs, growth and competitiveness. We believe this message is particularly relevant in the current transition from the old to new European legislature (EP and EU Commission). It is essential to ensure the continuity of dialogue between institutional representatives and the Materials community.

Gathering policymakers, R&D experts, material manufacturers and end users, the Bologna workshop will be an ideal place to hear about the key learnings from the MatVal project and an excellent forum to exchange and discuss ideas on how materials R&D in Europe can:

• shift from a heavy research focus to a more innovation focus, 
• be better clustered along the value chain, and  
• create strong partnerships in the overall European materials community.

There will also be an open floor interactive panel discussion, gathering experts from different industry sectors and leading materials experts, where participants can make suggestions on what needs to be done to shape a more successful path to innovating in the field of materials.

For a complete overview of the workshop, you can download the draft agenda here.

To register for the workshop or to get more information about this event, please email Jacques Komornicki, Cefic Innovation Manager.

What is MatVal?
MatVal (a value chain approach to materials research & innovation) is an EU-funded FP7 project which was started in 2012 by the Alliance for Materials (A4M). A4M connects the main European materials community organizations and is developing a common strategy to speed-up the implementation of innovation in materials. SusChem is a member of A4M.

We look forward to seeing you on 30 September in Bologna!

MatVal Cross Sectorial Workshop to Take Place in Brussels

MatVal, the SusChem-supported FP7 project is organizing a cross-sectorial workshop in Brussels on 26 March. The workshop will bring together a selection of experts to identify how innovation in materials research can help fulfil the converging needs of a wide variety of different industrial sectors.

The workshop will gather both industry actors and European policy-makers specializing in different technical areas that strongly rely on materials technology. These include: energy, construction, transport and the creative industries such as textile manufacturing and design. The experts will work together to explore where new approaches and new materials technologies that are used across different value-chains can benefit more than one sector.

This is an innovative approach to research and innovation in materials: cross-sectorial collaboration is the only way to help identify the key elements where innovation can deliver a holistic breakthrough, and it also creates a space for efficient sharing of resources and knowledge. This space, where the value chain approach is a guiding light, can be a fundamental cornerstone of the Alliance for Materials (A4M) “common house” that aims to bring together all the players of the Material research community in Europe.

The workshop is an invitation-only event.

What is MatVal?
Materials research and development is a technology area that affects almost every industrial sector. The achievement of effective coordination between different sectors, while maintaining their relative autonomy, interests and strategies is an essential condition to achieve the best and most effective use of the resources of the European materials research community.

The FP7 Project “Alliance for Materials – A value chain approach to materials research and innovation” - MatVal for short - was initiated by A4M: the grouping of European Technology Platforms (ETPs), including SusChem, involved in materials research and innovation as well as other key materials organisations representing research societies and networks of excellence. The project is also supported by more than 20 external partners with prominent reputations in materials.

MatVal was launched at a conference in Rome in February 2013. The two-year, €1.3 million project aims to integrate requirements, ideas and solutions in materials across sectors to create synergies and develop a truly coordinated and competitive materials R&D programme for Europe. A series of short video interviews with speakers from the launch conference can be viewed here.

The value chain approach is a key element of the thinking behind MatVal. Working along value chains can drive synergistic benefits through a common path which integrates players, resources and strategies starting from fundamental aspects of materials science up to the industrial systems that turn materials into valuable products

For more information on SusChem and chemical industry involvement in MatVal and A4M, please contact SusChem Innovation Manager Jacques Komornicki at Cefic.

MatVal Website is Online

Today the website of the FP7 Project “Alliance for Materials – A value chain approach to materials research and innovation” - MatVal for short - has gone online. The website is the roof of the Alliance for Materials “common house” where to bring together all the players of the Material community in Europe. It is the portal that can contribute to answer questions on materials in Europe as well as about the scope and goals of the MatVal projects.

The new website features relevant content on new EU policies on materials, on the ideas of innovation and value-chain are how deeply interconnected they are. The interactive design of the website will enable you to easily learn more: What are the priorities in the sector in the new EU Research and Innovation framework, Horizon 2020? What programs have been developed to tackle the challenges of new and innovative materials? All these and other queries are answered on the website.

On top of all these idea, the website explores the application of some of these key concepts in different fields: you can read about examples of good practices in the materials communities dedicated to energy and construction. More dossiers will come along.  

The MatVal website is also a portal for new initiatives! Have a look at the News on upcoming events and initiatives. And if you really want to delve in some issues or events, you can check the Focus On: where you can find extensive description of the most important initiatives, events and activities.

What is MatVal?

Materials research & development is a technology area that affects almost every industrial sector. The achievement of effective coordination between different sectors, while maintaining their relative autonomy, interests and strategies is an essential condition to achieve the best and most effective use of community resources.

Guided by this principle in 2010 a group of European Technology Platforms with strong materials agendas (EuMaT, Textiles and Clothing, SusChem, Manufuture, Steel Technology and Sustainable Mineral Resources) came together to create Alliance for Materials (A4M).

A4M intends to enter into its full implementation phase by creating the conditions for a significant enlargement of the network. Its goal is to include the other sector-oriented European Technology Platforms who are active along different value chains, while in parallel bringing together other relevant players in the European Materials Community to achieve a real integration of voices and visions.

To reach its goal, A4m has started the MatVal project. MatVal is part of the European Commission FP7projects. It targets materials innovation implementation through value chain collaboration and sharing ideas/visions from the European materials community.

The project brings together all key European Technology Platforms, including SusChem, involved in materials research and innovation as well as other key materials organisations representing research societies and networks of excellence. The project is also supported by more than 20 external partners with prominent reputations in materials.

MatVal makes debut in Rome

MatVal, the new SusChem-supported FP7 project, was launched at a conference in Rome on 7 and 8 February. The two-year, €1.3 million project aims to integrate requirements, ideas and solutions in materials across sectors to create synergies and develop a truly coordinated and competitive materials R&D programme for Europe.

The Rome event brought together partners in the Alliance for Materials (A4M), policymakers, R&D experts, material manufacturers and end-users.

The first day set the scene with descriptions of the European materials research, development and innovation (R&D&I) landscape with a specific focus on the forthcoming Horizon 2020 programme.

Value chain
The value chain approach is a key element of the thinking behind MatVal. Working along value chains can drive synergistic benefits through a common path which integrates players, resources and strategies starting from fundamental aspects of materials science up to the industrial systems that turn materials into valuable products.

How SusChem will contribute to this value chain approach to materials R&D&I was presented by Jacques Komornicki, Innovation Manager at Cefic. Jacques described SusChem’s links with a portfolio of European research and innovation initiatives including the Key Enabling Technologies policy area, to European Innovation Partnerships (EIPs) on Water and Raw Materials, and Public-Private-Partnerships (PPPs) such as SPIRE and BRIDGE 2020: all of which require sustainable materials development input.

Jacques also outlined specific SusChem inputs to the MatVal programme. For work package two (Material Stakeholders) and work package four (Boosting Research) SusChem will be reviewing its own Materials Implementation Action Plan (IAP - see previous article) with a view to value chain application. As part of work package three (Common Elements between ETPs) and work package five (Boosting Innovation) SusChem’s involvement with EIPs and PPPs with major materials research agendas will be useful to identify potential synergies and key innovation elements. SusChem will also be leading the development of the Implementation Plan (work package six) with other MatVal stakeholders.

Next steps
The second day continued discussion on materials R&D&I issues along a number of value chains: energy, transport, construction, health and the creative sector. The conference concluded with presentations on the next steps for A4M and the MatVal project from Michal Basista, General Secretary of EuMat.

Outcomes for the project include the publication of an A4M strategic networking document describing a shared approach to future materials activities in Horizon 2020, conclusions on life cycle thinking and sustainable development issues, identification of critical standards and proposals for future regulations, work on a project exit strategy plan (looking at the continuing impact of the project beyond its endpoint) and the implementation road map itself.

Further workshops and conferences are envisaged including a workshop in horizontal innovation issue, a workshop on the strategic plan to boost research and a final project conference.

All the presentations and photographs from the conference are available here.

About MatVal
The MatVal project was initiated by the Alliance for Materials (A4M):  the grouping of European Technology Platforms (ETPs), including SusChem, that are working together to collaborate and coordinate their strong materials research and innovation agendas.

Through the A4M organization and the MatVal project Europe is now equipped with a multi-stakeholder forum to develop and share a single view on materials needs and accelerate the implementation of material innovations towards the end-user market applications. A4M is a new way of thinking: a partnership and networking initiative for materials research and innovation.

Get involved
The MatVal project is funded by the European Commission’s FP7 programme. Its full title is ‘Alliance for Materials – A Value Chain Approach to Materials Research and Innovation’. More basic information on the project can be found on the Cordis website.

For more information on SusChem and chemical industry involvement in MatVal and A4M, please contact SusChem Innovation Manager Jacques Komornicki at Cefic.