PROJECT

Project Idea

The driving idea of REG CON is the advancement of the concept of “clustering” across regions of Europe with a thematic focus on construction. This sector is both dynamic in creation of growth and employment (with 11.8 million operatives directly employed in the sector, it is Europe’s largest industrial employer accounting for 7% total employment and 28% of industrial employment in the EU-15 ) but relatively backward in absorbing innovation. The Strategic Research Agenda prepared by European Construction Technology Platform sets up ambitious but realistic goals to transform this traditional sector into the knowledge driven and R&D based. REG CON activities those goals from regional level. - TOP

REG CON sets the following yardsticks of success and objective fulfilment:

• Setting up in the EU three regional clusters focusing on particular areas of interest of the construction activity in the participating regions,

•Achieving cluster participant mobilization in each of the clusters, resulting to understanding of needs for each cluster actor, development of practical R&D action plans and co-operation,

• Achieving nine instances of mentoring, cross– regional co-operation, SWOT analyze, joint R&D Action Plan and food practice transfer among the clusters and experts beyond the clusters. These would be implemented by: surveys, regional events and workshops, dissemination and mentoring activity,

• Designing a financial instrument the would secure the sustainability of the clusters and R&D cooperation beyond the project lifetime,

• Designing an administrative and management structure that would host and administer the cluster.

Project partnership is based on two advanced construction clusters: Finland & Slovenia [mentors] and three regions with “clusters initiatives” which need to be transformed into cluster [Poland, Spain, Greece]. Each region involves main stakeholders: industry, research, local authorities. Partners in the project are members of European Construction Technology Platform and National Technology Platforms which ensure the link with European objectives for sector R&D development. Apart from focusing on construction sector, the project has –at the methodological level – a regional focus seeking to engage in permanent way all the main stakeholder categories, i.e. industry, research, chamber of commerce, local authorities. It also has a cross regional aspect, in the sense that the approaches to be developed, although targeting different sub areas of construction and reflecting the particularities of the participating regions, will be shared among the consortium. Sharing of good practice and mentoring schemes are cornerstone in the project roll – out

In addition to the three key ideas “construction clustering”, “regional focus” and “cross regional co-operation & EU dimension”, the project concept includes: • Dissemination of good practice, by means of case studies either of a horizontal nature (e.g. tourism, public buildings) or vertically (e.g. energy, materials, accessibility), • A clear focus on innovation and R&D activities, • A good practice transfer mechanism (mentoring dimension), • A sustainability beyond the project lifecycle, by means of integration with other funding and investment

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