EU Commissioner Lauds Dublin BIC’s Strong Record In Commercialising R&D

Dublin Business Innovation Centre (Dublin BIC), the enterprise development organisation, has announced that Máire Geoghegan-Quinn, European Commissioner for Research, Innovation and Science attended the Guinness Enterprise Centre (GEC), to meet many of its clients involved in commercialisation of research and development with the support of European framework funding.

Commissioner Máire Geoghegan-Quinn commented on the work being done by Dublin BIC to support and advance innovative Irish start-ups: "I am very pleased to have the opportunity to hear more about the excellent work that the Dublin Business Innovation Centre is doing, and to meet some of the companies that have benefitted from your support and from European-level funding.

"Your work, helping hundreds of companies to grow, demonstrates how public and private sector partnerships can leverage talents, experience and resources and help Europe get stronger. It is not just about the capital to start, vital though this is, it also about knowledge and experience, learning from others who have done this many times before, other entrepreneurs and investors.

"I strongly believe it is the advice, mentoring, networking and links to investors that can make business incubators and angels succeed where other business support structures fail, from the conception of a business idea to the growth of a business venture.

"So when business angels get it right, and they very often do, they can generate high returns compared to other investors, and there is evidence of this persisting under the current economic crisis."

The following are some of the clients the commissioner met on her visit: Cleantech company REDT a world leader in advanced vanadium redox battery technology; Biotech company Trimod Therapeutics, applying advanced immunotherapy techniques to selectively activate the immune system so as to target many different tumour types in cancer patients down the line; Mandac an ICT company, that has provided a "wireless-to-go" device that provides internet access to people in remote regions of the world; AER Bio, a sustainable energy company that has developed a disruptive platform for extracting valuable oil and protein products from algae in a low-cost, environmentally sustainable way.

The European Commissioner went on to say: "The economic downturn is longer and more challenging than we could have expected. But, since necessity is the mother of invention, the current situation also presents an opportunity, to find new ways to finance our innovative businesses, to assume risk, to create social impact, to identify and fill the gaps – such as in supporting our young start-ups to become businesses with an international reach.

"The new and emerging sources of finance show that investors on the one hand, and innovators and SMEs on the other, are being extremely creative in finding new ways to fund innovation and entrepreneurship.

"In the current economic climate, that is to be welcomed. The European Commission is keeping a close eye on these trends, to see how our policies at the European level can help these new sources of funding flourish.

"We are looking with great interest at the potential for Business Angel finance for innovative SMEs at the seed, start-up and early stages. The European Business Angel Network, EBAN, estimates that the total sum invested by Business Angels each year in Europe’s SMEs is around €3 billion."

The European Commissioner added: "The Dublin Business Innovation Centre itself manages the €53m AIB Seed Fund and it manages the Halo Business Angel Partnership which is recognised as one of the top three performing Angel Networks in Europe and it has in the last 18 months completed 40 deals alone with €19 million invested, €8.5m of that from Private Angels.

"Whether through direct participation in EU-funded projects or through their actions to support SMEs in research and innovation, business support centres are well placed to support the commercialisation of research and knowledge and help our companies grow."

Summing up Commissioner Máire Geoghegan-Quinn said: "Horizon 2020, the new integrated programme for research and innovation, will help bring excellent science and research closer to the market. We are relying on you, business incubators and angels, innovative start-ups and leading new businesses, to make this happen. The Dublin Business Innovation Centre has a strong record in commercialising R&D at both a local and at a European level."

Desmond Fahey, CEO, of Dublin BIC said: "We are delighted to have European Commissioner Máire Geoghegan-Quinn visit Dublin BIC and see first hand the commercialisation of R&D by our client companies, many with the assistance of European framework financial and networking supports. At Dublin BIC we work hard to encourage and advise high potential, entrepreneurial Irish start–ups and look forward to our client companies benefiting in their R&D commercialisation efforts from “Horizon 2020” the new European integrated programme for research and innovation?"

(GK)