Public–Private Partnerships

We tend to take antibiotics for granted and not value them in a way that matches their lifesaving role, says Dr David Payne, head of the antibacterial discovery performance unit at pharmaceutical company GSK. He says that partnerships between governments and companies can help to accelerate the development of antibiotics but a new commercial model is needed to unblock the research pipeline.

From Bergen in Norway to Bolzano in Italy, specialised refuelling stations mean that drivers of hydrogen-powered cars can now travel right across Europe.

Street lights may seem just part of the mundane backdrop of life, but many firms have been devising exciting ideas for powering them more cheaply and making them do far more than illuminate a dark road. 

People don’t know that hydrogen-fuelled vehicles and home heating systems are already on the market, and that is the biggest obstacle to their uptake, according to Bart Biebuyck, the recently appointed executive director of the Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking, a public-private partnership between the EU and the fuel cell and hydrogen industries.

Non-edible biomass could replace petrochemicals in providing energy to heat and light our homes, as well as in producing a vast array of plastics, lubricants, paints and a host of industrial chemicals, according to Dr Philippe Mengal, the recently appointed executive director of the Bio-Based Industries Joint Undertaking (BBI JU), a public-private partnership between the EU and bio-based industries.

New imaging techniques are helping give researchers an edge over nature, allowing them to create revolutionary new antibiotics which bacteria will struggle to develop resistance against.

The EU, European Member States and private companies have teamed up to boost economic competitiveness, create jobs and stimulate growth through seven public-private partnerships. They have announced EUR 1.13 billion of public funding to researchers who can help find solutions to some of the most pressing issues.

The convoying of trains could be one way to help double railway capacity and reduce carbon emissions, according to Andy Doherty, vice-chairman of the European Rail Research Advisory Council and Director of railways system engineering at Network Rail, the UK rail network operator.

Rethinking aircraft engines and new wing designs have the potential to cut carbon emissions and noise, as well as to boost Europe’s aerospace industry, according to Eric Dautriat, chief executive of the Clean Sky Joint Technology Initiative (JTI).

If we want Europe to gain market share in developing technology for smart devices like phones and tablets, we must embrace public–private partnerships, according to Dr Andreas Wild, executive director of the EU’s new Electronic Components and Systems for European Leadership (ECSEL) Joint Technology Initiative.