Project Title: Facilitating Innovation in Renewable Energies (FIRE)

Project Duration: 36 months

Start Date: September 2006

Funding Authority: European Commission FP6

Type of Instrument: Specific Support Action

Status: Started

Project Objectives

The overall strategic aim of the project is to facilitate and foster the participation of SMEs from the Renewable Energy sector (RES) in relevant calls in the remainder of FP6 and FP7.

To this end, operational objectives and goals of the project are determined as follows;

- Identification and targeting of SMEs to participate in FIRE: 4000 European SME companies within the renewable energy sector will be targeted and pre-screened to strategically selected 200-250 SMEs deemed potentially eligible to participate in the FIRE activities.

- Preparation of Innovation Audits in order to identify the innovation potential of these SMEs and in order to ensure that a “bottom-up” approach is achieved. Following these audits a final selection of 150-170 companies will be made, at least 25% of them being from New Member States and Accession Countries.

- Organisation of European Sectoral Workshops: 10 sets of EU mentoring and interactive workshops and follow-up schemes for the continuous assistance and development of FIRE’s SMEs; trans-national or trans-regional transfer of best practices will be designed and held across Europe.

- Promoting SME participation in existing and future RTD: During the project, participation of 100 FIRE SMEs is expected in FP6 or FP7 projects. Production of 5 strategic project proposals and initiation of European Renewable Energy Technology Platform are envisaged. 20-25 strategic projects and TPs will be contacted and 40 resulting positive agreements are expected (FIRE SMEs getting involved in consortiums for strategic research projects and joining TPs).

- SME Clustering/SME platform development: SMEs, where possible, will be divided into clusters or platforms according to a number of defined common criteria- sector, innovation potential and need, goals, etc.

Project Consortium

TAGES Role:

- Targeting Turkish SMEs to participate in the project by sending out     the mailing in Turkey and screening suitable SMEs via questionnaires

- Carrying out the Innovation Audits in Turkey and selecting suitable Turkish SMEs to participate in the FIRE project

- Hosting a European Workshop in Turkey

- Mobilizing research centers, NGOs and public organisations to take part in the European Renewable Energy Technology Platform to be established in the project

- Managing dissemination of project results in Turkey.

If your company is interested to be a FIRE SME and to take part in the European Renewable Energy Research activities, please contact us via e-mail or telephone.

gurbet.yavuz@tages.biz

Telephone: +90 212 2232101