BioBase4SME Natural Fibertastic Workshop aims to encourage
SMEs to apply for fully funded Bio-Innovation Coupons for fibre application
testing
The BioBase4SME
project (co-financed
by Interreg NWE), offering
bio-innovation support for SMEs, herewith proudly announces its Natural Fibertastic Workshop hosted at the Natural Fiber Application Center (NAC, The Netherlands)
on April 5th, 2017.
The theme of the day is natural fiber
application development focusing on thermoplastic composites. Delegates will
benefit from an update on application advances, inspiration for new
developments and gain experience from knowledge exchange between entrepreneurs
through networking in a first-class atmosphere. The workshop will be a good
opportunity to learn about the services NAC offers and how they can be accessed
by SMEs via fully funded BioBase4SME Innovation
Coupons worth 4000 €.
In 2014, the Natural Fibre Application Centre was founded to develop new
business chains on a pilot scale (100 kg) in the areas of the development of paper
and board recipes and thermoplastic composites. NAC is equipped for biomass treatment* and paper/board experiments on lab scale*.
Likewise, NAC offers technologies for paper making* and for physical and
mechanical testing*. Finally, NAC owns a pilot paper machine, unique in the Benelux,
that can produce small paper rolls of 30 cm width and 25 kg. Besides processing
wet biomass, investments were made to obtain dry fibres applications for the bio
composite market with e.g. a pilot scale compounder (20-70 kg/h).
During the workshop at NAC, SMEs can visit the center, learn about other SMEs active in the natural fibers sector and get the opportunity to promote their technology at the technology market. Furthermore, the workshop will provide information on the BioBase4SME innovation coupon scheme and other support mechanisms the project offers to SMEs innovating in the biobased economy.
Stapper Duurzaam
Advies (SDA), a Dutch company developing indoor biobased construction material for fairs
and exhibitions was recently granted a BioBase4SME Innovation Coupon for performing application testing at NAC. Esther Stapper, director of SDA testifies on how the coupon
brought her innovation closer to the market: “During the cooperation with the Natural Fiber Application Center I
entered an environment with a high innovating DNA in which all employees
thought along and surprised me with their creative solutions. The collaboration
enabled us to enter into the next phase of our biobased development.”
The BioBase4SME network, representing leading
bio-based economy experts, support SMEs and start-ups across North-West Europe
on how to develop new ideas into marketable products. The BioBase4SME expert
network organises workshops on specific topics, diverse training events and an
innovation bio-camp. Furthermore, SMEs and start-ups can apply for bio-innovation coupons with a value up to €100.000 when looking for
technical (process development, scale-up…) and non-technical support (LCA,
application testing, market research, business plan coaching, social
acceptance…).
For more information:
For more information on the project: www.nweurope.eu/BioBase4SME.
For more
information on the workshop and registration: http://www.nweurope.eu/projects/project-search/bio-innovation-support-for-entrepreneurs-throughout-nwe-regions/events/ or contact Roel Koevoets, tel: +31
(0)6 226 639 34, r.koevoets@rewin.nl.
* grinding, wet
refining, fractionation and compacting • pulp
and fiber testing: zeta potential, cationic demand, Schopper Riegler,
consistency, microscopic fiber analysis and fiber distribution by Clarck method • technologies for paper making: hand sheets,
Rapid Köthen lab scale, size press sheets and rolls • physical and mechanical testing: tensile strength, roughness, grammage,
thickness, porosity, Cobb and printability.
Notes
to editors:
1. The project:
The European Commission has launched through
its INTERREG NWE Programme a three-year project “BioBase4SME” to further
support the development of the biobased economy in North West Europe (NWE). The
€5.83 million project will help start-ups and Small and Medium Enterprises
(SMEs) to overcome technological and non-technological barriers on their path
to turn biobased research into commercial innovation. BioBase4SME offers
training, innovation biocamps, workshops and innovation coupons worth up to
€100.000. The BioBase4SME partnership includes eight organisations from six
different countries http://www.nweurope.eu/BioBase4SME
2. The
BioBase4SME partners are:
- Bio Base Europe Pilot Plant (BBEPP), Ghent, Belgium, http://www.bbeu.org/pilotplant/
- Flanders Biobased Valley, Ghent, Belgium, http://www.fbbv.be
- Materia Nova, Mons, Belgium, http://www.materianova.be/
- Association of the Chambers of Agriculture of the Atlantic Arc (AC3A), Nantes, France, http://www.ac3a.fr/AC3A_en.php
-
CLIB2021 Cluster Industrielle Biotechnologie, Düsseldorf, Germany, http://www.clib2021.de/en
- tcbb RESOURCE, Galway, Ireland, http://www.tcbbresource.ie/
- REWIN Projecten, Breda, The Netherlands, http://www.rewin.nl/
- NNFCC, York, UK, http://www.nnfcc.co.uk/
- The University of York, York, UK, https://www.york.ac.uk/
3. INTERREG North-West Europe Programme
BioBase4SME is 60%
funded by the INTERREG NWE Programme. The Interreg North-West Europe Programme
fosters transnational cooperation to make the North Western Europe a key
economic player and an attractive place to work and live, with high levels of
innovation, sustainability and cohesion. http://www.nweurope.eu/
4. BioBase4SME is co-financed by:
5. BioBase4SME Project Office:
The
BioBase4SME project is coordinated by Bio Base Europe Pilot Plant (Ghent,
Belgium). For more information, comment or interview requests about BioBase4SME,
please contact:
Dr Lieve Hoflack,
Project Manager, tel: +32 (0)9 335 70 01, lieve.hoflack@bbeu.org
OR
Katrien Molders,
Communication Manager, tel: +32 (0)486 951 109, Katrien.molders@bbeu.org
http://www.nweurope.eu/BioBase4SME
For more
information on the Natural Fibertastic Workshop, contact Roel Koevoets, tel: +31
(0)6 226 639 34, r.koevoets@rewin.nl.