Quoting the German Minister of Economics and Technology, German trade clusters, known as competence networks, are “regionally concentrated but supra-regionally active innovation clusters with a specific thematic focus”. While they are active throughout Germany, there is a concentration amongst the 7 largest Laender. Today, there are over 130 identified competence network projects with activities spanning 18 different disciplines, from life sciences, biotechnology and medicine, energy, medical and environmental technologies, to information and communication technology, micro-systems and nanotechnology.
R&D captures some 2.5% of German GDP every year, placing Germany amongst the most R&D-focused economies in the world. The core incentives for creating the trade clusters were to make sure that Germany maintained this global ranking, to generate innovation within shorter time cycles and to accelerate the transformation of innovation into marketable products. With these goals in mind, the Federal government identified 5 critical sectors. While the original initiatives were launched in 1998, the government re-organised the trade clusters in 2005 under the title “kompetenznetze.de”. The budget calls for total spend of €25Bn to promote R&D through the competence networks. Between 2006 and 2009, some €6Bn has been ear-marked of which €800m was spent in 2006.
The kompetenznetze.de initiative works on a “bottom-up” principle. The web site (www.kompetenznetze.de) centralizes information about the members and their projects, assuring a level of coordination between the competence network members, but also with other organizations and the public. Members also use the kompetenznetze.de as a label for quality in marketing and public relations work. An independent council of advisors qualifies membership applications, monitors the projects undertaken and evaluates funding needs. One of the main ambitions of all the competence networks is to forge links with trade clusters outside Germany, assisting German innovative SMEs to establish business links internationally.
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