Innovation Relay Centres Network

The Innovation Relay Centres Network is a European technology transfer organization, supporting innovation and assisting in the transnational transfer of technology within Europe and abroad,with a range of specialised business support services. The Innovation Relay Centres (IRCs) offer services targeted at technology-oriented small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and also to large companies, research institutes, universities, technology centers and innovation agencies.

The first Innovation Relay Centre was established in 1995 with the support of the European Commission. This EU project aimed to create a pan-European platform to stimulate transnational technology transfer and promote innovation services.

Over the past twelve years the IRCs - working together in close co-operation - have assisted in over 12,500 technology transfer negotiations, and have helped more than 55,000 client companies to meet their technology needs and to exploit their research results.

The people involved in these IRCs (a total of nearly 1,000) are experienced specialists with backgrounds in business, industry and research. Until now they have facilitated and signed more than 1000 transnational transfers of technology agreements.

The five types of transnational agreements are:

• Joint venture
• Technical co-operation
• Manufacturing agreement
• Licensing agreement
• Commercial agreement with technical assistance

Today, 71 regional IRCs span 33 countries, including the 27 European Union member states, Iceland, Israel, Norway, Switzerland, Turkey and Chile.

External links

• The public website of the IRC Network
• Find your local IRC office using a Google Maps Mashup (beta-testing)

List of IRCs within the Network

• The Brussels IRC - Building Technology Partnership
• IRC North - Nord Manche (covering Northern England and Northern France)
• IRC Hellenic (covering Greece)
• IRC Northern Germany (covering Berlin, Brandenburg, Hamburg, Schleswig-Holstein, Bremen and Mecklemburg-Vorpommern)