"Collaboration between SMEs and research organizations is the key to growth and discovering new business opportunities"
Companies from Kanta-Häme visited the University of Oulu's Linnanmaa campus on February 4th as part of a regional Rahoitusagentti project. The project's goal is to promote research, development, and innovation (RDI) activities between SMEs and research organizations. The purpose of the visit was to help companies find suitable research partners, thereby fostering innovation and business growth.
"This is an entirely new operating model here in Kanta-Häme and perhaps in all of Finland. The aim is to establish a permanent operating model and service for our economic development companies," says Anne Tasaranta from Forssan Yrityskehitys Oy. According to her, collaboration saves time in the search for partners and helps businesses focus on their core activities. "We hope to find collaboration opportunities that benefit both parties, ultimately leading to new competitiveness, innovations, as well as internationalization and business opportunities."
New growth and innovation through collaboration
There are various ways for companies of all sizes to collaborate with the University of Oulu. Cooperation takes place, for example, in the following areas:
Research collaboration: We offer contract research services, joint research projects, and the opportunity to participate in the industrial doctorate program.
Patents and IPR licensing: Research conducted at the university produces various outcomes, including biological materials, software, databases, inventions, and new business ideas. Some of these are commercialized for business use.
Research and laboratory services: We provide diverse research equipment and environments, along with related services and expertise, for use by industries and businesses.
Student collaboration: Our recruitment services help companies find new talent.
Collaboration between universities and SMEs can bring significant benefits to both parties.
"Collaboration between businesses and universities leads to new innovations. Additionally, it enables SME growth on an international scale. In particular, innovation activities can greatly benefit agile SMEs," says Mirva Saaranen, Customer Manager at the Faculty of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine at the University of Oulu.
Heidi Honkanen, an EU funding expert at Culmentor, also sees vast potential in such collaborations: "By working with universities, companies can cost-effectively acquire new expertise for product and business development. Furthermore, they gain access to valuable business networks both domestically and internationally."
The University of Oulu can support companies in product development by providing resources that might otherwise be unattainable for them.
"SMEs rarely have the resources to invest in research equipment or hire new staff. We can facilitate companies' product development," says Lauri Eklund, research group leader at the Faculty of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine at the University of Oulu.
"Great things are hardly ever invented or achieved alone"
We hope that the visit of Kanta-Häme companies and similar future events will open doors for companies to collaborate, grow, and innovate.
Anne Tasaranta encourages SMEs to approach university collaboration with an open mind: "RDI collaboration between SMEs and research organizations is the key to growth and discovering new business opportunities. Great things are hardly ever invented or achieved alone."
If you are interested in research collaboration with the University of Oulu, please contact the business experts at the Innovation Centre:
Maria Juurikka, Company Specialist
maria.juurikka@oulu.fi
+358294487646
Petri Leukkunen, Customer Manager
petri.leukkunen@oulu.fi
+358294481162
Kaisa Still, Customer Relations Manager
kaisa.still@oulu.fi
+358294488030
We also welcome contact from researchers at the University of Oulu who are interested in commercializing their research results and collaborating with businesses.