With the launch of the Open Innovation platform, the Italian region of Lombardy is driving regional development by providing innovators with the tools, contacts and information they need to bring their business ideas to market.
- 11 October 2018
Our aim is to increase innovation through stakeholder engagement. This novel approach to Open Innovation has already raised interest among other regions in Italy and across Europe. Given the significant success of this experimental phase, the project has been integrated into further strategies as a key tool supporting regional research and innovation and, in the long term, supporting sustainable economic development.
Lombardy’s online Open Innovation platform gives innovators tools, contacts and information on opportunities related to their needs. It aims to act as a support system to facilitate the creation of Open Innovation projects that benefit local SMEs. It does this by providing innovation and research professionals with a network in which to discuss and collaborate on shared challenges and goals.
Over 7 000 users from the research and innovation community and the public are already using the system and 440 expressions of interest have been registered in over 220 project proposals launched.
A unique platform
What makes this platform unique is that it targets individuals involved in research and innovation. Unlike many similar platforms, Lombardy’s Open Innovation platform does not serve as a collaboration space for companies, but as a social network for innovators. Users of the platform can select from eight themes: aerospace, agri-food, eco-industries, creative and cultural industries, health sector, advanced manufacturing, sustainable mobility, and smart communities. Once selected, the user then has access to all content published on the platform, from news and discussions to project proposals.
The platform offers an entire suite of tools aimed at supporting all phases of the research and innovation process. This includes everything from consultation to the creation of ecosystems where relevant actors can discuss and share information. It also facilitates the launch of collaborative proposals and the dissemination of results.
Upgraded offerings
Because of its success, the platform has earned a reputation for being the authority for regional collaboration – a place where researchers can engage in dialogue with other innovators and stakeholders and collaborate on mutual objectives.
To promote further growth, a recent upgrade has incorporated several new features, such as a free Open Source licensing scheme and a multilingual interface. The aim of these enhancements is to facilitate the platform’s adoption in similar and complementary user scenarios and promote collaboration among them (i.e. in other regions, company networks, clusters, large collaborative projects, etc.).
Total investment and EU funding
Total investment for the project “Regional Open Innovation Platform” is EUR 5 684 651, with the EU’s European Regional Development Fund contributing 1 677 963 through the “Lombardia” Operational Programme for the 2007-2013 programming period.