In Belgium, over 70 % of employment comes from small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). However, a substantial amount of these SMEs lack the resources or methodologies needed to develop innovative ideas into market-ready products. This puts them and their employees at a competitive disadvantage in comparison to large corporations. The EU-funded TRIAXES project set out to remedy this gap and give SMEs active in the design and fashion industry an innovation boost.
- 12 November 2019
Unlike standard consultancies, which only provide strategic guidelines, the TRIAXES teams work hand in hand with entrepreneurs on practical issues. They analyse the ecosystem of the product or brand, its market, user scenarios, the production process and tools, and they design product concepts and provide concrete guidelines regarding the necessary steps for prototyping and manufacturing.
Coordinated by MAD, the Brussels Fashion and Design Incubator, the TRIAXES project believes that the city’s plethora of fashion and design talent can significantly contribute to economic growth, rejuvenate traditional industries and create new jobs.
By providing expert advice and support, the TRIAXES project aims to provide SMEs with the same R&D methodology used by large-scale companies. Its goal is to support a minimum of 10 SMEs before 2020. Between 2013 and 2015, the project already successfully helped eight SMEs develop a product. Of these, one is about to launch their product on the market and five are still in the research phase. Following a comprehensive audit, two SMEs opted not to launch their products due to a high risk of failure. An additional three TRIAXES-supported entrepreneurs have gone on to register as independent companies.
A one-stop shop approach
To allocate the right resources and support for each SME, TRIAXES is divided into two fields of intervention: TRIAXESpro and TRIAXESmode. TRIAXESpro focuses on providing product development support to SMEs active in the medical, construction, packaging, mobility and renewable energy sectors. TRIAXESmode, on the other hand, focuses on fashion companies active in the ready-to-wear leather goods and accessories sectors.
SMEs must apply for support. Those that are accepted are provided with a team of three consultants with relevant backgrounds and knowhow in engineering, industrial design, business development, production and sales. The team works collaboratively with the entrepreneur(s) during the 130-hour R&D phase to develop a product.
TRIAXES finances up to 75 % of the cost of this support, significantly reducing the costs for the SME. What’s more, once an innovative concept is developed, the project also provides pre-prototyping support, with the aim of testing a mock-up of the idea with potential users. Additionally, the project has an eco-design expert who provides support in terms of product sustainability.
Innovation by design
One of the successful products coming out of TRIAXES is Baby-Up, a crib designed by a physiotherapist to prevent parents from getting back pain. Kaspard, which was also developed with TRIAXES’ support, continuously monitors movement in hospitals or elderly homes. Nurses are alerted whenever a patient leaves his or her bed, or possibly falls out of it, and when the patient returns.
Another innovative product is Ötrema, a device that is connected to radiators and automatically adjusts the temperature of a room based on the habits of the home’s inhabitants. For example, it automatically detects when a person walks into the room, what the person’s working schedule looks like, or when it is the weekend. Based on this information, Ötrema will automatically adjust the temperature to ensure comfort when the room is in use and to save energy when it is not.
Beyond 2020
So far, the project has achieved promising results and received a lot of positive feedback from the entrepreneurs involved. With its initial goal close to being achieved, the project is now setting its sights on supporting even more SMEs.
Total investment and EU funding
Total investment for the project “TRIAXES - R&D Support to SMEs Through Collaborative Expertise” is EUR 1 902 910, with the EU’s European Regional Development Fund contributing EUR 846 455 through the “TRIAXES” Programme for the 2014-2020 programming period.