COHESION POLICY AND SUPPORT FOR SMES:
Examples of good practice
(Measures or projects 2000-2006 are completed or underway, 2007-2013 examples relate to plans.)
MS / REGION / DESCRIPTION / TOTAL COST € / ERDF €Austria / Niederösterreich / Project: "Innovation Assistant"
Ziel 2 Niederösterreich 2002 Regional Innovation Strategy for Lower Austria (2000-2006)
The idea behind launching of the ‘Innovation Assistant’ was to encourage the SMEs, especially those with little or no experience with employment of highly qualified staff, to employ recent university graduates in order to overcome the barriers mentioned above. These graduates are called ‘Innovation Assistants’. / 161,906 / 129,525
Belgium / Wallonie / Programme Operationnel Hainaut Objectif 1 (2000-2006): Programme Priorities in relation to SME:
1. Aides aux entreprises, ingénierie financière, infrastructures d'accueil, animation économique
2. Aides à la recherche, diffusion de la culture scientifique, pôles d'excellence, centres de compétence
Les Objectifs etaient (1) Assurer l'accés à la connaissance et à sa maître (2) Stimuler la creation de resaux (strategie de clustering) interfirme et entre les differents acteurs due tissu productif (3) Promouvoir l'economie des services conjointement au renforcement de la base industrielle / 1050 million / 161 million
Bulgaria / All regions / Support for creation and commercialization of innovations by enterprises - OP Competitiveness 2007-2013 Priority Axis: 1 ("Indicative Operation": 1.1.2)
Support will be provided for R&D activities, carried out by enterprises, including feasibility studies, industrial research and experimental development, as well as for consultations, investments in tangible and intangible assets, training of management and/or personnel needed for introduction of products or process innovations in the manufacturing and management practices of the beneficiary enterprises / Not yet available / 14.5 million
Cyprus / National / "Scheme for Small and Medium Enterprises for the Promotion of Rural Tourism" Priority 1: Sustainable Rural Development, Single Programming Document for Objective 2 (ERDF) 2004-2006)
The overall objective of the scheme was the economic and social regeneration of rural areas, which face serious structural problems, in order to contribute to the stabilization of the depopulation trend and to achieve greater social and economic cohesion. As a result 78 SMEs were supported, from which 65 were new enterprises. / 21.8 million / 3 million
Czech Republic / Whole country except Prague / Priority axis 2: "Development of competitiveness of enterprises" Operational Programme Industry and Enterprise (2004-2006)
Objectives: - Facilitate the entry of new business on the market - Projects focused on product and/or technology innovation - Projects focused on innovation services - Projects aiming at reducing energy consumption in industrial enterprises - Support for the use of renewable energy sources in industry and businesses / 173 million / 130 million
Denmark / National / ERDF Operational Programme "Innovation and Knowledge" (2007-2013)
The purpose of the programme is to boost regional competitiveness and employment by putting in place the conditions for growth within the following three areas: (a) Establishing and developing new businesses (b) Innovation, and sharing and building up knowledge (c) Using new technology / 510 million / 254,788 million
Estonia / National / Project:"Competence Centre of Food and Fermentation Technologies"
Single Programming Document Estonia 2004-2006
The Competence Centre of Food and Fermentation Technologies objective is to improve the quality, functionality and preservation of the food produced by partner companies and develop and promote use of new cultivation technology in the food and biotechnology industry. / 2.042 million / 1.725 million
Finland / All Finland / Project: "FINNVERA"
All Objective 1 and 2 OPs in Finland (2000-2006)
Finnvera is a specialised financing company, owned entirely by the Finnish State, which offers risk-financing services to Finnish businesses. With the help of ERDF co-financing, Finnvera is able to take higher risks and accept lower collateral, making it possible to grant loans to SMEs who cannot access loans on the open market. / 93.3 million / 43.3 million
France / Languedoc-Roussillon / Project: "Céalia" - Fonds d'aide aux entereprises"
DOCUP objectif 2 2000-2006 Languedoc-Roussilon
"Créalia" est un fonds d'aide aux entreprises innovantes. Il intervient sous forme de prêt d'honneur d'un montant maximum de 38.000 €, accordé par un jury d'experts et les chefs d'entreprises membres de Créalia. Il a pour objectif d'aider les créateurs à financer les études de faisabilité et les questions de R&D / 1.6 million / 750,000
Germany / Hamburg / Project: "Idea and Seed Fund: revolving loan funds for high-tech start-ups"
Objective 2 Single Programming Document for Hamburg (2000-2006)
The Idea Fund and the Seed Fund aim to support innovative start-ups at an early financing phase by active management support and the closing of the existing gap in financing tools for the pre-seed and seed phase. The Idea Fund is targeted at young entrepreneurs for the funding of pre-competitive high-tech business ideas. The Seed Fund provides funding of young high-tech companies in the seed phase. / 4 million / 1.5 million
Greece / National / Project: "The Guarantee Fund for Small and Very Small Enterprises"
Operational Programme 'Competitiveness' (2000-2006) - Priority Axis 2 "Support and Encouragement for entrepreneurships"
The Guarantee Fund for Small and Very Small Enterprises facilitates the access of Small and Very Small enterprises to the financial system of Greece, by providing guarantees and counter-guarantees and undertaking part of their financial and commercial risk. / 240 million / 170 milion
Hungary / Central Hungary / Project: "UNITIS Rendszerház Information Close Company"
Operational Programme 'Economic Development' (2004-2006) ECOP 4.1.2-05/1., Development of e-contacts among business partners
The object of UNITIS is to support modern, intelligent solutions supported by world famous technology which suit to the demand of the state and government. This system gives opportunity to the small and medium size companies to be modernised and developed through production and sales / 282,036 / 97,631
Italy / Veneto (Mestre-Venice) / Project: "IN.T.EC. Srl - Innovation methods for treatment of contaminated soils and sediment"
Programme: Singly Programme Document for Veneto Region, Italy Obj.2 - 2000-2006
The project envisages to use a new advanced production process dedicated to the treatment of wastes / 20,000 / 10,000
Ireland / Southern and Eastern Region / Project : "County Enterprise Boards"
Southern and Eastern 2000-2006 ERDF Programme
On the basis of the most recent Annual Implementation Report for 2006, CEBs throughout the region had supported 4029 enterprises and generated €94.6 million of private sector investment. The project also conducts entrepreneurial and capability development and has led to the creation of an estimated 14.000 jobs. / 132 million / 66 million
Latvia / Latgale / Project: "RV EKO"
Single Programming Document Latvia (2004-2006)
The company „RV Eko” produces cladding tiles for decoration purposes by using a unique technology of sintering crushed packaging glass. The company business is based on the idea to recycle glass and to prevent environmental degradation caused by human activities. / 200,000 / 50,000
Lithuania / Objective 1 Region / Project: "Terra (SME) - Modernisation of innovative telecommunication products and production technologies" Single programming document (2004-2006) of Lithuania.
Direct beneficiary of this project was company ”Terra” (SME). Main objective of the project is enhancement of competitiveness in national and international markets, improvement of company’s image and business viability via construction of new facilities for production and modernisation of existing production facilities / 2.323 million / 811,212
Luxembourg / Luxembourg / Project: "ECOSTART - Enterprise and Innovation Centre"
Objective 2 Programme 2000-2006
The Ecostart project, the first of its kind in Luxembourg, aims to attract new and innovative technology-based businesses to a single site and then support their development. Aid from the ERDF made it possible to renovate and convert the building and today it provides 600 m² of offices and 3 300 m² of assembly and production facilities. / 3.677 million / 919,453
Malta / Malta / Programme Priority I: "Enhancing knowledge and innovation"
Malta Operational Programme 1 ("Investing in competitiveness for a better quality of life") (2007-2013)
This priority aims at reinforcing the RTD & Innovation capacity of the Maltese enterprises, linking the productive sector to the research centres, facilitating access to credit and micro-credit for SMEs, implementing the new ICT dept. at Malta University and enterprises–related infrastructures / 120 million / 102 million
Netherlands / West-Netherlands / Project : "Rotterdam Delfshaven Business Center (COiD)"
2000-2006 Objective 2 "Urban Areas Netherlands"
The centre promotes entrepreneurship by stimulating networking, cooperation, renewal and innovation in companies. It is a place for sharing knowledge and attracting new activities. The centre also offers fledgling businesses support and supplies the general preconditions for (first-time) entrepreneurs / 659,410 / 246,015
Poland / Katowice, Upper Silesia / Project: "EMAG - Serwis Sp. z.o.o."
Operational programme "Improvement of the Competitiveness of enterprises" (2004-2006)
The company specializes in making models and prototypes, piece production and small-production of devices serving to improve safety in the mining industry. Thanks to the EU support, EMAG-SERWIS has made its production capacity more flexible, adapting it to meet market needs, and has improved the quality of its products. Optical inspection of correct assembly of printed circuits now eliminates potential errors, and thus shortens the time needed to bring a subassembly into operation. / 850,318 / 402,457
Portugal / Lisboa / Project; "AO SOL - Energias Renováveis"
Programme PRIME/Economia 2000/06
"AO SOL – Energias Renováveis" is a company dedicated to manufacture solar thermal collectors and to provide solar thermal engineering solutions and services. The AO SOL technology is protected by registered international patents and it is in constant evolution supported by its own R&D department, supported by ERDF financing. / 957,435 / 162,896
Romania / Iasi, Constanta, Ploiesti, Craiova,Timisoara, Cluj and Brasov / Priority axis 1: Support to sustainable development of urban growth poles - Regional Operational Programme 2007-2013 (ROP)
This regional growth poles policy aims to fostering multi-polar development of the key urban agglomerations and of their hinterland which can induce positive spill-over effects across the region. The key elements of the concept are: regional development, balanced development, attractiveness of the FDI, evolution of competitiveness advantage, SMEs development.
/ 700 million / 560 million
Slovak Republic / Prešov Region / Project: "SPINEA, Ltd"
Operational Programme "Industry and Services" (2004-2006)
The company was supported in 2004 by funding from OP Industry & Services to the amount of €2.3 million as a contribution to a project to build a new production site for robotics and the implementation of new technologies for increased production of high-precision reducers. / 6.6 million / 2.3 million
Slovenia / Zasavje Region / Project: "FORSTEK d.o.o."
Single Programming Document Slovenia (2004-2006)
Forstek d.o.o. is a young and rapidly growing small enterprise with 72 employees established in Zasavje valley where glass production is by tradition an anchored economic activity. The investment co-financed by the ERDF in 2005 covered the purchase of equipment for the treatment and processing centre to increase the production in order to gain a higher market share, to increase the output and minimize the negative impact on environment. / 333,000 / 137,500
Spain / All Spanish Regions Objective 1 / Project: InnoCamaras
OP Objective 1: "Mejora de la competitividad y desarrollo del tejido productivo" (2000-2006)
The objective of the scheme is to contribute to the improvement in competitive-ness of the SMEs, through the integration of culture of innovation into their business strategies. / 9.5 million / 5.9 million
Sweden / Mål 2 Norra (Objective 2) / Project: "Fiber Optic Valley" OP (2000-2006) of Objective 2 North Sweden
The objective of the project is to support networking between local high technology businesses in order to boost the competitiveness of the region of Hudiksvall in the area of fibre optics. / 13.9 million / 4.8 million
United Kingdom / Wales - Objective 1&2 Regions / Project: "Finance Wales plc - 'Venture Capital Loan Funds'"
Objective 1 West Wales & the Valleys (2000-2006) Objective 2 East Wales (2000-2006)
Finance Wales was established by the Welsh Assembly Government in 2000 to address market failure in the provision of risk capital to SMEs. The Objective 1 and 2 funds are a public/private partnership, financed using ERDF grant alongside private investment from Barclays Bank plc. / 20.355 million / 12.550 million