As a funding agency for innovation, the Swiss Commission for Technology and Innovation (KTI/CTI) supports joint projects of enterprises and research institutions. Based on a study by Fraunhofer ISI from 1996, the KTI Initiative MedTech started its project funding in 1998. Flanking that, communication activities, support of SMEs in quality assurance, coaching of start-ups, identification of new problem areas and challenges as well as of existing competencies, agency of contacts and of market information about medical technology were offered as accompanying measures.
Together with the project partners, the programme was evaluated regarding its concept, design, processes and effects. This was done by analyses of documents, bibliometric analyses, and surveys of experts and participating companies with interivews as well as an internet questionnaire. In four case studies projects of particular interest were analysed more in-depth. Additionally, companies and research institutes which had not yet participated in a KTI/CTI project were surveyed with telephone interviews, and workshops were carried out with the self-evaluation group of the KTI Initiative. On the basis of these data, the effectiveness and performance of the initiative were assessed and conclusions for future activities of KTI/CTI in innovation policy were drawn.
Duration: July 2004 – Dec. 2004
Funding: Bundesamt für Berufsbildung und Technologie BBT, Bern (Switzerland)
Project lead: Bernhard Bührlen at Fraunhofer ISI
Partners: TIG Technologie Impulse Gesellschaft mbH (TIG), Vienna (Austria); Joanneum Research, Institut für Technologie- und Regionalpolitik (InTeReg), Vienna (Austria)
Weblink: State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation