1. 1
Strengthening the innovative
power of Switzerland
with the CTI
November 12, 2014
Alain Dietrich
Deputy Head of R&D project promotion,
KTT-Support and
international relationships
CTI
Russian Media Tour to Switzerland
on Education, Research and Innovation

2. 2
Content
CTI in Switzerland's innovation environment
Snapshot of CTI
R&D Funding
Start-up and entrepreneurship
KTT-Support
Opportunities in international co-operation.
Media Delegation from Russia
Berne, 12.11.2014

3. 3
CTI in Switzerland's
innovation environment
Media Delegation from Russia
Berne, 12.11.2014

4. 4
Value chain from research to innovation
Public research
Economy
State is financing
research knowledge
CTI is a small, but important catalyst for Swiss innovation system
• needs
• experiences
people
Start-ups
projects
600 bn
18 bn
Economy is utilizing
knowledge
SNSF
Basic
financing
68%
25%
5%
CTI Cantons
1% < 1%
130 m900 m
4.5 bn
EU
2%
400 m 12 bn
Media Delegation from Russia
Berne, 12.11.2014

5. 5
Snapshot of CTI
Media Delegation from Russia
Berne, 12.11.2014

6. 6
eingerei
cht
13
innov.
mentors
Ressources
Commission
Secretariat
«Field Force»
25 persons
Erich BlochAndreas ReuterVital Meyer
deciding about
instruments
and submissions
preparing and connecting
with federal
administration
working with Start-ups
and SMEs
54
54
coaches
Organisation of CTI: 150 people with strong
experiences in business and sciences
Walter Steinlin
R&D projects
KTT-
Support
Lutz Nolte Myriam Meyer Martin Riediker Beda Stadler
Martina
Hirayama Martin Müller
Engineering
Sciences
Life
Science
Micro/
Nano
Enabling
Sciences
9
experts
5
experts
12
experts
14
experts
10
experts
12
experts
president
Start-up
72 persons
R&D and KTT PromotionStart-up

7. 7
CTI’s mission: to strengthen the innovative power of
the Swiss economy
 CTI provides funding for joint projects of industry and research
institutions
→ competitive leading edge technology products
 CTI supports start-up companies
 → new jobs for highly qualified employees and novel products
 CTI fosters the knowledge and technology transfer between research
institutions and companies
→ efficient translation of research results into innovative products
 CTI supports the Swiss Competence Centers for Energy Research
 → discovery and development of sustainable energy solutions
Media Delegation from Russia
Berne, 12.11.2014

8. 8
CTI funding areas in 2013
Total
federal funding 2013:
CHF 124.9 m
R&D Promotion 110.8
KTT Support 3.6
Start-up and
Entrepreneurship 10.5
Media Delegation from Russia
Berne, 12.11.2014

9. 9
Experts with strong experiences and know-how
 from public research, industry and Start-up scene
Fast promotion decisions
Not only decisions but also “support”
“Bottom-up"-principle
 focusing on quality of applications, not on topics
trustworthy for industry
reliable for public research institutions.
Success factors of CTI
Media Delegation from Russia
Berne, 12.11.2014

10. 10
R&D Project
Promotion

11. 11
Principles and guiding rules
Primarily promoting innovation for Swiss national
economy
Selection of topics bottom-up from industry partners
Promotion is subsidiary
Keep in mind the special character of Swiss
Economy
 99.7% of all firms are SMEs; 67% of all employees
 88% are micro firms (less than 9 FTA)
 Almost 90% of all SMEs are family business
 Efficient promotion without cost-intensive
preliminary work for firms.
Media Delegation from Russia
Berne, 12.11.2014

12. 12
Applications are possible at any time !
Media Delegation from Russia
Berne, 12.11.2014

13. 13
The four research promotion areas
Media Delegation from Russia
Berne, 12.11.2014

14. 14
Focus on SMEs and
Universities of applied sciences
Large companies 31%
> 250 employees
Total no of projects by company approved in 2013: 331
SMEs 69%
< 250 employees
Total federal funding 2013: CHF 109.6 m
ETH Domain 33.5
CSEM 6.5
Universities 14
Other 4.4
Universities of
applied sciences 51.1
Media Delegation from Russia
Berne, 12.11.2014

15. 15
Typical project framework
• Time to author project application: 1 to 6 months
• Time to get funding decision: 3 to 8 weeks
• Percentage of projects approved: 45 to 55%
• Duration of project: 0.5 to 3 years
• CTI funding of research partner: 0.5 to >1000 k CHF
Media Delegation from Russia
Berne, 12.11.2014

16. 16
Success story: Ahead – Advanced Hybrid Electric Autobus
Title of presentation
Place, date
Start project
2009
2011
2015
2013
Tests with
first real bus
• The project is a cooperation of Hess AG (implementation
partner) and ETH Zurich (research partner)
• Project goals:
– optimizing the powertrain of a serial hybrid electric bus
for public transportation
– implement a predictive energy management strategy
that takes into account the altitude profile of the line
• 25% less fuel consumption and CO2
emissions compared to a conventional,
combustion-engine based vehicle
• Increase in bus sales (Hess AG)
Achieved
benefits
Readiness for
market (planned in
2014)
Design
software
Tests in the
laboratory

17. 17
Presentation
CTI Start-up &
Entrepreneurship

18. 18
CTI Start-up: Turns students into CEOs
and ideas into firms
Business
Idea
Profess.
Evaluation
Coaching
1-2 years
Post
Label
Support
Regis-
tration
Coaching
Acceptance Label
Business development
Business creation
Semester course
Motivation event
Entrepreneurship
Courses
Start-up Coaching
Students
Firms
Support activities
• CTI-Invest (Connection to investors)
• Business Angels Support
• Corporate Programm
• Incubator Programm
• startupticker
• startup Monitor
30
Internat.
Camps
170
2500/year
500
CEO
Media Delegation from Russia
Berne, 12.11.2014

19. 19
Four-stage, goal-oriented coaching
Media Delegation from Russia
Berne, 12.11.2014

20. 20
Survival rate of companies with CTI Start-up label is 90%
High chances of survival
Media Delegation from Russia
Berne, 12.11.2014

21. 21
Knowlegde and
Technology Transfer-
Support

22. 22
Three pillars of the Knowledge and
Technology Transfer (KTT) support
• Support of SME’s in the innovation process and identifying the best
research partner.
• Promote knowledge and technology transfer between research
institutions and companies.
• Increase transparency of information along Swiss funding (and
support) opportunities.
Innovation
mentors
(IM)
National
thematic
networks
(NTN)
Thematic
Platforms
Media Delegation from Russia
Berne, 12.11.2014

23. 23
Pillar 1 – CTI Innovation Mentors
• IMs facilitate the interactions between companies and
research institutes and catalyze grant applications by
Identifying the needs and challenges of SMEs
Proposing the optimal research partner for enterprises
Providing an overview on funding opportunites
Supporting the authoring of grant applications
Media Delegation from Russia
Berne, 12.11.2014

24. 24
Regional activities of the 13 innovation mentors
A pool of expertise in
• finances and business administration
• electrical engineering
• mechanical engineering
• information and communication technology
• micro and nano technology
• biotechnology
• diagnostics
• ecologyMedia Delegation from Russia
Berne, 12.11.2014

25. 25
Pillar 2: National thematic networks (NTN)
Represent topics with high innovation potential.
Actively contribute to strengthen the innovation power of
the Swiss economy by
 facilitating the access to scientific research
(infrastructure)
 catalyzing joint projects and cooperations among
industrial partners.
Media Delegation from Russia
Berne, 12.11.2014

26. 26
National thematic networks as nucleus of
national KTT-support
Swiss companies,
particularly SMEs
Research institutes
1. Carbon Composites
2. Inartis (focus on Life
Sciences)
3. Innovative Surfaces
(Nanomaterials)
4. Swiss Biotech
5. Swiss Food Research
6. Swiss Wood
Innovation Network
7. Swissphotonics
(Photovoltaic and
Optoelectronics)
8. Network Logistics (IT
based).
Media Delegation from Russia
Berne, 12.11.2014

27. 27
Pillar 3: Thematic Platforms
Physical Platforms
 Recurrent professional events linked to a specific innovation
theme, complementary to the NTN-themes.
 Platform for interaction between science and SMEs.
 Possibility of face-to-face meetings / speed datings.
Web-based Platform: «Innovation map»
 First overview about know-how and competencies on innovative
themes in science and industry in Switzerland.
 Overview of federal innovation promotion instruments for
SMEs/Start-ups.
Media Delegation from Russia
Berne, 12.11.2014

28. 28
Pillar 3: The Innovation Map

29. 29
CTI’s new opportunities in
international cooperation
Media Delegation from Russia
Berne, 12.11.2014

30. 30
New opportunities for international
R&D-projects since 2014
 Whole range from big program to single
R&D project is possible.
 Big programs must be based on a
common agreement of both parties.
Media Delegation from Russia
Berne, 12.11.2014

31. 31
Project Partners:
International cooperation for R&D projects
 Foreign research partners allowed only in cooperation with a Swiss
research institution.
 Any time – no Call!
 Requires coordination with foreign innovation agencies.
 Clear evidence of a win-win situation:
 Swiss implementation partner and Swiss research partner
 Complement with foreign research competencies
 Majority of research in Switzerland (>50% of funding amount)
 All CTI funding will be assigned to Swiss research partner:
 Swiss main research partner is in charge
 Seperate agreement between foreign and Swiss Research partners
 No direct funding to implementation partner(s)
Media Delegation from Russia
Berne, 12.11.2014

32. 32
Commission for Technology and Innovation CTI
Innovation Promotion Agency
Effingerstrasse 27
CH-3003 Bern
www.kti.admin.ch
Conclusion
 Knowledge and technology transfer foster
innovations in Russia and in Switzerland.
 Both countries have a excellent basis in applied
research, firms are willing to engage in innovation.
 Both countries promote science-based innovation
with complementary instruments and networks.
 Let‘s do it together with powerful pilot projects!