Collaboration protocol

Objective: The creation of a Competitiveness pole in the Oltenia region as a support pillar of regional development through innovation and technology transfer

Denomination: Competitiveness pole Innov TT Oltenia – Innovation and technology transfer supporting a sustainable regional development

Purpose: The growth of the capacity to promote the innovation, competitiveness, research, technology transfer as a regional development policy sustainable by the inter-connection of the knowledge, technologies and people.

Initiators:

• The Regional Development Agency South - West Oltenia
• The Ministry of Education and Research, The National Agency for Scientific Research – Innovation and Technology Transfer Department
• IPA CIFATT CRAIOVA, Technology and Business Incubator, Romanian IRC 4D
• The Chamber of Commerce and Industry Valcea, Euro Info Centre RO828 Ramnicu-Valcea

Founding partners:

• The National Agency for Scientific Research, The General Directorate Intermediary Body for Research, Development and Innovation,
• The County Department of Statistics Dolj
• The University of Craiova
• ARoTT, The Romanian Association of Technology Transfer
• ARIES Oltenia Subsidiary, The Romanian Association for Electronic and Software Industries
• The County Council of Dolj
• The County Council of Mehedinti
• The County Council of Valcea
• The County Council of Olt
• The Town Hall of Craiova
• The Town Hall of Targu Jiu
• The Town Hall of Drobeta Turnu Severin
• The Town Hall of Slatina
• The Regional Agency for Environmental Protection, The Intermediary Organism for Environment POS
• The Management Authority for POS for the Development of Human Resources UIP CES DRU SW Oltenia Region
• Payment Agency for Rural Development and Fishing, Regional Centre 4 SW Oltenia
• The Management Authority for POS for the Increase of the Economic Competitiveness, Intermediary Organism ANIMMC, The Territorial Agency SV Oltenia
• The technology transfer centre in tourism and the environment protection TechTEC Valcea
• ICSI Ramnicu Valcea
• Popeci S.A. Craiova
• ICMET Craiova
• The Association “Renasterea Oltului”
• The Association „ROCA” Network of the Organizations for Consultancy in Business
• ACER the Association for Electromagnetic Compatibility from Romania
• The Phoenix Carita Society Horezu, Ramnicu Valcea
• The Foundation Dialog Social Gorj
• Station for research and development for fruit growth Valcea
• OLTCHIM Ramnicu Valcea
• PLIMM Calafat

named in the following as « Parties », considering:

• the role of ADR as coordinator of the elaboration of the policies in the domain of regional sustainable development,
• the role of IPA CIFATT, Romanian IRC 4D in the realization of the transnational technology transfer, as technology and business incubator and member business support provider of ROCA network, the Network of the Organizations for Consultancy in Business
• the role of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry Valcea, Euro Info Centre RO828 Ramnicu-Valcea in the realization of the services addressed to the business environment, SMEs
• the role of the Partnerships in the activities of regional planning, research development, innovation, technology transfer and services addressed to the business environment, SMEs

acknowledging:

• the essential role of innovation and technology transfer as an engine of a sustainable regional development  

wishing:

• the identification of the economic units, necessities, priorities and the economic perspectives, including the research ones, development and innovation at regional level,
• to combine the forces for supporting the business environment from the South-West region of Oltenia,
• to continue and to improve the current services in the domain of business supplied by the Euro Info Centre and Romanian IRC 4D - Innovation Relay Centre networks,
• to increase the synergies between regional partners by supplying adequate information services, the improvement of the access to services with high professionalism for SMEs, including for the attraction of financing for innovative projects, the simplification of the administrative procedures,
• to create Thematic competitiveness poles, Clusters in the main, regional, expertise domains,
• to cooperate with other institutions for the improvement of the absorption capacity of the Communitarian Funds, the improvement and the efficiency of the planning process and the programming of the utilization of the communitarian funds in the S-W region of Oltenia;
• Know-how transfer and exchange of good practices.

The Collaboration protocol is to be imposed.
What is the competitiveness pole Innov TT Oltenia
It is a flexible structure, open, based on good regional, national and international practices

• that is based on the supplying of services for the business environment and especially in the domain of innovation, technology transfer,
• that gives assistance to innovative enterprises, especially to those small and medium, as well as with potential enterprisers, in their efforts to be innovative, competitive and to face successfully the competition.

The mission of the competitiveness pole

• it is integral part of the regional politics of Oltenia through which one supports the research-development, the innovation, the technology transfer the founding and the development of the enterprises and especially the SMEs, Clusters, Thematic competency poles, the technology transfer entities, acknowledging them the status of “spinal column” of the regional economy;
• has at the base the principle according to which, at an European level, all the services for supporting the business must be available to all those who need them, to be more easy to access, transparent and easy to understand;
• strengthens the impact and the quality of the services delivered by the members who take part in this initiative;
• offers information, specialized consultancy, starts events, meetings and professional contacts;
• is based on the principle according to which one gives priority to the regional interests and to the client;
• proposes the collaboration among those who intermediate business relations and the politic authorities at a regional and local level, with the purpose to put into practice a strategy for the support of the business environment based on cooperation and transparency;
• assures the promotion of the competitiveness of the industry through:
• The increase of the competitiveness of the small and medium enterprises;
• The promotion of all the innovation forms, including the eco-innovation;
• The development of an international competitiveness society;
• The promotion of an energetic efficiency and of the new and redeemable energy resources in all sectors, including in transport.
• The promotion of the entrepreneurial innovation formation;
• The promotion of the concept of economic competitiveness through Research - Development, Innovation and technology transfer;
• The promotion of ethical conduct and of the quality among the members of the regional community;
• The promotion of the concept of sustainable development by and through the activity of the  members of the regional community;
• The stimulation, the promotion of the innovative activities, the protection of the intellectual, technical creation;
• The promotion of the image of the industry of the region in the country and abroad and of the opportunities of investments in the region
• assures an international competitive flux and an equal dissemination of information by the members of the regional community;
• elaborates studies, regional strategies, makes activities of technology transfer, research-development, builds data bases, systematizes information and assures the large and equal access of the members of the regional community;
• promotes and participates at the implementation of the informational society and of the society of knowledge in the region of Oltenia;
• promotes and participates at the realization of the entities of technology transfer, innovation and business, the founding of the innovative SMEs, with activity based on a greater added value.

Action domains
Through the adherence of these principles, the members of the Competitiveness Pole Innov TT Oltenia engage to concentrate over the following domains of action:

The development of the regional policies
The competitiveness Pole Innov TT Oltenia will realize actions to increase the promotion capacity of innovation, research, technology transfer as a sustainable regional development policy through regional studies, the creation of a data base with requests / offers of technologies / patented solutions / units that activate in this domains / events of type workshop, brokerage, symposia, conferences, courses / project proposal with regional impact / partnerships, etc.

Qualifications and expertise
Each partner is recognized for the experience and specific qualifications, which are complementary to the other partners. The Members of the Competitiveness Pole Innov TT Oltenia action in the sense of the exploitation of the synergies that exist among them. The partners identify the services offered by each and the level of their specialization. 

The support of the client
The initiative of the Competitiveness Pole Innov TT Oltenia has as main purpose the strengthening of the support provided by the innovation environment, of the services of technology transfer by the SMEs. Through the improvement of the contacts at a local level, the members of the initiative combine their efforts to increase the impact and the quality of the services that they supply.

Point with multiple strengthening  
The members of the Competitiveness Pole Innov TT Oltenia offer a simple and transparent model to support the innovation, the technology transfer and business, based on a system of type “point with multiple entrances”, that guarantee to the clients the supply of services adapted to the specific needs and to the most adequate source.
In this way a regional network of dissemination of information is developed and connected to the IRC network.

Joint activities
The creation of the synergies and the reducing of costs are absolutely necessary to offer business services on a large scale and of good quality. The Members of the Competitiveness Pole Innov TT Olteniaengage to increase the number of joint activities and to contribute to the transparency and efficiency of the provided services, including through the development and the usage of joint working instruments.

Joint development
The support of the creation of thematic competitiveness poles, Clusters in the main expertise domains recognized and sustained at regional level.
Desiderata on long term
The region of Oltenia must play in the “First Value League” of the regions based on knowledge from Europe in the next 5 years.
The innovation system from the region of Oltenia must become one of the most efficient from Romania in the next 5 years.
***
The present Protocol is signed on an unlimited period of time and will become effective from the date of the signing by the Parties.
The present Protocol is open, other Partners being able to adhere to it by a letter of intent through which it declares the conformation to the clauses of the Protocol.   
The agreement can be repudiated by each Party through a written notification addressed to the other Parties. The repudiation will be effective after a period of 3 months from the date of the reception of the notification.