24.12.2010 The ministry of economics of Baden-Württemberg has approved a grant of 182,000 euros from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) which is to be awarded to an association called Plattform Umwelttechnik e.V. (PU e.V.), located in Ostfildern, for the build-up of a state-wide environment technology network. This was announced in Stuttgart today by Minister of Economics Ernst Pfister. 15 players who come from various areas of industry and science and who are closely associated with environment technology have come together in the PU e.V.
The PU e.V. was given the go-ahead to proceed with this project in the framework of a competition organised by the ministry of economics. The aim was to find the best ideas for the build-up of a network for environment technology, an area which involves many different branches of industry. On the basis of its project outline submitted for the competition, the PU e.V. then made a concrete application for a grant.
“The ability of Baden-Württemberg's industry to meet the challenges of the future will depend on the development of environment technology, among other things, in the state”, said Ernst Pfister. “With a forecast annual global growth rate of 6.5 per cent, environment technology has the potential to create new long-term jobs”. With innovative products and methods for improving the efficiency of materials and energy use, he continued, the competitiveness of traditional, resource-intensive branches of industry can also be increased. Baden-Württemberg, he pointed out, plays a leading role in the area of environment technology in Germany due to its high concentration of research institutes and environment technology companies.
The aim of the project started by PU e.V. is to exploit and develop the innovative potential of this cross-sector industry with the help of professional network management and the implementation of a comprehensive catalogue of measures along the value-added chain. “Existing potential for innovation can be tapped more effectively and, above all, faster if companies work more closely with each other and with scientific institutions as well”, said the minister.
The report presented by McKinsey and the Institut für angewandte Wirtschaftsforschung e.V. (institute for applied economic research) in July 2010 describing the economic and technological perspectives of Baden-Württemberg up to 2020 illustrates the importance of environment technology and resource efficiency for Baden-Württemberg's economy. The state-wide environment technology network that is now being set up and the environment technology centre for technology and innovation which is being established are the two important pillars of the state initiative entitled “Baden-Württemberg as Europe's laboratory of eco-innovation”.
“Promotion of the build-up and expansion of state-wide networks is part of the state's cluster and network strategy with which the ministry of economics is aiming to ensure that Baden-Württemberg is prepared to meet the challenges of the 21st century”, said Ernst Pfister. The state's competitiveness, he continued, can only be maintained and enhanced if new knowledge is passed on to companies in good time and if it is used by industry in a flexible and distributed manner in the framework of strategic alliances with competitors.
Source: Ministry of Economics Baden-Württemberg
