Skip links
contact@hitechtex.eu
Twitter Linkedin
Hi-Tech-TEX

APPLICATION FOR ClusterXChange

ClusterXchange

ClusterXchange Programme is an initiative that allows organisations to improve their innovative and networking capacities through targeted visits to hosting organisations, exploring a foreign cluster and meeting new enterprises, businesses, researchers, experts and managers to support short-term exchanges to better connect Europe’s industrial ecosystems. That programme enables them to innovate developing cross-sectorial and cross-regional strategies. It is another tool to the deepening cross-regional cooperation.

Regular exchanges of information and ideas of participants in the ClusterXchange not only promote research and development but also extend businesses’ opportunities to transfer the scientific results into production. The ClusterXchange programme allows to build bridges to bring together research and business organisations from different regions.

An exchange constitutes a stay abroad performed by a visiting organisation from an eligible country at a host organisation in another eligible country. Exchanges are used to learn from actors in another cluster, explore growth opportunities in new markets, adopt new technologies, digitalisation and green low-carbon solutions, invest in strategic interregional collaboration.

Brochure

Leaflet

Success Stories

Glossary

ClusterXchange (CxC) supports European industrial clusters and their members - and more particularly SMEs that are members of a cluster - to strengthen their strategic cross-regional collaboration activities by spending periods of time in a partner cluster (or SME/scaling-up support organisation member of a cluster) in another COSME participating country. The nature of each exchange exercise may follow different specific objectives within a broader approach aiming at the consolidation and/or the creation of new value chains across Europe.

Visiting organisations are defined as the travelling party of an exchange. Eligible visiting organisations must be registered on the European Cluster Collaboration Platform2 under one of the following organisational profiles: i) all cluster organisations and business network organisations from COSME participating countries; ii) Scaling-up support organisations (such as technology centres, research institutes, fab labs, (digital) innovation hubs, creative hubs, resource-efficiency service providers, incubators and accelerators) from COSME participating countries that are cluster members and; iii) SMEs from a COSME participating country that are cluster members.

Host organisations are defined as the non-travelling party of an exchange. Eligible host organisations must be registered on the European Cluster Collaboration Platform under one of the following categories: i) all cluster organisations and business network organisations from COSME participating countries, ii) SMEs from a COSME participating country that are cluster members; iii) scaling-up support organisations (such as technology centres, research institutes, fab labs, (digital) innovation hubs, creative hubs, resource-efficiency service providers, incubators and accelerators) from COSME participating countries that are cluster members; iv) training providers from a COSME participating country that are cluster members; v) large companies from a COSME participating country that are cluster members, and; vi) public authorities at both regional and city/administration levels that are active in a cluster from a COSME participating country.

Financial agreement and payment

We are thinking of organizing a CXC mission to Portugal and we are wondering if we (cluster) can pay for the flights and hotels, and then send them an invoice with these expenses.

The companies must pay for their expenses. The VOP (European Cluster Partnership | Excellence in charge of the Visiting Organisation) undertakes to pay to the VO (visiting organization) the financial assistance as a lump sum of 390€ (3 days) or 780€ (5 days), for Portugal, in one payment within 10 days after the completion of the exchange upon the submission of the relevant closing report of the exchange by the VO and its respective validation by the VOP, and the receipt of relevant evidence from the VO that the exchange has taken place (e.g. boarding passes, travel and accommodation invoices).

Participation rules

A company (SME) is only eligible if it is a member of a cluster organisation profiled on ECCP. So, if the SME is only a member of a business network, then it is not eligible.

Only in exceptional circumstances, an SME that is not a member of a cluster organisation profiled on ECCP can take the role of the Host Organisation (but not the role of the Visiting Organization). This will be accepted following a case-by-case assessment and pre-approval of EASME.

The companies must pay for their expenses. The VOP (European Cluster Partnership | Excellence in charge of the Visiting Organisation) undertakes to pay to the VO (visiting organization) the financial assistance as a lump sum of 390€ (3 days) or 780€ (5 days), for Portugal, in one payment within 10 days after the completion of the exchange upon the submission of the relevant closing report of the exchange by the VO and its respective validation by the VOP, and the receipt of relevant evidence from the VO that the exchange has taken place (e.g. boarding passes, travel and accommodation invoices).

An exchange can always be counted once towards partnership KPIs. This rule is particularly important when the Partnerships that manage the Visiting Organisation´s (VOP) and Host Organisation´s (HOP) profiles are different (VOP and HOP are different in an exchange).

The exchange is only counted towards the partnership´s KPIs that organises the exchange and pays the financial assistance to the visiting organisation. This means that an exchange can only be counted towards the VOP´s KPIs (as the VOP is in charge of paying the financial assistance) and not towards the HOP´s KPIs. This counting system is also applied to the virtual exchanges, even if no financial assistance is involved.

No. It’s mandatory to register via the ClusterXchange IT Tool available on the ClusterXchange portal hosted on the European Cluster Collaboration Platform (ECCP) website. There is a manual to support you and also the organisers can provide you support.

Duration of an activity

No. “An exchange can last a minimum of three full-working days and a maximum of one month.”

Eligibility in CXC

“To take part in the scheme, all participants have to be linked to a validated Cluster Organisation profile on the ECCP, with the exception of Business networks”. It means that an organisation is only eligible if it is profiled on ECCP (in the case of cluster organisations) or is a member of a cluster organisation profiled on ECCP (eligible cluster organisation members are SMEs and scaling-up support organisations, as indicated in the quality manual). These rules do not apply to business networks who are also eligible in CXC.

Final report

If I was reading this as a prospective visitor I would like to know if this represents 5 minutes or five hours effort from my part....On the Quality Commitment is stated that they have 7 days to present a report under a defined format and I would like to have a more concrete idea on what is expected in case, they ask the question.

We don’t need to prepare a specific survey there’s a template for the final activity report. ANNEX 2 for Host organization. ANNEX 3 for visiting organizations. In any case it's only a simple questionnaire and takes only few minutes to fill in.

Matches

The score is only an indication of the “affinity” between two profiles, it is possible to match with profiles that have any score.

We don’t need to prepare a specific survey there’s a template for the final activity report. ANNEX 2 for Host organization. ANNEX 3 for visiting organizations. In any case it's only a simple questionnaire and takes only few minutes to fill in.

We understand you refer to creating a group of exchanges. Indeed, it is possible to add exchanges of different visiting organisations to a group at different times as long as they are in a draft status. (meaning no contracts – commitment to quality - have been signed)

Application Process

Legal Criteria - The types of eligible organisations are:

  • Cluster organisations7 and similar business network organisations from COSME

participating countries (full list of COSME participating countries in Annex 2)

  • SMEs from a COSME participating country that are cluster members

B. Age Criteria

The user that represents the HO must be minimum 18 years old in order to have the legal capacity to sign agreements and to participate.

C. Geographical Criteria

HOs must have their ‘permanent residence’ in an EU Member State or in any of the other COSME participating countries to participate in CXC.

‘Permanent residence’ is defined as:

  • The place where the applicant organisation is registered.
  • If an organisation has several registered establishments in different EU Member States or other participating countries, the user should choose the country where he/she is based as his/her permanent residence when registering on the IT Tool.

The common documents are: profile of the participant and registration, Commitment to quality (CTQ), Financial Agreement (FA)  and Final Activity Report (FAR)

The 1st approach are partners members, and then other networks which we use to collaborate.

Yes, participants can propose also individual CXC.

Min 3 complete days till one month

Yes, participants can propose, and the Support Office has to approve it. It’s mandatory to complete at least 24h of activities.

Financial Support

The financial support is fixed depending on the country and included in Annex 1 – Maximum Lump sums paid to the Visitor Organizations (Vos), for CXC of 3 days is 50% of the amount.

Travel and accommodation are the most commons.

Collaboration Opportunities

All the CXC organised include networking activities to facilitate the cross- border and cross sectoral collaboration.

Follow-up Support

Evaluation and Feedback