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From Science to Market: Biomedical Production Technology – Micro Nano Symposium

In 2021 and 2022, MinacNed will host pre-events leading up to the international MicroNanoConference 2022. The symposia are live events in The Netherlands, offering an interesting program with speakers from industry and science, with an opportunity for networking.

On November 23, a Micro Nano Symposium will be organised around the 2021 Groeifonds application. The consortium of partners from science and industry responsible for program will celebrate the submission of their application, specifically the focus theme Biomedical production technology under the NXTGen High Tech

From Science to Market: Biomedical Production Technology

Biomedical production technology fails to keep pace with innovations in the biomedical domain. The (academic) knowledge in the Netherlands is at a very high level in the field of Lab-on-Chip, Organ-on-Chip, Artificial Organs and Cell production technology, but is not (properly) converted into products. The main reason for this is that a multidisciplinary chain is required of suppliers of high-quality specific components in both the technological and biological field. Although the required parties are present in the Netherlands, their production equipment and processes are not yet compatible with each other. These major challenges cannot be solved by a few parties, but a large collaboration is needed to be able to design and functionally qualify products from the existing developed building blocks (e.g., sensors, chips, biomaterials) in order to subsequently achieve upscaling and the growing (world) market.

MinacNed, hDMT, MESA+ and Nano4Society organize a pre-event of the international MicroNano Conference 2022 to address this topic and will present steps that are currently being taken to establish an ecosystem with a unique and first-of-its-kind production chain in the Netherlands.

hDMT partner Minacned

Organizers:   hDMT, MinacNed, MESA+, Nano4Society
Date:               23 November 2021, 14.00 – 17.00
Location:      The Gallery,  University of Twente, Enschede
(The Gallery, Hengelosestraat 500, 7521 AN Enschede)

Preliminary program

13.30 – 14.00  Arrival with coffee and tea

14.00 – 14.10 Opening and welcome, Janny van den Eijnden-van Raaij (chair, hDMT) and Albert van den Berg (MESA+)

14.10 – 14.40  Tom van der Horst (TNO), Overview NXTGEN HIGHTECH
14.40 – 15.10  Berend van Meer (hDMT): “A national ecosystem for biomedical production technologies”

15.10 – 15.40  Coffee Break and networking

 15.40 – 16.10  Marko Blom (Micronit, Enschede),  NXTGEN HIGHTECH: perspective from high tech industry: “Challenges and solutions for scaling from fabrication of prototypes to repetitive manufacturing”
16.10 – 16.40  Jasper Boomker (Kidney Foundation) NXTGEN HIGHTECH: perspective from end user: “Closing innovation gaps: the case of the artificial kidney”

16.40 – 17.00  Panel discussion

17:00-17:30 Drinks and networking

Invited keynote speakers include science and industry partners, a government overview of the importance of these partnerships and the point of view from an end user. After these great talks, the inspired attendees can meet and greet in a network setting with drinks to formalize future partnerships. The event is  a live event in Enschede, at the location The Gallery.

You can now register (free of charge) to attend the event for one of the limited seats.

Registration Micro Nano Symposium
From Science to Market: Biomedical Production Technology


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Next step for NXTGEN HIGHTECH ‘Groeifonds’ Proposal

The ‘Groeifonds’ proposal NXTGEN HIGHTECH is selected to be worked out in detail to be submitted in October 2021. The Netherlands is an international leader when it comes to ultra-precision high-tech equipment and aims to exploit this expertise in NXTGEN HIGHTECH for production of Organs-on-Chips, among others. In total, 28 projects were selected from 244 initial submissions.

The ‘Topsector HTSM’ has, in close collaboration with knowledge institutes, governments, industry and other topsectors, initiated this widely supported programme (budget € ~1.5 billion) to develop the next generation High Tech Equipment for these industries. One of the six domains of NXTGEN HIGHTECH is ‘Biomedical Production Technologies’ and is being coordinated by Berend van Meer on behalf of hDMT. This domain aims at large scale production of Labs-on-Chips, Organs-on-Chips, Artificial Organs and Cell Production Equipment, in which industrial standardisation and qualification are indispensable.

In case the project will be funded, hDMT partners will be involved closely in the further elaboration and setup of the next steps. For more information about NXTGEN HIGHTECH see https://www.hollandhightech.nl/nxtgen-hightech and about the National ‘Groeifonds’ see https://www.nationaalgroeifonds.nl/.

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Albert Polman receives ERC Advanced Research Grant to develop a new type of quantum electron microscope

Albert Polman, professor of nanophotonics and photovoltaics at UvA and AMOLF group leader, has received an Advanced Research Grant of 2.5 million euros from the European Research Council. Polman will use the grant to develop a new type of quantum electron microscope.

In the awarded project, Polman will use intense laser pulses to tailor the energy spectrum of high-energy electrons in a scanning electron microscope. This provides a unique way to control the quantum-mechanical electron wave packet in space and time. By combining materials excitation using these wavepackets and the detection of light that is emitted (cathodoluminescence) this creates an entirely new way of analytical electron microscopy.

ERC Advanced Research Grant

ERC Advanced Grants support excellent researchers at the career stage at which they are already established research leaders with a recognised track-record of research achievements. Candidates have to demonstrate the ground-breaking nature, ambition and feasibility of their scientific proposal. The projects must be hosted at institutions in the EU or associated countries.

The European Research Council uses the ERC Advanced grants to allow outstanding research leaders to pursue ground-breaking, high-risk projects in Europe. Read the ERC press release here.

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Launch of “Horizon Europe” reinforces goals for more innovation and research in Europe

The “Horizon Europe” programme, which was launched this Tuesday, 2 February, has a budget of around €95 billion for research and innovation all over Europe from 2021-2027.

“Horizon Europe” is the ninth European framework programme for research and innovation, following on from the “Horizon 2020” programme (2014-2020), and will be the biggest programme ever undertaken in Europe. Its launch by the Portuguese Presidency of the Council of the EU is being promoted along with a mobilisation process for all of Europe, in conjunction with structural funds and, particularly, with the national recovery and resilience plans of each member state in preparation for the “Next Generation EU, 2021-26” programme.

The aim is for the European Union to lead the twin green and digital transition in association with a resilient recovery through a renewed European Research Area (ERA) and through an effective increase in public and private investment in R&D, particularly in the context of the recent reaffirmation by the European Commission of the goal of 3% of public and private investment in R&D in terms of gross domestic product by 2030.

“Horizon Europe” is thus based on three terms of reference:

  • 1. Scientific excellence: development of quality skills and expertise in order to reinforce the scientific leadership of the European Union, with the involvement of all the regions and all European citizens; creation of new markets, working conditions and skills, particularly in the sectors most severely affected by the negative impacts of the pandemic.
  • 2. Global challenges and European industrial competitiveness: natural resources, mobility, food, digital media and energy are just some of the areas that can count on additional support for research into the challenges they face, as well as for the associated industrial technology; it is in this area that partnerships are expected to be created with the aim of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050.
  • 3. Innovative and inclusive Europe: there will be stimuli for the creation of professional careers linked to research, both in the public and private sectors, making them more inclusive, particularly for women and minorities; it is also intended to foster research and recruitment ecosystems in order to train and retain talents in Europe. Other goals include cooperation between national funding agencies and the European Commission, while also contributing to promoting the creation of “European university” networks.

The “Horizon Europe” programme includes four implementation pillars:

Pillar 1: “Science of Excellence”, supporting scientific excellence in terms of human resources and infrastructure, particularly through the European Research Council (ERC), the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA), as well as research infrastructures (ESFRI).

Pillar 2: “Global Challenges and European Industrial Competitiveness”, which will support research and development activities in six areas (or clusters): Health; Culture, Creativity and Inclusive Society; Civil Security for Society; Digital, Industry and Space; Climate, Energy and Mobility; Food, Bioeconomy, Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environment. Under the scope of these six areas, Pillar 2 also includes:

  • Research Missions, in five áreas:
  • Cancer;
  • Adaptation to climate change including societal transformation;
  • Climate-neutral and smart cities;
  • Soil health and food;
  • Healthy oceans, seas, coastal and inland waters.
  • Institutional Partnerships: aimed at mobilising public and private sectors in areas such as energy, transport, biodiversity, health, food and the circular economy.

Pillar 3: “Innovative Europe”, supporting the creation of new markets and SMEs, including new supports to be granted under the scope of the new European Innovation Council (EIC), the support for European Innovation Ecosystems (EIE) and for the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT). The EIT legislation was recently revised, on 29 January, already during the Portuguese Presidency, in order to encompass more inclusive action open to all of Europe and two new areas of intervention, through Knowledge and Innovative Communities (KIC) (namely, oceans and creative industries, in addition to the initial areas of health, digital, energy, materials and climate).

Pillar 4: “Extending participation in and reinforcement of the European Research Area”, including support for the extension of participation in and the reinforcement of the European Research Area, through a set of different funding instruments aimed at establishing networks for human resources and at institutional level.

Implementation of “Horizon Europe”

The implementation of the “Horizon Europe” programme will be coordinated by the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Research (DG RTD), following on from the previous European research and innovation framework programmes. Further details at Horizon Europe | European Commission.

In the case of Portugal, the coordination and dissemination of the strategy for reinforcing national participation in the “Horizon Europe, 2021-27” programme is carried out through PERIN – “Portugal in Europe Research and Innovation Network”, which includes the main funding agencies and promoters, namely FCT, ANI, AICIB, PT Space, the ERASMUS Agency and DGES, working closely with the promotion offices for European programmes in academic and research institutes, as well as in companies, business associations and company incubation centres and interface institutions.

Portugal’s aim is to double national participation in the “Horizon Europe, 2021-27” programme compared to participation in the Horizon 2020 (2014-2020) programme and attract around two billion euros for research and innovation activities on a competitive basis by the public and private sectors, including SMEs (in comparison to the approximately 1.1 billion attracted between 2014 and 2020 through supports granted by the H2020 programme, also in competitive terms).

Source: Europa.nu

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