PARTNERS

COORDINATOR

Area Science Park is a public research organization and promotes the development of innovation processes: for 40 years it has carried out the mission of creating a propulsive connection between the research and the business world, between the public and the private sector, driving the development of territories.
Specialized skills for business innovation services, creation and development of innovative startups, advanced training, world-class technology facilities and infrastructures for industrial research: these are the strengths that Area offers to the economic systems, both at regional, national and international level.
Area Science Park manages the science and technology park, based on 3 campuses located in Trieste and Gorizia, with 80,000 square meters of equipped facilities for R&D activities. At present 72 players operate in the park: 68 high-tech companies, out of which 20 are startups, and 8 national and international research centers, engendering job opportunities for 2,600 employees.

LEAD PROCURER, FRONT RUNNER

The is a public body having as its primary task to direct, plan, coordinate, promote and control port operations and commercial and industrial activities in the port.
Located at the intersection between the Baltic-Adriatic and Mediterranean TEN-T core network corridors, the Port of Trieste is an international hub for overland and sea trade with the dynamic markets of Central and Eastern Europe, and it is the top ranking Italian port for total throughout, with more than 61 million tons (2017) as well as for intermodal trains – more than 8,600 train (2017).

PROCURER, FRONT RUNNER

Bilbao city council, is a local public authority administering the City of Bilbao, located on the Eastern Atlantic seaboard, in the Spanish State, stands 19 m above sea level, covering a surface area of 41.6 km2. The capital of Bizkaia/Biscay stands at the heart of a metropolis with over 1,000,000 inhabitants. Founded in 1300, it is the main axis of socio-economic development and the key factor in the modernization of the territory. Endowed with the responsibilities and powers that Spanish legislation bestows on “Big Cities”, it has played a pivotal role in the strategic project for the transformation of Bilbao. As part of its urban planning responsibilities, it is currently carrying out the development project for the “Zorrotzaurre peninsule”, soon to be an island.

PROCURER, OBSERVER

The CEA - Environmental Studies Centre is a municipal autonomous entity whose mission is to look out for the sustainability in Vitoria-Gasteiz, fostering the Vitoria-Gasteiz municipality’s sustainable development not only as an isolated unit, but linked to its bioregion, the Alava Plains. With the aim of enhancing Vitoria-Gasteiz municipality’s sustainability, the aims of CEA are the following:

• Guide the gathering, management, and use and analysis of the best information available for the formulation of more efficient urban and territorial policies.
• Analyse the operation of the municipality (and its bioregion) as an environmental, social, and economic system, and utilize this knowledge for more efficient local and regional planning.
• Strengthen the municipal plans and programs directed towards the proposal and planning of new more sustainable scenarios in the city and territory.
• Promote the education, information, awareness and participation of citizens on the subject of urban and territorial sustainability, ensuring the participation of all social and economic agents involved.

PROCURER, OBSERVER

Established in 1991, SPAQuE is today the consultancy firm reference on issues concerning landfills rehabilitation, brownfields decontamination and environmental expertise. Due to this experience, the company is recognized as
a turn-key operator and main contractor at the international level for its scientific environmental approach. SPAQuE offers the essential tools and techniques for the implementation of an environmental and health quality management policy based on sustainable development principles.

SPAQuE rehabilitated more than 800 ha of contaminated sites.

PROCURER, OBSERVER

Baía do Tejo is a Portuguese State owned company, whose mission is to enhance and develop its properties, through urban and environmental requalification, while managing 3 Business Parks in the metropolitan Areas of Lisbon and Oporto.
Baía do Tejo also coordinates Lisbon South Bay, a project promoted with the cities of Almada, Barreiro and Seixal for the requalification, development and promotion of 3 riverside areas, empowering this territories with urban plans and urban requalification, improving the current infrastructures for new business and new urban areas.

TECHNICAL PARTNER

TECNALIA RESEARCH & INNOVATION is a private, independent, no-profit applied research centre of international excellence. Operating under the legal status of a foundation, Tecnalia is the leading private and independent research and technology organization in Spain and one of the largest in Europe, employing 1,300 people (219 PhDs) and with an income of 102 Million € in 2015.

TECHNICAL PARTNER

MAS Abogados is an SME founded in 1992 and comprises a team of lawyers specialized in special administrative law, and focused on Environment and Urban Planning. We count on an extensive network of specialists in different fields and a proven track record in working with the Public Administration.

The aim of the company is to add high value-added solutions to environmental and urban problems, sometimes designing specific policies and others working with stakeholders in participatory processes related to decision-making issues.

TECHNICAL PARTNER

Ihobe is a publicly-owned company coming under the Basque Government's Ministry for the Environment, Territorial Planning and Housing.

Ihobe supports the Basque Government in the implementation of the environmental policy and in the spreading of the environmental sustainability culture in the Basque Autonomous Community.

TECHNICAL PARTNER

Sara’s background varies from ICT contracts and procurement to innovation management and even competition law.Since 2007 she has been working to introduce pre-commercial public procurement (PCP) into the Italian procurement and innovation policy framework. In particular, she provided strategic, legal and technical advice to the Italian Government to draw up the PCP Italian framework and Guideline and supported, as expert, the Italian Ministry for Research (MIUR) for the definition of legislative acts concerning the national policy of PCP, as well as for the evaluation and definition of the Public notice addressed to the Convergence Region for the recognition of innovation needs.

At EU level, she actively participated to the open consultation on the draft R&D&I-framework with the aim to support the PCP and innovation partnership regulation with a view to prevent actions liable to distort dynamic incentives in the market and discriminate against the participation of SMEs.

She is actively supporting major European public sector entities (policy makers and public procurers) and conducting several EU-funded and not-funded projects, involving a network of more than EU 50 public entities established in more than 20 Member States, finalized to create practical impact on the use of PCP&PPI and to strengthen forward looking procurement strategies in several fields: health-care, water management & use, education, environment, ICT, construction.

As PCP and PPI specialist she’s involved in the EAFIP initiative (European Assistance for Innovation Procurement.

She has developed a research for EC-DG Connect (SMART 2014-0009) measuring the impact of PCP across Europe compared to other procurement approaches. In the area of research, she conducted in 2008-2009 an Europe-wide benchmarking of PCP models (rational, phases, procedures, IPRs management..), as well as a comparative study of the EU versus USA model of PCP in collaboration with the U.S. Small Business Administration – Washington.

She ordinarily conducts post-graduate courses and multi-disciplinary training & coaching programme concerning innovation public procurement, targeted at departmental heads and procurement staff of primary public authorities and public companies.