Belgian Research in Europe

© ISSeP

© Ghent University

© Alexis Haulot

Summary

Belgian Research in Europe R&D, Technology, Innovation

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Editorial and Administration Rue de la Presse, 4 B-1000 Brussels Tel.: +32(0)2 227 11 04 Fax: +32(0)2 218 31 41 E-mail: redaction@publicommb.com

Investing in research and innovation is investing in Europe’s future An interview with Mr Jean-Eric PAQUET, Director-General for Research and Innovation, European Commission........... 8-9

Publication Manager Georges FRANCO Editorial co-ordination Carine CHEVAL Journalists Carine CHEVAL, Bert VERBEKE

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- 1st Quarter 2019 -

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Belgium, an export leader of chemical products An interview with Ms Fabienne L’HOOST, Director General of the Belgian Foreign Trade Agency (BFTA)....................... 10 Guaranteeing a prosperous future for the technological industry An interview with Mr Herman DERACHE, Director General of Sirris.......................................................................... 11  Belnet The Belgian high-speed Internet service provider for 25 years................ 12 Innovation through multidisciplinary collaboration An interview with Mr Philippe MUYTERS, Flemish minister of Work, Economy, Innovation and Sport........................ 14-15 The goal is to optimise the quality of life and autonomy of the Flemish An interview with Mr Jo VANDEURZEN, Flemish minister of Welfare, Public Health and Family.............................. 16-17 EWI: Excellence is the keyword in scientific research An interview with Mr Johan HANSSENS, Secretary-General of EWI.................................................................... 18-19 Health research and innovation in Flanders Researchers and innovators at the service of public health.................... 20-23 Flemish universities must get the necessary means to remain appealing An interview with Dr. Koen VERLAECKT, Secretary-General of the Flemish Interuniversity Council (VLIR)....................... 24 VARIO Independent advice for the Flemish Government....................................... 25 UAS4EUROPE Croissant Event of 25 September 2018: UAS on Horizon Europe....................................................................... 26-27 VITO, vision on technology for a better world............................................ 28 VLAIO: support for research projects in large and small companies........................ 29

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 Becetel: Belgian research centre for pipes and fittings........................................ 30  Becetel: technological and scientific materials research for industry and the public sector......................................................... 31  Vlerick Business School “Jointly putting knowledge into action and action into knowledge”............................................................. 32-34

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 HOWEST University of Applied Sciences Where healthitude and Applied Health Sciences combine forces.................................................................................... 35  Jabil Engineered Solutions Group No Matter How Complex or Demanding the Project, We Can Help You Solve it...................................................................... 36  JABIL: An Experienced Partner for Designing, Validating, Testing and Prototyping your Electronic Products................................... 37  SCK•CEN Research infrastructures that are unique in the world for a broad spectrum of applications................................................ 38-39 Personalised medicine, one of the three priority action areas for Brussels An interview with Ms Fadila LAANAN, Secretary of State of the Brussels-Capital Region in charge of Scientific Research, Minister-President of the French-speaking Brussels Government................. 42-43

© Cab Laanan

Brussels, an especially favourable location for health innovation and research An interview with Prof. Daniele CARATI, President of the Council for Scientific Policy of the Brussels-Capital Region, Director-Coordinator of the Research Department at the Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB).................................................................................... 44 Supporting the internationalisation and innovation of Brussels businesses An interview with Ms Bénédicte WILDERS, hub.brussels – Internationalisation Division.................................................. 45 INNOVIRIS Supporting research and innovation in the Brussels Region................... 46-47 Bolstering the appeal of ULB research centres at a global level An interview with Prof. Oberdan LEO, Vice-Rector for research and promotion at the ULB, Institute of Medical Immunology, Immunobiology research unit.................. 48-49

© ASIT biotech

 ASIT biotech ASIT biotech wants to revolutionise allergy immunotherapy.................... 50

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 Laboratory of Neurophysiology and Movement Biomechanics – LNMB An expert in the field of EEG, evoked potentials and movement analysis........................................................................ 51 Health research and innovation in Brussels High-flying, internationally recognized expertise for the benefit of patients ................................................................. 52-55 SimLabS Simulation in healthcare training............................................................. 56 © Rights reserved

Queen Fabiola Children’s University Hospital – HUDERF Ensuring optimal development of young children....................................... 57 Moving towards personalised medicine for cancer treatment An interview with Prof. Martine PICCART, Research Director of the Jules Bordet Institute............................................... 58 Combining objective scientific data and subjective data An interview with Prof. Axel CLEEREMANS, Director of the Cognition and Neurosciences Research Centre of the Free University of Brussels (ULB)........................................................ 59 Develop more personalized therapeutic interventions for diabetes An interview with Prof. Décio L. EIZIRIK, Director of the ULB Center for Diabetes Research......................................... 60 RNA epigenetics in the battle against cancer An interview with Prof. François FUKS, Laboratory of Cancer Epigenetics, ULB-Cancer Research Center.................... 61  Structural Biology and Biocomputing Centre Specialising in the high-throughput processing of proteins.................... 62 A widely recognized expertise in interdisciplinarity An interview with Prof. Pierre JADOUL, Rector of Université Saint-Louis - Bruxelles (USL-B)......................................... 63

© Structural Biology and Biocomputing Centre

Developing a digital ecosystem in Wallonia An interview with Mr Willy BORSUS, Minister-President of the Walloon Region................................................ 66-67 Prioritising simplification and Europe to integrate Wallonia into the world of tomorrow An interview with Mr Pierre-Yves JEHOLET, Vice-President and Minister of Economy, Industry, Research, Innovation, Digital technology, Employment and Training of the Walloon Government................................................................. 68-69

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Investing in research and development today means creating the companies and jobs of tomorrow An interview with Ms Rose DETAILLE, General Inspector Walloon Public Service for Economy, Employment, Training and Research Department of Research and Technology Development............................. 70-71 3

 Public Service Scientific Institute – ISSeP Metrology and risk assessment for the environment and health............ 72-73 Developing the circular economy, the health economy and the bioeconomy An interview with Mr Olivier DE WASSEIGE, Managing Director of the Walloon Business Union (UWE)............................. 74  Thales Alenia Space Belgium Innovative space solutions to enhance people’s lives and extend our reach beyond EAI...................................................................... 76-77 ©ISSeP

Agoria Wallonia Bring the technology industry into the 4.0 era.......................................... 78 One of the keys lies in international networking An interview with Mr Pierre FIASSE, NCP Coordinator, NCP Wallonia.............................................................. 79 Health research and innovation in Wallonia A mature ecosystem with an international recognition.......................... 80-83 Sizeable investments for the life sciences An interview with Mr Marc FOIDART, Deputy General Manager of the Meusinvest group....................................... 84  Accessia Pharma Provide efficient tools to grow.............................................................. 85  Bridge2Health - B2H Providing solutions leveraging excellence.............................................. 87  Mithra A leader in women’s health............................................................. 88-89

© Mithra

 ARTIALIS S.A. To bring innovation from the research laboratory to the arthritic patients: a challenge raised by Professor Yves Henrotin........................................ 90  Miracor Medical SA Cutting-edge cardiac care..................................................................... 92  EyeD Pharma Ophthalmology innovation.................................................................... 93  Aquilon Pharma Innovation in the treatment of pulmonary diseases................................ 95

© Aquilon Pharma

SOWALFIN, a unique advice service for Walloon SMEs An interview with Ms Anne VEREECKE, Member of the SOWALFIN Management Committee, General Manager NOVALLIA.................................................................... 96 4

Promoting the growth of Walloon companies An interview with Mr Olivier VANDERIJST, Chairman of the Board of the Regional Investment Company of Wallonia (S.R.I.W.)................................................ 97 The Universities of the “Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles” have a great deal of potential for innovation An interview with Dr Ir Michel MORANT, President of the LIEU Network, Past Vice-President of ASTP Proton....................................................... 98-101 © LIEU Network

Interdisciplinary cluster of Applied Genoproteomics - GIGA institute Develop health solutions for the benefit of patients................................ 102  Center for Education and Research on Macromolecules – CERM Polymers to serve coatings, biomaterials and energy............................ 103  Center for Interdisciplinary Research on Medicines - CIRM Your partner in drug development................................................ 104-105  Liège Space Centre – CSL Developing space technologies........................................................... 106  Higher College of the Province of Liège - HEPL An adaptive training course and cutting-edge applied research................................................................................ 107  HELMo Gramme Developing applied research in collaboration with university departments An interview with Mr Juan HERRERA, Director of HELMo Gramme................................................................. 109 SynHERA, the effectiveness of a network… also in Brussels-Capital Region....................................................... 110-111

© Liège Space Centre

Logistics in Wallonia: Reconciling economic performance and environmental footprint in the logistics sector Reconciling economic performance and environmental footprint in the logistics sector An interview with Mr Bernard PIETTE, General Manager of the Logistics in Wallonia competitive cluster............ 112-115 Skywin: Collaborative innovation and operational excellence An interview with Mr Etienne POURBAIX, Director of the Skywin competitiveness cluster..................................... 116-119

© Courtesy of Safran Aero Boosters

Wagralim: Ensuring a digital transition and the sustainability of the food processing sectors An interview with Mr François HEROUFOSSE, Director General of the Wagralim competitiveness cluster.................... 120-123 5

MecaTech: Hybridization of Technologies and Innovations to Mechanical Engineering An interview with Mr Anthony VAN PUTTE, Director of Mecatech Cluster............................................................ 124-127 BioWin: Providing growth for SMEs in the health sector in Wallonia An interview with Mrs Sylvie PONCHAUT, Managing Director of the BioWin competitiveness cluster..................... 128-131 GreenWin, the chemical engineering and sustainable materials cluster An interview with Ms Véronique GRAFF, Managing Director of the GreenWin competitiveness cluster................ 132-135 © GreenWin

 Centre Terre et Pierre – CTP The Belgian expert in “Mineral processing” and “Mining”..................... 137 A focus on Biomarkers and Medicines, Mind and Health, Integrative Biomedicine and Motor Skills An interview with Prof. Philippe DUBOIS, Rector of UMONS........................................................................... 138-139 True proximity between clinicians and researchers at the heart of the Charleroi CHU (University Hospital Centre) An interview with Dr Frédéric FLAMAND, General Manager of hospital strategy at Charleroi CHU............................. 140  Caprion Biosciences Proven expertise providing advanced immune monitoring for oncology and vaccine development................................................ 141  Innovatech Innovation affects all aspects of companies................................. 142-143

© Alexis Haulot

The Catholic University of Louvain (UCLouvain), the top university of the Wallonia-Brussels Federation for participation in European programmes An interview with Prof. Vincent BLONDEL, Rector of the Catholic University of Louvain (UCL)............................... 144-145 Science policy playing a leading role in the economic redeployment of Wallonia An interview with Mr Jean-Christophe RENAULD, Chairperson of the Walloon Science Policy Cluster, Pro-Rector for Research at UCLouvain....................................................... 146  Research team under Prof. Eric GAIGNEAUX Institute of Condensed Matter and Nanosciences – Molecular Chemistry, Materials and Catalysis....................................... 147  Institute of Condensed Matter and Nanosciences (IMCN) Molecules, Solids and Reactivity (MOST) Prof. Olivier Riant’s research group..................................................... 148

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 Laboratory of Applied Materials Chemistry – CMA New materials for sustainable development......................................... 149 6

 Bio- and Soft Matter – IMCN Research team under Prof. Evelyne Van Ruymbeke................................ 150  Louvain Centre for Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology Interdisciplinary expertise in the fight against cystic fibrosis............... 151  Incize Your partner in semiconductor characterisation................................... 152

© UNamur

 University College of Namur-Liège-Luxembourg - Henallux Continuing professional development, services and research in the paramedical category............................................................... 153 Collective intelligence for excellence in research

By Prof. Carine MICHIELS, Vice-Rector for Research and International Relations, University of Namur........................................................................ 154-155 Namur Research Institute for LIfe Sciences From Life Sciences to Health.................................................................. 156  INFOPOLE Cluster TIC A facilitator to generate innovation and collaboration projects............. 157  BIMWAM: an integrated methodology for an efficient water supply strategy......... 158  Laboratory of Structural Biological Chemistry – UNamur Researching original compounds of pharmaceutical interest................. 159  Laboratory of Theoretical Chemistry – Unit of Theoretical and Structural Physical-Chemistry – Namur Institute of Structured Matter – UNamur Chemistry supporting simulation and new materials............................. 160

© URPhyM

 LISE laboratory at the University of Namur Specialist in material surfaces and interfaces...................................... 161  Namur Research Institute for Life Sciences (NARILIS) – Laboratory of Cellular Biochemistry and Biology (URBC)...................... 162  Molecular physiology research unit - URPhyM Cells and tissues Laboratory (Prof. Yves Poumay)................................. 163 Index of Company Profiles and Advertisers.............................................. 164

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Investing in research and innovation is investing in Europe’s future An interview with Mr Jean-Eric PAQUET, Director-General for Research and Innovation, European Commission

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How does this program strengthen the international excellence of EU research and science as well as research and innovation capacities in all Member States?

Global research and innovation cooperation is indispensable as the societal challenges that we need to tackle are truly global. Horizon 2020 is open to the world and has a broad international outreach – participants come from over 130 countries. The programme attracts and involves the EU’s and world’s best research institutions and researchers, creating international multidisciplinary networks. It is also increasing EU attractiveness as a place to carry out research and innovation. By its mid-point last year, Horizon 2020 had supported around 340,000 researchers overall, and its Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions supported the international mobility of 27,000 researchers. In the new programme, Horizon Europe, we are proposing to further intensify international cooperation to ensure that the European researchers and innovators have access to, and benefit from, the world’s best talents, expertise and resources. This will reinforce EU research and innovation excellence and the creation and diffusion of highquality knowledge in the EU. © European Commission

hat progress report do you draw from the Horizon 2020 program?

The interim evaluation has clearly shown that Horizon 2020 is on track to help create jobs and growth, tackle our biggest societal challenges and improve lives. The programme has clear European benefit, producing demonstrable benefits compared to national or regional-level support. Four out of five Horizon 2020 projects would not have gone ahead without EU funding.

The programme has proved extremely attractive and demand is high. Participants appreciate the radical simplification of the programme. More than half are newcomers, meaning they did not take part in its predecessor, the 7th Framework Programme for Research (FP7).

On the other hand, the programme has been so successful that the leap in demand for European funding has led to oversubscription. As of September 2018, Horizon 2020 has supported nearly 20,000 projects with almost €34 billion. Over 2500 of these projects involve Belgian participants who are on track to receive more than €1.6 billion from the programme.

As regards research and innovation capacity in the Member States, let me mention two initiatives: through the so-called “widening” instruments, Horizon 2020 helps EU countries that may lag behind reach their true potential; and participate more in EUfunded research and innovation. And through the so-called Policy Support Facility, we provide – at the request of the member state or country associated to Horizon 2020 - best practice, independent high-level expertise and guidance to reforms that enhance the quality of their research and innovation policies and systems.

© A. Junge, MHH, 2018

The European Commission encourages private companies to apply research to address societal challenges and create more quality jobs. Does the Horizon 2020 program enable it to meet these objectives?

All EU framework programmes have been open to applications from private businesses who have worked within research consortia on solutions to major societal challenges. But Horizon 2020 goes further than its predecessors by offering instruments specifically dedicated to private companies. One of them is the SME Instrument designed for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that have a radically new idea and a business plan for rolling it out on the market. It supports high-risk, high-potential SMEs with an ambition to scale up. Another is the Fast Track to innovation (FTI), which is a fully-bottom-up measure in Horizon 2020 promoting close-to-the-market innovation activities that is open to all types of participants. FTI aims to reduce the time from idea to market. Finally, Horizon 2020 financial engineering, under the InnovFin label, provides the powerful support of the EIB Group to the most ambitious technology projects of European private businesses.

The EU-funded ESPOIR and ARISE projects have successfully transplanted cell-free aortic valves, giving new hope to children suffering from heart disease.

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The Energy Union means making energy more secure, affordable and sustainable. New technologies and renewed infrastructure will cut household bills and create new jobs. The third report on the State of the Energy Union from November 2017 shows that our transition to a low-carbon society is becoming the new reality on the ground. Europe has a policy framework for energy and climate for 2030, as well as an energy security strategy. Meanwhile, an integrated energy market for all EU countries is closer than ever before.

Could you give us some examples of ongoing research programs supported by the European Commission?

There are already many examples of excellent projects that will make a real difference. Let me give you a few with Belgian participants: The ESPOIR project and its follow-up ARISE is giving a new hope to patients, especially young children, suffering from heart disease. Researchers including those from the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven and the Clinique Saint-Jean have made human heart valve implants more tolerable and longer lasting, enabling recipients to avoid follow-up surgery and live largely normal lives.

In your opinion, what should be the priorities of the next European Framework Program for Research and Technological Development?

Our proposal for Horizon Europe builds on the success of the current programme, Horizon 2020. It will keep the EU at the forefront of global research and innovation, deliver on citizens’ priorities and help sustain our socio-economic model and values.

With a proposed budget of €100 billion, it would be the most ambitious research and innovation programme ever.

The LeanShips project, involving Ghent University as well as several Belgian companies, is using a range of new technologies to create greener ships. The aim is to cut fuel use and CO2 emissions by 25%, and other emissions such as sulphur oxide by 100%. And the EBOVAC group of projects, also involving the Belgian branch of Janssen Pharmaceutica, proves that Horizon 2020 has been flexible and responsive to new and urgent needs such as the Ebola epidemic.

Thanks to these projects, over 1.6 million doses of an Ebola vaccine are ready for use in case of emergency.

There will be a strong degree of continuity: three pillars, excellence at the core, changing as little as possible in rules and procedures for participation. But the new programme will be improved to maximise its impact, its relevance to society and its potential for breakthrough innovation.

What is your view on how to fund research in the EU? How could it be improved?

Despite the efforts I mentioned, Europe is still struggling to transform the knowledge generated by its research into products and services put on world markets. That is why Carlos Moedas, Commissioner for Research, Science and Innovation, has decided to create the European Innovation Council (EIC). An operational EIC pilot has already been launched under Horizon 2020. It focuses on radical, market-creating innovations to improve productivity and international competitiveness and to generate new jobs and higher standards of living.

The main new features include a European Innovation Council (EIC), which I already described, and new EU-wide research and innovation missions focusing on societal challenges and industrial competitiveness that will also aim to reconnect research and innovation with citizens. We also propose to double the support for Member States that may still lag behind in developing their research and innovation potential. Horizon Europe will also be bringing more openness with open access to publications and data being the default modus operandi. And we also propose a new generation of European partnerships and increased collaboration with other EU programmes.

Existing funding instruments, such as the Horizon 2020 SME Instrument and the Fast Track to Innovation that I described, are now part of this EIC pilot.

We plan to make the EIC fully operational with the launch of the next Framework Programme, Horizon Europe, running from 2021 to 2027. Two new instruments will take over the current ones: the “Pathfinder”, dedicated to breakthrough innovation, and “the Accelerator”, which will help deploy innovation on the market and scale up companies. The Accelerator will provide tailor-made blended finance (grants and equity financing) to support further development and market deployment of breakthrough and market-creating innovations.

How are the flagship initiatives such as the Digital Single Market and the Energy Union evolving?

Indeed, the Digital Single Market and the Energy Union are among the top ten priorities of the Commission under President Jean-Claude Juncker. Research and Innovation have a crucial role to play in delivering on these extremely important areas.

© Tijmen Kielen, 2018

The Commission proposed the Digital Single Market strategy in May 2015 to make the EU’s single market fit for the digital age, tearing down regulatory walls and moving from 28 national markets to a single one. Three years later, the strategy is well on its way with a majority of the necessary legislative proposals already agreed on. Thanks to this work by the EU, the value of Europe’s data economy has the potential to top €700 billion by 2020, representing 4% of the EU’s economy.

The Horizon 2020 project LeanShips is making vessels more efficient and less polluting.

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Belgium, an export leader of chemical products An interview with Ms Fabienne L'HOOST, Director General of the Belgian Foreign Trade Agency (BFTA)

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Could you give us a report on the princely economic missions organised in 2017?

The first of two economic missions in 2017 was held in South Korea from 10 to 17 June. A considerable interest was shown in business circles by this mission since the last princely delegation to this country dated back to 2009. In total 258 participants left for Seoul, including 171 business leaders, and 15 contracts were signed.

What are the main Belgian export goods?

At 22.7%, and for an amount of EUR 86.5 billion, the chemical products segment was again in first position in 2017 for Belgian export goods.

The second mission was organised in the Ivory Coast from 22 to 26 October 2017. This first visit to the country attracted a lot of participants: 265 people in total and no fewer than 134 companies. It was the largest delegation to an economic mission of the past two years. The companies active in the energy, environment and renewable technologies sector were the most widely represented in the delegation. No fewer than 19 contracts were signed, including eight B2G agreements following an audience between the President of the Ivory Coast and H.R.H. Princess Astrid. © BFTA

hat are the prominent features of the Belgian trade balance in 2017?

Partly thanks to the sharp rise in oil prices, the value of both exports (EUR 381 billion) and imports (EUR 360.2 billion) reached a record high in 2017. In 2017, the trade balance, which indicates the difference between imports and exports, showed a balance of EUR 20.8 billion to our country’s advantage.

Transport equipment occupied second position with a share of 12.0%, i.e. an amount of EUR 45.6 billion.

Machines and devices complete the top three largest export segments with a share of 10.5% and for an amount of EUR 39.8 billion.

What about imports?

The list of the largest import segments was also headed by chemical products in 2017 with a share of 20.6% (EUR 74 billion).

Three years ago you launched the Trade4U solution for companies.

What are the results today?

Since the launch of Trade4U in 2015, over 50,000 business opportunities from nearly 500 sources have been distributed to the clients of Trade4U.

Partly thanks to the sharp rise in imports of ‘hybrid vehicles’, in the past year the transport equipment segment held onto second place with a share of 13.4% and for an amount of EUR 48.4 billion.

They have also had access to over 1,000 economic newsflashes, the majority of which came directly from Belgian embassies and consulates abroad.

As a result of the rising oil prices on the international market, the mineral products segment climbed up to third place when it comes to Belgian import goods. This segment represented 13.0% (EUR 46.9 billion) of total Belgian import goods.

In collaboration with the diplomatic corps and regional economic and commercial attachés, nearly 350 specifications have also been ordered for the benefit of Trade4U subscribers. Several subscribers have already won contracts thanks to Trade4U. When a satisfaction survey of subscribers was performed, 90% of respondents said that they received interesting information via the Trade4U platform.

© BelgaImage

In your opinion, what will be the impact on Belgian trade of the entry into force of the JEFTA (Japan-EU Free Trade Agreement)?

Among others for the Belgian food industry, the trade agreement with Japan is a good thing. As a result, in the long run 85% of the existing import taxes will be cut. Currently Japan is the third largest distant export market for Belgian foodstuffs, after the United States and China.

Belgian economic mission to Morocco presided over by HRH Princess Astrid, Representative of HM the King, 25-30 November 2018

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The trade agreement can also have a very positive impact on Belgian agriculture, above all on the cheese, beef and pork markets. In addition to lower taxes and a higher import quota, the sector is able to benefit from the Japanese recognition of a number of geographical indications of origin, including Ardennes ham.

Guaranteeing a prosperous future for the technological industry An interview with Mr Herman DERACHE, Director General of Sirris hat is the task of Sirris and what are its key figures?

With a wealth of experience (70 years), Sirris is the collective research and innovation centre for the technological industry in Belgium.

Established on 8 high-tech sites (Antwerp, Ghent, Brussels, Kortrijk, Charleroi, Leuven, Hasselt, Liège), it gathers together 2,300 member companies and has a network of 200 partners. Each year, our 150 passionate experts support 1,500 businesses in the realisation of their innovation projects (individual business projects or collective research projects). Our task is to help our businesses make the right technological choices to guarantee sustainable economic growth and a prosperous future for the technological industry.

What services do you offer to companies along the 3 main lines which are “Product of the Future”, “Factory of the Future” and “Business of the Future”?

At a time when competition is raging on the world stage, product innovation can take place by adding new functionalities and characteristics to the products, making the products smart(er), connecting them, using other materials or entirely redesigning the products, in particular within the framework of additive manufacturing. Sirris concentrates on these needs with a view to manufacturing the products of today and tomorrow hand in hand with businesses. By way of an example, Televic and Sirris are collaborating on the CareWare project, which uses electronic textiles to arrive at very discreet clothing solutions that are well suited to applications in healthcare and sport.

What are your fields of expertise?

Businesses who want to innovate can count on the expertise of Sirris in 5 major technological fields: materials, advanced manufacture and “the factory of the future”, mecatronics, ICTs and sustainability. Every day, 150 engineers, scientists and technicians explore the possibilities for over 20 innovative technologies. Thanks to Sirris, the combination of the right experts and a high-tech test infrastructure opens up the path to innovation.

Beyond new products, other factors lie behind the drastic transformation of tomorrow's production: everything needs to go faster, be more and more accurate, be smaller, customised, cheaper, more ecological, more complex etc. The integration of different (new) technologies is therefore essential within the production line. Operators will be supported in their role by cobots, vision systems, clothing solutions, tablets etc. The enormous amount of data that will be generated may also be used for the benefit of production processes. Sirris gives businesses guidance on the road to Industry 4.0, in particular thanks to its new Data & AI Competence Lab, a virtual support platform launched on 17 September 2018 to allow Belgian companies to find out about and grasp the innovation opportunities offered by data analysis and artificial intelligence.

© Sirris

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© Sirris

Lastly, digital technology is affecting the way we do business. Digital-based innovation often has an impact on the product and the business model. Sirris helps businesses to combine the technological possibilities and the opportunities linked to the business models of the digital era which will be the foundations of tomorrow’s innovation.

Demonstration of an operator supported by collaborative robots in Sirris’ Smart Production Lab in Kortrijk

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In your opinion, what are the main challenges that await industrial companies in the years to come?

The challenges on which we concentrate today particularly include the impact of digital technology on process, product and activity models, smart connected products and digital production on the road to Industry 4.0. To meet these challenges, every year Sirris invests over €1.5M in high technology infrastructure to support businesses in their journey of innovation and digitalisation.

Belnet The Belgian high-speed Internet service provider for 25 years Belnet is the federal public service which, since 1993, has been providing Belgium’s universities, colleges, research centers and public services with access to high-speed Internet services. With more than 70 employees, Belnet provides its services exclusively to some 200 institutions representing more than 800,000 end-users. Thanks to its expertise, its unique position in the market and its economies of scale, Belnet wants to accelerate the growth of the knowledge and information society in Belgium.

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nternet use in Belgian universities increased by 21% in the second half of the 2017-2018 academic year, compared to the same period a year earlier. In total, 53.64 petabytes of data were consumed via the Internet during the full 2017-2018 academic year: here is what Belnet’s statistics reveal. “Over the past fifteen years, we have seen an annual increase of 20 to 25% in data usage on our network. Universities follow the same trend. For them, the Internet is an essential tool for all their core activities” says Jan Torreele, the director of Belnet.

© Belnet

© Belnet

592,000 students, researchers and employees in higher education used the Belnet network during the 2017-2018 academic year.

That’s 13.4% more than five years ago. Total Internet usage tripled over the same period, an exponential increase. Chantal Poiret, Professor of Computer Science at the Warocqué School of Economics and Management of UMONS, says: “The life of the university today depends on the exchange of many data online. There is a growing use of digital technologies such as e-learning, online resources, massive open online courses (MOOCs), social networks, collaborative work, etc. Our students and our staff can work in wifi wherever they are on our campuses.” Herman Moons, responsible for Central ICTS Infrastructure at KU Leuven, adds: “Our researchers use the network more: international collaboration has become the norm, and data they exchange are becoming larger, due to the growing resolution of modern measuring equipment, for example.” Jan Torreele also credits this sharp increase to the rise of the Internet of Things, which is increasingly used by universities and researchers. “There are so many devices connected to the Internet that consumption is multiplied. The data collected provides researchers with a wealth of information.”

Belnet expects again a growth of 20 to 25% for the academic year 2018-2019. Jan Torreele explains: “This increase will continue in the years to come, with a further tripling of Internet use in five years. Given the advent of virtual reality, students are really immersed in their classes. This technology adds a new dimension to learning. In addition, researchers cooperate much more frequently and easily internationally through the Belnet network, as is the case for CERN research in Geneva. This factor causes a sharp increase in traffic.”

meet the specific needs of connected organizations. Capacity and equipment are constantly being upgraded, and our infrastructure is highly scalable.”

Belnet also acts for BNIX, the Belgian National Internet eXchange.

You will find more information on www.belnet.be.

Thanks to its state-of-the-art network, Belnet will continue to be a stable partner of universities in the future. Jan Torreele concludes: “An annual exponential growth of more than 20% is truly exceptional, and no other sector can cope with it. However, Belnet is expected to meet this challenge year after year. Fortunately, we anticipated such growth when designing our network. It is also ready for the future because it can still develop. We are constantly investing in the infrastructure of our network to continue to

Belnet Louizalaan 231 Avenue Louise - B-1050 Brussels Tel.: +32 (0)2 790 33 33- Fax: +32 (0)2 790 33 34 Email: info@belnet.be - http://www.belnet.be 12

Flanders: innovation at the service of the economy

© SCK•CEN

© Ghent University

© VITO

Innovation through multidisciplinary collaboration An interview with Mr Philippe MUYTERS, Flemish minister of Work, Economy, Innovation and Sport Philippe Muyters, Flemish minister of Work, Economy, Innovation and Sports is a firm believer in a triple helix model in which strong collaboration between government, knowledge institutes and industry is key. “The innovation of the future indubitably lies in a multidisciplinary approach”. It is a vision he consistently applies throughout his innovation and economic policy. What follows are three cases that illustrate this mission on diverse levels. heart rate... This generates endless possibilities to create smart sustainable solutions that increase our standard of living. There’s a whole new world ahead of us in smart health, smart manufacturing, smart transport and smart cities.

In fact, what lies ahead of us is Smart Flanders. Flanders has all the assets to benefit to the fullest of these new evolutions; highly educated people, renowned knowledge institutes, strong companies and a long term vision to combine these strengths in an open, multidisciplinary approach to create a leading smart region.

One of these strong assets is Imec, our world-leading research and innovation hub in nano-electronics and digital technologies.

Thanks to the merger on September 21st 2016 with iMinds it now holds even more expertise in the mix between hardware and software. This combination of its widely acclaimed leadership in microchip technology and profound software and ICT expertise is what makes them unique. A combination that we immediately put to practice in the brand new city of things project in Antwerp, launched in January 2017. In Antwerp, Europe’s largest living lab has been set up, where innovative solutions will be created using data from the digital city. The open digital platform developed there can and will be transposed to other cities, so that in transforming Antwerp into a smart city, we will lay the foundation to connect our entire region and create an open and smart Flanders.

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Innovation to market: VAX-ID

Smart Flanders

A beautiful and very tangible example of how multidisciplinary cooperation from the very start of a project can sow the seeds to success, is the story of VAX-ID. VAX-ID is a revolutionary and highly user-friendly syringe that changes the way we deal with vaccination today.

The developers claim it originated from a chance concurrence, but more pointedly the key to its origin lies in Flanders’ and its universities’ open mindset to multidisciplinary collaboration. It thus came about that VAXINFECTIO, the University of Antwerp’s multidisciplinary research center for vaccines and infectious diseases, had the opportunity to collaborate with a product developer (prototype), a commercial engineer (business plan) and a nursing officer (clinical study user friendliness) of several colleges of higher education. The result: an innovative new medical solution with enormous added value, a new

Today we live in the era of “The Internet of Things”. A world in which an increasing number of physical objects are connected to each other, as swift evolutions in nano-electronics and sensor technology have resulted in machine to machine communication, creating a world of smart devices. Costs, scaling and energy efficiency have now reached a point at which objects such as clothing, traffic lights, thermostats,… can be fitted with connectivity (wifi, Bluetooth, 4G…) and sensors that measure temperature, air quality, movement, 14

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syringe that brings about innumerable advantages in terms of highly increased user-friendliness and strong decrease of the risk of accidents, blood transmitted diseases and pain.

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This inspiring multidisciplinary project soon caught the attention of Flemish innovation policy and could henceforth count on financial support from IWT (Agency for Innovation through Science and Technology, now VLAIO, Flemish Agency for Innovation and Entrepreneurship). Combined with the natural interest of the industry, the spin-off Novosanis was born and the innovative syringe could be brought to market.

Cluster policy On a meta level, the new cluster policy, started in 2016, is central axis of the innovation policy. It is devised to enhance collaboration between corporations, sectors and researchers to sensitively increase the economic impact of innovation over the coming years. Flanders firmly believes that the outcome that can be achieved by working together is greater than the sum of all parts.

The focus of the Flemish cluster policy is on a limited number of large-scale and ambitious spearhead clusters. These spearhead clusters will develop and implement an ambitious long-term strategy and competitiveness programme for the Flanders strategic domain, in collaboration with companies, knowledge centres and the government (triple helix).

Next to the financial support of numerous innovative business networks, the Flemish government therefore selects a small number of so called spearhead clusters. These encompass the large innovative domains that will shape our economic future in terms of employment and added value. In exchange for financial support, the cluster organization has to bring about private financing of 50%, stimulate cooperation with and between knowledge institutes, start projects and add an international dimension.

In 2019 there are the following spearhead clusters in Flanders: - Catalisti, spearhead cluster for sustainable chemistry and synthetics, - SIM, spearhead cluster for materials, - Flux50, spearhead cluster for energy, - VIL, spearhead cluster for logistics and transport, - Flanders Food, spearhead cluster for agrofood, - Blue Cluster, spearhead cluster for blue growth.

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The goal is to optimise the quality of life and autonomy of the Flemish An interview with Mr Jo VANDEURZEN, Flemish minister of Welfare, Public Health and Family added to this. The intention is to convert this funding into a “personal” fund, whereby the size of the intervention could be determined by the care profile of the person requesting care: the greater the need for care, the higher the budget that will be assigned.

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The transferred powers concerning mental healthcare and the rise in demand for care led to the elaboration of a 2017-2019 Flemish Mental Health Action Plan. The overall objective of the Action Plan is to bolster mental health by means of a high quality preventive health policy and high quality, sustainable, flexible and demand-driven care.

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The front line in Flanders is organised both with regard to structures and content so that it is able to form the cornerstone of accessible, effective and high quality health and welfare care. The goal is to optimise the quality of life and autonomy of our citizens.

ow is the state of public health in Flanders and what are your priorities in this field?

The Flemish have a high life expectancy. The life expectancy is continuing to rise and in 2016 it was among the highest in Europe at 80 years for men and 84.5 years for women. The majority of people die of heart and vascular diseases and cancers, as in most Western countries. Respiratory diseases are also still a major health issue. Dementia, a symptom of ageing, is becoming increasingly commonplace as a cause of death. And there are a lot more suicides than in our neighbouring countries, although the trend in Flanders is gradually improving.

People with a chronic need for care or reduced capacity to look after themselves mostly want to stay at home for as long as possible. Informal carers must be able to have care and support in their locality to make their work easier to cope with. The Flemish Informal Care Plan groups together over 115 actions to support informal care.

Partly thanks to our improved treatments, cancer is becoming a chronic illness. There has also been a rise in other chronic conditions, with above all a rise in multimorbidity. Care paths that focus on a single condition are not sufficient in this. To provide these patients with good care, there has been a paradigm shift from disease-oriented care to care that starts out from the goals that the patient has indicated himself or herself.

In the new mental health decree, we not only focus on individual-focused care but also population-focused actions. By doing this we can give a regulatory character to all efforts in the area of imaging, destigmatisation, early detection and intervention and first line interventions for mental health.

What preventive actions do you support in public health?

The updated food triangle and mobility triangle are not only innovative for the Flanders region. The way in which they have been developed also makes them innovative for other European regions.

Health in all policies is an important factor in prevention. We not only work on this by cooperating with other policy areas (mobility, environment, natural environment, sport, education etc.), but we are also attempting to do this at a local administrative level. A few recent examples include the “local mobility health indicator” with which status is measured with regard to air quality/traffic safety/active commuting/traffic noise and the “walkability score index”, which displays a function mix/ road connectivity/residential density at district level. The latter is a European first which tells spatial planners where gains can be made in terms of air quality, greater mobility and social cohesion; in short, this is an integral approach in achieving health gains.

With the Sixth State Reform, in Flanders we had the opportunity thoroughly to reform a number of different fields.

In the long term therefore, care funding will be integrated into “Flemish Social Protection”, which will be like a layer on top of federal social security. This will be used to fund the care budgets for those in need of care. From 1 January 2019 it is being extended with the funding of residential care for the elderly and mobility equipment. In the long term, funding for rehabilitation and mental healthcare will also be 16

know that there is a connection between the composition of intestinal flora and for example overweightness and all manner of conditions such as gastroenteritis and diabetes.

You wanted to strengthen relations between professional carers and informal carers thanks to two new instruments: www.mantelzorgers.be and a "Samenspraakfiche" (joint task map). Could you tell us more?

A number of studies in the past had shown that the lack of useful information was a major setback that was touched upon by informal carers time and again. That is why an informal care expertise point was set up in the Flemish Informal Care plan that provides useful information for informal as well as professional carers on its website www.mantelzorgers.be.

‘Dialogue’ is a scientifically built ‘toolkit’ that aims to allow better communication and cooperation in care between informal carers, patients and professional carers.

An example of more applied research is the development of a Flemish Child Reflex. Serious psychological and addiction problems in parents can lead to the neglect, mistreatment or abuse of the children who grow up in their homes. The application of a Child reflex allows carers preventively to check what the impact of parental issues could be for the children via contacts with adult clients.

As a result of the recently completed Mirad project, research has been performed into an integrated methodology to bring smart robot technology to the user.

Last June, you welcomed the new intersectoral agreement for the social sector concluded between the social partners and the Flemish Government. How will this agreement improve the quality of care?

The VIA 5-agreement provides a full set of measures. The enlargement policy defined will allow for further growth of the offer, which will mean that more people in need of care will be able to be helped. In addition to this enlargement policy, provision is also made for additional employment, as a result of which more members of staff will be available for people in need of care. The agreement involves around 250,000 members of staff. By making the work more appealing for staff members by among others offering a solution to work pressure and versatile and manageable work, and making an effort to increase buying power, a more skilled workforce can be retained.

What are according to you the next challenges ahead in public health?

Increasingly often, technological changes force us to make societal choices in healthcare with the end goal being to make health gains: are a healthy indoor environment and the application of the WHO Air Quality Guidelines not gold plating? We are striving towards a zero risk as regards the external determining factors that define our health, but we do not want to give up our current (living) standards (e.g. driving a car). Here we are forced to make choices that are not independent from a social platform.

Another challenge is posed by scientific and technological developments and their implications for healthcare affordability.

A clear vision needs to be developed on this along with an adequate strategy. The first line plays a role in the translating of new insights into an approach to health problems with consideration for the “relevance” of the care and the avoidance of medicalisation in daily life.

How does the Flemish Government support basic and applied health research?

Health research is supported by the Flemish Government in a number of different ways. In 2018 1.6 billion Euro of the Flemish Government's budget was allocated to research and development, of which 26.73% can be assigned to a health topic. The Scientific Research Fund (FWO) and the Special Research Fund (BOF) are two complementary funding channels for non-directed ground-breaking research at Flemish universities. The Flemish Government is also supporting four strategic research centres (IMEC, Vito, VIB and Flanders Make) in terms of health research.

The higher level of education and the increased accessibility of medical information via the Internet is increasingly changing some “patients” into “critical consumers”. They are well informed and expect to enter into dialogue with care providers, weigh up options together and make the decisions that best fit in with their lives.

The policy-led health research will mainly be carried out by two research support centres. The Welfare, Public Health and Family (WVG) Support Centre is currently focusing on its research programme on ‘Flemish social protection’ and on current policy matters such as mental healthcare and quality indicators. At the Environment and Health Support Centre, the focus is on charting people's exposure to environmentally harmful substances and early health signals that can have an effect on exposure to environmentally harmful substances. Flanders plays a pioneering role in this respect at European level (HBM4EU).

People who belong to ethnic cultural minorities bring diversity into care situations, which means that the carer has to adapt.

The changing social context – more people are working for longer and are looking to strike a new work-life balance – has a major impact on informal care, for example as a result of the fall in the availability of volunteers and informal care.

There has also been a clear change in views on high quality care at the end of a person's life.

Could you give us a few examples of ongoing health research projects backed by the Flemish Government?

In Flanders there are a number of different examples of relevant health research.

The financial and economic crisis has also had an effect on social inequality in the area of health. The first line offers opportunities in the area of care accessibility and a strong signalling function, so as to recognise with other sectors the “social determinants” of health (home and work situation, education, social cohesion etc.) and propose corrective measures.

In the area of basic research, the Flemish Institute for Biotechnology (VIB) is involved in a number of different projects, including intestinal flora research. From earlier studies we 17

EWI: Excellence is the keyword in scientific research An interview with Mr Johan HANSSENS, Secretary-General of EWI

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other research institutions. Based on this, the EWI department implements a clear policy, coordinates and evaluates these funding mechanisms. Assignment of a specific grant or subsidy to a researcher takes place through the knowledge institutions themselves or through our agencies. In addition to this funding, it is naturally also important to be able to have excellent researchers and research infrastructure.

For this reason, we are also investing in our human capital and in state- of-the-art research infrastructure in Flanders and internationally.

hat are the core tasks of the EWI department?

The Department of Economy, Science and Innovation (EWI) is responsible for policy preparation, policy follow-up and policy evaluation for the sectors of Economy, Science and Innovation within the Flemish Government. In this framework, our most important goal is to allow Flanders to evolve into one of the most progressive and prosperous regions in the world. Our levers in this are the promotion of: (1) excellent scientific research, (2) an attractive and sustainable business climate and (3) a creative, innovative and entrepre- neurial society. EWI strives towards excellence in fundamental research, strategic knowledge development and the exploitation of this knowledge. Prerequisites for this are human capital and research infrastructure. In addition, we follow up the policy themes that are related to the develop- ment of an attractive and sustainable business climate and the stimulation of innovation and entrepreneurship.

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Can you give us a number of examples of research funds/programmes?

The Industrial Research Fund (IRF) is an internal designation fund of a university association (a university and one or more colleges) whose resources are used for strategic basic research and applied scientific research. The objectives of an IRF are - in the short to medium term - to stimulate the interaction between the association and the business world and to build up a portfolio of application-oriented knowledge within the association. In the medium to long term, an IRF must result in better coordination of the strategic basic research and applied scientific research with the economic needs and the application and exploitation of the profile of business knowledge built up. The IRF thereby fits into the broader whole of efforts to strengthen the interaction between higher education institutes and economic players.

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How does the EWI carry out fundamental and strategic basic research?

Excellence is very much the keyword in scientific research.

The ambition of Flanders is to finance the most excellent research using this criterion. Flanders has a number of different instruments for the funding of fundamental and strategic basic research at the Flemish public knowledge institutions such as universities, colleges, strategic research centres and

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The Odysseus programme is aimed at bringing researchers with a foreign career to Flanders via early stage funding for scientific research. This may involve both leading researchers with international recognition - who lead the way and have a post at a foreign university - and researchers who have the potential to be among the world's best in the near future. For a period of five years, they are able to build up their own research group. The organisation of the Odysseus programme is in the hands of the Fund for Scientific Research - Flanders.

Universities take the initiative to nominate candidates. They provide an academic position, the infrastructure, offices etc.

Universities can also nominate a candidate together. Approved projects receive between 100,000 and 1,500,000 euros a year for a five-year period.

SRCs therefore also play an important role in the transformation of the Flemish economy. The marketing of their knowledge through the (co)-creation of spin-offs forms an important part of this. In addition, in other sectors - such as the agro-food industry, sustainable chemistry, sustainable logistics and mobility - Flanders also applies an integrated support, research and knowledge policy. Flanders has 4 SRCs that are world leaders in their field. VIB for biotechnology, imec (merged with former research center iMinds in 2016) for nanoelectronics and digital technology, VITO for environ- mental research and Flanders MAKE for the manufacturing industry.

What is the importance/added value of strategic research centres?

Strategic research centres (SRCs) have formed thanks to the excellent and relevant results of academic scientific research in a wide range of scientific fields in micro- and nano-electronics, biotechnology, broadband technology, environmental topics and our manufacturing industry. With a view to economic and social valorisation, we continually strive for an appropriate balance between targeted and non-targeted research. In that regard, the strategic research centres have an important bridging function between fundamental and applied research.

Vlaamse overheid Departement Economie, Wetenschap & Innovatie (EWI) Koning Albert II-laan 35, bus 10 B-1030 Brussel Email: info@ewi.vlaanderen.be http://www.ewi-vlaanderen.be https://twitter.com/Departement_EWI https://www.linkedin.com/company/departementeconomie-wetenschap-en-innovatie-ewi19

Health research and innovation in Flanders

© FRIS (Flanders Research Information Space)

Researchers and innovators at the service of public health

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ith 1,362 professors, 1,235 postdocs, 5,335 predocs, 4,845 doctoral students, 353.39 M€ in research expenditure, 55 ERC grants, 689 doctoral degrees in 2017, 68 spin-offs created between 2008 and 2016 and 439 patents filed between 2008 and 2017, research and innovation are well alive at Ghent University. Some ERC grant holders (Horizon 2020) are dedicated to health research. Petra Van Damme is the Principal Investigator (PI) of the PROPHECY project dealing with translational control in infection biology: riboproteogenomics of bacterial pathogens (Starting Grant), Kevin Braeckmans is leading the NANOBUBBLE project on laser-induced vapour nanobubbles for intracellular delivery of nanomaterials and treatment of biofilm infections (Consolidator Grant), Bart Lambrecht (VIB) got an Advanced Grant with the ASTHMACRYSTALCLEAR project on the role of protein crystallization in type 2 immunity and asthma and Jan Tavernier (VIB) got an ERC Proof of Concept Grant for his AcTafactors project on tumor necrosis factor-based immuno-cytokines with superior therapeutic indexes.

In Flanders universities and other research centres, university hospitals, clusters, industrials, regional authorities and associations pool their talents to provide concrete solutions to major public health issues, propose diagnostic and therapeutic innovations and improve patient care. Overview.

Moreover Ghent University is actively seeking partners or licensees for technologies including recombinant extracellular vesicles (R-EV) as a reference material for biofluid processing and instrument calibration; cell-interactive polyesters intended for medical applications; biogelator: peptide-based hydrogels for controlled drugdelivery; biomarker for prognosis and therapy guidance of colorectal cancer; hydrogel precursors opening unprecedented processing avenues in the biomedical field…

Ghent University can also rely upon two science parks including Tech Lane Ghent Science Park: located in Gent-Zwijnaarde, it is a vibrant ecosystem of international corporate R&D centers, public research institutes and high-tech growth enterprises.

Among the three major innovation clusters at Tech Lane Ghent Science Park one is devoted to Life Sciences and especially antibody therapeutics and inflammation research.

To conclude, three spin-offs were created in the health tech domain for the year 2017 alone. Imageens is specialized in arterial stiffness measurement through pulse wave velocity (PWV) measurement.

AM Team has developed consultancy services in CFD modeling of pharmaceutical processes. And Aelin Therapeutics focuses on the development of therapeutics against antibiotic-resistant or untreatable diseases.

The Horizon 2020 programme also includes research incentives on societal challenges such as health, demographic change and wellbeing. In that prospect, 9 researchers at Ghent University and VIB are project promotors: Ageing with elegans, DOLORisk, Feel4Diabetes, HeartMan… Besides, Ghent University can rely upon centres of expertise dedicated to health: Sequencing Expertise Centre, Ghent University Centre for X-ray Tomography, ProteoGent, Infectious Centre One Health, INnovative Flemish IN vivo Imaging Technology…

A strong focus on pharmaceutical applications With 12 active centres located on the campuses of Ghent University, KU Leuven, Imec, University of Antwerp, Vrije Universiteit Brussel and Hasselt University, VIB is a very dynamic life science research institute. It performs basic research with a strong focus on translating scientific results into pharmaceutical, agricultural and industrial applications. It has defined 11 research areas: Bioinformatics, Cancer, Cardiovascular medicine, Developmental biology, Inflammation and immunity, Microbiology, Neuroscience, Plant biology, Proteomics, Structural biology and Systems biology.

Research promotion Research promotion is the mission of UGent TechTransfer whose Industrial Liaison Network provides a supporting framework for collaboration between the Ghent University Association and industry. This consists of 8 business development centers in the field of health tech and pharma: Bimetra (Clinical Research Center Ghent), Biomarked (Pre-clinical biomarker -omics platforms and BioIT, diagnostics, RNA abled therapies), ChemTech Life sciences, HyCT (Hybrid CT image building technologies for material and life sciences applications), MEDTEG (Medical Device Technologies), Protein Technologies Ghent, UGent DiscoverE (drug discovery, drug delivery and drug manufacturing innovations), and Victoris (technological optimization, research and innovation in sport).

Research at VIB has already yielded promising results. For instance, molecular diagnostics company Biocartis launched on July 2018 a fast, accurate msi assay on its idylla™ platform, offering the potential to predict effective cancer treatment options. This breakthrough has to do with the Diether Lambrechts Lab that contributed to the Idylla™ MSI Assay. This ground-breaking new assay has the potential to provide better and faster access to personalized 20

treatments to patients with colorectal cancer. For its part, the team of prof. Joris Messens at the VIB-VUB Center for Structural Biology has provided in November 2018 new insights into the regulation of an important intracellular messenger molecule, hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), whose dysregulation has been linked to the development of several diseases, including cancer. The same month, scientists from the VIB-UGent Center for Inflammation Research identified the mechanisms by which the bacterial pathogen Clostridium difficile kills intestinal epithelial cells (IECs), thus destroying the protective mucosal barrier of the intestinal tract. The researchers demonstrate the physiological relevance of this process during infection and have published their findings in Nature Communications.

Imec: We shape the future.

Imec is a trusted R&D partner of companies, start-ups and academia. They combine their longstanding leadership in microchip technology with in-depth expertise in software and ICT to lay the foundation of a more personalized healthcare among other things. They offer a single point of contact for innovators and entrepreneurs who want to explore the potential of advanced technologies. And they already forsee a future in which smart health concepts such as advanced diagnostics and precision medicine are within everyone’s reach. This implies the widespread adoption of smart health(care) solutions such as wireless (wearable) devices and sensors, mobile and body area networks, the Internet of Things, health data analytics, genomics, electronic patient health records, medical imaging, quantified self, and so on.

VIB has recently launched the VIB Grand Challenges Program which aims to structurally support translational and/or disruptive research programs around a specific “grand challenge” within 4 health-related areas: innovative biomarkers, innovative treatments, targeted treatment strategies and epidemic control. Within these predefined areas, several bottom-up defined translational projects will soon start. In parallel, Oxford BioMedica and VIB collaborate on the further preclinical evaluation of MoNuDin® for the treatment of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Other collaborations include Acambis (now Sanofi Aventis), Cellectis, the French genome engineering specialist (for the development of new approaches to cure haemophilia), and Ablynx, a spin-off of VIB and the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB) engaged in the discovery and development of Nanobodies® to treat a range of serious human diseases.

R&D activities and growth potential, at all stages of development: startups, spinoffs from existing companies, fast-growing young companies with quick expansion needs as well as divisions of foreign companies. Past and current tenants include Ablynx, Actogenix, AIP, Algonomics, Biomaric, Complix, Devgen, Diatos, Forma, Fugeia, Methexis, M4s, Oncomethylome, Perseus, Phase I, Pronota, ReGenesys, Remynd, Seps Pharma, Thrombogenics, Yakult.

Furthermore VIB has co-founded several startup companies, the majority based on breakthrough research. VIB incubates technology, builds proprietary platforms, develops a business plan, identifies experienced managers to run the company and attracts national or international investors willing to invest in the startup.

Afterwards VIB remains available to facilitate the operational start of the company. From 1997 with the creation of Devgen to 2015 with the setting up of Confo Therapeutics, Oncurious, Orionis Biosciences or V-BIO Ventures, VIB has helped create 16 start-ups representing 641 employees and 753 M€ in capital investments.

What is more VIB offers research services for biotech companies, i.e. Nucleomics Core (expression analysis, miRNA analysis and RNA and DNA sequencing) and CSFVIB (assay development and compound screening). The life science community is well accompanied in Flanders!

VIB also provides specialized research infrastructure to the industrial biotech community, namely the Bio-incubator in Gent, the Bio-incubator in Leuven and the Bio-accelerator in Gent.

They are welcoming life sciences companies with significant

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Frontline research domains

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The University of Antwerp (UAntwerp) is striving for research excellence. In 2010 the University Board decided to define nine frontline research domains (among which Drug Discovery and Development, Imaging, Infectious Diseases and Neurosciences) and three emerging frontline research domains (especially Oncology and Proteomics, Genomics and Metabolomics) in which the University of Antwerp is recognized world leader. To ensure that the (emerging) frontline research domains are funded in a more structural fashion, the Research Council decided

© Ghent University

Offer for companies at UAntwerp includes 7 technology consortia such as Consortia life sciences which gather Antwerp Drug Discovery Network (ADDN), EGAMI (Expert Group Antwerp Molecular Imaging) and Vaxinfectio-PO (Vaccine & Infectious Disease). Technology offers in Life Sciences are also proposed in the form of licence offers: personalized monitoring of immunosequencing profiles to advance precision medicine, biomarkers to support the diagnosis and treatment of human neuropathies, improved respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccines based on glycan modification of the viral fusion (F) protein…

in 2014 to launch Centres of Excellence and provide them with financial resources for a period of five years. Among the active Centres of Excellence are ASCID (Antwerp Study Centre for Infectious Diseases), GENOMED (GENOmics in MEDicine), and Infla-Med (Fundamental research on pathophysiological processes of inflammatory diseases).

UAntwerp is also a beneficiary of several ERC Grants. Robert (Bob) Colebunders got an Advanced Grant for his NSETHIO project entitled “Nodding Syndrome: a trans-disciplinary approach to identify the cause and decrease the incidence of river epilepsy”.

As for Consolidators Grants, Bart Loeys was selected for the GENOMIA project (Genomic Modifiers of Inherited Aortapathy) and Niel Hens was selected for the TransMID project (Translational and Transdisciplinary research in Modeling Infectious Diseases). As far as Proof of Concept Grants are concerned, Robert (Bob) Colebunders was rewarded for his NSstop project (Development of a policy to stop the suffering caused by Nodding Syndrome and Onchocerciasis associated epilepsy).

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Health House: discover the future of health and care

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Health House showcases new technologies (artificial intelligence, virtual reality, 3D-printing, wearables, and much more) and their impact on the future of our health and care in a very innovative and interactive way. Using the power of visualization, customization and digital storytelling, each visit to Health House is turned into an unforgettable experience. But Health House is also engaged in many social and European projects such as “Smart Drinking by Lazarus” on excessive alcohol consumption, and “Helis Academy” for the improvement of the “industry readiness” of Life Sciences & Health students. Health House has become a meeting point for everybody who is interested in health and technology: medical professionals, policy makers, students,... An example to follow for the actors of research and innovation!

Value creation Other initiatives deserve to be mentioned. An independent life sciences cluster organisation based in Flanders, flanders.bio helps its more than 350 members from Belgium and abroad to create value by organising networking and training activities, supporting internationalisation, providing services and building expertise. Value creation is also at the heart of HealthTech.Belgium: according to this initiative launched at the federal level in February 2018, health care and industry collaborate, with support from authorities, to enable innovative digital applications to better and faster access to the health care sector, in the interest of the patient. And the Flemish actors have a leading role to play in this area: Flanders accounts for 53.85% of the Belgian e-health market, according to Le Journal du Médecin1.

© Health House

Health research and innovation are equally dynamic at UHasselt (with among others the Biomedical Research Institute – BIOMED – dedicated to (neuro-)immunology, preclinical modelling, clinical trials, biomarkers, rehabilitation, etc., the Science Park Diepenbeek and spin-offs such as Apitope, a clinical stage biotech company developing potential first-in-class antigen-specific immunotherapeutics targeting the immunological basis of autoimmune diseases), KU Leuven (with a strong focus on human deseases and medical technologies as well as knowledge and technology transfer services from invention to innovation via KU Leuven Research & Development (LRD) and the Industrial Research Fund (IOF)), University Colleges such as the Vlerick Healthcare Management Centre, and of course University Hospitals, namely UZ Leuven, UZ Gent (with four research domains – oncology, genetics, immunology and neuroscience – showing a strong translational potential), and UZA (Universitair Ziekenhuis Antwerpen).

Health House showcases the impact of new technologies on the future of our health and care in a very innovative and interactive way.

© Health House

© Health House

What is more, Flanders' Care is the program of the Flemish government that focuses on innovation and entrepreneurship in care with the mission “to demonstrably improve the supply of quality care through innovation and stimulate responsible entrepreneurship in the care economy.”

In February 2018 the Flanders' Care 2.0 Action Plan was launched with the keywords co-creation and shared ownership between government and stakeholders. Among the action lines are innovative care models for chronic diseases, data sharing in healthcare and assistive technology and tools for older people and people with disabilities. This is also the goal of To Walk Again vzw: it was founded in 2003 by Marc Herremans, triathlete and winner Iron Man in 2006, and offers a rehabilitation program focusing on people with neurological problems, paraplegic patients, CVA patients and people with an amputation. As soon as the acute (admission hospital) and subacute rehabilitation phase (ambulatory rehabilitation) is ended, motivated people can continue to work at To Walk Again. Great things can happen when researchers, innovators and civil society actors pool their talents!

http://well-livinglab.be/esante-fer-de-lance-des-start-ups-belges/

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Flemish universities must get the necessary means to remain appealing An interview with Dr. Koen VERLAECKT, Secretary-General of the Flemish Interuniversity Council (VLIR)

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university budgets are on the rise again. Indeed a true financial impulse was given by the Flemish government since it decided an increase of €280 million for R&D in 2019.

hat are the missions of the VLIR? The VLIR is the national rectors' conference of the five Dutch-speaking universities in Flanders. As such, it is a platform aimed at making decisions on common policies. The latter regard varied issues such as quality assurance in higher education, diversity, internationalization, European R&D, or the role of universities in innovation.

Which proposals do you put forward in the wake of 2019 regional elections as regards higher education and research policy?

In the aforementioned memorandum we published last September we highlighted two key elements.

First we ask for a substantial increase in the infrastructure budget, namely auditoriums, laboratories, and research infrastructures. In fact the allocation universities get for this budget item amounts to €30 million annually, which represents only 20% of overall investment needs. Second we have called for a stop in budget cuttings universities went through as result of several government measures. Austerity is one thing. The competitiveness of Flemish universities at an international level is another one. They must get the necessary means so they remain appealing as regards higher education, R&D and innovation. © VLIR

What are the main facts and figures of Flemish universities ?

In 2016 University of Antwerp, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Ghent University, Hasselt University and KU Leuven had a cumulated budget of 2.3 billion euros, gathered 146 000 students and employed a staff of 42 000 people. They offer a wide area of educational programs: 84 bachelor programs as well as 191 master programs, without mentioning after bachelor and master programs. Furthermore, over the period 2009-2016 13 045 PhD degrees were awarded, 888 patents were granted and 142 spin-off companies were created. In 2017 the VLIR appointed a Scottish consultant in order to assess the economic impact of Flemish universities: according to their study, one euro invested in Flemish universities generates 12 euros in gross value in Europe, which is quite a performance!

What were the highlights of the VLIR in 2018?

In September 2018, the VLIR published a memorandum in view of the 2019 parliamentary elections to provide input for the electoral programs of political parties. Besides it coordinated the implementation of the Nagoya protocol on access to genetic resources and the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from their use. The VLIR has also made it clear that the federal plan to reform pension legislation is highly disadvantageous for Belgian universities since it would dramatically reduce their attractivity and therefore undermine their competitiveness at an international level. On top of that an interuniversity charter was signed and edited in order to deal with inappropriate behaviours in the sexual field (this charter is aimed at both staff and students). To conclude, the VLIR worked on easing the transition for students between secondary and higher education, knowing that many secondary school students are not well prepared, which lessens the success ratio at universities.

Thus the VLIR helped improve the orientation process at the level of secondary education: an informed student is worth two!

© VLIR

How do you assess the interactions between the VLIR and the Flemish government in matters concerning higher education policy?

Let me first recall that the VLIR is not only relevant for higher education: it is also qualified to deal with R&D and service to society issues in accordance with the three main missions of universities. The interactions with the Flemish government are very positive: meetings are organized on a very regular basis with the cabinet of the Minister of Education which is very open to the concerns raised by universities… even though the final decisions remain in her hands. I am also glad to observe that after several years of budget cuts (as part of the regional austerity policy) efforts are being made in order to make sure that

From left to right: Prof Luc Sels (KU Leuven), Prof Caroline Pauwels (Vrije Universiteit Brussel), Dr Koen Verlaeckt (VLIR), Prof Herman Van Goethem (University of Antwerp), Prof Rik Van de Walle (Ghent University), Prof Luc De Schepper (Hasselt University)

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VARIO Independent advice for the Flemish Government As of 1 January 2017 the new advisory council VARIO – Flemish Advisory Council for Innovation and Enterprise – acts as the highest advisory body to the Flemish Government and the Flemish Parliament with regards to the Research, Innovation and Entrepreneurship Policy. At present VARIO has published three advices. These advices are characterized by VARIO’s distinctive approach: evidence-based, taking the international context into account and based on a system perspective.

“V

© VARIO

ARIO offers advice on the complete innovation chain, from fundamental scientific research at universities, to applied research aiming at valorization and the transformation of industry, the services sector and Flemish entrepreneurship. In our first advice VARIO formulated a strategy to attract and retain top international talent, which is a necessity if Flanders wants to be in the top 5 of innovative regions. Our 2nd and 3rd advices were answers to specific requests of Flemish Minister for Innovation and Economy Philippe Muyters. They were aimed at a strategy for the Flemish space economy and at investigating the desirability of updating the guideline for government support for so-called ‘dual use’ research, respectively” outlines Dr Danielle Raspoet, Director of VARIO. VARIO (left to right back row: Reinhilde Veugelers, Johan Martens, Vanessa Vankerckhoven, Marc Van Sande, Koen Vanhalst, Wim Haegeman, Danielle Raspoet left to right front row: Hilde Windels, Katrin Geyskens, Lieven Danneels, Dirk Van Dyck)

Advisory report 3: Government support for Dual Use and Military R&D&I - April 2018

© VARIO

© VARIO

Council members Advisory report 2: Flanders’ Space February 2018

The first mandate of VARIO began on 16 December 2016 with the appointment of its members by the Flemish Government. Lieven Danneels, managing director of Televic Group, chairs VARIO. The other nine members are Katrin Geyskens (Capricorn), Wim Haegeman (VIVES, UGent), Johan Martens (KU Leuven), Koen Vanhalst (De Clercq & Partners), Vanessa Vankerckhoven (Novosanis), Dirk Van Dyck (UA), Marc Van Sande (Umicore), Reinhilde Veugelers (KU Leuven) and Hilde Windels (MyCartis).

Current topics for new advices “Currently VARIO is working on 3 advices and a general memorandum for the next Flemish Government. The topics for the advices are: “Value Creation through Cooperation”, “Innovative High Growth Companies with Impact” and “Artificial Intelligence”. These 4 reports will be published by the end of 2018.

© VARIO

Budget monitoring Advisory report 1: Attracting and Retaining Top International Talent - December 2017

Composition “VARIO consists of a chairman and nine members. These members are appointed by the Flemish Government on the recommendation of the Flemish Minister for Economy, Science and Innovation.

Members are selected based on their expertise, experience and knowledge of the field. Together, they provide a balance between the policy fields of economy, science and innovation. The chairman and members are appointed in a personal capacity. A strong commitment is required. VARIO meets ten times a year.”

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“Like its predecessor VRWI, VARIO will continue to monitor the budget for science and inovation. VRWI contributed to the creation of the European 3% target for research and development: 1% public, 2% private. Flanders invested 2.7% of its GDP in R&D in 2016. However, from 2017 on more resources are available on a yearly basis, so we expect this number to rise.

We have always said we should not restrict ourselves to monitoring input. Outcome is more important than ever, if Flanders is to become an innovation leader. What are the social and economic impacts of our investments? A bold policy is required, in which Flanders is prepared to make choices. Here VARIO can provide advice on the priorities to be set for optimal use of these resources,” concludes Danielle Raspoet.

UAS4EUROPE Croissant Event of 25 September 2018: UAS on Horizon Europe UAS in 14 European countries. It is now the biggest collaboration and networking platform of UAS in Europe focussing on EU research policy. He stated: “the EU needs the researchers of the UAS to make the future program Horizon Europe a true success. Applied research in Europe is not used by its full potential yet.”

© VHLORA

Keynote speaker

Bruno Van Koeckhoven, Secretary-general of UASnet

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Fabienne Gautier, Head of Unit Open Science and ERA Policy at the Directorate-General for Research and Innovation of the European Commission, emphasized the important role of the UAS in the design of “Horizon Europe”. “The EC wants to involve more the non-academic sector in this future research program. So, the UAS are invited to shape Horizon Europe which focusses on co-creation and impact of research”, she clarified in general.

Panel Discussion

n 25 September 2018, UAS4EUROPE, the emerging network for Universities of Applied Sciences (UAS) in Europe, organised the second ‘Croissant Event’ in Brussels to highlight the point of view and position paper of the UAS in Europe regarding the proposal of the European Commission (EC) on the new research program ‘Horizon Europe’. More than 80 EU-liaison officers of UAS, staff members, policymakers and directors from more than 20 European countries participated that morning at the Permanent Representation of the Netherlands to the EU in Brussels. Special invitees were Fabienne Gautier, Director at the DG RTD of the European Commission, and Angelika Niebler, Member of the European Parliament (EP) and an important voice in the ITRE Committee of the EP. This event was moderated by Karin Lukas-Eder (BayFOR Brussels Office).

1. Angelika Niebler – ITRE Committee, European Parliament Angelika Niebler, not only a politician but also a professor in the UAS of München (Hochschule für angewandte Wissenschaften München), clarifies that the biggest innovation problem in the EU is the Innovation Paradox or Death Valley: “In Europe we have excellent research, but the EU has problems to transfer this knowledge to the labour market in concrete products and services. Therefore the applied and practice-based research of UAS should be promoted and supported. UAS play a key role in the transfer of innovation to the economy and the regions.”

She gives an overview of 5 hot topics which are discussed nowadays in the Committee ITRE (EP): 1) The increase of the budget of Horizon Europe up to € 120 billion (or more) 2) How can we involve all possible researchers in the EU, instead of always the usual suspects?

3) How can we attract more new innovation players in the Horizon Europe program?

4) How can we involve more citizens in this program? E.g. innovation projects to counter nationalism 5) Much attention is given to the Global Challenges in Pillar 2.

Introduction Ronald van Roeden, Deputy Representative of The Netherlands to the EU, welcomed everybody by stressing the importance of applied research by the Universities of Applied Sciences (UAS) in Europe, often known as “hogescholen, hautes écoles, institutes of technology, fachhochschulen…”. These higher education institutes are known for their multidisciplinary research focused on impact and on improving the life of the European citizens. Applied researchers at the UAS are the perfect bridge builders between fundamental research and society. After all, UAS are strongly connected with the labour market, which includes companies and SME’s and social profit organisations (hospitals, local governments, etc.). On top of that UAS have a very strong knowledge in Social Sciences, Humanities and Arts (SSHA).

2. Johann Kastner – Vice-President of UAS Upper Austria Johan Kastner pointed out that UAS are the perfect “innovation-bridgers” between basic research and the labour market. UAS are specialised in practical market oriented innovation.

1) “In the nearby future the individual research fields should collaborate more closely to master the challenges of the future. The UAS have a lot of expertise in multidisciplinarily research. Therefore the EC and the EP should make it possible to support smaller and more flexible innovation consortia in order to work together efficiently. Smaller multidisciplinary

Henrik Wolff, the official Representative and Chairman of UAS4EUROPE for this academic year (2018-2019), explained that this emerging network represents about 470 26

research consortia should therefore be more firmly anchored in the UAS4EUROPE-budget,” said professor Kastner of the Fachhochschule Oberösterreich.

2) He also stressed that the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) should be open to applied researchers, not to strictly academic staff alone. This would allow researchers of UAS to participate. The inclusion of UAS in MSCA consortia would support a smoother cooperation between industry and academia, given the applied nature of the research carried out in these institutions.

UAS4EUROPE is a networking platform, the voice of European universities of applied sciences (UAS), in the field of applied research and innovation.

The network represents the five founding organisations: • European Association of Institutions in Higher Education (EURASHE), representing over 600 institutions in over 40 countries within and outside the European Higher Education area • Universities of Applied Sciences Network (UASnet), representing over 150 UAS in 8 EU-Member states through the official national or regional association of UAS • swissuniversities, representing Swiss institutions of higher education (7 UAS) • Hochschule Bayern e.V., representing the 20 Bavarian UAS • Austrian FHK, representing the 21 UAS.

3. Elke Decrock - EU-Liaison Officer UAS Artevelde (Flanders) Elke Decrock focusses on 3 subjects of the Position Paper of UAS4EUROPE: 1) The proposal of the EC is too much focused on technology innovation. It should allow more focus on the quality of life of the EU-citizens in general. To accomplish this goal, Horizon Europe should integrate SSHA better and clearer in all stages of the program, from drafting the work programmes, framing the topics to evaluating proposals.

2) Horizon Europe should give more attention to the link between research and education. “Without excellent education, Europe cannot excel in research or innovation”, she explained.

Therefor Europe should connect ERASMUS+ and Horizon Europe closer to each other. Hence, research on science education should play a more important role in the European framework programmes.

3) The Third Pillar of Horizon Europe is too much focused on breakthrough innovation, while it should pay equally attention to incremental research: a lot of SME’s and not for profit organisations would benefit from the existing research knowledge.

Want to know more about UAS4EUROPE, or how to get involved?

Visit our website www.uas4europe.eu

2) t he EC has the ambition to link education better to research: this link can be found in the ERA-policy which fosters mobility of researchers-teachers. This link between research and education is also stimulated in the Open Science program.

Closing remarks 5. Marjolijn Brussaard, Vice-President of UASnet and President of ArtEZ University of the Arts (The Netherlands), concludes that the European Commission and Parliament should open the Horizon Europe program more to new innovation players instead of the usual suspects. If the EU is interested in impact of research and regional connections, then UAS are the answer.

The innovation consortia of UAS with SME’s and social profit institutes in their region could play a key success factor in Horizon Europe. UAS are after all regional connectors, promoting Smart Partnerships for Regional Impact (SPFRI).

4. Fabienne Gautier– Director DG RTD, European Commission Fabienne Gautier listened carefully to all these inputs and suggestions: 1) the EC guarantees a lot of attention to multidisciplinary research projects

Bruno Van Koeckhoven Secretary-general Universities of Applied Sciences Network (UASnet) Ravensteingalerij 27 bus 3 - B-1000 Brussels Tel.: +32 (0)2 211 41 95 Mail: bruno@uasnet.eu - http://uas4europe.eu/about/partners/ 27

© VITO

© VITO

© VITO

VITO, vision on technology for a better world

collaboration with companies that upscale pilot projects and implement research in practice. For this purpose, it brings together a range of knowledge partners and industrial partners.

Climate change, air pollution, resource scarcity: our society is facing a lot of challenges. We will need more than a “business as usual” approach to deal with them.

VITO is developing new technologies and innovations that make the difference for end users, companies and government authorities. With six research programmes, the research centre is investing in scientifically responsible solutions for a sustainable and prosperous society.

The bigger picture: insight into our Earth Global problems call for a global approach. We therefore need data from all corners of the Earth in order to fight climate change. The new generation of satellite, air and drone images provides sufficient input to allow well-reasoned decisions to be taken regarding our land use. VITO’s Remote Sensing unit has a wide range of technological expertise allowing for raw data to be converted into information that is ready to use.

Reviewing the energy system The transition to renewable energy demands a review of our energy system. After all, the production of wind and solar energy is not adjusting to energy demand levels. With the EnergyVille research centre, VITO (alongside imec, KU Leuven and the University of Hasselt) is attempting to accelerate the energy transition and get it on the right path. Among other things, the centre is studying whether or not new pricing structures can stimulate consumers to smarter energy consumption. VITO/EnergyVille is also working on electrical storage systems and ways to integrate greater flexibility into our network. This takes place in close cooperation with the industry.

Working together to better manage resources Among others, VITO developed a Renewable Energy Atlas whereby Flemish towns/cities and communities can check how much renewable energy they already produce and what their additional potential is. The calculation module Climate-Fit.City offers climate information at city level and traces future heat stress bottlenecks. Projects such as WATERPROTECT improve the water quality in locations where it is under pressure due to fertiliser and pesticide use.

Towards a circular economy

Focus on prevention in healthcare

Among others, VITO is developing tools for reuse, repair and remanufacturing, so that we can create as much value as possible with fewer materials. The technological needs of the circular economy form the driving force of this research. In this way, VITO along with 25 companies and research institutes from all over Europe is investigating how we can recycle construction and demolition waste to the maximum extent possible – and this type of waste represents almost half of European waste. Within the HISER project, VITO studied how buildings can be demolished as efficiently as possible. That is not the only partnership that VITO has entered into with companies and industry. It has also created a new characterisation technique for mixed waste flows.

We are living longer thanks to the improved quality of our healthcare, but the system is cracking under the heavy costs.

To keep it affordable in the future, VITO is already committing to preventive healthcare today. Among others, it is investigating the influence of chemicals on our health and is researching whether affordable air quality sensors provide reliable information. VITO is part of the Partner organisation Environment Healthcare, which translates environment healthcare research into concrete instruments with which policy makers are able to formulate preventive measures.

Chemistry in search of renewable raw materials VITO NV Boeretang 200 B-2400 MOL Tel.: +32 (0)14 33 55 11 E-mail: vito@vito.be http://www.vito.be

VITO is the front runner in innovative membrane technology.

Its years of research have resulted in the development of smart membranes that provide a high level of energy saving in chemical processes. The Blue Foot Membranes spin-off was also established in 2017, and this company produces innovative membranes for water purification plants.VITO promotes its innovative solutions in 28

VLAIO: support for research projects in large and small companies “We stimulate R&D in companies through financial support and services at Flanders Innovation & Entrepreneurship (VLAIO - Agentschap Innoveren & Ondernemen). We mainly aim to participate in high-risk activities, and stimulate collaboration in clusters and international networks" Maarten Sileghem, head of the entity International Collaboration and Strategy, tells us. VLAIO has 343 members of staff.

“W

e provide direct support to companies in their R&D projects and encourage them to collaborate with knowledge

© VLAIO

mainly to the H2020 programme in which Flemish companies obtained 57 million euro in 2015. In addition, we also fund R&D ourselves in the frameinstitutions. work of networks of different Member States. We pay for the Flemish part of transnational projects For direct support to R&D in companies, the prowith our existing R&D support programmes in netgrammes have been reorganised to improve accesworks such as Eureka, Eurostars, JTIs, ERA networks sibility and to reduce thresholds for applicants. We etc. This also provides leverage to R&D subsidies offer two main project types: R&D projects aimed from Europe. In 2017, we allocated around 23 milat knowledge generation and development projects lion euro to projects in such networks, of which 20 aimed at new products, processes or services. We million will be paid up by Flanders and 3 million by also fund collaborative projects between companies the Commission, with an additional 8 million by the and universities and support talent through PhD and Commission to Flemish knowledge institutes. We post-doc fellowships in close collaboration with comare the Flemish link in the Enterprise Europe Network M. Maarten Sileghem, panies. The support was 152 million euro in 2017, head of the entity International with over 600 partner organisations worldwide.

Collaboration and Strategy but an increase to circa 196 million euro is expected We do not focus on R&D here but help companies at VLAIO for 2018. enter into partnerships and develop business outside Flanders. Through this route we contribute towards bridging the innovation paradox by facilitating a transfer to the Clusters market. Finally, in addition to research and innovation, our agency is also involved in the allocation of European funds for regional Since 2016, we have also been providing support to clusters, development to Flemish players» Maarten Sileghem concludes. partnerships between businesses and knowledge institutions.

This relates both to support for basic operations and projects.

We support six spearhead clusters: Catalisti (sustainable chemistry), VIL (logistics), SIM (materials), Flanders Food, Flux 50 (energy) and Blue Cluster (innovation related to the North Sea) and also support 11 smaller innovative business networks”

International cooperation

© Rights reserved

© Rights reserved

“VLAIO also stimulates international cooperation in terms of R&D on a number of different topics. We help Flemish companies through service and information to get funding for R&D from programmes offered by the European Commission. This relates

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VLAIO Koning Albert II-laan 35 bus 12 - 1030 Brussel Tel: +32 (0)2 432 42 02 Email: info@vlaio.be - http://www.vlaio.be

Becetel® is a totally independent ISO 17025 certified laboratory, capable to carry out a wide range of tests on plastics. With a focus on plastic piping and its accessories.

Becetel® is a recognized laboratory for many inspection and certification bodies, like BCCA (Benor), Copro, Certigaz (NF136), DVGW, DIN-Certco,…

Becetel® is also active in several normalization commissions and works as a subcontractor for other laboratories and institutes.

Becetel® has the expertise necessary to respond to customer inquiries quickly and flexible.

The company is run by Prof. Ir. Philippe Vanspeybroeck, a world authority in the field of fracture analysis and material properties.

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Becetel:

© Becetel

© Becetel

© Becetel

© Becetel

technological and scientific materials research for industry and the public sector

Becetel (Belgian Center for Technological Research of Pipelines and Fittings) is a research center with expertise at the world level in the field of research and inspection of piping systems in the field of water, gas, …

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test to accelerate the assessment and validation of new plastic materials. After international validation through Round Robin testing, the PANT test was normalized according to the ISO procedures. Mainly gas and water companies make intensive use of this test. More than 1,000 companies from around the world are customers at Becetel. As an accredited laboratory (ISO 17025), customers can count on the support of their technological projects and on specific advice to their sector.

ecetel was founded at the then RUG (Rijksuniversiteit Gent) by the laboratory Soete for Resistance of Materials, the laboratory Hydraulica and the water company TMVW from Ghent. Partly due to the actions of the gas and water companies, Becetel started to focus on plastic pipe systems from 1980 onwards.

Inspection of plastic pipes is underestimated

Recognition by NBN

The inspection on plastic pipes is generally underestimated.

After all, there are many types of plastic pipes that can all be inspected in their own specific way. Becetel conducts technological and scientific research into plastic pipes and fittings for gas and water distribution as well as for sanitary and industrial applications. The use of high-performance plastic materials (including for infrastructure works) is increasing and the dimensions are also increasing.

Becetel is recognized by the NBN (Bureau for Standardization) in implementation of the Royal Decree of 21/10/2004, as a Sectoral Standardization Operator. Becetel covers the activities of various European (CEN) and international (ISO) standardization committees: plastic piping systems, plastics, rubber and plastic hoses, elastomer sealing rings, plastic tanks, rubber and rubber products.

Specialized equipment

Annual congress

High requirements are imposed on the piping material, which are focused on a long service life and on safe use under extreme conditions (such as pressure and temperature, aggressive environment, traffic load, ...). Becetel has two modern laboratories with specialized equipment and test methods to predict the lifespan of plastic pipe systems in the short term. These piping systems must also comply with European and ISO standards with regard to suitability for use, quality, lifespan, etc. Depending on the materials (plastics pipes, electrofusion joint, butt fusion joint, ...) Becetel carries out tests. These include resistance to hydraulic pressure, regression curves, notch test, tensile test, peel test, crush test, etc.

Becetel likes to share his knowledge. In this context, Becetel organizes an annual International Plastic Pipes Conference & Exhibition. This seminar is intended for contractors, water and gas distribution companies, telecom companies, industry, public authorities, various utilities and producers of raw materials, pipelines and accessories.

Becetel® vzw Gontrode Heirweg 130 - B-9090 Melle Tel.: +32 (0)9 272 50 70 Fax: +32 (0)9 272 50 72 E-mail: philippe.vanspeybroeck@becetel.be http://www.becetel.be

Own test methods Becetel has developed various in-house test methods in recent years. One of them is the PANT (Pipe Accelarated Notch Test) 31

Vlerick Business School “Jointly putting knowledge into action and action into knowledge” “Our strong links to practice are what makes Vlerick unique as a research institution. Research often starts from a practical question. In addition, we explicitly strive to translate the results of our research into practice, in the form of tools, cases, games and simulations. Of course research is performed rigorously but relevance and having a broad impact (“reach”) are certainly just as important. With a wide range of partnerships and formulas tailored to business and social needs, we aim to add value to daily reality,” says Dr Eva Cools, Research Manager at Vlerick Business School.

World-class expertise in 3 sectors - Healthcare, Energy and Financial Services, and in 2 strategic domains - digital transformation and innovation and entrepreneurship

- Setting priorities in Healthcare: A recent white paper from the Healthcare Center at Vlerick explores the current situation in the healthcare sector – and where it could be in the future. It outlines how we can make our health organisations more innovative – and crucially, how we can decide which ideas are worth investing in.

© Vlerick Business School

- Smart meters accelerating change: a research on smart meters, from proof of concept to pilot and roll-out to evaluate how this technological innovation strategically impacts a distribution system operator (DSO), from lifecycle physical asset management to customer segmentation for demand response applications.

- Payments: refurbish or rebuild? The financial services sector is facing its most radical change in decades. There is a clear move towards more decentralisation and peer-to-peer (P2P) collaboration. How can organisations deal with these changes? Based on our experience in working with organisations, we detected four crucial capabilities to master in an increasingly turbulent environment like the payments sector.

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© Vlerick Business School

© Vlerick Business School

Some recent research:

- Digital transformation amongst large Dutch companies: An annual study into the digital transformation of large Dutch companies. The aim is to share insights which can help the business sector to make digital progress. Transformers is a joint initiative by Het Financieele Dagblad and Vlerick Business School.

Š Vlerick Business School

- Can Belgian start-ups conquer the world? The second edition of the Rising Star Monitor, issued by Deloitte and Vlerick Business School, provides a snapshot of the trends and challenges young, high potential ventures in Belgium face.

- DBA: Doctorate in Business Administration Vlerick Business School, Gent University and KU Leuven have joined forces to create a unique joint doctoral programme for experienced professionals. It gives participants the skills to produce academic research that impacts both their organisations and our society. Info: www.vlerick.com/dba

DOCTORATE IN BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION MAKE AN IMPACT WITH NEW UNDERSTANDING

WWW.VLERICK.COM/DBA

Vlerick Business School Campus Gent Reep 1 B-9000 Gent Tel.: +32 (0)9 210 97 11 Fax: +32 (0)9 210 97 00

Campus Leuven Vlamingenstraat 83 B-3000 Leuven Tel.: +32 (0)16 24 88 11 Fax: +32 (0)16 24 88 00

Campus Brussel Bolwerklaan 21 B-1210 Brussel Tel.: +32 (0)2 225 41 11 Fax: +32 (0)2 225 41 00

Email: info@vlerick.com - http://www.vlerick.com 33

DOCTORATE IN BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION MAKE AN IMPACT WITH NEW UNDERSTANDING

WWW.VLERICK.COM/DBA

HOWEST University of Applied Sciences Where healthitude and Applied Health Sciences combine forces Bachelor of applied health sciences The Bachelor of Applied Health Sciences from Howest University College aims for disease prevention and health promotion by maintaining a healthy and sustainable lifestyle. Health, behaviour and environment are approached in a holistic and innovative way. Our research projects target different levels; from individuals, schools, companies to the community level.

© HOWEST University of Applied Sciences

Currently several projects are running, for example on the effect of light on well-being; the development of an application about self-coaching and mental well-being for young people; the organisation of a vital city; and the development of an application promoting a healthy attitude (more info further).

© HOWEST University of Applied Sciences

© HOWEST University of Applied Sciences

That is where healthitude and Applied Health Sciences combine forces. In this partnership, we aim to (1) design a future proof healthcare by embracing new science & technology. We want to empower patients through medical autonomy and give them control over their own health. (2) Develop and validate practical lifestyle guidelines & support for as well healthcare professionals and health consumers.

Applied Health Sciences meets Healthitude ‘Obtaining optimal health through a healthy attitude.’ That’s what healthitude stands for. A healthy attitude among health care providers as well as consumers.

Each year, millions of people die of preventable deaths. There are many methods for prevention of disease. It is recommended that adults and children aim to visit their doctor for regular checkups, even if they feel healthy, to perform disease, identify risk factors for disease, discuss tips about a healthy and balanced lifestyle, stay up to date with immunizations and boosters, and maintain a good relationship with a healthcare provider.

However, this is where this often goes wrong; why visit your healthcare provider when you are not sick, and how can you as a health consumer monitor your own health? Furthermore there is a constant struggle of the validation of lifestyle guidelines between the different health care providers.

HOWEST University of Applied Sciences Marksesteenweg, 58 - B-8500 Kortrijk Tel.: +32 (0)56 24 12 90 Email: research@howest.be - http://www.howest.be 35

Jabil Engineered Solutions Group

© Jabil

No Matter How Complex or Demanding the Project, We Can Help You Solve it

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he Jabil Engineered Solutions Group (ESG) engineers, builds, and ramps some of the most innovative and complex products in the world for leading global brands and new disruptive players within five (5) dedicated markets which include: • Automotive and Transportation • Defense and Aerospace • Energy, Industrial and Building • Print and Retail • Smart Home and Appliances

Creating the Future To ensure customers can respond intelligently to megatrends like mass customization, connectivity and IoT, and the electrification of vehicles, Jabil ESG continually invests in new technologies and manufacturing processes, delivering the rapid prototype, product development, and ramp to scale necessary to be true innovators – today and into the future.

With a global footprint consisting of over 100 facilities on four continents, and 600 dedicated design engineers supported by more than 1,500 manufacturing engineers, Jabil ESG delivers design ingenuity, manufacturing agility, and supply chain command to the world’s leading brands.

No matter how complex or demanding the project, Jabil ESG can help you solve it.

Building upon 50 years of manufacturing and supply chain excellence, Jabil ESG has emerged as a proactive solutions partner offering customers value-add engineering services from ideation and product development to testing and production, actively informing and collaborating technology roadmaps that are reshaping industries.

By leveraging Jabil’s unique capabilities, such as 3D printing, advanced automation and robotics, optics, complex and large form factor precision assembly, and our proprietary supply chain software InControl™, Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) collaborate with Jabil ESG to innovate products, disrupt industries, and capitalize on new market trends. The Jabil InControl™ platform offers an industry-leading service that provides customers end-to-end visibility of their supply chain along with the advanced data analytics to pinpoint opportunities for profit, and areas of concern or risk before they become problems.

Jabil Circuit Belgium N.V. Hasselt Research & Design Center Kempische Steenweg, 297 - B-3500 Hasselt Tel.: +32 (0)11 302 422 - Fax: +32 (0)11 302 594 Email: salesbelgium@jabil.com http://www.jabil.com 36

SCK•CEN Research infrastructures that are unique in the world for a broad spectrum of applications Based in Mol, SCK•CEN is a research centre for peaceful nuclear energy applications. Its new multifunctional research infrastructure called MYRRHA, which was approved by the federal government on 7 September 2018, paves the way for numerous technologies and up-and-coming applications in the management of nuclear waste, the production of new types of medical radioisotopes and materials research.

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There is no doubt that theranostics herald a new era for nuclear medicine. The pharmaceutical industry was not going to make a mistake about this: two of its leading companies recently took over companies that produce molecules that would enable them to position themselves as future leaders in the treatment of bone pain caused by metastasis, neuroendocrine tumours and prostate cancer. Alongside these giants, there is a very dynamic ecosystem with shrewd startups ready to commercialise new products, and investors in search of what is considered substantial financial returns.

CK•CEN is notable for its multidisciplinary expertise and unique infrastructures: the VENUS, BR1 and BR2 reactors, the underground laboratory HADES, nuclear and non-nuclear laboratories, MYRRHA, etc. Whether already in existence or under construction, they enable the Belgian research centre to occupy a crucial presence in many applications domains, particularly in the production of medical radioisotopes for new generation therapies. SCK•CEN is for now at the first stage of the value chain (creation of radioisotopes) but is developing its purification and pharmacological upgrading activities to meet current regulations.

Not content to ride on this wave of success, SCK•CEN is developing research services for preclinical phases of new pharmaceutical products – fundamental and applied research work dealing with the distribution of molecules in the body (pharmacokinetics and bioavailability). In this context, SCK•CEN can study the effect of new treatments in vitro and in vivo (toxicity, effectiveness, dosimetry and microdosimetry) to support the radiopharmaceutical industry. In doing this, SCK•CEN acts both as a CMO (contract manufacturing organisation) and a CRO (contract research organisation) – wearing two hats and thus being in a better position to promote its know-how.

On 9 October 2018, SCK•CEN and the production and distribution network Global Morpho Pharma signed a protocol of agreement regarding the production and distribution of radionuclides for therapeutic use of GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice) quality. SCK•CEN is joining Global Morpho Pharma as a shareholder, innovation partner and manufacturer of radionuclides for therapeutic use.

Global Morpho Pharma will initially concentrate on the production and the distribution of industrial quantities of Lutetium 177 (nca Lu-177) and Actinium 225, both free from long-term impurities. These medical radionuclides are essential for a new type of anti-cancer medication in clinical development or already available in hospitals. In order to establish the European footprint of Global Morpho Pharma, SCK•CEN and IRE ELiT (the innovation subsidiary of IRE) are combining forces to set up reliable provision of supplies of GMP quality nca Lu-177 in Europe and beyond.

MYRRHA, a multi-purpose research infrastructure SCK•CEN is opening a new page in its history with the official launch of the MYRRHA project. This 1.6 billion euro research infrastructure consists of a linear accelerator of particles coupled with a subcritical reactor (ADS system) which cannot maintain a fission chain reaction by itself. Its aim is to transform highly radioactive nuclear waste in order to reduce the duration of toxicity from 300,000 years to 300 years – in other words from geological time to human time.

A new era for nuclear medicine

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This involvement of SCK•CEN is a perfect way of meeting the ever-growing need for products known as “theranostics”, a mix of therapy and diagnosis. These theranostics couple a radioisotope with a molecule vector which is directed towards the cancerous cells to destroy them, while at the same time providing a precise medical image. The first applications put on the market in March 2018 have turned out to be very promising for the treatment of neuroendocrine tumours.

Similarly, some molecules of interest are in phase III of a clinical trial for the treatment of prostate cancer. Theranostics provide the means, for instance, to overcome resistance to immune therapy in the treatment of cancer and to increase the average life expectancy of patients. Tests on other types of cancer are in the pipeline with spectacular results on a limited number of patients.

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In addition to the scientific and technological added value generated by MYRRHA, the PwC design office has analysed its socio-economic impact. The added value created by this new infrastructure is estimated at 7 billion euros. Moreover, the dynamic created by investing in MYRRHA will enable the development of a skills hub and a new industrial cluster in the region of Mol, while also generating spin-offs. Thanks to its range of applications, MYRRHA will act as an international pole of attraction for research centres and universities and for the training and education of a new generation of experts in the various technologies and nuclear specialities. In short, this will be a technological crossroads that will lead to new collaborations and partnerships for the benefit of innovation.

MYRRHA will be built in three phases. The first phase, spread between 2018 and 2026, sees the construction of the accelerator up to 100 MeV to show the viability of the accelerator whose ADS system requires continuous operation.

It is therefore necessary to increase the emission of protons by factor of 100 compared with the performance of today’s accelerators. To do this, SCK•CEN is relying on improved components for each individual cavity; any loss of a cavity would then be compensated for by adjacent cavities, which is known as the principle of fault tolerant design. Prototypes have already provided a demonstration of this.

The first phase of MYRRHA will also include the construction of an experimental station for the development and production of radioisotopes for nuclear medicine (theranostics) with the advantages explained above.

The ISOL@MYRRHA station will be added to this station and its role will be to produce of radioactive isotope beams, of interest for fundamental research in the area of nuclear physics, atomic physics, solid-state physics, biology and medical applications.

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Technological crossroads The second phase of MYRRHA will bring the accelerator to 600 MeV and will continue the production of radioisotopes such as Molybdene 99 for diagnostic purposes. The production through mass spectrometry will also continue and white rooms will be fitted out so that SCK•CEN can rise in the radiopharmaceutical value chain. The research centre could then produce radioisotopes for the preclinical trials of laboratories developing new therapies.

Finally, the third phase of MYRRHA will see the construction of a subcritical reactor. To cool it, SCK•CEN has opted for a combination of lead and bismuth recommended for fourth generation reactors so as to avoid energy loss from fast neutrons which, resulting from the fission, are the best for transforming highly radioactive waste. Phases 2 and 3 will be carried out simultaneously between 2027 and 2033. The research infrastructure, MYRRHA, will be fully operational in 2034.

SCK•CEN Boeretang 200 - B-2400 Mol Tel.: +32 (0)14 33 21 11 - Fax: +32 (0)14 31 89 36 Email: info@sckcen.be - http://www.sckcen.be 39

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© Eric Danhier / ULB

Brussels: a laboratory for smart specialization

© ASIT biotech

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Personalised medicine, one of the three priority action areas for Brussels An interview with Ms Fadila LAANAN, Secretary of State of the Brussels-Capital Region in charge of Scientific Research, Minister-President of the French-speaking Brussels Government The Brussels strategy of promoting research also aims to improve well-being in the region. It is for this reason that a large part of the funding for applied research is allocated to research in the multimodal consortia linking research centres, companies, the nonprofit sector and sometimes even public institutions and citizens.

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This mode of support is emblematic of the new approach to the organisation of research in a collaborative process between the public sector, companies, the academic world and citizens.

This general trend worldwide is specially adapted to the special features of the Brussels-Capital Region and to meeting the particular challenges of our capital.

This removal of the barriers between programmes and among the categories of beneficiaries strengthens the economic fabric by contributing practical knowledge and innovation to companies and players in the non-profit sector.

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hat are the specific characteristics of the Brussels region in the areas of R&D and innovation?

Brussels has a special place on the European map of research and innovation. The Brussels-Capital Region has a large number of Universities and Colleges of Higher Education, university hospitals, a competitive scientific workforce thanks to the partial deduction in the professional tax and a dense network of innovative SMEs.

In December 2017, you decided to allocate 20 million Euro to fund research, innovation and promotion for scientific courses and careers in the capital. Could you give us a few examples of some projects that have been funded within this framework?

Since the start of the legislature, regional support to research and innovation has taken off spectacularly: from 43 million Euro in the first year of the legislature, we have now exceeded 60 million, which is an increase of nearly 40%.

With 20% of national GDP, a fabric of over 100.000 particularly young and dynamic SMEs and the highest rate of business creation in the country, Brussels has 108,000 students in higher education and over 16,000 people working in Research and Development. Besides, with its metropolitan area, Brussels is among the top 10 regions in terms of participation in European research programmes.

Proportionally speaking, Brussels has more R&D staff than other Belgian regions and the European average. In 2015, knowledge workers represented 1.75% of total domestic employment. In Belgium, R&D staff (in FTE) amounted to 1.68% of total domestic employment, with a figure of 1.72% in Flanders and 1.58% in Wallonia. The (EU 28) European average was 1.25% that same year.

© Cab Laanan

How do you adapt the regional offer of support to research, development and innovation to these specific characteristics?

Thanks to the support for research, development and innovation we harbour the ambition of generating world leaders in cutting edge sectors in the Brussels Region.

Within the framework of the Regional Innovation Plan, we have identified three strands of strategic activity: health (personalised medicine), the environment (green economy) and ICTs (digital economy).

Fadila Laanan visits the very first edition of the “I Love Science” festival at Tour et Taxis on April 27, 2018.

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© Cab Laanan © Cab Laanan

Fadila Laanan receives a model of the ISS made by Brussels students thanks to a 3D printer subsidized by Innoviris.

Discovery of innovative projects supported by the Region during the Brussels Starters Network event

In the area of the promotion of scientific and technological professions, we have established the “I love Science Festival”.

With over 10,000 visitors to Tour et Taxis, this very first edition met with high success in terms of attendance. The next edition of the Festival will be held in April 2019 at Brussels Expo.

What are the strong points of health research in Brussels?

Health occupies a special place in the Brussels region due to the high concentration of university hospitals. For scientific research this is a formidable pool of talents and projects. In addition to annual calls for projects such as Bridge or CoCreate which often deal with topics linked to health, we are also supporting a lot of regional projects such as the “Medical Device” project at Erasme Hospital.

Each year, the budgets are allocated to research teams via varied programmes aimed at supporting companies, knowledge transfer from the academic to the economic world and raising of people’s awareness of the sciences.

In this way, in 2017, the young businesses Easyvest, Urbantz and Zensor won the RISE award. Active within the financial, logistics and monitoring sectors respectively, each has been awarded a subsidy of 500,000 Euro for the smooth implementation of their strategic innovation plan.

Our Launch programmes regularly select innovative spin-off projects in the area of medical applications and our contribution to the capital of university funds has already allowed for a large number of “success stories” in the field of health with the development of companies such as Akermansia and Ovizio…

The first edition of the Team-Up call for projects met with great success in 2017 with 19 projects selected around the theme of artificial intelligence for a budget of 8.9 million Euro. This support mechanism favours collaboration and the transfer of knowledge between the academic and industrial worlds.

How is the regional government supporting researchers and health innovators?

Health (and more specifically personalised medicine) represents one of the three priority action areas for Brussels. That is why, within the framework of the Bridge action, we have allocated a substantial amount to supporting collaborative and multidisciplinary research around personalised medicine.

In 2017, five projects were selected for a total amount of 7.88 million Euro.

Always with a view to encouraging partnerships between the academic sector and the industrial/economic sector, the Brussels Government has also approved an amount of slightly over one million Euro for the Doctiris programme that aims to fund doctoral theses in applied research carried out in collaboration with an industrial partner.

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Brussels, an especially favourable location for health innovation and research An interview with Prof. Daniele CARATI, President of the Council for Scientific Policy of the Brussels-Capital Region, Director-Coordinator of the Research Department at the UniversitĂŠ Libre de Bruxelles (ULB)

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the latter in their policy of supporting collaborations between universities and companies.

n your opinion, what are the assets of the Brussels region in the area of health research and innovation?

Health is one of the three priority themes of the Brussels-Capital Region and it is no coincidence: the territory gathers together 3 universities (ULB, UCL and VUB) with their life sciences campuses, a large number of Colleges of Higher Education, a very dense hospital network including the three academic hospitals and also illustrious institutions such as the Jules Bordet Institute and of course a pharmaceuticals industry that is very well established. In addition, a large number of interactions have been developed between computer scientists and doctors on the one hand and engineers and doctors on the other. These contacts favour the genetic analysis and development of medical devices. The region is therefore concentrating all necessary expertise on stimulating health research and innovation.

What opinions has the Council for Scientific Policy of the Brussels-Capital Region published recently and what other opinions does it plan to publish in 2019?

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Since I assumed my role at the start of 2018, the Council for Scientific Policy of the Brussels-Capital Region has in particular issued an opinion on experiments on animals at the request of the Secretary of State who was looking to propose a bill to reduce the number of experiments on animals in the region. The Council found that experiments on animals were still an essential tool in the development of new medications and that it was probably not wise to set quantitative targets for reduction at a time when health research is considered a priority for the Brussels-Capital Region. Let us also point out that experiments on animals are well organised and represent a mandatory path for as long as there are no alternative methods.

What do you think of the regional policy for the support of research and innovation?

The Brussels-Capital Government recognises research and innovation as a major driving force for regional development.

What is more, the Regional Innovation Plan (PRI) genuinely seeks to organise regional efforts to support research and innovation. That said, I deplore the limited nature of the resources allocated: the Brussels-Capital Region is still the poor relative of Belgium when it comes to financial support. With its budgetary resources being limited, it is not very realistic to hope for a major boost to the financial support allocated to research and innovation in the years to come, but we can of course hope for a positive development.

In 2019, the Council for Scientific Policy of the Brussels-Capital Region will issue an opinion on the Innoviris Doctiris programme: it allows young doctoral students to work on their thesis whilst interacting with a company or industry. There is clear value in this since beyond the training aspect links are forged between an academic research laboratory and a company that recognises the value of innovation for its future development. Doctiris is undeniably an appreciated tool.

The opinion of the Council for Scientific Policy of the BrusselsCapital Region will show whether it is perfectible.

In your opinion, what are the main challenges facing the BrusselsCapital Region when it comes to favouring personalised medicine?

How do you view the links between the regional research players and the pharmaceutical industry?

The region has an environment that is highly favourable to progress in personalised medicine: industry and players in clinical and academic research offer a very high level of quality in oncology, genetics, biocomputing (at an inter-university level) and data processing. The skills are there and the link between the different professions is there too. All that needs to be done is to find additional financial resources. In this prospecting phase, public support is just as important as private investments. It would be a shame to miss the boat!

There is still a certain distance, even though it is constantly decreasing with each passing year. Innoviris contributes to this with its dedicated tools that facilitate relations between the two parties. And let’s not forget the role of the Council for Scientific Policy of the Brussels-Capital Region: it is a place to exchange with and meet all the regional players in research and innovation. As such, it assists in the formulation of ideas that will then be submitted to the public authorities and assists 44

Supporting the internationalisation and innovation of Brussels businesses An interview with Ms Bénédicte WILDERS, hub.brussels – Internationalisation Division

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years, with a list of galleries and hotels where they could exhibit during Fashion Week in New York. This resulted in several orders.

ould you please tell us about the network, projects and key figures for your division?

Since 1 January 2018, the former Brussels Invest & Export has been integrated into the new Brussels Business Support Agency, known as hub.brussels.

Alongside export support for Brussels businesses and attracting and supporting foreign investors in Brussels, the Agency has a support service for entrepreneurship, innovation, internationalisation through innovation and a large R&D department.

© hub.brussels

What events do you plan to organise in 2019? hub.brussels plans to lead 122 export activities in 2019, which is an increase of almost 30% on 2018. This has been made possible due to the integration of activities organised with the clusters especially within the context of the Nexttech. brussels plan for the digital market (AfricaCom, South by Southwest and Femme Digitale) and the development of dual action plans, invest and export.

In addition to the classic collective export action plans (trade missions, group stands at trade fairs, seminars in Brussels and abroad etc.), internationalisation support has benefited since this integration from all the services provided by the sectoral clusters in Brussels as well as consultants specialised in European programmes such as NCP, Enterprise Europe Network, Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs etc.

8 actions will target international organisations (World Bank, African Development Bank, European Space Agency etc.) through seminars in their offices dealing with their services and procedures, and meeting with their purchasers. 19 actions are being organised in Africa and 19 in Asia, with special attention being paid to the commercialisation of Brussels services in law, construction, architecture, IT and online sales. The South Korean market will be explored 4 times, China will hold the attention of companies for the princely mission and its potential for e-commerce sales. India will be of particular interest to companies in the health sector and FinTech companies.

The two driving forces of a successful business (internationalisation and innovation) are now supported together in quite a unique agency.

Naturally, the network of economic and commercial officers of the Region continue to provide solid support for our companies abroad, covering more than 140 countries from 90 offices.

In terms of attracting foreign investors to Brussels we continue to pay attention to geopolitical events - such as Brexit or trade wars that bring both opportunities and challenges. In 2019, we will focus on life sciences, the financial sector and audiovisual media. In line with economic developments we naturally pay attention to the digitization of these industries and continue our collaborations with the various sector organizations and experts. Our road shows abroad aim to promote the general Brussels business climate and provide concrete administrative, legal and sector-specific information to potential investors.

What export services do you provide for Brussels SMEs? In addition to the collective campaigns already mentioned, we provide staff prepared for international trade through accelerated training in seminars and internships. The company may welcome the trainee during the training course; a good way of testing the person and gaining time.

Since the end of 2018 hub.brussels has also provided individual coaching for businesses to prepare and support new exporters as they make their first sales abroad. These intensive coaching sessions are for businesses that succeed in a selection process https://mybusinesspass.brussels/. 40 new exporters should thus be supported every year.

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Could you give us a few examples of success stories that received support from hub.brussels?

Our promotion campaign for animation businesses enabled the company Kwassa to find Dutch partners to complete its film “Ring on your finger”. The support of our economic and commercial officer in Shanghai opened this promising market to UCB for the treatment of Parkinson’s disease. The company Tempora, promoted by our economic officer at the Town Hall of Wroclaw in Poland, won the scenography for an exhibition on the famous people that Poland brought to Europe and the world.

We also provided the company Maille France, which has been exporting its deluxe lingerie brand to the United States for

Day-long meeting of companies with the economic and commercial officers of hub.brussels

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INNOVIRIS Supporting research and innovation in the Brussels Region An interview with Mrs Katrien MONDT, Managing Director Innoviris Innoviris, the Brussels Institute for Research and Innovation, supports and stimulates science, research and innovation. The Institute does so by financing pioneering projects of Brussels enterprises, research institutions and the non-profit sector. With more budget, more campaigns and more staff, Innoviris is proving to be highly ambitious in 2016. “Brussels is a small region with specific socio-economic challenges, but also with considerable potential. We want to help realising these possibilities.”

© Innoviris

Brussels is a small region with specific socio-economic challenges, but also with considerable potential. We want to help realising these possibilities.

Ms Mondt, Innoviris managing director, and Ms Verdonck, Innoviris deputy managing director

What is so specific about the socio-economic situation of the Brussels Capital Region?

Brussels is the smallest region in Belgium. On the one hand, the Region hosts a large number of knowledge workers due to the high concentration of universities and colleges. That is extremely advantageous for innovative companies and organisations wishing to set up in Brussels. On the other hand, there is a large group of low-educated people, who have difficulty accessing the job market since the gulf between the business world and education is too great. In order to resolve this issue, Innoviris wants to build bridges. We want to offer answers to specific, current issues, such as mobility, environment, integration of migrants or the ageing population, with which the Brussels Capital Region has to contend.

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hat can the Brussels RDI sector expect from Innoviris in 2016?

Thanks to our Minister in charge, Fadila Lanaan, we are this year able to count on a 25%-increase on our annual budget of €40 million. This means we are able to support more companies, research institutions and non-profit organisations, with new measures better suited to reality, or which fill certain gaping holes in the innovation chain.

We are currently also working on a new Regional Investment Plan, in which the objectives of the Brussels RDI sector of 2016 to 2020 will be defined; while in parallel, Innoviris’ statutory framework is to be adjusted. A great many campaigns will result from these two documents. Our aspirations of course also require additional staff, and Innoviris’ current workforce of 40 is set to increase in 2016.

In which fields is Innoviris active?

Innoviris provides various Brussels, inter-regional and European programmes, financial support in RDI projects of enterprises, research institutions and the non-profit sector.

Innoviris is ambitious, although it could be no other way, since the Brussels Capital Region is faced with a number of specific, major challenges in the future. New technologies and innovation will be able to provide a significant response to this.

For instance, thanks to our own campaign Launch – Brussels Spin-off, we focus on founding new Brussels enterprises, at the same time as stimulating knowledge transfer from the 46

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© Innoviris

academic world to industry. Our participation in the interregional and European programmes Innovative Brussels Care and Ambient Assisted Living is in turn focused on social themes such as care for the elderly and the ageing population.

in the six Walloon competitiveness clusters, and receive financing from Innoviris within this framework. A bio-bank project was also set up in collaboration with the Walloon Region.

Thanks to the first joint initiative Innovative Brussels Care, Brussels research actors are also able to collaborate with their Flemish counterparts within the scope of the programme “Proeftuin Zorginnovatie Ruimte Vlaanderen”, which was launched on the initiative of the Flemish Government and organised by the IWT. Innoviris has also been collaborating with iMinds since 2014. Brussels companies are thus able to take part in iMinds’ ICON programme, at the same time as requesting innovation support from Innoviris.

The Institute furthermore has the task of making young people aware of, and motivating them toward, careers in science and technology. In 2016, we will be expanding our awarenessraising campaigns so as to address the right target audience, and thus make a real difference.

Assigning subsidies for supporting the R&D sector is a regional responsibility. Brussels is a small region and has less financial resources than Flanders and Wallonia. How does Innoviris deal with this?

In practice this regional responsibility means that R&D actors are financed by the different institutions: the DGO6 in Wallonia, the IWT in Flanders and Innoviris in the Brussels Capital Region. Inter-regional partnerships are extremely important to us. Not just because we’re only a small region, but above all for contending with the reality of the business world as best as possible. After all, businesses look beyond the borders of regions.

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How does the collaboration run on a European level?

Supplementary to the regional and national R&D support, on a European level there is also a wide range of programmes supporting the R&D sector, the innovation and competitive capacity of companies, research centres and other European innovation actors. These programmes are focused on certain sectors (ICT, nanotechnologies, etc.), stakeholders (SMEs, etc.), the type of activities or a specific issue (population ageing, environmental issues, etc.). These programmes are financed though the European Union, national financing agencies or by common financing.

Innoviris Chaussée de Charleroisesteenweg 110 B-1060 Brussels Tel. (FR): +32 (0)2 600 50 36 Tel. (NL): +32 (0)2 600 50 37 Email: info@innoviris.brussels http://www.innoviris.brussels

To what extent does Innoviris promote this collaboration between the various Belgian regions?

The Brussels and the Walloon Board for Scientific Policy have elaborated three possible collaborative pillars: strategic coordination, research infrastructures and European programmes.

Since then, Brussels R&D actors have been able to participate 47

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Bolstering the appeal of ULB research centres at a global level An interview with Prof. Oberdan LEO, Vice-Rector for research and promotion at the ULB, Institute of Medical Immunology, Immunobiology research unit

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Dr S. Goriely and Dr M. Moser which aim to study the mode of action of the adjuvants present in vaccines, the various forms of immune memory and the action of regulatory T cells, and the Vascular Signalling Laboratory led by Prof. Benoit Vanhollebeke, who has just published an article in Science on vascular biology using the zebrafish as a model.

© P. Eeckhout, ULB

hat are the key figures for research at the ULB? The ULB's research budget is €185M, €50M of which come from operating allowances and the rest from competitive financing (€48M from the FNRS and the remainder from public and private funding agencies, both Belgian and European). In addition, the ULB has nearly 3,600 lecturer/researchers of whom around 800 are members of the academic staff (700 from the ULB and 110 from the FNRS) and approximately 2,000 doctoral students. In 2017, 230 doctoral theses were presented. Currently we are able to identify 3,000 research projects in progress, i.e. 3 or 4 per member of the academic staff. The ULB also offers a dozen starting grants for researchers just starting their careers.

In which Horizon 2020 research projects is the ULB involved?

Currently the ULB has 12 recipients of grants from the highly selective European Research Council (6 ERC Starting, 3 Consolidators and 3 Advanced), 23 individual Marie Curie researchers (doctoral and post-doctoral students) and 29 collaborative projects.

By way of an example, Prof. Cathy Clerbaux, a guest of the Quantum Chemistry and Photophysics Department and a research director at the CNRS (France), obtained an ERC Advanced Grant in 2017 for its project IASI-FT (IASI - Flux and Temperature), which aims to detect global warming indicators based on hyperspectral data measured by satellite.

What are the strong points of health research at the ULB ?

I would like to begin with the works of Prof. Cédric Blanpain, who studies the stem cells responsible for the continuous generation of tumour cells in his laboratory on the Erasme campus. His work has led to the creation of a cancer cluster in partnership with Erasme hospital and the Bordet Institute. In addition, Prof. Blanpain created the spin-off ChromaCure with a view to developing inhibitors for a new target which is a key regulator in tumour initiation and development.

A recipient of a Consolidator Grant in 2017, Prof. Jean-Benoit Pilet (CEVIPOL) is heading a research project entitled CureOrCurse: it is about studying the effect of the institutional reforms implemented to restore the faith of Europeans in representative democracy. The project plans to combine data already collected at a European level so as to draw up a “register” for this type of reform and explore the feelings of European citizens in this regard.

For his part, Prof. François Fuks stands out through his works on cancer epigenetics and more specifically the link between alterations in RNA and the appearance of breast cancer. He too has created a start-up, EPICS Therapeutics, with a view to giving his research clinical applications. Moreover, the ULB is pursuing other cancer immunotherapy research projects using animal models and clinical trials on breast cancer.

In the Starting Grants category, we should mention the 2018 award winners who are Birgit Ricquier for her BANTURIVERS project (study of the various expansions of the Bantu languages in the forests of Central Africa, and especially the eastern part of the Congo Basin), and Hennie Valkenier-van Dijk for her ORGANITRA project, the aim of which is to develop new synthetic molecules capable of transporting phosphorous-based organic compounds such as nucleotides through the cell membrane.

We should also point out the ULB Neuroscience Institute and its works on the development of the nervous system from stem cells on, drug addiction and the role of genes in potential resistance to this addiction (Prof. Alban de Kerchove d’Exaerde) and also the pioneering study on the role of a class of receptors in the detection of extracellular signals linked to inflammatory phenomena (Prof.

Marc Parmentier).

With respect to the award winners of the Marie Skłodowska-Curie programme, we will cite Patricia Bonnavion (Neurophysiology laboratory) and her ADHD-LightUp project, which combines optogenetic, neuron activity recording and behavioural analysis approaches to assess and process some neurons that could be at the origin of the cardinal symptoms of ADHD, Mathieu Bourguignon (Faculty of the Psychological Sciences and Education) and his DYSTRACK project, which aims to achieve a better understanding of the processing of speech in the presence of

The ULB is also present in research on diabetes with the ULB Center for Diabetes Research, directed by Prof. Decio Eizirik, who is studying the cell death of β-pancreatic cells which produce insulin.

Lastly, I would like to mention the research carried out within the inter-faculty Immunology Institute by the teams of Dr A. Marchant, 48

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noise, ultimately to develop new methods to identify and resolve dyslexia at low cost, and Eduardo Castello (Brussels Polytechnic), whose BROS project is focused on the development of robotic systems through which it is possible to certify behaviour using Blockchain technology.

1992 it has led to the creation of 50 spin-offs, 38 of which are still active and partly housed on the Biopark campus in Gosselies – the 3 incubators on this campus host spin-offs from other universities and countries. This multiplier effect is very satisfying for the ULB, which sees to the running of the Biopark campus and thereby participates in the creation of jobs.

And let's not forget collaborative projects aiming to provide a response to major societal, industrial and technological challenges. The ULB's Experimental Medicine Laboratory (Prof. Miriam Cnop) is coordinating one, christened T2DSystems: launched on 1 January 2016, this project seeks to develop a system for a biomedicine approach to the risks of identifying, preventing and treating type 2 diabetes.

In your opinion, what are the main challenges that await researchers in your field of research, immunology?

We are now seeing a paradigm shift in immunology: after a long time spent studying the mechanisms that allow for the activation of an immune response (studies that have led to the development of a large number of vaccines), recently immunologists have realised the importance of immunosuppression mechanisms in the control of immune responses. In this way, today we consider that inflammatory diseases (such as autoimmune diseases or allergies) are the result of deficiencies in natural immunosuppression mechanisms. In the same way, the recent successes in cancer immunotherapy can be explained through our better understanding of the immunosuppression mechanisms put in place by tumours to escape the control of the immune system and the development of treatments making it possible to remove this immunosuppression. Despite the recent progress made in immunotherapy however, the majority of patients do not respond to these treatments, and today it is therefore important to continue our research efforts so as to learn to make better use of the immune system to control the various pathologies.

Finally, I should point out that the ULB has unlocked highly selective European funding within the framework of the Marie SkłodowskaCurie programme. Named IF@ULB (Individual fellowships at ULB), this project with a budget of €9M will for the next five years allow the awarding of 2-year research grants to 63 post-doctoral researchers in international mobility. The three calls for projects are open to all disciplines and will make it possible to increase the visibility and appeal of the ULB and its research centres on an international scale.

How are technology transfers enacted at the ULB? The report is very positive: the ULB has a total of 80 active patents which have given rise to 44 active licences. In addition, since 49

ASIT biotech

© ASIT biotech

© ASIT biotech

ASIT biotech wants to revolutionise allergy immunotherapy

ASIT biotech was founded in May 1997 as a spin-off company of the Free University of Brussels. It is a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and future commercialisation of a range of breakthrough immunotherapy products for the treatment of allergies, based on its ASIT+TM technology platform.

by gp-ASIT+TM, the company can more easily determine if the other two product candidates are likely to reach the market.

It is a question of reducing risks for future indications and to anticipate future treatments for allergens as widespread as the Japanese cedar and ambrosia, with the sphere of action now spreading from the United States to Europe.

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In the context of its clinical studies, ASIT biotech called upon the best European laboratory, the Imperial College London, to carry out all the mechanistic studies, with the results appearing in prestigious scientific journals (Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, Allergy). ASIT biotech also recently commissioned a broker to find a partner in the United States for the future commercialisation of its treatment for allergic rhinitis caused by grass pollens. In short, the products being developed by ASIT biotech aim to improve the treatment of allergic patients for increased effectiveness and a better quality of life.

round the world, 600 million people suffer from respiratory allergies and food allergies. A third of patients suffering from respiratory allergies are not satisfied with their symptomatic treatments and the current treatments offered to them are very expensive and restrictive. ASIT biotech wants to revolutionise immunotherapy with shorter treatment courses that are at least as effective, thanks to the development of new active principles based on the purification of natural allergens and their fragmentation. The aim of this is to make them less dangerous in order to stimulate the immune system with stronger doses, without the addition of adjuvants.

© ASIT biotech

In 2015, ASIT biotech raised sufficient funds for a first phase III clinical trial with gp-ASIT+TM, a product candidate for the treatment of allergic rhinitis caused by grass pollens. Thanks to this trial, the company was able to obtain the validation of its concept. Following a three weeks treatment before the pollen season, a rapid induction of immune regulation mechanisms was observed and allergic symptoms declined significantly throughout the whole pollen season. A second phase III trial was launched in December 2018 and this is expected to confirm the results at the end of 2019. The Paul Ehrlich Institute (PEI), the approval body of the German health authority, could authorise ASIT biotech to lodge a market authorisation request in Germany from 2020 if the results of the new phase III trial are conclusive. There would also be the possibility of extension of this authorisation to other European countries in accordance with international directives.

At the same time, two other product candidates are in their final phase of pre-clinical development for peanut and dust mite allergies. Phases I/II of the clinical trials should start in 2019.

However, ASIT biotech is already benefiting from the know-how generated by the clinical development of its first product candidate. With the identification of action mechanisms caused

ASIT biotech Avenue Ariane 5 - B-1200 Woluwe-Saint-Lambert Tel.: +32 (0)2 264 03 90 - Fax: +32 (0)2 264 03 99 E-mail: info@biotech.be - https://www.asitbiotech.com 50

Laboratory of Neurophysiology and Movement Biomechanics – LNMB

© LNMB

An expert in the field of EEG, evoked potentials and movement analysis

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With one full Professor, 4 Assistant-Professors, 6 scientist-collaborators, 3 technicians and Phd-students, the LNMB has developed expertise in the field of multiple EEG and evoked potentials by working with the cosmonauts (ESA, NASA & JAXA), the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center in Star City (Moscow) and the Johnson Space Center (NASA, Houston). the development of diagnostic tools to better detect this disorder) and has access to clinical cohorts of patients with psychiatric and neuropsychiatric disorders. HWa expertise may help evaluate patients through neuro-cognitive and electrophysiological protocols using “naturalistic” multimodal event-related potentials. In January 2019 Prof. G. Cheron will also launch a new spin-off, iNeuroWin, which will focus on developing tools that make it easier for people to reach the flow state. Neuroscience at the service of well-being!

s Prof. G. Cheron is also Director of the laboratory of Electrophysiology at the University of Mons, the two groups work together in the field of brain oscillations.

Cooperation with the College de France (Prof. A. Berthoz) allows us to establish links between the psychophysical performance of astronauts and brain oscillations. The LNMB is currently involved in space mission NeuroSpat. The aim is to study perception, attention, memory, decision and action (PAMDA) during sensorimotor tasks.

In clinical field the LNMB is involved in attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). By the development of inverse modelling method (swLORETA) based on high density EEG recordings in children and adults we are able to identify the cortical generators involved in different behavioral situations. Thank to this expertise the LNMB develops new diagnostic tools and feedback therapies based on these brain states identification.

© LNMB

At the time being, the LNMB is taking part in promising research projects such as FLOW: the term “flow”, as conceptualized by Csikszentmihalyi (1975), describes the optimal experiences that are most enjoyable in human life while fully engaging in an activity, which is in line with the unresolved questions related to neurometric-psychometric comparisons in an attempt to identify neurophysiological activities and sensations that occur during the flow. An ESA project, ARIADNA aims at assessing how space travel modifies local sleep episodes during wakefulness by analysing specific EEG data previously recorded on board of the ISS during our previous Neurospat (NES) experiment (AO2004, 118). This will support further appropriate sleep promoting methods and their objective evaluation in order to optimize human performance and adaptation in space. For its part, the OSCILLOME project targets a better understanding of the inductive and modulatory mechanisms of cerebellar oscillations and their effects on the cerebral cortex thanks to the convergence of new powerful non-invasive recording techniques, mathematical computer-based modelling and animal models (mice).

Astronauts Bob Thirsk and Frank De Winne during the Neurospat project at the ISS (International Space Station)

In the field of research valorization, Prof. G. Cheron created Human Waves (HWa), a starting spin-off of the Université libre de Bruxelles (ULB) developing services and products in neurotechnology, from health and learning applications to sports and brain computer interfaces (BCI). These abilities are declined under 3 axes: Human engineering, Human health, and Human performance. All the services and products are based on the PAMDA paradigm. Recently, Human health division has developed a new activity (Human Waves Clinics, which takes part in “NeuroAtt”, a project certified by the BioWin competitiveness cluster and studying brain oscillations in children and adults with ADHD for

LNMB - Université Libre de Bruxelles Campus Erasme, bâtiment N, niveau 5 CP640 - Route de Lennik 808 B-1070 Brussels Tel.: +32 (0)2 650 21 87 Fax: +32 (0)2 650 24 77 E-mail: gcheron@ulb.ac.be http://www.cheron.be/ - http://humanwaves.be/ 51

Health research and innovation in Brussels High-flying, internationally recognized expertise for the benefit of patients Health is a major issue for the Brussels-Capital Region: it is about its scientific influence and its economic dynamism.

Universities, university hospitals and incubators are mobilizing to stimulate research and innovation in this field, in line with societal challenges of today and tomorrow.

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and type 1 diabetes. The ongoing studies target, among other things, Nova1 as a master regulator of alternative splicing in pancreatic beta cells; RNA-sequencing which identifies dysregulation of the human pancreatic islet transcriptome by the saturated fatty acid palmitate; a novel GPR120-dependent pathway of control brown fat activation mediated by FGF21… Besides, the UCDR DiaType project entitled “Personalized medicine in diabetes: towards an etiology-based diagnosis and better patient care” is funded by the Brussels Region’s Innoviris Bridge Strategic Platform and has started in April 2018 for a period of 3 years. The aim is to implement and develop precision diabetes medicine and improve patient care by providing etiologic diagnoses and performing clinical and basic research.

ealth research is flourishing at the Université libre de Bruxelles (ULB). Several teams from the Health Cluster are key players in two interdisciplinary, multidisciplinary research centers: the ULB Cancer Research Center and the ULB Neuroscience Institute.

The ULB-Cancer Research Centre (U-CRC) gathers 21 research groups working on one or more aspects of cancer research: Stem Cell and Cancer Group, Laboratory of Cancer Epigenetics, Institute for Medical Immunology (IMI)… Over 190 scientists and physicians are working together in order to carry out research of the highest quality where basic and translational research will be conducted in close relation with clinical research for the benefit of patients. The main missions of the U-CRC are to stimulate and support collaborative, interdisciplinary cancer research; recruit world class researchers and create new research groups whose skills are complementary to the existing ones; develop and provide imaging techniques and technologies to enhance diagnostic. As a comprehensive cancer centre, U-CRC research covers fundamental, translational and clinical aspects. Important research is in progress on immuno-oncology, the mechanismes of relapse, chronic lymphocytic leukemia … They bode well for future diagnostic and therapeutic applications.

Research at Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB) is also dedicated to fighting diseases. VUB’s health researchers are especially involved in gene therapy, cancer (molecular imaging with the ICMI Lab and the Cellular and Molecular Immunology Lab, radiotherapy, peptides with the Organic Chemistry research group and the In Vivo Cellular and Molecular Imaging (ICMI) research group, resistance mechanisms of bone marrow cancer Multiple Myeloma, immunotherapy), diabetes (regenerative therapy, beta cells), liver diseases (improved diagnosis and treatment of liver disorders, toxicity in the liver), developement and design of medicine using structural biology. These research groups aim to better understand the causes of diseases, hoping to find the key to better diagnoses, treatments and maybe even cures.

The ULB Neuroscience Institute (UNI) strives to understand how the brain works or dysfunctions by studying the nervous system and its multiple levels of complexity interacting with each other: from genes to neurons, from neurons to neural circuits, from neural circuits to perception, behaviour, and consciousness.

UNI comprises more than 200 scientists grouped into 24 research groups: “Autism in Context”, “Developmental Genetics”, “Experimental Neurology”, “Stem Cell & Developmental Neurobiology”… Such questions have major implications for medicine, since many brain diseases remain without an efficient cure. In order to expand internationally and keep rising its level of excellence, UNI launched, in 2013, an international PhD Program in Neuroscience. Successful candidates have the opportunity to work in a top UNI laboratory of their choice, in a stimulating and diverse environment aligned with the highest international standards.

© ULB Neuroscience Institute

For its part, the ULB Center for Diabetes Research (UCDR) provides a world leading environment for creative science.

It fosters research excellence and pursues discoveries in metabolic disorders, with experts working together in collaborative teams. 6 research fields have been defined: inflammatory and apoptotic signaling in diabetes, pathogenesis of type 2 and monogenic forms of diabetes, pathogenesis of type 1 diabetes, signal transduction and metabolism, molecular mechanisms of polygenic and monogenic diabetes, and virus

Neuroscience research at the ULB Neuroscience Institute

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to carry out research as part of a doctoral thesis. This scholarship can be renewed three times following the request of the researcher.

Each year BKF wishes to grant 10 to 15 scholarships according to the available budgets. More than 140 scholarships have been awarded since the beginning, which led to 36 doctoral theses and numerous articles in the specialized press. Thus, BKF participates in the constant updating of the medical knowledge of the actors in pediatric health.

Biomedical research at university hospitals Health research is also carried out by regional university hospitals.

ULB’s Erasmus Hospital is very active in biomedical research with its many facets: basic research, clinical research, operational research or applied research, and epidemiological and public health research. The research is supported in particular by the Erasmus Fund: created in 1982, its mission is to promote medical breakthroughs for the benefit of patients in the cuttingedge areas of the Erasmus Hospital. It allows to carry out the research projects of a hundred researchers. The research programs supported by the Erasmus Fund cover various fields such as the involvement of tumor heterogeneity in anti-cancer therapy, sepsis-related brain dysfunction, magnetoencephalographic investigation of human brain function and its alterations in diseases of the nervous system or radioactivity and cancer. In addition, Erasmus Hospital constantly conducts a wide variety of clinical studies at various stages. Among them are a phase II study of brentuximab vedotin in patients with relapsed or refractory peripheral T-cell lymphoma treated with gemcitabine followed by brentuximab vedotin maintenance; a placebo-controlled, double-blind, randomized study of Aerucin® as adjunct therapy to antibiotics in the treatment of P. aeruginosa pneumonia; and the ENTRACT study on digestive endoscopy after out-of-hospital cardiac arrest.

As part of the recent advances in pediatric medicine, a special unit for pharmacokinetics and clinical child research has been set up at HUDERF. In terms of inflammation, it is necessary to control the harmful consequences of inflammatory aspects of asthma, cystic fibrosis and chronic inflammatory diseases. Critical research to understand and treat these many diseases is being undertaken by several teams at HUDERF. In addition, HUDERF is fully engaged in the study of pathologies of genetic and metabolic origin, which requires the mastery of extensive laboratory techniques and close links with clinicians. BKF has also contributed to breakthroughs in knowledge as regards resuscitation techniques such as ECMO (extracorporeal membrane oxygenation), organ transplantation, preventive medicine (infant mortality due to sudden infant death has been reduced by more than 75% in the last ten years as a result of clinical work that has led to prevention campaigns) or surgical treatments, remarkable in the reconstruction of organs (labio-palate clefts, complex cardiac malformations...).

Another major actor of health research is the The Belgian Kids' Fund (BKF). This association was created in 1995 by doctors of the Queen Fabiola University Children's Hospital (HUDERF) wishing to promote pediatric research. Its mission is to promote pediatric research in all areas of child and adolescent health.

To this end, BKF offers several year-long research fellowships to young pediatricians and pediatric researchers to enable them

An integrated, multidisciplinary research to fight cancer A pioneering centre in the fight against cancer, the Institut Jules Bordet is an integrated, multidisciplinary centre which enjoys an international reputation. A key feature of the Institut Jules Bordet is the close integration of research and medical practice. Gathering 6 research laboratories and platforms (Experimental Haematology Laboratory, JC Heuson Breast Cancer Translational Research Laboratory, Cell and Clinical Therapy Laboratory, Molecular Immunology Laboratory, Oncology and Experimental Surgery Laboratory, Tumour bank), research is both clinical and translational.

Carried out with partners, academic research centres and pharmaceutical companies, studies and clinical trials aim at testing new diagnostic techniques; comparing a number of different therapeutic strategies; and testing new and innovative medicines, particularly for cancers where no effective treatment currently exists. Translational researchers try to understand cancer and identify markers that will assist in diagnosis, in predicting response to certain treatments and in patient prognosis. This type of research is based on the analysis of the blood and / or tumour samples that are removed, with the patient’s consent, during diagnosis or treatment.

© Golem Images

Brussels RadioTheranostics Platform

The Institut Jules Bordet is a pioneering centre in the fight against cancer.

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In August 2018 the Institut Jules Bordet has signed an important agreement marking the start of close cooperation with the VUB for the development of the “Brussels RadioTheranostics Platform”. A pioneering project in Belgium (end even in Europe), the creation of this radiotheranostics tool places the Institut Jules Bordet and its partners at the forefront of innovative developments in molecular imaging and treatment using targeted radionuclides.

© Rights reserved

What is more the Institut Jules Bordet gave birth to some prestigious research networks, including the European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC), the Breast International Group (BIG) and, more recently, the Oncodistinct net-

work. Furthermore some clinical trials are carried out in partnership with pharmaceutical companies and always with the patient’s best interests in mind. In so doing, it helps transform findings rapidly into concrete options in the care offered to patients.

Brussels Life Science Incubator (BLSI)

Saint-Luc University Clinics are not left out in terms of clinical research. Saint-Luc has been accredited by the Association for the Accreditation of the Human Research Protection Program (AAHRPP) since September 17, 2015 (in collaboration with the Saint-Luc-UCL Hospital-Faculty Ethics Committee). Saint-Luc University Clinics rely on the Clinical Trial Center, whose mission is to professionalize the organization and coordination of clinical research and to cover all aspects of sponsored research and academic research both economically and scientifically. The Clinical Trial Center aims to develop innovative and quality clinical research. Phase I, II and III studies are concerned. Unsurprisingly, many departments and services carry out various research projects: Cardiovascular Department, Department of Internal Medicine, Department of Surgery, Department of Pediatrics,

BLSI is an incubator 100% dedicated to start-ups and specialized in the health and life sciences sector. But it is more than a simple incubator: it offers hosting infrastructure (280 m² available office space, 84 m² available laboratory space), customized support and integration in the ecosystem.

Thanks to this all-in package BLSI has already incubated 82 businesses to date and is hosting 29 businesses, i.e. 85 current jobs. ViViDoctor, Thread & Lift, Domobios and many other start-ups all testify they chose the right environment to thrive.

No doubt: BLSI is fully devoted to the success of the future Brussels biotech companies!

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Department of Neuropsychiatry and Special Pathologies, Department of Acute Medicine, Department of Clinical Laboratories, Department of Dental Medicine and stomatology …

research, economic valuation of research results and participation in local and regional development: laboratory visits, Lab'Insight meetings, license negotiation, spin-off support, intellectual property management, project management, support for various thematic projects (BioPark in Charleroi, Health Cluster in Brussels), follow-up of tender procedures launched by the Walloon Region and the Brussels Region, coordination of ULB participation in Walloon competitiveness clusters and regional institutions supporting innovation (Brussels Agency for the Enterprise, hub.brussels and Innoviris in Brussels, AEI, InnovaTech and Picarré in the Walloon Region), active contribution to the LIEU Network…

In addition, Saint-Luc University Clinics can count on the financial support of the Fondation Saint-Luc, which has been promoting clinical research since 1986. Among the Foundation's 2018 scholarship recipients are Prof. Daniel Léonard (“Towards a new way of administration of chemotherapy for the treatment of advanced colorectal cancer”), Dr. Pauline Montigny (“Understanding lupus nephritis better”) or Dr. Laura Houard (“The role of the right ventricle in patients with heart failure or congenital heart disease”).

Connecting science and society is also the main aim of VUB Tech Transfer. The latter is the unique entry point for any universityindustry-society interaction. In a very practical way, VUB Tech Transfer provides researchers with a project funding guide and helps them make their way through the technology / knowledge transfer process, giving them valuable clues about types of funding and the various steps in order to be(come) an entrepeneur. Recent calls include Proof-of-Concept call 2018 - Industrial Research Fund VUB, IOF GEAR call 2018, a new call for the Groups of Expertise in Applied Research (GEAR) funding program which focuses on building a portfolio of application-oriented knowledge with economic finality and the effective valorization thereof, TETRA-projects 2018-2019, a call open to research groups from Flemish colleges of higher education and Flemish universities, which are actively engaged in practice-oriented research, Innoviris Launch - Brussels Spin-off 2019, dedicated to research organizations willing to develop the results from their scientific research by creating a new business in the Brussels-Capital Region, and Catalisti Calls for Partners 2018 (with 3 themes: Plastic to Precious Chemicals(P2PC), Plasma as green Solution for enhanced adhesion or functionalisation (PlasmaSol) and Lightweight rotomoulded parts complying with the flame retardant requirements for Transportation or Building & Construction (ROTO)).

Connecting science and society Such research work would remain at the laboratory stage without the intervention of innovation professionals. And they are not lacking in the Brussels-Capital region. Starting with the academic actors themselves. The Technology Transfer Office (TTO) of ULB's Research Department aims specifically at transforming the results of basic or applied university research into products and / or services that are useful and profitable for society.

To this end, it promotes collaborations between the university and its external partners (companies, public authorities, competitiveness clusters, sectoral associations, etc.) in terms of collaborative

© VUB Tech Transfer

Likewise, VUB Tech Transfer helps companies find the right research partners and the right research funding, supports projects financed by the Industrial Research Fund (IOF), invests IOF funding in IOF knowledge centers (so they can carry out outstanding strategic research and develop new application-oriented inventions with economic potential), relays information about licensing opportunities, knowledge & expertise, VUB Spin-off portfolio, business parks & incubators, Tech Days… Companies can also rely upon VUB Foundation, a strategic component of the VUB that is responsible for all fundraising. The VUB has almost 30 active spin-offs nowadays based on research in engineering, life sciences, economy, ICT, sports… Created in 2016, Zebra Academy brings the medical expert virtually in the ambulance to make the difference for patients. A promising success story!

Annual Report 2017 of VUB Tech Transfer

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Along with university players incubators play a leading part in boosting the health and life sciences sector in the region. Together with Brussels Life Science Incubator (BLSI), EEBIC is a business incubator active since 1992. EEBIC Offices offers variable geometry solutions for business accommodation: packages include the rental of private offices, co-working spaces and meeting rooms as well as numerous other business facilitation services. For its part, EEBIC Financing Partner provides assistance services to firms, including implementation of their business plans, legal, accounting and tax advice services, and assistance services for finance procurement.

A tailor-made support to help start-ups in life sciences grow, flourish and survive in the long run!

SimLabS Simulation in healthcare training A learning laboratory of healthcare professions through simulation, inaugurated in May 2015 on the Erasmus Campus, SimLabS is a joint project of the Free University of Brussels (ULB) and the Brussels Free University College - Ilya Prigogine. Its aim is to prepare students and healthcare professionals for the exercising of their technical skills, attitudes and expertise.

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are seeking relate particularly to the organisation of scenarios: above and beyond models which can be found in various training centres, the challenge lies in sequencing unique situations and interactions with the models as a criterion of differentiation. It is a question of creating 2.0 scenarios that are adaptable ad infinitum.

n 2018 SimLabS trained 2,727 students of the ULB-Pôle Santé and HELB I. Prigogine on initial training courses, as well as 102 other healthcare professionals in ongoing vocational training. For this purpose, the learners have access to 3 team members and 4 rooms filmed and rebroadcast in two debriefing rooms.

However, SimLabS does not only rely on innovative scenarios.

It also benefits from the first-class expertise of the ERASME hospital and the ULB-Pôle Santé units (the Faculty of Medicine, the Faculty of Pharmacy, the Faculty of Science and Mobility and the School of Public Health) as well as HELB I. Prigogine and HeLSci the continuing education center which provides training for all healthcare professions: sleep medicine, clinical immunoallergology, nephrology, intensive care, paediatric dentistry etc.

SimLabS count on ULB and HELB I. Prigogine which have formed a consortium and released funds to implement this. Initial training for paramedical professions (nurses, mid-wives, physiotherapists, etc.) is provided by HELB I. Prigogine while training for doctors and dentists is organised by ULB. In doing this, SimLabS reproduces the hospital ecosystem where the two most major professions, medical and paramedical, rub shoulders.

It is precisely at teaching level that the main challenge for SimLabS lies in order to remain relevant and attractive. In Europe research on the support provided to teaching by simulation is still in the early stages and questions abound on the best way to approach the scenario, the debriefing, a patient’s medical history etc. Likewise, should a model be left dead at the end of a scenario or not?

It is with the aim of improving teaching methods that a PhD in gynaecology has just started. It will be a question of determining whether we can observe a real qualitative difference between the teams of carers who have received training by postpartum simulation and the others. Having said that, SimLabS should also follow the evolution of technologies. Already VR (virtual reality) headsets and augmented reality headsets are able to trick the brain and promise an immersive experience that is particularly conducive to learning. More than ever technology is being called upon as a teaching method!

SimLabS is distinguished by the three types of simulation it makes available for learners. The first type is that of high-fidelity simulation: 5 models display technical capacities such as dilatable eyes or a real pulse, can convulse, etc., thus reproducing different everyday situations for a healthcare unit. The second type of simulation is procedural: it consists of a part of the body on which the learner will be able to repeat a procedure (taking blood, for example) until they fully master it. The second type of simulation relates to interviews: scenarios are enacted and filmed in two specialised rooms to have the students work on announcing bad news such as a chronic illness or a death, followed by explanations on organ donation. This type of scenario is also very useful in terms of compliance (learning how to speak to a patient to check that treatment is being adhered to correctly) or indeed to check their medical history.

© Eric Danhier / ULB

SimLabS is always looking for professors, teachers and coordinators to continuously offer something new in its courses; a taste for innovation which is combined with a demand for quality and a desire to stand out from the competition. The talents we

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SimLabS Route de Lennik 808 Campus Erasme, bâtiment GE, 6ème étage, aile G2 – CP 660 B-1070 Anderlecht Tel.: +32 (0)2 555 7017 E-mail: contact@simlabs.be https://simlabs.be/

Queen Fabiola Children’s University Hospital – HUDERF Ensuring optimal development of young children With 183 beds and 250,000 consultations a year in its outpatient sector, Queen Fabiola Children’s University Hospital (HUDERF) conducts internationally recognised research as can be witnessed by its 100 to 140 articles published annually in peer-reviewed journals.

© Yvon Lammens

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wenty years ago, the HUDERF created a foundation to support young doctors who wished to do research: The Belgian Kid’s Fund for Pediatric Research.

Since that time, the foundation has awarded 140 research grants and facilitated the completion of 36 doctoral theses in the last six years. It has been honoured by major prizes like the GlaxoSmithKline Prize awarded to Pierre Smeesters, head of the Paediatrics Department, for the development of a vaccine against streptococcus, two prestigious prizes awarded by the Royal Academy of Medicine to Sophie Blumental and Nicolas Lefèvre as well as a very prestigious prize awarded to psychologist Simon Baijot for his thesis on autism.

Dr Nicolas Lefèvre, scholarship holder of HUDERF and recipient of the prestigious paediatric award of the Royal Academy of Medicine

related to the screening of genes of certain diseases), haematology and oncology (classification of cancers depending on mutated genes to improve diagnosis and treatment, optimisation of the care programme of children with sickle cell anaemia through grafts), immunology and inflammation, allergology (with one centre caring for over 400 children with food-related anaphylaxis), metabolic and rare diseases (acidosis, metabolism problems of amino acids, undernourishment caused by pneumonia or a renal problem, nutrition improvement for better prognosis when undergoing surgery).

Among the research projects in progress, there is a study into sexual differences in cases of acute inflammation (women have much better prognoses due to their two X chromosomes which encourage double expression of certain genes) or chronic inflammation (such as lupus or cystic fibrosis, which, when the inflammation is continuous, causes much greater harm to women).

In addition, there is an assessment unit for children with autism spectrum disorders, which enables their development to be pointed in a positive direction thanks to early neuro-developmental treatment techniques. The HUDERF researchers also work on new techniques for diagnosing rare diseases and monitoring their progress.

This level of excellence can be found at the paediatric laboratory of ULB: it is noted for a high level of screening children for metabolic diseases from blood samples taken from the heel five days after birth. Currently, it does this screening for more than half the annual births in Belgium. The HUDERF has the ambition of setting up a research institute on paediatrics relying on the expertise of this laboratory to develop interuniversity research on rare diseases and child pharmacology. This means setting up a clinical investigation centre that abides by the Declaration of Helsinki to cure more children using innovative medicines.

Buoyed by its numerous academic partners (Brasilia University, Sainte-Justine Hospital in Montreal, UGent, Interuniversity Institute of Bioinformatics in Brussels and the Royal Children’s Hospital of Melbourne) and manufacturers (with 35 to 40 new pharmaceutical studies per year), the HUDERF indeed intends to tackle the major research challenges in paediatrics through its future research institute. These challenges include rare diseases, genetic diseases linked to consanguinity, immunology and inflammation, pharmacology and vaccinology. The objective is to ensure optimal developmental of young children.

© Yvon Lammens

In the meantime, the HUDERF has continued its research work around five strands of excellence: neuro-sciences (neuro-development, neuro-protection, rehabilitation of children presenting problems

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HUDERF Avenue Crocq 15 - B-1020 Bruxelles Tel.: +32 (0)2 477 33 11 E-mail: georges.casimir@huderf.be http://www.huderf.be

Moving towards personalised medicine for cancer treatment An interview with Prof. Martine PICCART, Research Director of the Jules Bordet Institute

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hat are the key figures for research at the Jules Bordet Institute?

Every year the Institute enters more than 1,100 patients in clinical investigations. In the last 15 years it has coordinated 4 major trials on breast cancer, which involved more than 20,000 women worldwide and which led to the registering of 2 new drugs, trastuzumab and pertuzumab, that reduce the risk of relapse of HER2/neu-positive breast cancer.

© Jules Bordet Institute

What are the strong points of research at Bordet?

Drawing on experience of over 30 years of research on new drugs for all types of cancer, the Institute combines clinical research, laboratory research and translational research (analysis of tumor or blood samples taken during clinical trials to understand the difference between responders and non responders to treatment). Moreover, Bordet favours the perspective of personalised medicine and therapeutic de-escalation for less aggressive tumours.

It houses the coordination offices of BIG (Breast International Group), a network of more than 50 groups of clinical research on breast cancer which I was involved in creating 20 years ago. It also relies on a very professional clinical research support department and receives financial support from non-profit organisations such as “Les Amis de l’Institut Bordet” (Friends of the Institute); as a result, Dr Christos Sotiriou was able to set up an internationally renown laboratory dedicated to breast cancer on his return from the United States.

it and are candidates for alternative therapies.

The second project, AURORA, is led by BIG and targets patients with recurring breast cancer: technological advances (high throughput sequencing of the tumour DNA) are used to perform in-depth analysis of the original tumour, the metastases and the genetic material released from the tumour into the blood. 1,000 women from 63 hospitals in 11 European countries are taking part in the project which has received a generous financial support of $10m from the Breast Cancer Research Foundation (USA). The data are centralised in Bordet and the tumour and plasma samples are analysed by the Belgian laboratory, OncoDNA. The hope behind Aurora is to better understand metastatic breast cancer – an incurable disease in 2019, and develop innovative, more efficient therapies.

What was your reaction on 5 April 2018 when you won the 46th Léopold Griffuel Award for translational and clinical research from the ARC Foundation?

It was a very pleasant surprise because, up to now my team’s efforts have been mostly recognised in the United States! This prize awarded in France goes to the teams of researchers within BIG and within my Institute. Thanks to BIG, we are fighting against the fragmentation of efforts in breast cancer research and we promote a new model of collaborating with the pharmaceutical industry. We are closely collaboration with the industry in the design and conduct of trials, we collect and analyse patient data and we collect tumour samples in a biobank that we control.

This collaboration model allows academic researchers more freedom in the interpretation of results. When the clinical trial is finished, the industrial partner receives a high quality clinical database ready for submission to regulatory authorities.

© Breast International Group

Regarding clinical research, I would like to cite two projects as examples. PEPITA is an academic and multi-centre study set up by my colleagues, Dr Hendlisz and Flamen. Bringing together several Belgian hospitals, its aim is to make a better selection of patients with colon cancer who truly benefit from the standard postoperative adjuvant chemotherapy by administering one course of treatment before the operation and by checking the effects of the tumour still in place. The aim is to demonstrate that the patients who respond favourably to preoperative chemotherapy will have a much better outcome than those who do not respond to

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What are the main challenges faced by oncology researchers in your opinion?

The first challenge is that of “personalized medicine” which, in order to become a reality one day, must be based on the share of data generated by thousands of patients with a given cancer subtype. This is necessary to improve the interpretation of the characteristics of tumours and their microenvironment, made up of inhibited immune cells among other things. The second challenge is the huge bureaucratic framework of clinical research and the fragmentation of research efforts (see for example the several hundred of clinical trials exploring highly similar immunotherapy drugs owned by a dozen of pharmaceutical companies in competition with each other …). The third challenge is the difficulty in carrying out therapeutic de-escalation trials in cancers where excellent outcomes are achieved at the cost of aggressive multimodality treatments, these trials are costly and would really need public funding because, after all, if positive, they will result in a significant reduction of costs for society and substantial gains in quality of life for patients. I urge our young researchers to stand firm!

Combining objective scientific data and subjective data An interview with Prof. Axel CLEEREMANS, Director of the Cognition and Neurosciences Research Centre of the Free University of Brussels (ULB)

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states by our brains. Within this framework, I am looking to demonstrate the hypothesis according to which consciousness is something built by the brain.

hat are the key figures for research at the Cognition and Neurosciences Research Centre?

Created in 2012 within the faculty of Psychological Sciences and education of the Free University of Brussels, the Cognition and Neurosciences Research Centre (CRCN) brings together a dozen professors, 8 postdoctoral students and thirty doctoral students. It makes between 50 and 70 publications a year and currently receives funding from ERC, EOS, FNRS, ARC and Marie SkłodowskaCurie programmes. Alongside the 6 large research projects that mobilize it, 12 other individual projects have seen the light of day thanks to a number of different mandates and grants.

© F.R.S.-FNRS - Jean-Michel Byl

For his part, Prof. Philippe Peigneux obtained EOS funding (EOS stands for Excellence of Science, the successor of the interuniversity attraction programme at federal level) for a study on the mechanisms of memory, from the acquisition of a memory to its establishment in long-term memory.

At the same time, I should point out two ARC Advanced projects, one dealing with the impact of culture on the processing of information (Prof. Olivier Klein and Régine Kolinsky) and the other seeking to understand how collective decision processes can occur in groups of robots and by extension groups of human beings (Prof. Marco Dorigo and myself). This is a matter of designing systems that are capable of resisting the switching off of key aspects of these systems at a given point in time. Prof. Fabienne Chetail has also unlocked an ARC Consolidated project.

What are the main lines of research at the Cognition and Neurosciences Research Centre?

The CRCN articulates its research work along four main lines: learning and memory from a neuropsychological perspective (in particular the study of the role of sleep in the consolidation of learning and typical and atypical cognitive development); the study of consciousness; the processing of language, the consequences of deafness and numerical cognition (processing of numbers) with all that this implies for schooling and speech therapy, culture (literacy); executive control (capacity to control one’s behaviour) and decision making (study of “mind-wandering” combining fluctuating attention and intrusive thoughts).

What research partnerships have you developed?

There are a lot of them! The majority of Belgian universities are concerned for one-off projects, as are several English universities (University College London, the Universities of Sussex, Oxford and Cambridge), a large number of laboratories in the United States and Japan etc.

In your opinion, what are the main challenges that await neuroscience researchers in the years to come?

I see two main challenges. The first is unquestionably the application of basic research. Work on language, schooling, learning difficulties and ageing-related pathologies, whether it is a matter of diagnosis or the rehabilitation of degenerative diseases, is all too often confined to the laboratories. Today we have to start out from these works and project them onto real life situations.

Could you give us a few examples of research projects in progress?

Two major projects are in progress at the CRCN. By way of a personal example, I obtained an ERC Advanced Grant for a study on consciousness mechanisms and the production of mental

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The second challenge concerns the integration of different approaches to the brain and its mental states. Indeed, there is an abundance of description levels: for the neuron to the brain as a whole, neurophysiologists, philosophers and neuropsychologists follow parallel paths that rarely intersect. And yet there is an urgent need for dialogue between them. This is the whole appeal of large projects such as the Human Brain Project or the Brain Initiative in the United States: they are specifically aimed at progressing the cause of integration and refreshing the reflection on the relationship between body and mind.

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And yet there will still be a need to combine the objective scientific data obtained by the IRM and the observation of behaviours with the subjective data from a living subject with certain life experience.

There can be no doubt, there is plenty on our plates!

Develop more personalized therapeutic interventions for diabetes An interview with Prof. Décio L. EIZIRIK, Director of the ULB Center for Diabetes Research

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Viruses” is devoted to the study of the impact of viral infections on the triggering of autoimmunity in type 1 diabetes. © ULB Center for Diabetes Research

hat are the key figures of research at the ULB Center for Diabetes Research?

The ULB Center for Diabetes Research relies on 35 to 40 staff members, currently conducts around 10 research projects and publishes between 10 and 15 publications a year. In addition, it is organized into six research groups. Information on the center can be found at http://lmedex.ulb.ac.be/index.php.

Could you give us some examples of what research projects are under way?

The ULB Center for Diabetes Research leads the European "T2DSystems" project, which targets the development of a systems biomedicine approach for risk identification, prevention and treatment of type 2 diabetes. It also leads the DiaType project entitled “Personalized medicine in diabetes: towards an etiologybased diagnosis and better patient care” that is funded by the Brussels Region’s Innoviris Bridge Strategic Platform. This project started in April 2018 for a period of 3 years. What is more, the ULB Center for Diabetes Research is part of a project funded by an American foundation and dedicated to β-cell imaging: the goal is to develop new tools for the quantification of the mass of pancreatic β-cells in vivo. In the near future, this type of approach will make it possible to optimize the prevention and diagnosis of diabetes, but also to develop more personalized therapeutic interventions. Last, the ULB Center for Diabetes Research leads work package 3 (the basic research part) of the IMI-supported project INNODIA, aiming to develop novel therapies for type 1 diabetes (see more information below).

What are the main lines of research at the ULB Center for Diabetes Research?

Research work is carried out by our different research groups, either independently or as collaborative efforts. The group “Inflammatory and Apoptotic Signaling in Diabetes” utilizes cell biological, genomic, and proteomic approaches to identify and characterize the mechanisms leading to inflammation-mediated dysfunction and death of pancreatic β-cells in diabetes. The group “Pathogenesis of Type 2 Diabetes and Monogenic Forms of Diabetes” focuses on mechanisms of disease and translation of the findings for clinical care of diabetic patients. The group “Pathogenesis of Type 1 Diabetes”, which I lead, studies the role of endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress and alternative splicing in β-cell dysfunction and death, and the role of candidate genes for diabetes in this process. We were the first to show that ER stress induces direct degradation of insulin mRNA, which has a major impact on β-cell function, and my group clarified the crosstalk between ER stress and mitochondria that regulates β-cell apoptosis and the role for candidate genes for type 1 diabetes acting at the human beta cell level. For its part, the group “Signal transduction and metabolism” focuses on the dysfunctional pathways in metabolism and diabetes given that the molecular mechanisms by which these pathologies occur remain poorly understood. The group “Molecular Mechanisms of Polygenic and Monogenic Diabetes” is dedicated to the study of the molecular mechanisms of β-cell dysfunction and death in type 2 diabetes and monogenic forms of diabetes, with the ultimate goal to identify novel strategies to prevent β-cell demise. At last, the group “Type 1 Diabetes and

What research partnerships have you developed with the pharmaceutical industry?

The European project INNODIA is a good example of such partnerships. This project is part of the Innovative Medicines Initiative (IMI), whose goal in its second phase (IMI2, 20142020) is to develop next generation vaccines, medicines and treatments. In this framework, INNODIA is a global partnership between 26 academic institutions, 4 industrial partners (among which Sanofi and Eli Lilly), a small sized enterprise and 2 patient organisations, bringing their knowledge and experience together with one common goal: “To fight type 1 diabetes”. Thanks to the INNODIA research we will be able to better understand the relationship between changes in β-cell function, immune profiles, genetic and environmental factors and their role in the onset of the disease. A second major goal of INNODIA is to perform clinical intervention studies leading to novel therapies. Here again, pharmaceutical companies being part of INNODIA join forces with leading academic clinical researchers in the development of new therapeutic agents.

© ULB Center for Diabetes Research

What do you see as the main challenges facing diabetes research in the years to come?

The different forms of diabetes are triggered when β-cells fail to produce enough insulin. It remains to be seen why they stop working and how to protect them from the immune system (in the case of type 1 diabetes) and metabolic stress (in the case of type 2 diabetes). Our ultimate goal is to develop new therapies to ensure proper functioning and survival of β-cells, and thus prevent or delay the outbreak of diabetes.

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An interview with Prof. François FUKS, Laboratory of Cancer Epigenetics, ULB-Cancer Research Center

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As for the translational research, it targets diagnostic (new epigenetic markers for personalised oncology) and predictive applications. The sequencing facilitates the mapping of epigenetic defects of the DNA in breast cancer and determining if chemotherapy treatment will be successful or not. A patent has already been filed and our approach is used for clinical purposes in the context of “Treatbest”, a project certified by the competitiveness cluster BioWin and bringing together two Walloon companies, Diagenode and IDDI.

hat are the key figures for research at the Laboratory of Cancer Epigenetics?

The Laboratory of Cancer Epigenetics was the first laboratory fully dedicated to epigenetics created in Belgium in 2006.

Thanks to its twenty or so technicians, doctoral and post-doctoral fellows of many nationalities, the laboratory has published articles regularly in flagship journals such as Nature or Science and has received several national and international awards. In fact, it is recognised internationally as can be witnessed from its participation in several European framework programmes, its participation in or organisation of international congresses and indeed its numerous collaborations in Europe, the United States and China. Currently, the Laboratory of Cancer Epigenetics is leading about ten research projects.

Which are the research partnerships you have developed with the pharmaceutical industry?

We have agreed partnerships with several firms such as Novartis, Promega and New England Biolabs (United States). In addition, in Spring 2018 I co-founded EPICS Therapeutics, a spin-off of ULB whose CEO is Jean Combalbert, former CEO of a company called Ogeda. EPICS Therapeutics uses our research on RNA epigenetics to develop new treatments against cancer, thanks to the discovery of new inhibitors.

What are the main lines of research at the Laboratory of Cancer Epigenetics?

Could you give us a few examples of research projects in progress?

The work of the Laboratory of Cancer Epigenetics centres on two main lines: fundamental research and translational research. In fundamental research, we studied the basic mechanisms of cancer epigenetics, that is the alterations of DNA and proteins. More recently, we have also been studying RNA epigenetics, which led to the publication of an article in Science and participation in a European project. Aside from that, we have a novel and ambitious study in oncology in progress: we are concentrating on the role of RNA epigenetics in cancer and are seeking to demonstrate that the latter is linked to RNA epigenetic defects.

In your opinion, what are the main challenges ahead for researchers on cancer epigenetics in the years to come?

Epigenetics is still a relatively recent discipline even if it is very in vogue and considered as important as genetics in terms of diagnostics and treatment. As of now the fundamental mechanisms of epigenetic deregulation at work in cancer have yet to be discovered: this is a priority of fundamental research. We also have to transfer this new knowledge to translational and clinical level, which is precisely the aim of EPICS Therapeutics.

Epigenetic therapy against cancer has given rise to great hope: it is now up to us make this hope a reality by developing more targeted drugs for personalised medicine. The challenge is also technological as we need to perfect the techniques of epigenetic sequencing for fundamental, translational and clinical research.

In summary, epigenetics is becoming indispensable for all major human diseases; besides cancer, altered epigenetic components can be found especially in type 2 diabetes and Alzheimer’s disease. And there are just as many diagnostic and therapeutic applications to be developed.

© ULB-Cancer Research Center

To make the link with translational research, the Laboratory of Cancer Epigenetics manages a high throughput sequencing platform dedicated to epigenomics in order to develop different technologies in this field.

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© ULB-Cancer Research Center

© ULB-Cancer Research Center

RNA epigenetics in the battle against cancer

Structural Biology and Biocomputing Centre Specialising in the high-throughput processing of proteins With a team of thirty researchers including 5 National Research Foundation academics, the Structural Biology and Biocomputing Centre of the Université Libre de Bruxelles (Free University of Brussels) produces some 25 publications a year on average. Its goal: the highly detailed study of proteins of interest for an understanding of fundamental biological mechanisms and to develop methods adapted to the pharmaceutical industry.

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© Structural Biology and Biocomputing Centre

he Structural Biology and Biocomputing Centre brings together the skills of chemists, biologists, physicists and bioengineers to provide answers to the new structural questions in the field of proteins. It is focused on the structure of membrane proteins which are also sought after in a very large number of medications involved in fighting cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, cystic fibrosis, the detoxification of heavy metals, and bacteria resistance to therapeutic agents, the transport of lipids and cholesterol… The Centre stands out thanks to its biophysical approach which combines biocomputing analysis, crystallisation, electrophysiology, fluorescence spectroscopy and above all infrared.

Indeed, the Structural Biology and Biocomputing Centre has developed the key tool that is infrared spectroscopy. Initially designed to determine the structure of proteins and the orientation of these structures in biological membranes, this approach

Infrared microscopy of micro-checkered proteins

© Structural Biology and Biocomputing Centre

will allow the much more efficient analysis/control of the proteins produced by the pharmaceuticals industry. In collaboration with the University of Liège (Prof. A. Matagne), it also contributes to the Robotein inter-university platform dedicated to the production, purification and characterisation of high-throughput proteins.

Automatic identification of cells in a ganglion invaded by melanoma: on the left classic H & E staining, on the right classification by infrared spectroscopy

has revealed unexpected consequences: researchers can thus determine how tumour cells react in the presence of anticancer agents, identify the precise nature of tumour cells on histological cuts and test the quality of new products containing proteins (e.g. antibodies). In one rapid step they are able to quantify the structure of the protein, its glycosylation rate – an essential criterion in order to anticipate its therapeutic effect – the lipids present and other contaminating molecules. These are all useful applications for the pharmaceutical industry. In addition, the Centre has adopted the “high-throughput” in fundamental research: by building protein micro-arrays it can obtain 4,000 samples over 1 cm2 and analyse them using infrared microscopy virtually automatically.

Today, the Structural Biology and Biocomputing Centre is faced with two sizeable challenges. First challenge: the processing of a massive quantity of data (several million spectra are generated by the analysis of a microarray of 1 cm2 using infrared imaging) with all that this implies in terms of storage, programming and statistics. Second challenge: the contractual guarantee of the integrity and protection of data within the framework of industrial partnerships. A challenge that the Centre fully intends to overcome!

Centre de Biologie structurale et de Bioinformatique Université Libre de Bruxelles Campus de la Plaine CP 206/2, boulevard du Triomphe - B-1050 Bruxelles Tel.: +32 (0)2 650 53 86 E-mail: egoor@ulb.ac.be https://www.ulb.ac.be/rech/inventaire/unites/ULB687.html

The Structural Biology and Biocomputing Centre has developed partnerships with various universities (including the VUB), doctors and private firms with a view to developing tools that tomorrow 62

A widely recognized expertise in interdisciplinarity

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An interview with Prof. Pierre JADOUL, Rector of Université Saint-Louis - Bruxelles (USL-B)

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© USL-B

hat are the key numbers and areas of excelWhat research partnerships have you developed lence in the field of research at Université at a European level?

Saint-Louis – Bruxelles?

We actively participate, with UCL and Université Saint-Louis – Bruxelles (USL-B) exUNamur, in a very large-scale project cels in social sciences and humanities: law, called “Move In-Louvain” with the finanpolitical and social sciences, economics cial support of the European Commission and business administration, philosophy, (Actions Marie-Skłodowska Curie), that history, literature, translation and European enables the three partner universities to of studies. But far from having succumbed to fer research grants to foreign post-doctoral compartmentalization, which at times may researchers. More generally, it favours the lead to differences in methodology and international mobility of young but already - Brussels University has fifteen research subjects between the various disciplines, St. Louis experienced researchers. centers covering all the humanities field.

USL-B has acquired a widely recognized A network and two institutes provide expertise in interdisciplinary practice, even A Marie-Skłodowska Curie grant was recently the interface between research centers: in research, the originality of which makes the Interdisciplinarity and Society Network (RIS), obtained for a project called “Genealogical the Institute for Interdisciplinary Research on its excellence. Whilst research contributes Thinking in Nietzsche’s Wake (19th-21st CentuBrussels (IRIB) and the Institute for European Studies. to opening new fields of knowledge, the inries)”, for an amount of 173.000 euros and a terdisciplinary methods remain among the duration of 24 months. most efficient ones, due to their intrinsic creativity.

Our research centres also develop international cooperation Talking about key numbers, the most revealing translate the programs with a great number of European universities. This is FNRS’ recognition of our fundamental research. Over the last 6 the case, for example, of our European Studies Institute, which years, an average of 41% of our FNRS applications were sucwas selected in 2006 by the European Commission to launch a cessful, putting us regularly ahead of the global figures of the Jean Monnet module.

Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles (21% in 2015). We are equally proud of our average 36% admission rate to the Humanities A grant was also obtained for the CONFISCEU project, for a duration of 24 months and an amount of 315.000 euros. The Research Fund (Fonds pour la Recherche en Sciences humaines – law project, which gathers the Utrecht University, the University FRESH) launched 5 years ago, which is an important tool in our of Bonn, the Babeş -Bolyai University, the University of Ferrara field of disciplines. and USL-B, aims at improving cooperation between EU member Could you cite a few examples of the current research programs at Unistates in confiscation procedures. versité Saint-Louis – Bruxelles?

Like the other universities of FWB (Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles), How do you value the research work coming from USL-B? USL-B benefits from special research funds and manages to finance For a few years, our university has developed its research a great number of doctoral research fields. We simultaneously work valorisation with the support of the Walloon (DGO6) and Bruson different interuniversity research projects (Action de Recherche sels (Innoviris) Regions. Our Knowledge Transfer Office (KTO) Concertée or ARC). Two further ARC projects started in 2015: the ensures the link between research at the university, and in first one, bearing the title “Social and Economic Network Formathe non-academic world. Its task consists in taking care of the tion under Limited farsightedness: Theory and Applications”, has diffusion, the mobilisation and the knowledge transfer to sobeen granted a budget of 663.000 euros for the next 5 years. ciety, and in creating collaborations and exchanges between The second is entitled “Critical Philosophy of What Is to Come: society and the university. We are an integrated member of Temporality, Imagination and Utopia”. This joint project between the LIEU network, which gathers the KTOs from Universities USL-B and UNamur has a funding of 852.000 euros and a span within the FWB. of 5 years.

Although this type of research valorisation represents a quite We also participate in an Acropolis (ACademic Research Organisarecent development, let us stress that, for a long time now, some tion for POLicy Support) project, supported by ARES and VLIR-UOS, of our research centres have shown a keen interest in regional which is a programme that brings together policymakers from integration, particularly with regards to very advanced research Belgian Directorate General for Development Cooperation on Brussels. Our Institute for Interdisciplinary Research on Brus(DGD), other relevant governmental actors, and researchers sels (IRIB) gathers these centres and hosts centres from other from both Dutch-speaking and French-speaking universities in universities. We play a leading role in the Brussels Studies InstiBelgium, for a duration of three years, aiming at improving the tute (an interuniversity research platform on Brussels) and in the quality and impact of the Belgian development cooperation. Our online magazine “Brussels Studies”. Thanks to our expertise, research team works on the “Aid Effectiveness with a Focus on acquired thanks to our research work on Brussels (particularly Fragile Contexts (Mali, Niger, Rwanda, Burundi and DR Congo)”, with regards to mobility issues), we obtained many regionalfunded research projects. in collaboration with partners from UCL, UGent, ULg and ULB. 63

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Wallonia: a land of innovation

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© Caprion Biosciences S.A.

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Developing a digital ecosystem in Wallonia An interview with Mr Willy BORSUS, Minister-President of the Walloon Region Similarly, the government wishes to implement a strategy of opening public data and increasing the open public data set (Open Data) to develop Smart Region projects, including rural areas.

Connectivity is very important for the attractiveness of Wallonia.

The government has, therefore, set an objective of very highspeed connection for all the areas of economic activity.

Digital transformation will generate a large number of jobs, with very different skills to those of today. Thus, we must train young people and job seekers in these new technologies and have schools equipped with material that promotes learning, training programmes in encryption and developing training adapted to digital work.

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Could you tell us about your approach to innovation?

Wallonia has an integrated approach to innovation taking into account all the stages and components of innovation and promoting interaction between all the players in this domain. This

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ow do you rate what the new government has done since it took office?

I think the result is positive. Wallonia is making progress and finally catching up as we can see, for example, by the budget balance planned for 2019. A colossal amount of work has been done since we took office in terms of reforms and decisions, with regard to taxation, good governance, investments and employment.

I would like to highlight Wallonia’s stronger international position: according to the Belgian National Bank, Walloon exports totalled €11.1 billion in the first quarter of 2018, an increase of 6% compared to the same period in 2017. After vigorous growth of 8.4% in 2017, this good result during the first 3 months of 2018 confirms that Walloon external trade has continued the recovery started in the second quarter of 2016.

What are your current priorities?

It’s obvious - employment and training. Faced with an abnormally high rate of vacant positions in Wallonia, we must encourage job seekers to train for professions or trades which are in short supply or tie in with the expectations of businesses.

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The Walloon Government has established a digital strategy for Wallonia, “Digital Wallonia” which aims to develop the digital economy in two phases, namely to develop the digital ecosystem and to develop the specialisation of our Region in certain sectors of the digital economy in order to make our industry even more modern and robust.

Visit of the company Trenker, which is active in the pharmaceutical area

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Digital technology is the centre of attention for the Minister-President at the Smart City trade fair.

Visit of the Alipa Group, global industrial lifting and packaging specialist

strategy aims to support the development of a productive base and to stimulate the creation of high value activities through support for innovation and knowledge transfer and through reinforcement of the polarisation of the economic fabric in the sectors likely to generate a dynamic of sustained growth.

How do you view the results of the various parts of the Marshall Plan?

We have made a success of the six existing competitiveness clusters that focused on research and innovation. The aim of these is to put Wallonia in first place in the areas covered by these clusters. They have also extended their work to the digital area.

The implementation of this means taking measures to activate the main factors of competitiveness in Wallonia: research and exploitation of research, innovation in every sense, dissemination of ICTs, investment and funding, internationalisation, networking, spirit of enterprise and creativity, infrastructures and skills development. In addition, the simplification of procedures aims to make access to financial support easier.

However, we must not neglect an important aspect of the Marshall Plan: the tax section. The exoneration from property tax on material and equipment remains an important measure for stimulating industrial investment. In this respect, we must stress that the competitiveness clusters are major beneficiaries of Walloon industrial policy. Regarding research resources in sectors of the future, the Plan represents an important step towards achieving European research objectives (3% of GDP reserved for research). We must not forget the training component at this time when numerous vacancies are not being filled!

What budget have you set aside for research?

First, we must remember that the Walloon Investment Plan (PWI) is perfectly consistent with the Pacte national (National Pact) and the strategic approach launched by the Federal Government. The Walloon dossiers presented to the National Pact deal with the development of research infrastructures (technology platforms of excellence) of five universities, multimodality in mobility policies and the radical modernisation of the energy distribution networks to make these “intelligent”, more economical and more relevant to the development of renewable energies.

Could you give us a few examples of research projects that have been supported by the Walloon Government?

The most recent is the platform Natextra: the Walloon Region was involved directly by taking an equity interest in the competitiveness cluster Wagralim and SOFIPOLE. It is the first Belgian platform providing services in the area of extraction of bioactive compounds from plant matter. Until recently Walloon businesses had to go abroad to access this type of service.

The annual budget is allocated as follows: €61m for projects of the competitiveness clusters, €6m for popularisation and awareness-raising (including PASS), €5m for technology transfer, €12m for the participation of enterprises in international programmes, €4m for research infrastructures (excluding PWI), €7m for support of SMEs in their research (including patents); €6m for approved research centres (CRAs); €28m for industrial research and process or organisational innovation; €7m for common policies with the FNRS; €32m for university projects (including Win²Wal), €80m for experimental development projects and €6m for innovation in the energy sector. You can add to this the resources of the PWI and the Walloon share of the FEDER and FSE grants.

Other projects supported by the cluster include protontherapy, reverse metallurgy and medtech which are unifying projects and also projects carried out by businesses acting alone. All of them are equally important for the Walloon economy.

In your opinion, what are the main challenges that Walloon research units will have to face in the next few years?

Most likely, the first challenge will be to be recognised at European and global levels by reaching critical sizes. The Walloon Investment Plan was devised with this target in mind. The funding of infrastructures favours shared infrastructures.

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Prioritising simplification and Europe to integrate Wallonia into the world of tomorrow An interview with Mr Pierre-Yves JEHOLET, Vice-President and Minister of Economy, Industry, Research, Innovation, Digital technology, Employment and Training of the Walloon Government

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We have implemented necessary tools to optimize research results’ value, via the valuing reform. We have confirmed support to the development of innovations and spin-off and start-up businesses via the CXO measure, the First Spin-Off programme.

ould you give us a report on the action of the new government in terms of support to research and innovation?

I think that we have done a very good job. First of all, we have maintained the budgets allocated to research, in the pursuit of the target of reaching 3% of GDP. We have worked a lot on efficiency and good governance by establishing procedures leading to objective decisions about funding and lead-times reduction etc.

What are your current priorities in this domain?

Our current priorities are to pursue our efforts to simplify and update the Walloon smart specialisation strategy, implemented by the Walloon Region in 2015. Everything evolves and we should not fail to follow the movement.

We have reinforced our strategy of smart specialisation by identifying priority research topics based on needs identified by businesses, and by strengthening the link between businesses and research players (universities, colleges of higher education, research centres) via the implementation of a specific collaboration programme: Win²Wal.

© NBIDOUL

Europe is also a priority. Various major works are in progress, such as the global reflection on the internationalisation of Walloon research players (including their involvement in European projects), the pilot action on industrial transition (funded by the European Commission), preparation for the next multi-annual financial framework (in particular the Horizon Europe programme).

We have set up tools that did not exist (or no longer existed) to motivate our SMEs to go international and to submit applications to Europe, for instance the SWAN support (Seal of Excellence Wallonia) or the Horizon Europe bonus.

Wallonia must be part of the world of tomorrow via integration into international networks (Vanguard Initiative, EuroHPC) and via the development of last modern infrastructures (supercomputer, pet shops).

Could you please remind us of the regional support mechanisms available for research players?

All Walloon players are concerned by the existing supports: businesses, universities, colleges of higher education and research centres.

There are mainly two types of support allocated to them: 1) Calls for projects on specific topics, single party (business) or partnership (with universities, colleges of higher education, approved research centres), such as Win²Wal and competitiveness cluster calls for projects.

2) Direct support, upstream of research (technical support, strategic marketing etc.), to research as such (subsidies or repayable advances) or throughout the research (as patent filing support for SMEs).

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These supports also concern technological and non-technological innovation, for instance OP IN, which is a support for process innovation.

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You wanted to submit the Walloon competitiveness clusters to an in-depth analysis to reconsider SMEs’ access to these clusters and rethink the question of allocated subsidies. What came out of this reflection?

Concerned with improving the use of public money and to be realistic, I have preferred a dialogue with the stakeholders involved in this

hatching of new economic models and new businesses that create jobs in the short and long term by pursuing and accentuating our support to digital ecosystems.

In addition, a very large call for projects was launched at the end of 2018 as part of the “Smart Region” dynamic for cities and municipalities. The resources freed up should largely benefit start-ups and innovative Walloon SMEs, which will consequently boost the Walloon ecosystem.

It is also worth noting that two major issues are about to be achieved: demonstrator projects in 4.0 industry and construction.

innovation mechanism. I have therefore asked for the opinions of the Board of Enterprise, consulted the clusters’ presidents, set up working groups etc.

In that matter, 5 skills centres offer advanced training linked to ICTs. These centres are led in close cooperation with businesses since they are non-profit organisations to which Agoria, the Federation of technological companies, contributes.

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Signature of the Memorandum of Understanding in the fight against labor shortages in August 22, 2018

Regarding educational training, you support initiatives such as Coder Dojo, Wallcode, “Digital schools” and alternating training. Have you managed to build strong partnerships with companies?

The actions mentioned here are more about educating young Walloons in the field of digital technology, that consequently do not naturally fit into a partnership with businesses. From a professional training viewpoint, this makes more sense.

One unanimous observation has spontaneously arisen from this: “there was a need for renewal”, also recognized by the clusters themselves. A cluster coordinator was hired to provide more structure and synergy between clusters in order to stimulate “emerging industry”.

More recently, and in parallel with ICT skills centres, I have supported the arrival in Wallonia of the courses offered by non-profit BeCode, which is already well established at BeCentral, in Brussels, and which operates according to the Simplon method, which has been tried and tested in France for some years now.

These training courses, disruptive in terms of their method of operation, are aimed mainly at a young public far removed from employment offering them a concrete training course in coding and a rapid path to employment. Launched in September 2018 in Liège and Charleroi, this pilot project is taking a chance on the activation of a private operator that has proven its worth and has true credibility, both with the target audience and with businesses in the technological sector, whether it is a question of large international groups or the Belgian economic fabric.

Currently, Wagralim and GreenWin clusters are working on the “Biosourced” plan formulation for Wallonia. About the strongest reforms, I can for example state that cluster funding will be very concretely linked to the results achieved by the clusters and no longer solely based on an activity.

You also want to increase technology transfers between academic institutions and businesses. How is the Walloon Government contributing towards this?

In April 2017, the Government adopted the valuing reform which allowed for two new structures to be set up: the Valuing Committee and the Intellectual Property Advisory Body (OCPI).

These bodies stand to ensure the quality of the staff responsible for valuing and spreading the best practices on this topic. My cabinet also has a counselor role from the launch of calls for projects, which is important for sharing intellectual property between partners and so, avoid problems later on.

I can rely on the administration but also on the universities, colleges of higher education, the Walloon Businesses Union (UWE), specialist lawyers and patent agents who have all agreed to provide their services free of charge.

© Le Forem

Have you started to narrow the digital gap to promote growth and employment?

Since July 2017, the Walloon Government has accelerated the implementation of the Digital Wallonia strategy, the digital regional plan establishing guidelines to ensure the digital transformation of Wallonia. We have to transform the Walloon economy by relying on digital as an economic sector in its own and as an economic development tool of all sectors. I intend to allow the

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Investing in research and development today means creating the companies and jobs of tomorrow An interview with Ms Rose DETAILLE, General Inspector Walloon Public Service for Economy, Employment, Training and Research Department of Research and Technology Development

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and techniques, and fostering optimised research carried out in the universities and higher education institutes.

ould you tell us about the current restructuring?

What is the effect of this on the Department of Research and Technology Development?

On 1 September 2018, the Department of Research Programmes and Department of Technology Development merged, creating the new Department of Research and Technology Development. As such, there is now one single point of contact for all the R&D players in Wallonia: businesses, research centres, universities, higher education institutions and nonprofit associations.

With the aim of understanding our target audience better, we wanted to meet the beneficiaries of our actions at three events. The first is the 20th anniversary of the FIRST spin-off programme (over the last two decades, 263 projects have been funded, the survival rate of these companies after 10 years is 83% and Wallonia has invested €75m in this programme). The second is the BEWARE programme closing ceremony (a programme on the mobility of researchers co-funded by the European Commission and Wallonia, for which 85 researchers were the beneficiaries). The third is “I love digital”, which is three full days, including a wonderful show in the evening, on the theme “The future in digital mode” with the participation of young people from primary and secondary schools at the workshops, the “studies and careers” day, etc. © DGO6

At the same time, we have consolidated various divisions within this department, but limited the number to three: the Support and Awareness Division, the Research Programmes Division and the Research Projects Division. The aim of these adaptations is to make the administration more user-friendly for beneficiaries, and give more cohesion, or even coherence, to our actions.

Could you tell us about the missions of the Department and the main aspects of your activities in 2018?

The primary mission of the new Department is to manage support mechanisms for applied research and technological innovation for all the beneficiaries that I have mentioned. It also manages the calls for research projects from the competitiveness clusters and supports businesses in their internationalisation endeavours (participation in H2020 and the ERAnets including, since the end of October 2018, ERAMIN which specialises in raw materials and the circular economy). Other missions include supporting and organising awareness-raising campaigns for the sciences

Supported by SPW | research, the study on detergents by the company Pollet, in Tournai, won the Tremplin Award for exports in the European Union in 2018.

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© Pastificio della Mamma

© Pollet

We have also launched three new initiatives. Open to SME-SME or large company-SME consortia, the “Infrastructure Enterprises” programme funds collective infrastructures between companies.

COOPILOT itself co-funds the pilot units or the demonstrators to deploy their technology on an industrial production level. This is done through experimental development projects, carried out in collaboration with various businesses (including one SME). Finally, the in-company doctorate enables a Walloon company to hire a researcher to carry out PhD research in collaboration with a university research unit, with the aim of writing a doctoral thesis.

The SME Pastificio della Mamma, in Herstal, has received several financial support packages from Wallonia. The most recent was for the development of a new range of products to benefit the spelt sector in Wallonia.

the various committees in the presence of counterparts from other Member States) were assigned to these new agents. This allows us to be at the heart of decision-making and respond quickly.

What about the WIN²WAL programme?

The successor to WALInnov, this programme aims to encourage strategic research in universities, higher education institutes or their associated research centres, upstream from projects identified by Walloon enterprises, and which support research as an industrial partner. The participation rate of complementary funding has been reduced somewhat and the TRL (Technology Readiness level) is now between 2 and 4. The first WIN²WAL call was launched in March 2018 and we received 66 declarations of intent, with 32 applications submitted, for a total of €21.5m.

A second call is planned for the end of 2018.

Could you give us some examples of companies that have been supported by the Department of Research and Technological Development?

Walloon assistance comes in many forms. Sometimes it is a question of specific assistance for SMEs (grants for consultancy in strategic marketing, technical feasibility or technology transfer, but it could also be for innovative software or personnel recruitment). It could also be to fund research projects (grants or recoverable advances) for all types of businesses.

Could you tell us about the Wallonia Seal of Excellence (SWAN)?

This support for SMEs can be used to fund research projects submitted as part of the “SME Instrument - Phase 1 and Phase 2” (a mechanism included in the European H2020 programme) which have received the European “Seal of Excellence” certificate but are not funded by the European Commission due to lack of budget. This document certifies that the SME’s proposal is deemed to be of very good or excellent quality, according to the standards of the Horizon 2020 programme.

The companies that we support are also highly varied. Examples include cleaning machines in Sclayn, which produces cleaning machines, Cerhum in Liège, a specialist in ceramic 3D printing and Pollet in Tournai, which produces a range of cleaning products, Realco in Louvain-la-Neuve, Bone-Therapeutics and Sonaca, both in Gosselies, etc.

What do you think of the regional policy for the support of research and innovation?

The aim of public support for R&D in Wallonia is focused on economic development in Wallonia, and as a consequence job creation. In fact, innovation plays a fundamental role in the development of a company and constitutes one of the major aspects of competitive differentiation. It is for this reason that Wallonia has created and developed a whole series of funding mechanisms for research and innovation that come into play at the various stages of maturity of a product / technology.

Other specific assistance for SMEs is designed to support them in their innovation process, and minimise the risks they face.

There is a difference between “SWAN - Phase 1”, which enables SMEs to obtain alternative funding for their project: this support of maximum of €50,000 is granted, for example, for the study of a piece of software, technical support, strategic marketing or technology transfer; and “SWAN - Phase 2”, a recoverable advance covering 45 to 55% of admissible expenses incurred in the context of the R&D project. As the European Commission has already carried out the technical and scientific evaluation, my department only checks the eligibility of the research costs and the potential effect of the planned research on regional socio-economic development.

Wallonia can be proud of its financing mechanisms that have been continuously improved to better match the needs of industry. In spite of budgetary restrictions, the resources devoted to research in Wallonia have been maintained and now total more than €330 million.

Considering this contribution alone, the financial assistance for innovation and research provided to companies in 2017 was €183 million, awarded to 306 companies, including 267 SMEs. Our financial support reaches over 25% of new beneficiaries every year.

How is the Walloon Government supporting SMEs in preparing for European projects?

I will give you a few examples. First, we have the Walloon NCP (National Contact Point) unit which is completely familiar with the research ecosystem in Wallonia and in Europe. In 2002, the Walloon Government tasked the Walloon Enterprise Union with setting up this 100%-funded department, to significantly increase the participation of Walloon players in European R&D programmes.

I would also like to add that the Department recruited several people during the past year and that comitology missions (monitoring of European programmes at

© SPW

However, preparing a European file is complex for SMEs and can discourage even the most motivated candidates. As such, in 2018 the “Prime Horizon 2020” was set up. This is a bonus awarded by the Walloon Government to SMEs to assist them in the preparation, submission and negotiation of collaborative research projects involving at least three European or international partners.

Safran Aero Boosters (formerly Techspace Aero), a technology development company that produces modules, equipment and test benches for aeronautic and spatial engines, receives financial assistance from the Walloon Region.

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However, making a precise evaluation of the effect of this R&D assistance is not straightforward, since there are various factors involved: qualitative data, such as the perception of innovation by the company itself, is added to quantitative data. From my point of view, research and technological innovation are inseparable from progress in the world of tomorrow. Investing in research and development today means creating the companies and jobs of tomorrow.

Public Service Scientific Institute – ISSeP Metrology and risk assessment for the environment and health A true sentinel of the environment, the Walloon civil service science Institute (ISSeP) uses 3 tools to fulfil its task: a body of experts, a certain number of laboratories and specialised hardware. This metrology leader is also an active contributor to European research. In 2018 ISSeP added a new string to its bow: the assessment of public policies.

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SSeP is powered by the expertise of 300 agents, 3 laboratories and a range of field equipment, specialised analysis and test benches. Covering the whole of Wallonia, it organises activities around 4 major pillars: measurement and collection of data, assessment of potential and future risks, technological research and development and the reference laboratory, entrusted by the Walloon Government with the checking of skills and the means available for private operators who require official approval.

© ISSeP

A leader in metrology

data on the one hand and risk management on the other hand. In so doing, the Institute places itself in a position to assess public policies by interpreting the data generated by longitudinal studies. In 2018, ISSeP purchased a drone to exploit air data – data that allow viewing that is at once vertical, lateral and 3D. The drone is also relevant in the area of thermography: going above places that are otherwise inaccessible just once (slag heaps, technical landfill centres) makes it possible to define the chronic risks for a better prevention policy. Finally, the drone allows for the detection of diffuse and convective gas emissions and its data are fueling 5 directorates as well as the ISSeP’s remote sensing cell and databases. Its contribution is therefore very important in order to characterise rural and urban spaces on a very fine scale.

ISSeP acts on all environmental matrices: it gathers, analyses and interprets air, soil, sediment and even Benedicte Heindrichs, waste samples. It operates 30 sites measuring general manager air quality, takes 1,800 samples and carries out 350,000 measurements in surface water per year. In addition, its reference laboratory with ISO 17025 certification has It has to be said that the question of equipment is crucial in extended its ISO 17043 accreditation to join the very closed metrology. In 2018 the Walloon Region granted ISSeP subsicircle of six Belgian operators qualified in the organisation of dies of one million Euro for the purchase of new hardware: 7 comparative experiences between accredited laboratories for air quality analysers, 5 zero air generators, a continuous dioxin the “waste” and “water” areas. ISSeP is also proud of its Earth sampler, a calculation server, a data server, an independent data observation unit, Fire Behaviour Laboratory and laboratory backup system, a GC-MS/MS for organic volatile compounds dedicated to nanoparticles and nanomaterials.

(OVCs) etc.

A large number of applications in human health

Not content merely to monitor pollution levels in the various environmental matrices, ISSeP is now organised around two main pillars: measurement of the environment and the production of

© ISSeP

In 2018, ISSeP acquired two additional Interreg projects. The RISCC project is about the cross-border improvement of the prevention and management of subsurface risks engendered by sub-cave lands. For its part, the TRANSFAIR project concerns the development of cross-border tools for the harmonised management of air quality. It is a question of giving citizens of the Euroregion clear and harmonised information to allow them to become players in the management of environment quality.

Within the framework of the European Horizon 2020 framework programme, ISSeP is also a stakeholder in the ACTRIS project centred on the measurement of aerosols and anthrax.

Lastly, it participates in the European project ICOS-WB which receives ESFRI funding to study the global carbon balance.

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The ISSeP works have a large number of applications in the field of human health. By dedicating itself to the assessment of risks for the environment and health, the Institute is developing three projects in the area of air quality. The first project concerns monitoring of the air with the aim to improve air quality in schools and other welcoming infrastructures concerning 700,000 children in Wallonia. In connection with the Walloon Government decree project on the definition of air quality, ISSeP is developing a longterm measurement tool for CO2, OVCs, aldehyde, biocides etc.

This project has a budget of €240,000 over 3 years with the publication of annual reports.

responding to an EU preoccupation. A first “photograph” will be taken in 2019 and the changes in exposure to pesticides for Walloons will be measured until 2025 to establish a reference system, identify at risk zones and supply elements of response to a European directive on the use of pesticides compatible with sustainable development. This project has a budget of one million Euro and is the object of a collaboration with the Walloon Centre of Agronomic Research (CRA-W), the ULiège and UNamur. A statistical cohort will be defined to identify the target audience and define new methodologies for the analysis of human matrices. Thanks to this new recurring activity, ISSeP is resolutely committed to anticipation and monitoring.

© ISSeP

Strengthening the bond between the environment and health

The second ISSeP project in the area of air quality concerns mobility: faced with car pollution, the government has decided to set up low emission zones that will be closed to the highest polluting vehicles in terms of fine particles and nitrogen oxide.

The towns of Eupen and Namur were named as pilot towns for the deployment of a modelling chain at a time 0 of the ambient air quality based on vehicle emissions depending on the type of roads. ISSeP is providing its expertise to define these low emission zones and make them acceptable for the population.

To this end, it has a budget of €200,000 and a high resolution map (at 10m) to find out the concentration of various air pollutants at time 0 and time 1. In so doing, it provides a precious tool to assist in decision making for the Walloon Government.

Bolstered by its expanded field of action, ISSeP is well aware of the need to create a stronger bond between the environment and health as well as between the environment and agriculture. Four projects currently ongoing on pesticides at CRA-W are proof of this development. Moreover, ISSeP intends to contribute as a scientific entity to the provision of information to citizens so that they are more aware as players in the environment and want to contribute to its improvement. In 2019 the Institute will purchase 500 microsensors which will be installed on volunteer cyclists to add some more refined data to its databases. By combining information, training and the formulation of proposals, ISSeP is helping the Walloon Government to take the right decisions and put in place the means necessary to apply them. Science and politics are not so far removed from each other!

© ISSeP

© ISSeP

Lastly, the goal of the third project is to monitor the concentration of pesticides in the air. We can choose what we eat, but not what we breathe! ISSeP is therefore looking to gather reference data on the population’s exposure to pesticides, in particular as regards farmers and children. To do this (after Flanders and Spain), it uses biomonitoring which consists in measuring the substance impregnation via doses in human matrices such as hair or urine. This is a new task for ISSeP which is thereby

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ISSeP Liège Headquarters Rue Chéra, 200 - B-4000 Liège Tel.: +32 (0)4 229 83 11 Fax: +32 (0)4 252 46 65 Email: direction@issep.be http://www.issep.be

Developing the circular economy, the health economy and the bioeconomy An interview with Mr Olivier DE WASSEIGE, Managing Director of the Walloon Business Union (UWE)

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benefit from them. We still need to create an entrepreneurial ecosystem in which there is an interaction of funding players, incubators, services to access public contracts, human capital, trainers, start-ups to be placed in a network etc. Currently start-ups are faced with a scaling up problem: they are struggling to reach the next stage in their growth. To rectify this, the UWE has combined with SOWALFIN to launch a programme of support for businesses with high growth potential. Coaches and consultants will help them formulate a growth plan and will follow the implementation of this plan.

hat are the tasks of the UWE? As a private cross-sectoral business federation, the UWE represents companies located in Wallonia in their dealings with the Walloon public authorities for all regional competences (economics, energy, land use planning, R&D, employment, training, etc.). Based on studies and opinions, The UWE is in a permanent dialogue with the authorities to highlight its opinion when new laws, decrees or administrative regulations are being prepared.

The UWE takes also part in the preparation and implentation of regional policies.

In your opinion, what will be the main economic issues for the regional elections in May 2019?

Above all it is a matter of expanding the policy already implemented with a view to the digitalisation of Wallonia. This calls for sufficient resources to be allocated, any possible administrative obstacles need to be removed and infrastructure must be improved with the installation of broadband in all activity zones. We also need to provide more support to young businesses with high growth potential whilst ensuring that existing industries have an environment that is favourable to their development. Moreover, we need to fill in the missing links in the value chain for certain sectors by attracting foreign companies to Wallonia or creating companies in the region.

We also need to develop the circular economy, the health economy and the bioeconomy – these are all sectors that will need a qualified workforce, along with all that this entails in terms of training and teaching to move towards a more inclusive system and eradicate the causes of unemployment and lack of qualifications. © UWE

How would you define the Walloon economic situation?

The latest UWE’s economic situation report (October 2018), including the result of a survey carried out with Walloon business leaders, points to an excellent 2017 with a GDP growth rate of 1.70% - a rate that is set to drop to 1.5% in 2018 and remain stable in 2019. That said, business leaders remain rather optimistic. The only shadow on the horizon is the unemployment rate, although it fell from 12% to 9% within the space of a few years. Despite the high level of unemployment, businesses are still suffering from the lack of a qualified workforce. And this lack is limiting their prospects for growth.

What is your view of the government policy to support R&D, innovation and the digital sector?

The Walloon Government has shown itself to be highly attentive to the needs of businesses: It has attempted to tackle the lack of qualified workforce so as to better match supply and demand and has kept the budget allocated to R&D within a context of limiting the budget deficit. What is more, the Digital Wallonia plan is a very important initiative as the digital transition is the most important factor for the years to come. This plan is aimed at businesses but also administrations and schools. Similarly, the “Made Different” programme is raising the awareness of SMEs concerning the need to enter the 4th industrial revolution and is supporting them in the form of a scan of the state of their digitalisation and proposals for concrete action to make the transition a success. Over 400 businesses have already been sounded out and 100 have begun a programme for the digitalisation of their products, processes and/or organisation. One valuable aspect of this programme is that it is bringing together all the regional players concerned.

© Alexis Taminiaux – UWE

How will you give a greater boost to innovative start-ups and businesses with high growth potential?

The Walloon Government has already launched a large number of initiatives over the past few years: the creation of incubators, putting in place of funding tools for digital companies, competitiveness clusters etc. Nevertheless, we have probably acted in a slightly disorganised way: we still need to coordinate these various initiatives better in order to draw the maximum possible

The Walloon Union of Companies (the UWE): the most influential network in Wallonia

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Thales Alenia Space Belgium Innovative space solutions to enhance people’s lives and extend our reach beyond EAI

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rawing on over 40 years of experience and a unique combination of skills, expertise and cultures, Thales Alenia Space delivers cost-effective solutions for telecommunications, navigation, Earth observation, environmental management, exploration, science and orbital infrastructures. Governments and private industry alike count on Thales Alenia Space to design satellite-based systems that provide anytime, anywhere connections and positioning, monitor our planet, enhance management of its resources, and explore our Solar System and beyond.

Thales Alenia Space sees space as a new horizon, helping to build a better, more sustainable life on Earth. A joint venture between Thales (67%) and Leonardo (33%), Thales Alenia Space also teams up with Telespazio to form the parent companies’ Space Alliance, which offers a complete range of services.

Thales Alenia Space posted consolidated revenues of 2.6 billion euros in 2017 and has 7,980 employees in nine countries.

In Belgium, Thales Alenia Space is represented by its subsidiary Thales Alenia Space Belgium, in Charleroi, Leuven and Hasselt.

This Belgian company is an expert in several high-technology fields. Thales Alenia Space Belgium is the Belgian front-runner in space electronics applications for satellites and launchers, a world leader in power conditioning and distribution for satellites, a key supplier of electronics for European launchers and will be the first automated manufactory of photovoltaic assemblies (PVA) in the Europe. Day after day, our staff of 700 offers quality products and services to our customers all over the world.

A Belgian company at the forefront of the space sector Since 1963, we have contributed to most European space programs and many international satellite launches.

Satellites are our core business…

We are a world leader in satellite power conditioning and distribution. Our product range covers needs from observation microsatellites up to the large geo-stationary satellites for telecom applications, with power requirements from 250 W up to 20 kW. The company also enjoys a position at the forefront of fight electronics products: avionics, power supplies for plasmic propulsion thrusters, power supplies for travelling wave tubes, DC/ DC converters and other dedicated power products.

To quote a single example of how all this equipment is used, we manufacture the electrical core of satellites.With the construction of a one-of-a-kind center of excellence in automated manufacturing, we confirm our position at the forefront of digital innovation and our ability to accompany our partners through the transformational evolution of the space industry.

© Thales Alenia Space Belgium

… And we build the electronics for Ariane, Soyuz and Vega

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We go back a long way with Ariane. In fact, we are the main supplier of on-board electronics for Ariane 5. For each Ariane 5, we design and build 50% of the electronics. These units handle the following functions: on-board power distribution, aborting of the launcher in the event of an incorrect trajectory, control of the nozzles to keep the launcher on trajectory, calculation of the launcher’s position in space and separation of the stages of the Ariane and the fairing that protects the satellites in flight. The Ariane adventure continues: Thales Alenia Space in Belgium participates in the development of the safeguard system of Ariane 6. As the leading European supplier of checkout systems for launchers, we have also delivered most of the control benches for the Ariane family (Ariane 1 to 5), including the vital launcher check prior to launch. We also develop specific check-out systems for satellite platforms and payload equipment. We also produce the safeguard system for the Russian launcher Soyuz. The Soyuz launched from French Guiana is ftted with our safeguard system, allowing the motors to be shut down if it deviates from its trajectory. We are also taking part in preparing the Vega launcher.

Comprehensive facilities Our facilities match our quality products and services: over 37.400 m² of installations for designing, manufacturing and testing qualified electronic systems.7 From design…

© Thales Alenia Space Belgium

Our design facilities include printed-circuit development and engineering design with the associated mechanical, thermal and radiation analysis tools. We also have our own range of customized hybrid microelectronic circuits and digital ASICs. …to fabrication and testing Our fabrication and testing areas, most in clean rooms environment, include a mechanical workshop specializing in aluminum and magnesium, an electronics workshop with a full line qualified for SMT (surface mounting) and BGA (ball grid array) technologies, supplemented by a comprehensive testing zone. Our environmental testing area includes variable temperature and pressure chambers, vibration and shock facilities, including pyroshock, anechoic chambers for electromagnetic measurement, specific environments and a salt spray chamber.

References Telecom satellites: Globalstar, O3B, Iridium Next, Koresat 7, AMC12, AMC13, Apstar, Syracuse, Star One, HotBird 7, Chinasat, Express, AM11-22-33-44, Koreasat,Ciel-2, Turksat, W2A, W7, Satcom, BW, Sicral 2, Globalstar, Nilesat, Loutch, Palapa- D, Apstar 7B, Rascom, O3b, Arsat, Iridium, W6A, Artemis, Turkmenalen…

The new facility in Hasselt will be fully conceived on Industry 4.0 approach. New techniques include robotized assembly of panels, digital data management and traceability, online tests and inspections, as well as augmented reality. People and machines share the workplace, for a harmonious blend of cognitive and physical capabilities, thus opening new possibilities in terms of greater efficiency and agility.

Observation, scientific and navigation satellites: COSMO-SkyMed, Sarah, GEO-KOMPSAT, Jason-CS, Euclid, Meteosat, Smart 1, Pleiades-HR, Spirale, Stereo, Galileo, Herschel, Planck, Giove-B, Myriad, Sentinel 1, 2, 3, Spot, Helios, Iso, XMM, Integral, Huygens, Soho, Jason 1, 2, 3…

Our one motto: routine quality

Launchers and space transports: Ariane 5, Ariane 6, Soyuz, Vega, ATV, Expert, Colombus, ARD.

Day after day, some 700 employees apply a strict quality system at each stage of development, manufacturing and marketing activities, in compliance with the standards ISO 9001, EN 9100, AQAP 2110, ISO 14001 and OHSAS 18001. We are also accredited with the CMM3 certificate from the Software Engineering Institute (SEI).

The ideal high-tech partner

© Thales Alenia Space Belgium

Thales Alenia Space offers you a full range of technological skills, technical expertise, high quality tools and services, highperformance fabrication sties and long experience in applications and equipment requiring a high level of reliability.

• A world leader in satellite power supplies; • A high capacity for innovation; • High-performance production capabilities; • More than 50 years’ experience; • Member of an international group; • The main supplier of electronics for launchers; • Quality & flexibility.

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Thales Alenia Space Belgium Rue Chapelle Beaussart, 101 - B-6032 Mont-sur-Marchienne Tel.: +32 (0)71 44 22 11 - Fax: +32 (0)71 44 22 00 Email: info.belgium@thalesaleniaspace.com http://www.thalesaleniaspace.com

Agoria Wallonia Bring the technology industry into the 4.0 era Agoria is the Belgian Federation for Technology industry.

Its mission is to defend the interests of technology companies and improve the socio-economic environment of these companies at the regional, federal and European levels.

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© Agoria Wallonia

elecoms, mechanics and mechatronics, ICT, industrial automation, electrical engineering, metal products, construction products, metals and materials, contracting and maintenance, plastics and composites, automotive, security and defense, aeronautics and aerospace, assembly and cranes. It is to these hightech industries that Agoria devotes its energy. Sectors which make up a total of 3.500 companies and about 67.000 people in Wallonia, giving a combined turnover of 16 billion Euros, twothirds of which are exported.

Thierry Castagne, General manager Agoria Wallonia

From day one Agoria has supported the putting in place of a new industrial policy in Wallonia, particularly focused on the competitiveness clusters. The Federation has particularly invested in the MecaTech Cluster, which is focused on mechanical engineering. Moreover, the Federation supports different technological clusters in the initial stages and as a complement to the competitiveness clusters: Infopôle Cluster TIC (ICT), Twist (technologies of image, sound and text) and Tweed Cluster (energy-environment).

In parallel, Agoria Wallonia has identified the three challenges that the technology industry must rise to. The first challenge: “No future without technology”. It is imperative to maintain and develop activity in Wallonia by boosting innovation. “It is therefore necessary to reduce payroll costs in a global manner, including those weighing on R & D” exclaims Thierry Castagne, General manager of Agoria Wallonia.

© Agoria Wallonia

The second challenge: “No future without technical skills”. On a quantitative level, Agoria promotes technological careers with its teaching and university partners. Indeed the Walloon technology industry has a strong need to recruit technical profiles: between 4,000 and 5,000 vacancies are announced in 2019.

Greentechs represent many opportunities for growth of the Walloon technology industry.

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The third challenge: “No future without green technologies”.

Agoria wishes to involve the technology industry in the dynamic of the “green economy” and has defined 2 directions to this end: reduce the environmental impact of industry members while preserving their competitiveness; and promote new technologies and green services. “All the sectors of activity are concerned and the reduction of their environmental impact is largely driven by technological innovation” declares Thierry Castagne.

One of the keys lies in international networking An interview with Mr Pierre FIASSE, NCP Coordinator, NCP Wallonia

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It should be noted on this point that the average success rate of Walloon players (13.4%) is higher than the European average (11.9%).

hat services do you offer to businesses, universities, research centres, associations and other Walloon bodies to help them unlock European funding?

The services cover all phases putting a project together: identification of ideas for Walloon projects and skills, optimum choice of international call for projects, putting a consortium together, support in the drafting phase (structuring and critical revision). The services also cover the legal and financial aspects for the reporting phase for projects in progress. Lastly, first line advice is offered on intellectual property aspects. © NCP Wallonia

There is one downside: with respect to research centres. Overall they have fewer projects than in the previous framework programme (with a few exceptions), whereas they should on the contrary be submitting more. In order to do this, one of the keys lies in international networking: Walloons probably need to make more of an effort to join networks that will allow them to be invited to projects being put together.

In the 15 years the tools have been available, methods and genuine expertise have been developed. The strengths of this method include the possibility of identifying key European players “à la carte” and carrying out networking actions that will allow Walloon players to join the key consortia preparing the projects.

Could you give us a few examples of projects supported by NCP Wallonia and that have received financial backing from the European Commission?

The SME I-Care based in Mons works in predictive maintenance (sector Industry 4.0). It wanted to bolster its R&D through involvement in European collaborations. After knocking on the door of NCP Wallonia, European calls for projects were identified and a targeted networking strategy was put in place to contact the European key players in the field. These efforts were rewarded with great success in 2017 with the PROPHESY project: with 14 partners and €5.5M in funding, its objective is to use emerging digital technologies for the next generation of predictive maintenance.

What is your initial report on the involvement of Walloon players at Horizon 2020 and as regards other European projects?

After the first 5 years of programming, we observe that Walloon businesses and universities are very well present: 106 different companies funded, for an amount of €60M and €94M in funding for universities. These results are in keeping with the results of the previous framework programme, and this despite much fiercer competition (success rates have fallen by 8 points on average across Europe).

© NCP Wallonia

The SME V2i has followed a very similar path with NCP Wallonia. At the end of 2017, it received funding in the project Lay2Form - 10 partners - within the “Factory of the Future” initiative. The aim of the project is to develop an innovative pilot line for the manufacture of light composites for the transport sector.

V2i's role: to install contactless quality control technologies on the industrial line (target “Zero Defect”).

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Horizon Europe will take over from Horizon 2020 as of 1 January 2021. What can already be said about this?

The budget announced has never been as large: nearly 100 billion Euro is being provided! This framework programme, which will cover the period 2021-2027, will continue along the lines of Horizon 2020: keeping Europe in the international vanguard of research and innovation. Particular emphasis will be placed on innovators: an entire pillar will be dedicated to them. This set of measures will accelerate the emergence of international class, highly innovative businesses.

Health research and innovation in Wallonia A mature ecosystem with an international recognition Health biotechnology and medical technologies are highly dynamic in Wallonia. Academic and clinical laboratories, companies, service providers, incubators and investors are combining their strengths to advance innovation and to meet the public health challenges of tomorrow.

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TERRA Research Centre and URISS - Health and Society. The Research Unit in Biology and Development Medicine uses a clinical approach to study the early onset of adult diseases and the Bone and Cartilage Research Unit (UROC) works mainly on the action mechanisms of medicines used in the treatment of arthritis and is participating in developing new molecules in collaboration with the pharmaceutical industry.

he top French-speaking Belgian university according to THE and QS rankings, the Catholic University of Louvain (UCL) has clearly positioned itself as a research university with its 21 research institutes and 2,500 research projects a year. Research carried out in the 5 health sector institutes - the Duve Institute, the Institute of NeuroScience (IONS), the Institute of Experimental and Clinical Research (IREC), the Institute of Health and Society (IRSS) and the Louvain Drug Research Institute (LDRI) - have succeeded in making major advances in areas as widely varying as cancer, the nervous system, human reproduction, cardiovascular diseases, health promotion and medicine.

Improving human health at individual and community level In the University of Mons (UMONS), research is being carried out by more than 900 researchers and 450 doctoral fellows working in about a hundred departments. The work is organised in 10 Research Institutes including the Health Institute, that brings together 22 academic departments with 110 researchers as well as 70 doctoral fellows who are behind 300 publications per year. Understanding the complexity of health in an interdisciplinary way, the Health Institute has developed recognised expertise in five major themes: R&D of biomarkers and/ or medicines, mind & health management (bilateral relations between the human mind/spirit and health), integrative biomedicine (understanding the dialogue between tissues and organs better) and mobility sciences.

An example would be the G. Bommer laboratory (Duve Institute) which is working on discovering the functions of unknown metabolites and enzymes by combining mass spectrometry with genetic and enzymological approaches to find out more about physiopathology. A. Mouraux, P. Lavand’homme and E. Hermans (IONS) are aiming to understand the neuronal process underlying the perception of pain with a view to developing new methods of diagnosing and managing chronic pain. MM. Dolmans and C. Amorim (IREC) are working to find an improved method of maintaining and restoring fertility in young patients following cancer treatment through the evaluation and on-going improvement of techniques of ovarian tissue transplantation. In turn, I. Aujoulat (IRSS) applies participative research methods based on experience for the co-production of innovative solutions in health care and health promotion. Finally, the research groups of V. Préat, R. Frédérick, B. Jordan, B. Gallez and J. Leclercq (LDRI) are concentrating on the synthesis of small molecules as enzyme inhibitors, advanced nanomedicine, theranostics and in vivo evaluation of the effectiveness of a drug or the characterisation of a tumour by NMR and RPE imaging.

Among the flagship projects of the Health Institute are NANOCARDIO (UE + Walloon Region - RW - / Interreg) on the development of nanoparticles for early detection and analysis of atheromatous plaque by MRI and optical imagery, VIVOIMAG (UE / H2020), which is aiming to prepare an osseous implant integrating magnetic extracellular matrix-based material, made functional to follow the development of material implanted in vivo, and HOLOCANCER (RW / BioWin), which is aiming to develop and validate at clinical level a new diagnostic test for cervical cancer based on digital holographic microscopy technology. The Health Institute also collaborates with the CHU Ambroise-Paré, through the UMHAP Medical Research Center, and with EpiCURA hospital centre, by way of a common scientific platform specifically for medical research.

© UCL

Led by 3,024 researchers involved in 1,792 research contracts, research at ULiège is the work of the faculty research units (URf), 15 of which are part of the Faculty of Medicine, and Interfaculty Units (URi), including CIRM (Center for Interdisciplinary Research on Medicines), GIGA (Interdisciplinary Research Institute in Biomedical Sciences), MARU (Motion Analysis Research Unit),

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In the University of Namur (UNamur), research is organised in 11 Research Institutes and on 8 technology platforms. Producing 1,114 publications, more than 1,000 researchers are currently leading 750 research projects and rely on an R&D budget of €347m. In this framework, the Namur Research Institute for Life Sciences (NARILIS) is aiming to facilitate the translation of fundamental research results into clinical applications. NARILIS is divided into 6 multidisciplinary clusters (Namur Research Pole in Infectiology, Namur Thrombosis & Hemostasis Center, Namur Nanosafety Centre, Namur Medicine & Drug Innovation Center, Omnibus Animalibus Studia Sanitatis and the Cancer Research Pole). They conduct research in various areas: ageing, blood, thrombosis and haemostasis, cancer, cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, developmental biology, diabetes, obesity and kidneys, metabolism and nutrition, infectiology, neuroscience and regenerative medicine, organelle biology, skin diseases etc. bacteria Streptococcus B, pathogenic agents that can be transferred from the mother to the new-born during delivery and one of the main causes of severe neonatal infections.

Drawing on its expertise, UNamur has won several European project tenders dealing with health. Funded by the ERC, CANITEST wishes to establish proof of concept of a PCR test designed to identify dogs carrying the most virulent strains of Capnocytophaga canimorsus that may cause dramatic human infections. The Horizon 2020 ACtIVAtE project is targeting the virulence potential of human pathogen agents by studying how Acinetobacter baumannii survives predation by Acanthamoeba castellanii. UNamur is also involved in 2 research projects certified by the Walloon competitiveness cluster BioWin. Initiated by the company Cardiatis and coordinated by Frid Mind Technologies, EMPEROR (EMbolus PERmanent protectOR) is aiming to develop a completely innovative and permanently implantable device for persons at risk of a stroke. Led by the company Coris BioConcept, FRISBY (Fast and Reliable ultrasensitive Identification of Streptococcus B at deliverY) has as its target the development of an ultra-sensitive test for detecting the

Translational and clinical research The regional university hospitals are not to be outdone when it comes to translational research aiming to accelerate the translation of the benefits of fundamental research, supplied by clinical interrogations for the benefit of patients. In this respect, Liège CHU has the advantage of the proximity of integrated research centres such as GIGA (interdisciplinary group of applied genoproteomics) and the Cyclotron Research Centre (CRC) of ULiège.

A recent inventory identified more than 200 projects including 58% carried out in partnership with the GIGA, 12% in partnership with the CRC and 30% with other laboratories of ULiège or other Universities. The research topics include immunology, infection and inflammation, the cardiovascular system, cancer, neuroscience, endocrinology and the urogenital system as well as genetics. Interstitial pulmonary macrophages, cardiac valves, biomarkers in oncology and Parkinson’s disease and muscoviscidosis are among the many areas explored.

MedTech Wallonia Coordinated by the competitiveness clusters MecaTech and BioWin, MedTech Wallonia is the entry point for medical device and digital health projects in Wallonia. This accelerator offers global support to companies dealing with medical devices and digital health in the form of technical and scientific expertise, infrastructures and equipment, strategic and commercial support and funding.

A general hospital affiliated to ULB, the CHU of Charleroi relies on its Laboratory of experimental medicine located in Montignyle-Tilleul on the site of the Hôpital Vésale, known especially for its oncology unit and radiotherapy department. Focused on the mechanisms of diseases, diagnostics and therapeutics (identification of molecules), the Laboratory is supported by the clinical research

© ULiège

For this purpose, it has concluded partnerships with WSL (Walloon incubator for engineering sciences), WeLL (Wallonia e-health Living Lab), lean square (a risk capital fund investing in digital advancement and the new economy), Cide-Socran (support for the creation and development of innovative projects and businesses that are innovative or have high growth potential), i-Tech Incubator (a structure set up on the initiative of ULB, the Héraclès Business Center, IGRETEC and Sambrinvest), the platform Bridge2Health (B2H), the Biopark and WBC (funding and orientation of health innovation in Wallonia). This is a good way to promote Walloon medtech and to create new jobs in Wallonia.

ULiège has put health at the core of its research and innovation activities.

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unit that coordinates clinical research activity with a view to developing new strategies for diagnostics, treatment and prevention of pathologies – an activity led at the exclusive initiative of the CHU medical teams or in collaboration with research companies.

Wallonia e-health Living Lab (WeLL) The first Living Lab of Wallonia specialising in e-health, WeLL is aiming to use innovation to benefit citizens, patients, seniors and healthcare players. To do this, it stimulates the emergence of innovative projects, then supports and leads these projects, all the while developing new technologies and usages from what already exists. Its personalised services that are intended for companies, project leaders, hospitals, care homes, mutual societies etc., are organised on 4 lines: analysing (user-centred market surveys); developing (co-design of solutions); optimising (evaluation and improving user experience); and stimulating (setting up dynamic innovation). By integrating users at the core of reflection, WeLL anticipates changes and requirements in heath and ensures better appropriation of innovations. In addition, it relies on tried and tested methodologies, a network of partners in e-health and genuine expertise in technological innovation.

Creating the future of health together has become possible with WeLL!

Shortening the period between the laboratory and the hospital bed University and hospital research is designed to benefit the patient in the short or long term. Many players are mobilising to shorten the period between the laboratory and the hospital bed. Led by the Research Vice-Rectors and managed by a steering committee of KTO managers from member institutions (UCL, ULiège, ULB, UNamur, Saint-Louis Brussels University, UMONS and SynHERA Hautes Ecoles), the LIEU Network provides services for companies and researchers to support them in their innovation projects and to facilitate inter-university projects. It also passes on technology offers to its members in matters such as (bio)manufacturing, medical devices, diagnostics, therapies, vaccines and control of pharmaceutical processes.

By the same token, UCL set up the Louvain Innovation Network, a network of 6 partners (UCL, Louvain Technology Transfer Office (LTTO), VIVES - Louvain Technology Fund and UCL incubators Louvain-la-Neuve Enterprise and Innovation Centre and Brussels Life Science Incubator -, Mind&Market and the science parks of UCL) with the aim of stimulating the creation of new businesses.

Thanks to this supporting environment many spin-offs have come

Š CEI Louvain

into being in the field of biotechnology and health. Two of them were set up in 2017: A-Mansia biotech specialises in the prevention of health problems linked to overweightness and obesity, while ATB Therapeutics specialises in immunodiagnostics (production of monoclonal antibodies from plant cells).

Louvain-la-Neuve Enterprise and Innovation Centre is the starting point and the support point for project leaders, start-ups and innovative SMEs of the Louvain ecosystem.

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© iStock

The spin-offs created by ULiège are equally active. Among the 106 still in operation there is, in particular, Nucleis, derived from the Cyclotron Research Centre and created to externalise GMP manufacturing and the distribution of radiopharmaceutical medicines dedicated to positron emission tomography (PET); ANMI, a supplier of API for the production of radio-pharmaceuticals marked by using metallic radioisotopes, and KiOmed Pharma, specialising in R&D, production and marketing of medical devices for use in the fight against osteoarthritis using viscosupplementation. The same is true of the UNamur spin-offs. QUALIblood assists in the development of innovative medicines that reduce the risk of thrombotic episodes and contributes to the development of diagnostic tests, whereas Advanced Array Technologies has become a subsidiary of Eppendorf Application Technologies, a biotechnology business that designs and develops microarray detectors for analyses by researchers, clinical laboratories and biotech companies.

Boosting employment and competitiveness in the health ecosystem The most important task of the BioWin cluster is to accelerate innovation to meet the challenges of public health in the future and to improve knowledge. The aim of certified R&D projects is to boost employment and the competitiveness of all players in the health sector ecosystem in Wallonia. These include STEMVAC (innovative immunotherapy approaches to the treatment of breast cancer), StarfloPlus (research on an implanted system for treating glaucoma) and HOPE4PD (the discovery of new targets for treating Parkinson’s disease). In a similar vein, the Biopark Charleroi Brussels South brings together university research institutes (including the ULB Immunology Institute), technology platforms, companies, research optimisation structures and a training centre in the biotechnologies sector. With some 1,100 people working on the Aéropole de Gosselies site, the Biopark presents the whole of the innovation chain, from academic research to the production of biotechnological products.

Likewise, the Health Institute of UMONS was responsible for the creation of the spin-off Magnetrap, with the aim of developing and selling an innovative instrument for diagnosing malaria that arose from analysis of needs on the ground. In the process of being formed, the spin-off Inovo (as part of the Walloon Région “FIRST Spin-Off” programme) is focused on developing an in vitro morphological test to highlight the maturation of oocytes caused by an endocrine disruptor.

The dynamism of the health sector players is widely supported by those providing funding in the Walloon Region, namely the investors: Meusinvest, Sambrinvest and the SRIW Life Sciences.

The leaders of innovative health projects may be confident as they have at their disposal all the support that they need to complete these successfully.

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Sizeable investments for the life sciences An interview with Mr Marc FOIDART, Deputy General Manager of the Meusinvest group

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particular allows for referral on to the specialist funds to which Meusinvest contributes.

hat are the key figures for the Meusinvest group?

Since it was created in 1985, this public investment fund has invested €802M, €427M of which in the past five years and €100M for the year 2017 alone. This clear acceleration in financial commitments has benefited 450 businesses, 270 of which have received a capital contribution.

© Meusinvest

What funding solutions do you offer to businesses?

Meusinvest acts from the business start-up thanks to pre-seed funds and seed funds. The budget granted - of at least a few dozen thousand Euro makes it possible to draw up a business plan. Life science businesses for their part are eligible to receive contributions exceeding €2.5M. Over the past 5 years, Meusinvest has invested €80M in the life sciences, €27M of which was invested in 2017. It has to be said that Meusinvest's strategic plan makes the life sciences a cornerstone of regional economic development. In addition, the fund is able to call on Walloon doctors and the 600 researchers of Liège CHU and ULiège in order to serve “innovation barometers”.

Meusinvest has also led to the creation of Accessia Pharma, which is developing offices, laboratories and clean rooms in Milmort (Herstal) to allow startups and SMEs active in biotechnologies and the pharmaceutical sector to bring about clinical and commercial developments. In all, over €30M has been invested in health infrastructures with Liège CHU and nearby Liège airport.

What do you think are the main challenges facing the Walloon Region in terms of funding innovation?

The Walloon Region has already put in place very high performance funding mechanisms led by DGO6. I am particularly thinking of repayable advances and the FIRST Spin-Off programme which makes it possible to fund up to 55% of research costs. This gives the Walloon Region a genuine competitive advantage over bordering regions in terms of appeal. Lastly, to make the ecosystem perform even better, I note an example seen in my collaborations with the Flemish universities: they are funded by the Flemish Government to confront the results of their research with their market environment. Therefore Flemish spin-offs are being created with a higher level of maturity and are showing much more substantiated proofs of concept, thereby substantially increasing their growth potential.

In more general terms, Meusinvest offers all possible funding solutions from stakeholding acquisition, junior loans and senior loans etc. to subordinated loans.

Could you give us a few examples of funded businesses?

Meusinvest has already supported fifty businesses in the life sciences, including Mithra Pharma (women health), quoted on Euronext, and PDC Line (immuno-oncology), Imcyse (treatment solutions against autoimmune and infectious diseases), Miracor Medical (processing of severe cardiac diseases)…

Meusinvest provides guidance to all projects that make sense economically and scientifically and have true potential.

© Meusinvest

What projects of regional interest do you support?

Alongside initiatives such as Liège Image Cluster, the project Giga (ULiège),WSL (Wallonia Space Logistic), WBC (Wallonia Biotech Coaching) and Liege Airport Business Park, Meusinvest has supported the launch of Bridge 2 Health (B2H), an action that groups together Liège CHU, ULiège, Meusinvest and SPI to lead the health innovation economy and make Liège a hub on a European scale. B2H provides supervision to the whole of the portfolio of health projects in the Liège region with a view to creating an ecosystem that is favourable to development and growth of Walloon spin-offs. It in 84

Accessia Pharma Provide efficient tools to grow Launched notably by Meusinvest, Accessia Pharma provides pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies with a solid infrastructure to support them in their small-scale industrialisation process. This is a service devoted to the growth of the health economy in the Liège region.

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ccessia Pharma was born out of the convergence of two factors: a gap in the value chain of the pharmaceutical sector in Wallonia at GMP pre-industrialisation infrastructure level (a phase presenting a high level of financial risk) and the opportunity to put the former Colgate Palmolive R&D site in Herstal to use again. A market study ordered by the GRE was carried out by Cide-Socran and the project was officially launched in 2016 with the support of strong shareholding by Meusinvest, Intégrale, Sofipole and the SFPI.

© Accessia Pharma

Officially inaugurated in March 2018, Accessia Pharma provides infrastructures that meet the strict pharmaceutical production standards: 3,500 square metres of laboratories, clean rooms and offices including 7 grade C and D rooms of GMP standard which is the equivalent of ISO 7 or 8 in international standards.

These infrastructures required investment of €10m and total funding of approximately €17m. The main advantage was enabling young companies with high potential to combine laboratory development and clean room production on the same site.

may then offer this client support in completing the GMP dossier and provide the company with a pre-validated package that would allow it to gain a year and a half or two years to reach the production phase for its products.

Accessia Pharma has already attracted three clients including ASIT biotech, a company specialising in allergy immunotherapy which is in clinical trial phase for its first products. Alongside it, young start-up Xpress Biologics has developed preclinical expertise in the production of recombinant proteins, antibody fragments, conjugated proteins and plasmid DNA and does outsourced work for industry. For its part, Pharmalex develops software for pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies based on its statistics expertise.

With a business model that is unique in Belgium, Accessia Pharma intends in time to attract a dozen companies to its site. The potential is huge: the projects are supported during their first crucial clinical stages and the internalisation of the value linked to the intellectual property is very advantageous. It is usually at the end of these initial clinical phases that the project takes on value. Accessia Pharma can therefore provide assistance to the blossoming of great successes in the years to come and in so doing contribute to job creation in accordance with the regional strategy of economic redeployment. And that’s not all. Although the installations are intended for the early clinical phases (Phase I and II) because of the size of the production areas, Accessia Pharma has purchased more than 3 hectares around the site to meet the future expansion needs of companies that might grow within its walls. A winning formula!

© Accessia Pharma

However, Accessia Pharma has not limited itself to its current three clients: an external client may also use its infrastructures while keeping the independence of its production authorisation from the relevant authorities and its intellectual property. Accessia Pharma

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Accessia Pharma 89, avenue du Parc industriel - B-4041 Herstal Tel.: +32 (0)4 346 00 40 E-mail: info@accessiapharma.com http://accessiapharma.com/en/

Bridge2Health - B2H Providing solutions leveraging excellence A joint initiative of the University of Liège (ULiège), Liège University Hospital (CHU), the Walloon Region and Meusinvest, B2H is a large services platform that provides support to the internal innovation of the CHU and ULiège teams and supports the development of health SMEs in the Liège region. have established themselves in the Liège region in 2 years and 20 to 25 other companies - a third of which are Belgian - are constantly analyzing the possibilities of making the move. It has to be said that this full service (infrastructure, scientific expertise, financial player and support tools) generates an ecosystem nurturing the birth and growth of companies active in the life sciences.

B2H offers tailor-made solutions by capitalizing on the skills of all its partners. Its range of services rests on 4 pillars: providing access to funding (via Meusinvest and privileged access to private sectorial VCs); providing access to guidance expertise (business plan, marketing) via Cide-Socran; providing access to adapted infrastructure; and lastly providing access to the preclinical and clinical expertise of ULiège and CHU which contain two large biomedical research centres: the CIRM (Center for Interdisciplinary Research on Medicines) and the GIGA (Interdisciplinary Cluster of Applied Genoproteomics).

A winning partnership at the service of SMEs and the health economy in Liège.

The B2H team provides for personal and integrated access to a wide range of tools developed at the CHU and ULiège ranging from initial and preclinical research to personalized medicine. The combined expertise of ULiège and the CHU is supplemented by a vast network of companies active in the sectors of pharmaceuticals, biotechnology and medical devices, and located in the Liège Science Park.

© B2H

A dedicated project manager within B2H matches the needs of businesses to the knowhow of researchers and clinicians in the area of discoveries and preclinical and clinical development. By doing this, B2H is facilitating the interaction of SMEs among themselves and also with ULiège and the CHU. It is a matter of encouraging public-private collaborations. An evidence relies on the partnership forged between Janssen Pharmaceutica, ULiège and the CHU, aiming at honing mutual skills in multidisciplinary research projects to improve patient care and well-being.

B2H is also involved in the development of infrastructure that makes it possible to host companies at different stages of development.

This objective is pursued in partnership with Accessia Pharma: the latter provides access to clean rooms for companies in the “preindustrialization” phase for the production of their clinical batches and in collaboration with ATC Pharma, a structure dedicated to the performance of “early phase” (phases 0, I, IIa) clinical trials. B2H also provides fully equipped laboratories to start-ups within a Labhotel, and access to the 8 high-technological platforms managed by the GIGA. Thus, on a single site, they can find links with the patient and with the research. A reflection is under way to increase the capacity for hosting companies before migrating them towards Accessia Pharma.

Bridge2Health - B2H Avenue de l’Hôpital, 11 (Bâtiment B34+3) B-4000 Liège Tel.: +32 (0)4 242 77 60 Email: caroline.thielen@b2h.be https://b2h.be/

Another goal mobilizes the B2H team: to attract foreign investors.

The outlook is already positive. Indeed, 8 foreign companies 87

Mithra A leader in women’s health Quoted on Euronext with market capitalisation of almost a billion euros, Mithra has 200 employees and will celebrate 20 years in business in 2019. Specialised in women’s health, the company has reinvested this year more than 100% of its turnover (€46 M) in R&D and now has two main target markets: contraception and menopause.

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he world market for contraception totals €22 billion and that of menopause almost €10 billion. It is therefore not surprising that Mithra decided to invest approximately €150 M in the development of its research platform and in the construction of its R&D and production site in the last ten years. Its aim is to research, manufacture and commercialise new therapeutic solutions. We should point out that the company was co-founded

by Prof. Dr. Jean-Michel Foidart of the University of Liege, who played a key role in several major developments in women’s health, notably in the development of an oral contraceptive containing drospirenone, which remains one of the world’s best-selling oral contraceptives (an annual market of more than $1.4 bn) and in the development of the world’s second hormonal IUD (Levosert®/ Liletta®1).

Canadian trial component of the phase III finished in November 2018 and the results will be published in the first quarter of 2019. The first pill containing E4 should therefore be marketed in 2020/2021 with an improved benefit /risk balance. By replicating a natural molecule produced by the foetus during pregnancy, the potential applications of E4 also cover the management of menopausal symptoms. E4 dose finding study ( Donesta® programme) for the relief of vasomotor symptoms has just been completed and Mithra is preparing the pivotal trial for 2019.

© Mithra

Donesta®, as a future hormonal treatment, aims to replace oestrogen which ceases to be produced naturally as soon as menopause starts. The purpose is to maintain the quality of life of post-menopausal Mr François Fornieri, women. E4 has a favourable profile for breast Founder and Chief Executive health and also displays promising hemostatic and Officer (CEO) of Mithra metabolic profile which should contribute to the safety profile of the future product. The E4 profile is Mithra’s R&D activities are structured along two also encouraging at cardiovascular and lipid levels. It may even lines. The first deals with the development of new products conenable an increase in HDL levels. Yet again Mithra offers a therataining Estetrol (E4), a native oestrogen with two flagship product peutic revolution for women. Donesta®’s phase III of clinical trial candidates: Estelle® and Donesta®. Estelle® is a fifth generation oral contraceptive combining E4 with progestin drospirenone. Its is now in preparation. mechanism of action is unique and the clinical benefits of this oestrogen are obvious: it has a long half-life, has high bioIn short, Mithra has chosen a winner with E4. In terms of conavailability and has a very limited hepatic impact regarding traception, it combines effectiveness and excellent control of the haemostasis, with a limited risk profile for vein thrombosis. menstrual cycle. In addition to its neutral haemostatic impact, it Phase III of the European and Russian programme of the clinical presents a very weak risk of drug-drug interaction and a limited trial for Estelle® yielded very positive results. The American and potential breast impact. It does not cause weight gain and maintains a real quality of life for women.

© Mithra

The second pole of Mithra’s R&D activities relates to the Mithra CDMO technology platform, specialised in hormones and focusing on three main pharmaceutical areas: polymer technology (rings, IUDs, implants), sterile injectable formulas (vials, cartridges, prefilled syringes) and tablets. Working from the proof of concept to the first commercial batches, the platform provides a one stop shop open to outside partners (research infrastructures, small companies, etc.) and is very flexible. It focuses on small and medium-sized batches. It also provides services of analysis, production, logistics, quality assurance, development and formulation.

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Registered trademark of Allergan Plc.

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The Mithra CDMO technology platform is distinguished mainly for its development of long-term therapeutic solutions using medical polymers. It means extending the action period from one month to five years in certain cases, in accordance with the recommendation of the WHO, that has for almost 15 years been recommending the development of long acting therapeutic solutions so as to improve health outcomes while reducing budgetary impact. The solutions include a subcutaneous implant to treat prostate cancer, breast cancer and endometrial cancer.

© Mithra

© Mithra

In October 2018, Mithra signed an exclusive license and supply agreement with Adcock Ingram for the commercialization of Estelle® in Southern Africa. It is the seventh such contract which bodes well for future developments. In the future the company plans to continue its investments in E4 and to expand its portfolio of potential products. Mithra is also going to continue working with external partners to develop prolonged-release solutions – a market that is all the more promising because medical polymers are still insufficiently explored and especially under-used in areas as important as oncology, contraception and infectious diseases. © Mithra

However, the solutions are not uniquely technological in nature. For Mithra the main challenge remains women’s education and information about taking hormones as contraception and during menopause. Since the beginning of this century, women have shown some concerns in relation to hormones.

The final study reports from the WHI ( Women health Initiative) were however reassuring. In fact, hormones play an important role in maintaining the metabolic balance during menopause.

They are also equally effective in controlling the menstrual cycle and in protecting women at risk of developing certain cancers, such as ovarian and endometrial cancer. Nobody doubts that Estelle® and Donesta® will contribute to pushing boundaries!

Mithra Pharmaceuticals Rue Saint-Georges 5-7 B-4000 Liège Tel.: +32 (0)4 349 28 22 - Fax: +32 (0)4 349 28 21 Email: info@mithra.com - https://www.mithra.com 89

To bring innovation from the research laboratory to the arthritic patients: a challenge raised by Professor Yves Henrotin disorders and rheumatic diseases, such as osteoarthritis (OA), sarcopenia and rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Currently, Artialis commercialize thirty ELISA tests helpful for academic and industrial researchers.

Osteoarthritis: a major public health issue for decades to come According to the most recent data published by the World Health Organisation, it is estimated that between 2015 and 2050 the number of individuals aged sixty or over will have almost doubled, rising from 12% to 22%.

The first Foundation fully devoted to Osteoarthritis Professor Henrotin is also the founder and the President of The Osteoarthritis Foundation (http:// fondationarthrose.org), the first foundation fully devoted to this disease. This foundation is at the origin of the World Osteoarthritis Day celebrated on September 17 of each year. Further, the foundation organizes the World Osteoarthritis Day International Event. This day will take place in Brussels from 14-15 September 2019. © Artialis

This statistic hides a very real challenge because a progressively ageing population will have very real and practical consequences for daily life and the organisation of society in general. There was an urgent need to address the problem of an ageing population and to establish whether the health of this population was good or bad.

For those individuals who fall into the latter category, there are some who suffer from osteoarthritis. This disease, which affects the joints, affects 15% of the world’s population. In 2050, 600 million people worldwide will suffer from the disease.

The summit promises an innovative programme tailored specifically for the general public. The objective of this public, free-of-charge event is to raise awareness and showcase means of prevention around the condition and how it can affect us all.

Prevention and Research on the disease

Participants will meet patients, researchers, associations and healthcare professionals to learn more about ostheoarthritis and related illnesses. Listen, learn and live through the activities, sessions and debates.

Today, it is possible to reduce pain or to compensate for the loss of mobility, but there is no real treatment for osteoarthritis. Another challenge is the identification of biomarkers allowing the early diagnosis of osteoarthritis before the appearance of symptoms and overt lesions of cartilage visible by medical imaging technics.

We will showcase the latest and most important information on ostheoarthritis and related illnesses from leading experts in the field.

To diagnose osteoarthritis during the silent phase of the disease when the first metabolic changes occur in joint tissues is an obsession for Professor Yves Henrotin of University of Liège. Professor Yves Henrotin is the head of Bone and Cartilage Research Unit (BCRU) of the University of Liège, an academic laboratory fully dedicated to research on rheumatic diseases and musculoskeletal disorders (www.bcru.be).

Artialis: the launch of an innovative company in musculoskeletal disorders

© Artialis

In 2005, Professor Henrotin published the first results demonstrating that a specific peptide of the type II collagen molecule (Coll2-1) released during cartilage degradation and measured in the serum by an immunoassay could discriminate healthy subjects and patients with osteoarthritis. Based on these encouraging data and a large patent portfolio, Professor Henrotin decided to launch Artialis, a spin-off company of the University of Liège (www.artialis.com). He is now the CEO and the President of this SME which now hires about twenty employees.

Artialis has become a first-mover biotech company specialized in the development and the clinical application of biomarkerbased immuno-assays and trials. The company mission is to offer biomarkers-based breakthrough solutions to address unmet medical needs in age-related diseases, mostly in musculoskeletal

ARTIALIS S.A. 11, avenue de l'Hôpital - Tour GIGA +3, B-4000 Liège (Sart-Tilman), Belgium E-mail: bd@artialis.com - http://www.artialis.com 90

Miracor Medical SA Cutting-edge cardiac care Specialising in the prevention of heart failure, the start-up Miracor Medical was formed in 2008 in Austria. Now based in Belgium, the company relies on its 18 full-time equivalent staff for the development of a promising therapy and technology platform: PiCSO®.

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eart failure, a chronic disease with one of the main causes being heart attacks, is a global epidemic costing $100 billion every year in the United States and representing 3.5% of the National Institute for Health and Disability Insurance (INAMI) in Belgium (more than cancer). There are 3 million cases of heart attacks per year in the world and 15,000 in Belgium. It was to respond to this large unmet medical need that Miracor Medical was set up by Prof. Mohl, an Austrian cardiac surgeon who was the originator of the PiCSO therapy and platform (Pressure-controlled Intermittent Coronary Sinus Occlusion). The aim was to develop a procedure that had been done manually (inflation and deflation of a balloon in the coronary sinus) and to transform this into an automated, controlled and reproducible therapy that could be customized for each patient.

© Miracor Medical SA

positive. In fact, the study demonstrated that PiCSO reduced infarct size after a primary angioplasty.

Miracor Medical is already preparing for a new pivotal randomised trial in Europe with 144 patients.

The launch is planned for the beginning of 2019 with the results expected in 2020. Miracor Medical is also in discussions with the FDA in the United States to launch an even more ambitious pivotal trial: to be carried out simultaneously in the United States and in Europe on 300 to 400 patients. This is due to start in 2021.

Thanks to these trials, Miracor Medical plans to concentrate its efforts on the generation of highquality clinical data in order to be able to gain Mr Olivier Delporte, reimbursement coverage (every country having its CEO of Miracor Medical own procedures) and to benefit from the recomThe current PiCSO system was the result of clinical trials started mendations of the medical societies. The start-up also wishes in 2010 and consists of a catheter inserted in the coronary sinus to improve its products with a view to continuous development. (at the exit of the heart), ending in a balloon that is intermittently They already have next generation products in their sights. This inflated and deflated, and linked to a console table that records gives another reason for hope to all those people suffering with the patient’s parameters. The inflation of the balloon enables the chronic heart disease in the world. occlusion of the vessel and thereby stops the blood flow out of the heart, which increases pressure on the heart, leads to the redistribution of the blood and improves microcirculation and perfusion in the heart while the heart attack is being treated. This is an adjunct therapy for the interventional cardiologist who can use PiCSO at the same time as placing a stent to unblock the artery.

© Miracor Medical SA

© Miracor Medical SA

More than 200 patients have already been treated with PiCSO in the context of five different trials since 2010. In May 2018, the OxAMI-PICSO trial carried out by Oxford Heart Centre (Oxford University Hospitals, NHS Foundation Trust) was presented at the EuroPCR Congress in Paris, and published simultaneously in a peer-reviewed journal, and its results were deemed very

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Miracor Medical SA Rue de Bruxelles 174 - E40 Business Park - B-4340 Awans Tel.: +32 (0)4 220 88 00 Email: office@miracormedical.com http://www.miracormedical.com

EyeD Pharma

© EyeD Pharma

Ophthalmology innovation

Active in the development of innovative ophthalmology medicines, EyeD Pharma also distributes products and instruments for surgical ophthalmologists working in hospitals. The company now employs 28 people, has capital of €5.1 m and has forecasted a turnover of €5.5 m in 2019.

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© EyeD Pharma

hanks to its expertise in polymer chemistry, formulation, analytical development, production engineering, pharmacy, clinical and pre-clinical matters, business, finance, regulatory matters, etc., EyeD manages all the stages of the process from the idea to bringing the medicine to the market in the field of controlled delivery products using systems with very small dimensions. EyeD also collaborates with external experts to minimise risks related to developments in progress.

At the moment EyeD Pharma is collaborating with several universities and research centres, with other international companies (in particular, for the development of a production chain) and with a multinational in the sector in the context of its distribution work.

Moreover, it has recently got a large contract as exclusive distributor of an major US brand in Belgium and in Luxemburg.

With respect to the actual development of products, These developments relate to clinical requirements that the next key phase will be to successfully conclude a are not currently met, and which have been identified proof of concept in humans for the intraocular ring Melanie Mestdagt, by ophthalmologists in the course of their work. In most CEO of EyeD Pharma against glaucoma. This is planned for the end of 2020. cases EyeD Pharma breaks new ground in the method At the same time, EyeD is evaluating several avenues of administration and this is based on chemicals already well of collaboration with industry players that wish to have access known on the market. This helps to guarantee a certain level of to its technology in order to implement it in other areas than effectiveness and to reduce development costs. The main product ophthalmology. Finally, in respect to distribution, the ambition of developed by EyeD Pharma is an intraocular ring that is capable the company is gradual geographic expansion so as to build a of releasing fixed quantities of medicine into the eye in a susnetwork that is appropriate for its size in Europe. This is a welcome tained and controlled manner for at least three years. The main perspective for patients with eye diseases. pathology targeted by EyeD Pharma is glaucoma: this solution would allow patients to receive their treatment regularly without having to worry about the daily use of drops that can be irritating and restrictive. They may also avoid the side effects observed with current treatment thanks to a considerable reduction in the dose administered to achieve an equivalent therapeutic result.

EyeD Pharma EyeD Pharma is also working on the development of other innoQuartier Hôpital - Avenue Hippocrate, 5 - B-4000 Liège vative medicines for the treatment of endophthalmitis and uveitis.

Tel.: +32 (0)4 266 97 75 Since the regulatory studies required for putting medicines on the E-mail: info@eyedpharma.com market are relatively long, the first innovative medicine of EyeD https://www.eyedpharma.com Pharma will be available in 2025.

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© iStock

Aquilon Pharma Innovation in the treatment of pulmonary diseases A spin-off of the University of Liège, Aquilon Pharma aims to improve existing treatments for pulmonary diseases by developing value-added medicines. These improvements come through higher compound local availability, resulting from improved pulmonary deposition.

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quilon Pharma was created at the end of 2013, at a time where there was an explosion in the prevalence of asthma and COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease). Current treatments, primarily administered via inhalation and based on a combination of three different technologies (formulation, transporter excipient and inhaler) are far from being an ideal solution: low effectiveness, major side effects, devices that are not user-friendly, outdated technologies, inconsistent delivery of doses… These shortcomings are due to limited or inconsistent pulmonary deposition in current treatments. © Aquilon Pharma

Aquilon Pharma and the University of Liège have made a major breakthrough in discovering a new excipient in the cyclodextrin family that avoids the use of transporters that cause these deposition problems. Used in liquid formulations or solid powders, these compounds improve the effectiveness of administration by inhalation, decreasing the quantity of medications taken by patients (and thus their side effects) and can be used for multiple medications.

presence in developing economies, the first markets targeted by Aquilon were estimated at around 12 billion dollars.

Aquilon is conducting several projects based on these two technologies (liquid and powder) to improve significantly the commercial products. The company was recently contacted by several potential partners as, due to the new trend of triple combinations in modern inhalers, steroids need to be made soluble: a technology in Aquilon’s reach due to its platform centred around the pharmaceutical and pharmacological improvement of treatments.

Several studies have already demonstrated high tolerance of hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin (HPBCD). The pharmacological proof of concept showed that for the most frequently prescribed medications taken via inhalation, the use of HPBCD makes them 2.5 times more effective. In powder form, the active medication/ HPBCD combination allows for pulmonary deposition that is 3 to 5 times higher than using the standard technologies (based on the use of lactose as a transporter). The performance of the powder form has thus recently shown potential to reduce doses 10-fold while achieving the same effectiveness. On this basis, Aquilon has submitted eight international patents (US patent granted in June 2018), turned a laboratory formulation into a stable formulation and conducted the initial toxicology study.

These developments were realised thanks to the support of private capital and the financial support of the Walloon Region.

Two I/IIa clinical trials of two different combinations are planned for 2019 and release onto the market for 2023 via a planned pilot plant for the production of formulations in powder form. In this context, a fundraising of 6.6 million Euro (including aid from the Walloon Region) was carried out in November 2018.

In addition, Aquilon is in advanced discussions with three companies developing innovative inhalers and a CDMO regarding joint development projects. The company is also planning a business location in North America and collaboration with local companies to supplement the range of in-house projects and joint development projects started in Europe. The workforce of Aquilon Pharma will grow, from 5.5 FTE in 2018 to potentially over 12 FTE in 2019 and 40 in 2021. A sure sign of success!

Aquilon Pharma SA Rue de Rotterdam, 23 - B-4000 Liège Tel.: +32 (0)4 274 32 31 E-mail: pmaes@aquilonpharma.com http://www.aquilonpharma.com

© Aquilon Pharma

By using cyclodextrin as a new transporter, Aquilon has the ability to develop solutions to improve almost all current treatments for asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases. With a

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SOWALFIN, a unique advice service for Walloon SMEs An interview with Ms Anne VEREECKE, Member of the SOWALFIN Management Committee, General Manager NOVALLIA

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such as FEI and Bpifrance and the takeover of AEI has led us to expand our relations with the employers’ organisations, local development agencies, chambers of commerce etc. which we concert to build our road map. We are also looking to bolster our service-based partnership with players in the neighbouring regions and territories, in particular as regards business transfers.

ould you please tell us about the SOWALFIN's aims?

Created by decree of the Walloon Region in 2002 as a unique funding service for very small enterprises (VSEs) and SMEs, SOWALFIN has been assigned two initial aims: to share the risk with banks via bank credit guarantee and subordinated loan; and the coordination of Walloon investment funds (“Invests”) who make a direct capital contribution or lend money to companies. Since then, SOWALFIN has created several subsidiaries: SOCAMUT (microcredit and microguarantee for the self-employed, the liberal professions and tradespeople), SOFINEX (funding of international activities of enterprises), NOVALLIA (funding of innovation) and SOWACCESS (services platform for business transfers).

© SOWALFIN

Could you please outline the activities of your subsidiary, NOVALLIA? Initially, NOVALLIA offers direct funding (subordinated loans up to €500,000 per project) to accelerate bringing technological and non-technological innovations of Walloon SMEs to market.

This is the “Easy’up” scheme. Among the supported companies, NOVALLIA has funded Axinesis, a UCL spin-off to finalise and market a robotic medical assistant for stroke victims. Since it was created in 2009, NOVALLIA has supported nearly 200 dossiers for a total amount of €45M. Our portfolio is above all made up of VSEs: over half of them were less than 6 years old and 25% were in the creation phase when the intervention took place. The 3 main sectors supported are pharmaceuticals – biotech (22%), ICT (22%) and the mechanical industry (11%).

What financial tools do you offer?

We offer a full range (guarantees, co-financing agreements with banks, direct funding, loans etc.) and it allows us to meet all SME's financing needs over the course of its lifetime. In addition, we have recently expanded our activity to raising company awareness and providing guidance to companies. With the takeover of the Enterprise and Innovation Agency (AEI), we now offer a global package with high quality services and targeted funding.

What partnerships have you developed?

We have signed partnership agreements with all banks present in Wallonia. Régional Investment funds (“Invests”) are of course privileged partners for us, particularly in financial arrangements.

We have also developed partnerships with financial players

© SOWALFIN

In 2017, NOVALLIA expanded its activities to energy transition and the reduction of SME carbon footprint. The financing consists of providing capital funding or loans up to a maximum of €1M per project (and up to €3M in outstanding amounts per SME). A budget of nearly €50M (Wallonia and FEDER co-financing) is available to achieve this. Upstream, it is also a matter of raising awareness among SMEs and providing them with support as companies move towards emitting less CO2. Hence the name “EASY Green”. Are eligible SME investments in energy efficiency, renewable energy production, eco-innovation, reduction of fluorinated gases in refrigeration systems, circular economy projects etc. By way of an example, the company Labo Creation has been retained through Easy’up to take over the activity of a laboratory producing organic cosmetics products. Then, with Easy’green, it has received funding for the installation of solar panels partly to cover its electricity consumption and reinforce its commitment to an eco-responsible process.

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In your opinion, how can regional support to innovation be improved?

Although the Region has already done a lot for innovation, some reflections still need to be made. I am in particular thinking of a way to improve the quality of innovation projects that come to us for a funding request, to strengthen the economic valuation of research and innovation from universities and research centres and the need to fine tune the mechanisms used to support start-ups.

Promoting the growth of Walloon companies An interview with Mr Olivier VANDERIJST, Chairman of the Board of the Regional Investment Company of Wallonia (S.R.I.W.)

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© S.R.I.W. Group

hat are the key figures for the S.R.I.W. Group and the biotech sector in particular?

The S.R.I.W. Group is a platform that invests in different sectors and at various stages of company development. It has 400 companies in its portfolio and the combined value is €2.5 billion.

It combines historical shareholding in large companies (Herstal Group, Sonaca, Ethias Assurances, Prayon etc.) and many minority capital or loan interests. In addition, the S.R.I.W. Group actively supports innovation in biotech and life sciences, an ecosystem that has reached maturity in Wallonia. It invested €150m in life sciences by funding 35 companies and becoming shareholders in 4 investment funds. By contributing 10 to 15% of a roundtable, it helped raise funds of over one billion euros. Thus, in 2018 the Walloon biotech companies raised more than €200m thanks to private investments in existing companies (like Iteos, working in immunotherapy, which raised €62m), quoted companies, newly formed companies such as spin-outs or indeed foreign companies attracted by the Walloon ecosystem like Miracor (cardiac therapy) and Minoryx (orphan diseases). Aside from that, the S.R.I.W. also invests in agrifood and energy transition.

What funding solutions do you offer?

The S.R.I.W. provides customised solutions depending on company requirements: capital injection, subordinated, convertible or participating loans (depending on results) etc. The situation and risk of the company are systematically taken into consideration.

That is how the S.R.I.W. positions itself as a particularly agile partner.

the company UCB active in the treatment of cognitive disorders.

Along with Belgian and foreign investors, it contributed to the formation of the spin-off A-Mansia, active in the area of obesity (20 million raised), Chromacure (20 million raised) and Epics, both active in the treatment of cancer. In addition, the S.R.I.W. funds external growth operations like the purchase of the construction company Ronveaux by the Wanty Group, which led to the creation of a company employing 1,500 people. In 2017 the takeover by Sonaca of the American company LMI Aerospace enabled it to double its turnover from €400m to €800m.

What partnerships have you developed with private investors?

We are very familiar with Belgian and indeed French investment funds. This enables us to introduce them to companies seeking funding. For their part, the biotech companies attract many foreign investment funds (American, Chinese, Japanese, Nordic etc.) as well as local public and private funds. It must be said that the sale in 2017 of the Walloon biotech company Ogeda to the Japanese Group, Astellas Pharma, meant that all the investors multiplied their investment by 15. It also put the Walloon biotechs in the limelight and paved the way for new investors.

How could funding for Walloon SMEs be improved to enable them to grow in size and competitiveness?

I would like to stress that funding is just one of the growth parameters and that it is not the biggest impediment. You must also be able to provide advice, propose independent directors aware of funding mechanisms and introduce companies to a network with investment funds to complete the roundtable and promote growth, external if necessary. In this respect the S.R.I.W. has an educational role to play, that of helping companies to get over their reluctance as regards opening up their capital. If they reduce their control on the shareholding they benefit from increased value maximisation. A strategy that pays!

Could you give us a few examples of projects that have been supported by the S.R.I.W. Group recently ?

The S.R.I.W. was involved in fund raising for quoted companies active in the cell therapy area (Bone therapeutics) and in oncology (Celyad). It has also taken part, alongside international investors, in the funding of Syndesi (20 million raised), a spin-out of 97

The Universities of the “Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles” have a great deal of potential for innovation An interview with Dr Ir Michel MORANT, President of the LIEU Network, Past Vice-President of ASTP Proton Who are the members of the LIEU Network?

The LIEU Network brings together the KTOs of Belgian Frenchspeaking Universities: • Université catholique de Louvain – UCLouvain; • Université libre de Bruxelles – ULB; • University of Liège - ULiège; • University of Namur – Unamur; • University of Mons – UMONS; • Université Saint-Louis – Bruxelles.

© LIEU Network

The LIEU Network works closely with other players for innovation such as SynHERA, PiCarré, Innovatech, Sowalfin, Europe Entreprises Network…

Dr Ir Michel Morant, President of LIEU Network and Dr Ir Olivier Vande Vyver, General Manager of LIEU Network

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ould you remind us of the missions of the LIEU Network?

The “Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles” Universities have a great deal of potential for innovation, which they want to use for the development of the region. This is the aim of KTOs (Knowledge Transfer Offices), also known as interfaces. In 2003, these organisations decided to work together and create the LIEU Network, which is supported by the Walloon Government and the Conference of Rectors.

What partnerships have you developed?

The LIEU Network and academia have a good record of collaboration with the 6 Walloon competitiveness clusters (BioWin, Wagralim, Skywin, Greenwin, MecaTech, Logistics in Wallonia) and works at different levels. When calls for tenders are being launched by the Walloon Government through the clusters, each thematic working group helps the clusters to identify university teams that may be interested.

The LIEU Network also assists them in drawing up projects submitted for public funding and helps them map out regional university research potential. The LIEU Network also helps promoting the results generated by cluster projects and is typically involved in brokerage events organised by the clusters, such as the BioWin Days.

The LIEU Network has four objectives: • to promote the scientific resources of universities and facilitate their access to companies; • to develop research collaborations between companies and research units; • to operate the tech transfer, from scouting inventions to licensing and spin-off creation; • t o support the teams in a continuous process of professionalisation.

It is important that the LIEU Network and the clusters coordinate their efforts to achieve optimal effectiveness.

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Could you introduce the 6 working groups organised by professional sectors of the LIEU Network?

We quickly realised the benefit of organising ourselves into thematic working groups that bring together the scientific

The LIEU workings groups, 6 sectoral gateways dedicated to economic sectors

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for valorisation, commercialisation. This can take different forms: a license agreement or research collaboration with a private company.

advisers from the various institutions according to their field.

The LIEU Network brings together the skills of more than 10,000 researchers in the following areas: agro-food, biotechnology and health, energy and environment, materials, digital technologies, human and social sciences.

Technology offers therefore promote these innovative technologies in a language that has been popularised and adapted to companies. For instance, LTTO (UCLouvain) is proposing a miniaturised device for determining a breathing pattern while ULB highlights novel methods for isolating and enhance cardiovascular cells production. For its part, ULiège is enhancing a new tool to optimise anti-EGFR therapies and UNamur is stressing its knowhow in nanoparticles, drug design, genetics and cell response. And let us not forget neither UMONS’ research potential (with its 10 research institutes), nor the wide offer in agriculture/food, environment, materials and non destructive analyses for instance.

These thematic working groups are actual technology platforms, operational gateways to the labs for companies seeking access to university expertise: they analyse the requests from industry, direct them to the academic teams who are in the best position to handle the technical challenge and assist them in setting up collaborations. These platforms are also platforms to promote new results, new technologies which are available for companies.

Of course, these platforms work in close collaboration with relevant partners, especially the 6 Walloon competitiveness clusters, the 23 industry research centers or sectorial federations in such varied fields as chemistry, electronics, agribusiness, etc.

Could you tell us about your services to the 10,000 researchers of the “Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles”?

A researcher’s primary job is to carry out research, with all this entails in terms of scientific publishing and excellence. With this in mind, it is the responsibility of the LIEU Network and KTOs to mobilise researchers and support their efforts into the innovation process and also to contribute to the regional development.

This mobilisation ranges from awareness-raising actions and

© LIEU Network

What are your technology offers?

The technology offers showcase innovative technologies whose intellectual property has been secured thanks to the support of the scientific advisers and the patent experts of Knowledge Transfer Offices. These technologies are available

Annual report 2017 of LIEU Network

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intellectual property, to research contracts and funding, even though researchers are much more familiar with this than they were 15 years ago.

Responsibility of LIEU members is to help researchers to bring projects from TRL (Technology Readiness Level) 2 to TRL 4 or even TRL 5 to 6. This includes managing IP (Intellectual Property), achieving the proof of concept, looking for relevant partners, setting up agreements, and finally transferring properly the technology to the more suitable partner to get the market. Additionally, the LIEU Network brings some support for promoting the laboratories among companies, using industrial language and standards, instead of pure scientific approach.

How do you assist companies?

Our first area is providing access to university expertise that can meet the needs of companies. This is a considerable task as the knowledge and technologies available are highly diverse. Our second area is the organisation of meetings to match offer and demand.

Finally, our third area is assisting in implementing research collaborations and technology transfers. It is essential that these fundamentally different environments of research and business understand each other and work together in the interest of both sides and regional development.

What are the ways to strengthen the impact of university research on society?

Ampacimon SA: a remote sensor for grid managers Ampacimon is a spin-off company of the Montefiore Institute at the University of Liege. Prof. Lilien used to be a world expert of galloping of electrical conductors and Prof. Destine is a specialist in microelectronics. The ampacity – capacity of current – of a high voltage line depends on the sag of the overhead line, and the sag influences the natural vibration mode.

By developing a remote sensor, clamped on the conductor on the line, based on energy harvesting, digitally connected to a server, the online ampacity can be measured and calculated with accuracy, and the temporary flow of current can be increased by up to 50%, especially when the wind is blowing, and green energy has to be transported. A device has been developed at the university, with several patent filings. Then a proof of concept has been set up on an actual line, with the support of the Belgian grid.

The company was created in July 2010, with a capital of 125.000 €. A first installation of a full system to equip a 400 kV overhead line was delivered in 2015. Today the capital of the company has been increased over 2 M€, and the turnover rises yearly, with 3.6 M€ last fiscal year. The company employs about 24 FTE, and has set up a subsidiary company in the US in 2017.

Today, grid managers have an accurate and reactive tool of direct line rating for managing the electrical grids taking into account the fluctuating production of wind farms and solar farms. www.ampacimon.com

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Fytofend: becoming the world number 1 in elicitors

Bone Therapeutics, world leader in cellular bone therapy

The origin of FytoFend lies in the Plant Cellular and Molecular Biology Research Unit (URBV) of the University of Namur. Its director, Prof. Pierre Van Cutsem, a specialist in the signals triggered in plants by pectin fragments, had the idea of combining these fragments with chitosans taken from the walls of fungal pathogens.

To verify the biological interest of this complex, he contacted the Walloon Region which immediately supported him. At the end of 2006 a patent was issued and in mid-2009 a spin-off was created with Raffael Buonatesta, the current CEO. With the target of becoming the world number 1 in elicitors, the future challenges consist in extending the network of distributors and obtaining approvals in the largest possible number of countries.

Bone Therapeutics is a spin-off of the Université libre de Bruxelles(ULB) which was created in 2006 based on a wide range of research projects carried out at Erasme Hospital (ULB) and Liège CHU. The company focuses on neglected diseases linked to bones such as osteonecrosis.

This disease affects relatively young patients (30-40 years old) whose bones are no longer able to regenerate.

In order to counter the osteonecrosis, Bone Therapeutics uses cellular therapy and it has a vast and diverse portfolio of innovative allogenic cellular therapy solutions that cover a whole range of indications.

Staff: 6 Number of collaborations with the universities: 4 Number of commercial contracts: 16

Since it was founded, Bone Therapeutics has employed a highly qualified team to develop its bone regenerative cellular therapy products. In January 2017, over 100 people were working for Bone Therapeutics, over 30% of whom are at doctoral level. Today it is one of the world leaders in bone cellular therapy.

www.fytofend.com

www.bonetherapeutics.com

What are the salient features of your 2017 activity report?

In 2017, the LIEU Network sensitised 2,917 researchers to calls for projects, intellectual property and valorisation. It also supported 127 patent applications and conducted 1,646 contacts between companies and researchers at meetings it himself organised with its KTOs.

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In addition, the LIEU Network welcomes its 179 announcements and declarations of inventions and the signing of 708 applied research contracts (research agreements, service agreements and others). It can also avail itself of 161 technology transfers and 14 spin-off companies created.

Let us recall that since its creation, the LIEU Network has supported the creation of 223 spin-offs still active today.

20 years of the FIRST-SPIN OFF Program (Namur, March 6, 2018)

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Interdisciplinary cluster of Applied Genoproteomics - GIGA institute Develop health solutions for the benefit of patients

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A research institute in biomedical sciences at ULiège, GIGA brings together researchers from 7 faculties and combines research excellence, cutting-edge technological platforms, training and innovation in the service of health.

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Prof. Michel Georges, director of GIGA

IGA relies on more than 600 researchers who publish close to one article per day in scientific journals, and 9 technology platforms for the scientific community and private companies. It has an annual research budget of 35 to 40 M € and a doctoral degree every ten days.

In the field of in silico medicine, ERC grant holder L. Geris uses mathematical modeling to define optimal conditions for tissue engineering to form bone tissue for grafting purposes. Finally, researchers in medical genomics, under the supervision of M. Georges, study chronic inflammatory bowel diseases in close collaboration with clinicians of the Liège University Hospital.

Eager to remain attractive internationally, GIGA has set up a team to increase the number of ERCs awarded, created a research professor status to attract ERC grant holders, launched an AngloSaxon like doctoral school to recruit the best talents and support its researchers in their valorisation efforts - a process completed by 3 spaces dedicated to companies that accompany them at all stages of development - in partnership with the B2H platform (Bridge2Health).

Four major medical themes mobilize GIGA researchers. In neuroscience, let us mention S. Laureys' group which studies altered states of consciousness in their clinical dimension, C. Schmidt obtained an ERC grant to study the impact of circadian rhythms on the cognitive abilities of elderly people with Alzheimer's disease and L. Nguyen's team discovered the physiopathological mechanisms of microcephaly induced by the zika virus. In the field of cancer, P. Close and A. Chariot recently highlighted a disruption of the coding system of the transcriptome resulting in metastases and resistance to treatments in the frame of melanoma. On the front of infection - inflammation - immunity related pathologies, the team of F. Bureau and T. Marichal, holder of an ERC Grant, identified a new population of interstitial lung macrophages in asthma and showed that they act as mediators in the disruption of the immune system due to overprotection against many antigens, hence the increased incidence of inflammatory respiratory diseases. In the cardiovascular field, P. Lancellotti's ERC grant targets the development of artificial valves with the addition of organic substances in order to protect the grafts from damage.

This work has already led to a modification of graft properties and the discovery of new classes of very potent antibiotics.

© GIGA

© GIGA

These initiatives should not overshadow the necessary political will to support cutting-edge research, a prerequisite for unlocking applications with a high economic impact. In the meantime, GIGA stands out by creating an environment conducive to the expression of talents and anticipates the impact of artificial intelligence on medical practices by collecting as much data as possible to develop clinical decision support tools.

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GIGA CHU - B34 Quartier Hôpital Avenue de l’Hopital, 11 - B-4000 Liège Tel.: +32 (0)4 366 41 58 E-mail: info.giga@uliege.be http://www.giga.uliege.be

Center for Education and Research on Macromolecules – CERM Polymers to serve coatings, biomaterials and energy As an integral part of CESAM (Complex and Entangled Systems from Atoms to Materials) and of the department of chemistry of the University of Liège, the CERM develops proven expertise thanks to its academic strength, its three permanent FNRS researchers, its three senior scientists, its two post-doc researchers, its fourteen postgraduates and four technicians and administrators.

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ith its twelve nationalities, the CERM produces some thirty-five publications and two patent registrations per year. It specializes in the synthesis of polymer materials along two main lines: the development of innovative materials (controlled radical polymerization, ring-opening polymerization); the development of polymer chemistry more respectful of the environment based on the supercritical CO2 – with a unique platform in Europe that allows synthesis, implementation, foaming process, extraction and polymer impregnation in the sector of functional coatings, biomaterials and energy.

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The CERM enjoys a wide range of research partnerships, starting at European level with the INTERREG BioMIMedics project (development of biodegradable innovative biomaterials for biomedical applications). It is also very active in the field of heart valves.

In this context, it participates in the ERC “PV-Coat” European project on the coating of heart valves and in the INTERREG PolyValve project targeting the development of new materials for heart valves. It is also involved in a new project, “Inflow” that is devoted to the development of biodegradable materials and formulations for food, pharmaceutical and biomedical applications.

In addition, the CERM cooperates with various Belgian universities, especially through its participation in the EOS programme via the fundamental research project “Bio-based Factory”, which started in 2018 and focuses on the development of a sustainable chemistry from lignin.

200-milliliter and 50-liter reactors allowing the use of supercritical CO2 for synthesis, impregnation or foaming of polymer or composite materials

Incidentally, the CERM initiated startups such as EyeD Pharma, based on the development of drug-eluting implants for ocular pathologies.

The CERM currently remains involved in seven collaborative research projects, two of which concentrate on the development of a new kind of chemistry to synthesize polyurethanes from carbonates, obtained from and with a lower degree of toxicity on the environment, in comparison to the molecules used at present. The CERM also involves itself in projects related to the implementation of biomaterials which have already passed clinical tests, as well as the development of new processing methods such as electrospinning, to design scaffolds stimulating cellular regeneration or various medical implants. Finally, the CERM goes into greater depth on the green technology of supercritical CO2 to design sterile medical devices (suture threads or implants) with anti-inflammatory properties.

The CERM can capitalize on important industrial partnerships with Solvay, Solvin, ArcelorMittal, Saint-Gobain, UCB, Dupont, Bayer, and a great number of SMEs. Particularly, the CERM co-conceived a patent intended for the development of a biomedical implant eluting a contraceptive agent (the patent is being exploited by Mithra), it ensured the reparation of one of the components of intraocular yellow lenses produced by PhysIOL, develops new hydrogel-based medical devices for Dermax and elaborates new trends for future products on the basis of patents against royalties.

© CERM

Doubtless, the CERM stands well equipped and ready to address the five major challenges which confront it. From developing synthesis techniques to implementing greener processes (organocatalysts, solvent-free processes, chemical reactions based on atom economy), to help advance chemistry, and develop polymer materials for energy or multifunctional coatings with aqueous processes or without solvents, or develop competitive biomaterials, the CERM seizes upon any opportunity to deepen and make relevant its expertise.

Electrospun biodegradable scaffold combining high porosity and mechanical strength for tissue engineering

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Center for Education and Research on Macromolecules (CERM) - Université de Liège (ULg) Institut de Chimie (B6a) Agora, Allée du 6 Août, 13 B-4000 Liège Tel: +32 (0)4 366 34 91 Fax: +32 (0)4 366 34 97 Email: c.jerome@uliege.be http://www.cerm.uliege.be/

Center for Interdisciplinary Research on Medicines - CIRM Your partner in drug development The CIRM is an academic research center running fundamental, applied and clinical researches covering all aspects of drug development from the conception, formulation, in vitro and in vivo evaluations to clinical biology in accredited quality environment at all stages. The results of their researches provide improved/novel healthcare options that will benefit to local and international companies and hospitals.

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s a multidisciplinary Research Unit, the CIRM relies upon 114 researchers (among whose 51 PhD students and 16 post-docs) led by 23 Principal Investigators (PI) belonging to 11 laboratories and 1 quality system unit. Most of CIRM members, who are dealing with research and teaching activities, as well as clinical or service provision activities, join hands in order to develop and maintain cutting-edge, fundamental and/or applied research in the field of drugs.

The CIRM can take advantage of 3 major assets. The first one is quality policy, which is unique among European universities.

In order to meet the requirements increasingly stringent by stakeholders and internationally recognized criteria in monitoring “quality” of its activities, CIRM decided to implement a quality approach based on the principles set out by different organisms (OCDE – European Commission – ISO) depending on specific activities (drug development, drug analysis, preclinical analysis, clinical biology, …). The aim is to enhance the systematic research and use of best preventive practices at all levels and ensure reliable risk management in order to ensure the smooth transfer of technology from research to industrial or clinical environment. The CIRM’s 4 analytical platforms (MaS-, NMR-, ViBra-, ScF-Santé Hubs) in quality systems (GMP, IMP, GLP, GCP, ISO, WHO), together with one platform

© CIRM

© CIRM

Four main research fields answering to actual pharmaceutical and clinical needs have been identified: target and lead discovery (from the discovery and validation of new drug targets to the synthesis or extraction of novel pharmacologically active small molecules, development of biologics, their characterization, quality control, formulation and in vitro testing); biopharmaceutic(al)s (towards a better bioavailability of drugs, focusing on BCS2 and BCS4 drugs, proteins, siRNA, and a better-quality control of biopharmaceuticals, including virus like-particles – vaccines); nanomedicine (targeted drugdelivery systems as liposomes and other nanoparticles: from formulation and characterization to in vitro and in vivo testing, quality controls, pharmacokinetic and toxicological studies); and personalized medicine (towards personalized pharmaceutical care, better diagnostic, prognostic and patient follow-up using new holistic approaches such as metabolomics, proteomics and a combination of various analytical tools).

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© CIRM

the design of chemical measurement methods (method selection). The availability of a rational and algorithmic approach allowing to harness the full separation power of multi-dimensional separations, without first having to spend weeks to find the best combination, will save huge amounts of time (and hence money) in all academic and industrial labs mining the content of (bio-) chemical mixtures.

for cell culture and drug screening, help support industries or spin-offs in their R&D activities: linked to a GMP environment, they offer emerging innovation with the ability to be quickly valued by these companies in the pharmaceutical sector.

Biomarker (BM) discovery is another major thematic at CIRM in collaboration with CHU of Liège and the GIGA research unit.

The main objectives of this project are the use of “omics approaches” (proteomics and metabolomics) for the development of rational decision-making tools for clinicians that consider the treatment, the pathology and obviously the patients in selected pathologies; the follow-up and the personalization of patient treatments; and the development of new diagnostics tools.

In the framework of the study of new drug targets, a center of interest of the Medicinal Chemistry group at CIRM is the design of ligands for the glutamate receptors. Hence, positive allosteric modulators for AMPA and kainate receptors are currently designed (F.R.S.-FNRS funding) thanks to a collaboration with the Biostructural Research group from the Dpt of Drug Design & Pharmacology at the University of Copenhagen as well as with the Dpt of Molecular Medicine from the Cornell University, Ithaca NY. The collected data help to obtain a detailed understanding of the molecular mechanism underlying the way glutamate receptors may be potentiated. Another class of compounds currently investigated are kainate antagonists.

Such ligands are expected to be of therapeutic interest against temporal lobe epilepsy (ERA-NET NEURON/ F.R.S.-FNRS funding, collaboration with the CNRS UMR5297, Bordeaux University, the INSERM UMR901 at the Aix-Marseille University and the Heidelberg University Hospital).

The second asset lies in the CIRM’s proximity to the CHU of Liège. For several years, effective collaborations have been established with clinical units of the CHU of Liège in order to lead to translational research activities and also to group together skills and expertise from ULiège and CHU of Liège.

Eventually, the CIRM has developed scientific collaborations with well-known international research laboratories all over Europe but also with Africa (17), North America (17), Asia (5) and South America (7). Moreover, the collaborations of CIRM members with industries concern mainly health and biotechnologies, but also more and more services for hospitals, external university laboratories and R&D laboratories of start-up and spin-off.

Among ongoing research projects at CIRM is the FEDER PHARE project portfolio (a collaboration with Sirris, Multitel, and UNamur): its main objective is to meet the needs expressed by the Walloon pharmaceutical industry, namely the creation of an interdisciplinary platform with expertise in drug formulation and pharmacotechnics as well as pharmaceutical analysis. This platform will support industries in their R & D process and be linked to a GMP environment. The various research projects in this portfolio are based on four pillars: NANOPHARE (drug administration via the development of nano vectors), SOLPHARE (valorization of active molecules existing in the portfolios of pharmaceutical companies through the development of new formulations capable of improving their effectiveness), SMALLPHARE (development of a platform of expertise and microfluidic technologies aimed at performing pharmacokinetic studies in mice) and FAKEPHARE (creation of the first Walloon platform dedicated to the fight against falsification of drugs).

Thanks to its level of excellence, the CIRM is well positioned to meet the main challenge looming ahead: to find more effective drugs with fewer side effects and give them to patients in a more appropriate way (precision medicines). This requires a high level of expertise and advanced, expensive technologies. This also requires a finer diagnosis, better monitoring of patients and therapeutic molecules that better target the pathology.

Another research project involving CIRM members is ChIMiC EOS (Excellence of Science, FNRS) in collaboration with the Catholic University of Leuven, Free University of Brussels, Ghent University and the University of Liège. The ChIMiC project focuses on Mining Chemical Data in Complex Samples.

In pursuit of more robust and precise chemical identification measurements, it will develop a powerful decision-supporting software tool (autonomously functioning expert system) for

Center for Interdisciplinary Research on Medicines - CIRM University of Liège - Department of Pharmacy Quartier Hopital | B36 Tower 4 Avenue Hippocrate 15 - B-4000 Liege Tel.: +32 (0)4 366 43 45 Email: marianne.fillet@uliege.be http://www.cirm.uliege.be 105

Liège Space Centre – CSL Developing space technologies A research centre operated by the University of Liège, Liège Space Centre (CSL) employs 100 people and leads almost 60 projects for an annual turnover figure of €13M. It has the advantage of being a non-profit organisation, which means that it gets 100% funding from industrial contracts and R&D collaborations.

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bulb defined by the lines of force of the Earth’s magnetic field.

The focus will be on the equatorial regions and the high altitudes in the North. In the latter case, the particles are diverted and led by the lines of force of the magnetic field. They then come into interaction with the Earth’s atmosphere, at a lot lower altitude, thereby creating the phenomenon of northern lights or auroras.

ounded in 1959 as part of the Astrophysics Department of the University of Liege, the CSL owes its existence to its forerunner, the ESA, which wanted to have tests carried out and scientific optical instruments calibrated. Its reputation soon gained momentum and it became, from 1976, the chief centre for tests coordinated by the ESA. All scientific optical satellites must pass through the CSL, which tests their spatial qualification. These tests are carried out, specifically, in very large vacuum tanks that can reach 6.5 m. A large number of industries have already called on them, such as Thales Alenia Space, OHB and Airbus.

SMILE incorporates 4 instruments. The CSL is involved in one of them: UVI (UltraViolet Imager) is being built under the responsibility of the University of Calgary and the Canadian Space Agency. This instrument will observe the polar auroras in ultraviolet (between 155 nm and 175 nm). The production of this instrument is in keeping with the continuity of UV instruments developed at the CSL such as the SI (Spectro-Imager) of the IMAGE (NASA) mission and the FUV (Far UV Spectro-Imager) of the ICON (NASA) mission, both being carried by the University of Berkeley (California). For SMILE-UVI, the CSL is involved in optical design, interferential coatings of mirrors, the development of ground support equipment for vacuum calibration and environmental thermal tests.

As well as these tests, the CSL designs optical instruments for use in space for the ESA and NASA with the support of the BELSPO. It also develops thermal, mechanical and electronic engineering expertise in conjunction with the manufacture of these instruments. Finally, the CSL forms technological partnerships for R&D projects with Walloon and European industries as well as with research centres. The aim of these upstream research projects is the development of technologies that can be used in space.

The CSL is involved in several scientific space missions.

The SMILE (Solar wind Magnetosphere Ionosphere Link Explorer) mission is a S-1 mission of the European scientific programme Cosmic Vision. It is set to be launched in 2022.

This mission is unique since it is a joint mission between the ESA and the CAS (Chinese Academia of Science).

© Liège Space Centre

© Liège Space Centre

The goal of this mission is to study the interactions between the solar wind and the Earth’s magnetosphere - within the framework of space meteorology. In particular, it will observe the phenomena that take place when solar wind particles meet the

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Centre spatial de Liège Université de Liège Liège Science Park Avenue du Pré B-4031 Angleur Tel.: +32 (0)4 382 46 00 - Fax: +32 (0)4 367 56 13 Email: shabraken@uliege.be - http:// www.csl.uliege.be

Higher College of the Province of Liège - HEPL An adaptive training course and cutting-edge applied research With over 9,000 students (including 70 to 100 foreign students every year), twelve sites, nearly 2,000 graduates on each graduation day, twelve research projects in progress and as many researchers, and lying behind the first Higher College spin-off in the Walloon Region, the HEPL offers 54 courses (33 bachelor, 7 masters and 14 specialisations).

A “college in the city” which, by combining theory and practice, immediately immerses its students in the real life framework of their professional future.

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© HEPL

he HEPL’s offer of courses covers a very wide range of fields: agronomy, environment, sustainable development, construction, economics, education, IT, paramedics, social etc. The initial vocational training is constantly adapted to the evolution of the sciences and of technology. The courses include a long-term placement and even several placements spread out over the duration of the course. Just as responsive and adaptable, continuous training is initiated by the players on the ground and the demands of the socio-economic fabric. So as to be able to better meet these needs, the Province of Liège and its Higher College have created the FORMA+ Centre with the support of the ESF (European Social Fund) and multiple partners, a “one-stop shop” to facilitate the organisation of ongoing higher education courses.

Specifically, the offer of courses in the paramedical field is huge, ranging from bachelors and masters to years of specialisation: 9 bachelors (Nurse in charge of General Care, Midwife, Medical Laboratory Technologist, Medical Imaging Technologist, Dietician, Ergotherapy, Speech Therapist, Orthoptics, Psychomotor Education); masters in Occupational Therapy; and 11 specialisations (Medical and Pharmaceutical Biotechnologies, Sporting Dietician, Education and Re-education of Sensory Impairments, Oncology, Paediatrics and Neonatalogy, Community Health, Mental and Psychiatric Health, Intensive Care and Emergency Medical Aid, Peri-operative Care, Anaesthesia, Operative Assistance and Instrumentation, Interdisciplinary Specialisation in Geriatrics and Psychogeriatrics, Interdisciplinary Specialisation in Radiotherapy). These courses lead to a professional certification provided the legislation allows it. The paramedical category thus has over 4,000 students spread over 3 sites.

Anaïs Vezzu, researcher within the MITOPLUS group

Alongside the course aspect, applied research is essential to the development of the Higher College. It is broken down into four main lines: biotechnology; electronics, microelectronics and IT; energy and the environment; image, control and aeronautics. In the field of biotechnologies, the HEPL has developed several projects, including MITOPLUS with the industrial partner AMPLYCELL (a spin-off created at the start of a research project conducted at the HEPL). This FIRST Haute Ecole project aims to study modifications in the volume of chondriome with a view to establishing a predictive correlation between this and the production of a protein of interest by animal and human cells.

© shellecomarathon

After having experienced the transformation from the bachelor’s in Nursing Care to the bachelor’s in Nurse in charge of General Care to meet European requirements (a transition of 3 to 4 years), the Higher College is currently working on the project for switching into a co-diploma, with the university of Liège, for its masters in Occupational Therapy. It is also looking into the possible evolution of the course in speech therapy, in response to possible modifications of the legal framework. These changes in its offer will make it possible - in the short or medium term - to meet federal and/or European requirements whilst keeping in mind the need for the education that characterises it: combining theory and practice!

The EcoMOTION prototype and its team at the Shell Eco Marathon in London

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Haute Ecole de la Province de Liège (HEPL) Av. Montesquieu 6 - B-4101 Jemeppe Tel.: +32 (0)4 279.55.20 E-mail: hepl@provincedeliege.be - http://www.hepl.be

HELMo Gramme © HELMo Gramme

Developing applied research in collaboration with university departments An interview with Mr Juan HERRERA, Director of HELMo Gramme

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And let us not forget the projects financed par HELMo itself.

H-Cover targets the design and development of a heating glove for cyclists, Home + concerns the modeling of buildings for the definition of acceptable energy strategies, H-Essential focuses on the extraction of essential oils from products and VIE seeks to develop a smart and ergonomic suitcase to facilitate the intervention of emergency personnel at accident sites.

hat are HELMo Gramme’s key figures?

HELMo Gramme welcomes some 630 students, divided in two cycles, and totals some sixty to seventy graduates per year.

Moreover, it builds on forty FTEs and about a hundred teachers.

Would you briefly describe your training offer?

As part of the technical division of the HELMo University College in Liege, HELMo Gramme organizes a three-year, transitional Bachelor’s Degree in industrial science, and a two-year Masters in industrial engineering science with two orientations: industry and sustainable power engineering, in collaboration with ULiège. In addition, HELMo Gramme organizes, in coordination with ULiège HEC, a Masters named “Industrial & Business Engineering” whose graduates obtain two qualifications: that of industrial engineer, and that of managing engineer. Our training courses build on five major points: versatility with a special focus on soft skills; industrial firms’ awareness of our reputation; the EUR-ACE labelling following the receipt of the CTI certification (the French Commission des titres d’ingénieur) by our graduate engineers; and the many learning courses per project which contribute to the development of skills appreciated by companies.

© HELMo Gramme

What partnerships did you develop with industrialists?

In the second training year, we organize visits to industries; in the third year, we plan six-week immersion courses; in the fourth year, we organize technical visits and cultural tours abroad; and, finally, in the last year, we monitor thirteen-week professional internships which lead to an end-ofstudies work. We have also established an advisory board of ten industrialists, which will have an active role in the governance of the school. Finally, we organize company forums in which some fifty engineers, mostly graduates from HELMo Gramme, convene to talk to third-year undergraduates about their experiences in the industry. Lastly, I mention that we have a database of some hundred enterprises that openly welcome our trainees.

Would you give us a brief overview of your applied research activities?

HELMo’s CRIG (Centre de Recherches des Instituts Groupés) defined seven key strengths: optimization, numerical simulation and calculations; mecatronics; measurements and data processing; manufacturing processes; programming; materials chemistry; and medical biotechnologies. Currently, HELMo undertakes three FIRST Haute Ecole projects. MOPI aims to develop a probe for continuous monitoring of organic pollutants from petroleum products in groundwater. MIBREAST focuses on the creation of a biological implantable matrix for the autologous reconstruction of fatty transfer by induction of angiogenesis. And OPTHYBRIDE targets the development of a digital design chain through a computer tool combining a genetic algorithm and a finite element analysis software.

Which are the main challenges that industrial engineers will meet in the future years?

I can identify three challenges: further develop collaborations with engineering schools internationally; develop applied research in collaboration with university departments (ULiège); and sustain the quality approach by consolidating the obtaining of CTI accreditation in 2019.

Besides HELMo is taking part in two FIRST Enterprise projects.

The first project focuses on the design of high-performance modules for the characterization of oil intrusion, while the second focuses on achieving advances in the field of turbines. Two Interreg projects also mobilize HELMo’s researchers. ROLLING-SOLAR aims to develop and promote organic photovoltaics in the Upper-Rhine region thanks to the use of modules on thin and flexible layers in road infrastructures; THE (for Technology in Healthcare Education) is the subject of a collaboration with medical centers.

HELMo Gramme Quai du Condroz, 28 - B-4031 Angleur Tel.: +32 (0)4 340 34 30 - Fax: +32 (0)4 343 30 28 Email: gramme@helmo.be https://www.helmo.be/gramme 109

SynHERA, the effectiveness of a network… also in Brussels-Capital Region structured in a different way, so it is not enough to meet a University College to understand the structure of its entire research landscape. Fortunately, the scientific advisers in Brussels can count on the support of the Namur division to introduce them into many University Colleges.

Nearly 20 years after its creation, SynHERA broadened its field of action by intensifying its presence in the Brussels-Capital Region.

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inking 19 University Colleges of the FWB and their 10 associated Research Centres, the SynHERA network brings together researchers from all walks of teaching (agronomic, applied arts, economic, paramedical, educational, social and technical). This represents as many as 800 researchers working in 124 locations.

2. I mplement links between University Colleges and Research centres on one hand, between Innoviris and the RBC Innovation Ecosystem on the other. To facilitate this process, the scientific advisers maintain privileged contacts with Innoviris in order to better appropriate the project call financed by the structure and thus be able to best supervise the companies and the University Colleges concerned. SynHERA also strives to integrate as much as possible in the innovation landscape by meeting and developing partnerships with Clusters, Authorized Research Centers, Hub.Brussels, university KTO, ... The ultimate goal is to promote the emergence of collaborations between these organizations and RBC University Colleges and their Research Centres.

The presence of SynHERA within the regional socio-economic sector was, until recently, mainly developed in Wallonia. But since May 2018, SynHERA has been stepping up its activities in the Brussels-Capital Region (RBC) in partnership with Innoviris (the Innovation Agency in Brussels) and opens a new operating office in the Brussels ICAB public incubator.

The objective is to amplify University Colleges - Business partnerships with an economic or social purpose, to meet the needs of the socio-economic sector of the RBC in terms of research, development and innovation while facilitating the transfer of knowledge of University Colleges and their associated Research Centres to RBC companies and associations.

3. C arry out a cadastre of the companies and associations potentially partners of the University Colleges and Research centres in RBC, according to the research themes supported

by Innoviris and according to their expertise.

Three major missions to start

The approach of the Brussels socio-economic sector is under way. The presence of the Brussels cell within the ICAB incubator makes it possible to apprehend start-ups and entrepreneurs in the field of new technologies and IT. In addition, SynHERA has recently joined a number of different Brussels clusters (such as Lifetech, Software, Hospitality, etc.), which will encourage closer links / synergies between our University Colleges and innovative companies and associations in Brussels. Finally, participation in “corporate” events, such as the Brussels Starters Network, also reveals many companies interested in partnerships with innovation and applied research actors.

To begin its insertion in the Brussels landscape of research, the first missions of SynHERA are: 1. Update and formalize a mapping of skills and expertise in research and innovation of the 8 University Colleges and 4 Research Centres present in this territory. The task is not easy given the multitude of locations. Indeed, the same University College sometimes has 5 or 6 different locations with, each time, different speakers. In addition, each institution is

Support from A to Z

© SynHERA - Kit Starter 2018

In order to achieve its aim of promoting and supporting research in University Colleges, SynHERA helps its partners (researchers/ promoters and companies) right through all the phases of a research project, that is from the drafting of an appraisal to the valorization of the results.

Training “Kit Starter” with young researchers

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1. Appraisal This step consists in thoroughly understanding the needs of the partners in order to guide them in their development and innovation process. In the case of research, innovation or development needs of an external beneficiary, SynHERA can, once the need for research is fully assimilated and analyzed, disseminate a search for skills within its network of University Colleges and their associated Research centres, find the most appropriate financial help, or help set up a partnership.

In this context, SynHERA has developed since several years, a database “Appels à projets” grouping a non-exhaustive list of

© citydev.brussels (S.D.R.B. – G.O.M.B.)

Building of the Brussels ICAB public incubator

The training component developed by SynHERA aims to professionalize the research profession and to promote high quality scientific research within University Colleges.

calls in progress. This platform is the result of a daily monitoring work carried out by the scientific advisers.

2. Project management The management of the research projects carried out by the scientific advisers of SynHERA includes the search for partners, support with prior rights search, help with the construction of the valuation scheme and overall monitoring of the project if it is accepted by the subsidising authorities.

5. Exploitation The valorization of results is essential as it constitutes the completion of any research procedure by enabling the sharing of academic learning with the socio-economic environment. This can take the form of a company obtaining a licence exploitation of a patent held by the University Colleges, the sharing of knowledge through publications etc.

3. Legal support Legal support may be provided at all stages of the research project, whether for project management (non disclosure agreements, collaboration agreements, ...), when monitoring projects and the detection of results of interest (protection of IP) or at the time of valorization (license agreements).

As this phase is not always easy to implement, SynHERA supports its partners throughout the process, especially in negotiating the licence conditions and in defining the appropriate legal terms in the case of a licence purchase.

4. Training It is not always easy to successfully complete a project and there are often obstacles and queries that arise during the course of the experiment. With this in mind, SynHERA has been distributing training modules (called “KIT Starter”) since 2014 intended to steer any young researcher through their research project. This may be to identify the calls for projects depending on their centres of interest, to structure their internal or external communication, or indeed to learn more about intellectual property and valorization.

ISO 9001 certification The various actions listed above show the tasks of SynHERA which are: - supporting the University Colleges and their associated Research Centres in the development of their research activities; - strengthening the visibility of their scientific skills; - exploiting their research results; - integrating them into the networks of the innovation players; - representing all University Colleges with the various public players.

2018 saw the birth of ProPulse, a cycle of “Research Training” modules. This training provided by teacher-researchers from the University Colleges of the Wallonia-Brussels Federation aims to train teachers from the University Colleges in the research professionalisation. Five modules, à la carte, are proposed to apprehend concepts as complex as the methodology of research or valorization.

These different tasks carried out by the team in a professional way through clear and structured processes have enabled SynHERA to obtain ISO 9001- 2015 certification, thereby maintaining the satisfaction of its partners at the core of its business.

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Logistics in Wallonia: Reconciling economic performance and environmental footprint in the logistics sector An interview with Mr Bernard PIETTE, General Manager of the Logistics in Wallonia competitive cluster

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Moreover, the strategic areas of activity of the projects bearing the label have been redefined around 4 sub-areas, which are sustainable logistics and mobility; smart and efficient modes of transport (in particular rail travel); Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) which can be understood as the addition of IT systems to infrastructures to allow them to transmit the information used by private or public players to offer services in the area of mobility. This acquires its meaning with the future prospect of the arrival and deployment of driverless cars; efficient production and logistics processes. © Logistics in Wallonia

hat are the key figures for Logistics in Wallonia?

The cluster had 346 members at the end of 2018. In addition, it gave its label to 29 projects: 24 in research and 5 in training.

These projects had a combined budget of de €93.7M, €67.7M in public funding, and involved 85 different players.

Could you please tell us about the vision, goal and strategy of the cluster?

The goal of the cluster is to bolster and sustain the logistics appeal of Wallonia.

Thanks to its network of professionals, it provides support to its members on questions linked to the markets, products and technologies, both in Belgium and internationally. Its service offer is built around 5 strategic axes: innovation, business community, management and development of human capital, international, marketing & communication.

Could you tell us about the members of the cluster?

Our members reflect the high degree of diversity in our field of activity: logistics providers (road or river hauliers, warehousing companies, customs clearance specialists etc.) represent a little under 40%, technological solution suppliers (IT, equipment) 20% and industrial companies 5% (a level that we are looking to increase). Added to this are consultants, infrastructure managers, training and research bodies etc.

What are the prominent features of the cluster’s 2017 activity report?

We have continued the labelling of projects and injected life into our network of members to meet funding constraints. What is more, we have set up a support unit within the framework of the introduction of the toll; more on this later.

© SPW – PAL

In collaboration with Liege Airport and AWEX, we have launched an EU-China Logistics Incubator aimed at Chinese companies who want to create a logistics activity in Wallonia.

This scheme is led by a Chinese national who has been a resident of Belgium for 10 years and welcomes project promoters in their own language. Since the start of 2018, five companies have already been created and two additional ones are currently being created. In addition, Alibaba, the planet's leading e-trader, is to open a European distribution centre in Liège.

Cereal loading

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It has to be said that Logistics in Wallonia has been highly active in China for several years: it attended the China International Logistics Fair in Shenzhen in October 2018 alongside the ports of Antwerp and Zeebrugge. Cooperation agreements have also been signed with Chinese Crossborder E-commerce associations.

Thanks to these agreements, the associations have decided to open representation offices in Wallonia. Lastly, we are involved in the “One Belt One Road” project from the Chinese Government.

Indeed, we have welcomed to Wallonia the first Chinese train of containers which arrived at the end of 2018 from Zhengzhou.

Š Euroports Inland Terminals

by increasing that dedicated to rail and river (for that matter, the Walloon Government intends to increase the share of rail transport from 4 to 7%); anticipate the rise in volumes transported in Europe and organise a modal shift to avoid road congestion becoming any worse.

The Walloon Government has tasked Logistics in Wallonia with the establishment of a support unit to assist all Walloon companies in optimising their logistics processes. What services do you offer within this framework?

The three regional governments introduced a toll for heavy goods vehicles weighing over 3.5 tons on 1 April 2016. To offset its impact on businesses, the Walloon Government has allocated â‚Ź23M to a series of support measures; one of them is the creation of a 6-person unit tasked with the performance of free logistics audits to optimize processes. These are two-day audits that lead to the drafting of a report with recommendations: the audited company can be referred to a consultancy for example. In all cases, it is not a question of competing with the private sector. Six months after the submission of the report, the audited company is contacted again to check that the advice provided has been implemented and to identify any possible stumbling blocks to be dealt with.

What are the major trends uncovered by the half-yearly report of the Logistics in Wallonia Employment Observatory?

2,589 job offers were analysed in 2017, which represents an all-time record. And over 9,000 job offers have been analysed since 1 January 2012. This analysis has revealed a genuine shortage of jobs in the logistics profession. The situation is especially tense for truck drivers with a view to local distribution in Belgium, and also for logistics managers. Moreover, it should be noted that only 25% of job offers come from logistics companies, with the others coming from companies active in the food processing sector, wholesale distribution and public services – starting with hospitals which need to optimise management of their flows.

Since its creation, the support unit has been multiplying the initiatives to get itself known and has already performed nearly 100 audits, essentially with industrial SMEs. In doing this, it made an observation: the skills of these SMEs in the area of logistics and supply chain are very limited and even non-existent. It is therefore possible to support them by going into more depth with logistics optimisation advice.

This workforce shortage can be explained by a number of factors.

With compulsory national service coming to an end in Belgium in 1995, a valuable opportunity to sign up to heavy vehicle training has disappeared. And with an average age of over 45, the matter of renewing the workforce is key. Lastly, it has to be recognised that the sector has quite a bad brand image: it is often reduced to road transport in the perception of students who are not falling over themselves to sign up to the dedicated courses in the colleges of higher education.

As environmental pressure is increasing, companies today are faced with a twofold logistics challenge: to reduce the modal share of road transport (which fluctuates between 70 and 80%) 113

There is another trend to report: the very high demand for minimum bachelor level qualifications, i.e. baccalaureate +3, which goes hand in hand with reduced requirements to take years of experience into account. Some recruiters are now contenting themselves with one year’s experience or less.

© Logistics in Wallonia

Last July, Belgium regained 3rd place on the World Bank’s Logistics Performance Index (LPI). To what factors do you attribute this good result?

Firstly, let’s remember that the LPI is an interactive comparative analysis tool created to assist countries in identifying the challenges and opportunities that face them in their performances with regard to logistics and paths for improvement for these performances. It is based on 6 criteria, which are “Customs”: the effectiveness of customs and customs clearance at the border; “Infrastructure”: quality of transport infrastructure; “Ease of arranging shipments”: ease of organising shipments at competitive prices; “Quality of logistics services”: skill and quality of logistics such as road transport, shipping and customs agencies; Tracking and tracing”: possibility of managing traceability of shipping; and “Timeliness”: the frequency with which shipments reach their recipients within the intended lead times.

- this is the result of a great deal of progress being made since 2007, with 2016 marking a year of slowdown. With regard to the six criteria of the index, we are top of the world rankings for the criteria “Ease of arranging shipments” and “Timeliness”, in 2nd position for the criterion ”Quality of logistics services” and in 9th position for the criterion “Tracking and tracing”. On the other hand, our score is a little poorer for the criteria “Customs” and “Infrastructure” as we occupy 14th position for both these criteria.

Globally these results reflect the excellent performance of the global logistics system our country enjoys.

The 2018 edition allowed for the establishment of comparisons between 168 countries and the Top 10 is made up as follows: Germany, Sweden, Belgium, Austria, Japan, the Netherlands, Singapore, Denmark, the United Kingdom and Finland. For its part, in 2018 Belgium regained the position it occupied in 2014

In passing, I would also like to mention the new survey by the National Bank of Belgium published in August 2018. Faced with the crisis of 2008-2009, the increasing of competitive pressure from Central and Eastern Europe and the e-commerce boom, the logistics sector has been defined in the strict sense: it more precisely encompasses the professional transport of goods and auxiliary transport services. In 2015, the logistics sector generated added value of 11.9 billion Euro, thereby making a 2.9% contribution to GDP. For the same year, indirect added value was estimated at 6.9 billion Euro, i.e. 1.7 % of GDP. Total impact, i.e. the sum of direct and indirect effects, amounts to 18.8 billion Euro or 4.6% of GDP, as opposed to 4.9% in 2010.

In 2015, the logistics sector contained some 134,000 full-time equivalent posts (FTE), which represented 3.3% of total domestic employment expressed in full-time equivalent. It is estimated that the jobs created by the sector with Belgian subcontractors represented over 83,000 FTE, i.e. 2.1% of domestic employment.

Overall, the importance of the logistics sector with regard to employment is evaluated at nearly 218,000 FTE, or 5.4% of total domestic employment (5.7% in 2010).

© Logistics in Wallonia

That said, if we were to stretch the sector in the strict sense to in-house logistics and the (secondary) logistics activities offered on the market by other sectors, the economic impact achieved in 2015 could be over 50% higher. 7.6% of GDP and 8.0% of domestic employment could have found their origin in logistics activities in the broad sense in 2015.

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Could you give us a few examples of projects set up with the cluster's assistance?

I would like to name two projects that were given the label in 2018.

MAPIU applies Internet of Things technology to develop a wireless and battery-free system that recovers the energy generated by vibrations to power the goods traceability sensors. The data thereby produced are managed by the Cloud and made available to

© Logistics in Wallonia

will combine the company visits with involvement in the Transport Logistic trade show in Munich which is held every two years. We will also go to the China International Logistics Fair in Shenzhen again to continue to develop contacts with Chinese logistics professionals.

What events do you plan to organise in 2019?

Traditionally the life of the cluster is paced by two large annual events: the General Assembly in June and the Innovation Pitch which was held on 29 November 2018. This new edition allowed us to show our desire to improve project generation. In 2019 we

In your opinion, what are the main challenges that Walloon logistics players will have to face in the next few years?

Without any doubt, the main challenge is the management of information: businesses must be able to process an ever increasing flow of data whilst managing the pressure represented by increasingly demanding requirements in the area of environmental impact – in this regard, the Walloon Government has been very clear. It is therefore a matter of striking the right balance between economic development (Wallonia is faced with unemployment exceeding 20% in some areas) and the minimisation of its environmental impact.

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the user via a user-friendly interface. For its part, RADIANT + is a project that shares a label with the MecaTech cluster. Centred on the smart management of road traffic, it concerns the development of radar imaging for vehicle counting, speed measurement, vehicle classification etc.

Liege Airport

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That is the reason why we would like to increase the scale of the Lean & Green programme: launched in 2008 in the Netherlands, its aim is to demonstrate the capacity and desire of companies to optimise both their economic performances and their environmental footprint. The target is to reduce CO2 emissions from transport and logistics activities by at least 20% over a maximum period of 5 years. With this in mind, Logistics in Wallonia supports those applying for the label in establishing an action plan covering at least 50% of the transport and logistics activities of the company. After the action plan has been validated by an external auditor, the company obtains the “Lean & Green” label which it can use in its communication until the end of the action plan. We could involve more companies if the Walloon Government allocated us more resources for this programme.

Skywin:

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Collaborative innovation and operational excellence An interview with Mr Etienne POURBAIX, Director of the Skywin competitiveness cluster

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The objective of the ACTIO project is to respond to the evolution of observation instruments towards more commercial environments by addressing two areas of research: increase the spatial resolution of the instruments while keeping them in microsatellites; and develop economically attractive solutions, applicable to many commercial spatial RFI.

an you tell us about the Skywin cluster’s goals and strategy?

As with all of the business clusters in Wallonia, Skywin’s goal is to bring together all of the players in industry, research and training in our sector, aerospace. Since 2018 Skywin has been promoting a new concept of sectors in all its communication.

These sectors are five in number: Aero, Spatial, Drone, Defense and Engineering. The cluster also runs both of our project tenders every year in terms of R&D, training and investment. Additionally, we are active on an international level, where we can hone our aerospace expertise in other countries, take part in trade shows with AWEX, promote B2B meetings and develop partnerships with international consortiums. Finally, Skywin works to defend the interests of the Walloon aerospace sector when dealing with the ESA and the Ministry of Defence in particular.

Specifically, the project aims at: determining a bold and unprecedented mechanical solution to enable a microsatellite PROBA-type to host a optical observation instrument with high resolution; providing solutions to the difficult issues of selecting a component-based instrument adapted to globalized business environments; studying the components of instruments optimized in terms of price and performance, specifically targeting optical mirrors and electronics; validating all components of the instrument for a high resolution extension. The purpose of the project is to develop components and know-how needed to produce reliable and efficient compact instruments of observation, and thus propose to the market a very compact and innovative observation instrument.

Created from the bottom up with our members in 2006 and rebuilt in 2013, our strategy is based around 6 key axes: composite materials and industrial processes, metallic alloys and industrial processes, on-board systems, airport services, space systems and applications, modelling and simulation. Besides, the “drone” component was added in 2016 to two of these 6 axes: “on-board systems” and “space and drone systems”. Here we focus on the integration of particular sensors on drones and the development of data processing systems in order to make the most of the obvious synergy between space and drone applications. As you can see, our strategy can adapt to new challenges and incorporate current technological developments.

Additionally, two innovative collaboration projects focusing on the development of tools and methods for aerospace additive manufacturing were approved on the 2nd of July 2015 as part of our 13th project tender: AERO+, headed by SAFRAN Aero Boosters and FASAMA, headed by Sonaca. And let us not forget the projects submitted to the 2016 call for projects: many of them targetted additive manufacturing for aerospace applications.

Can you run us through a few examples of innovative and collaborative projects approved by the cluster?

Out of the 48 R&D projects approved for the 22 project tenders, I would choose two of them: the ACP (for aircraft and composites, see text box 1) and ACTIO. Approved during the project tender in 2009, ACTIO is headed by Deltatec, a SME, in partnership with 2 other industrial groups (AMOS, Spacebel) and 2 research organisations (Ulg-CSL and UCL) for a total budget of €3 million.

Can you talk to us about your training activities?

Since it was founded, Skywin has provided more than 200,000 hours of training. In the first phase, the cluster approved several

Skywin in facts and figures

© Courtesy of Safran Aero Boosters

-1 50 members, including around 115 industrial members (more than 90 small to mid-sized businesses). This covers 95% of the Walloon aerospace sector, and thirty research and formation organisations, -A cumulative turnover of €1.7 billion (80% in aeronautics and 20% in space), - 7,500 direct industrial employees, -7 7 approved projects (48 in R&D, 19 in investment, 10 in training) for a budget of €242 million (€154 million of which coming from public funding).

The manufacture of high-value components in the space sector is also the speciality of some of the Skywin members in Wallonia.

Here is a “butterfly” valve from a VULCAIN motor for Ariane.

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© Courtesy of CAPAUL

Productivity and excellence in terms of aeronautical component manufacture are key factors which enable Walloon SMEs to take their place on the world stage.

develop a training offer that will allow our regional economy to make the transition to the 4.0 industry.

training projects which were directly linked to R&D projects.

This was especially true for a project currently near completion which was connected to the ACP project: designed for technicians and engineers, it covered the use of digital modelling tools for composite materials.

We should also talk about the approval, as part of the 13th project tender, of an excellence training project for mechanical development and assembly processes: FOREX, headed by Sonaca and WAN.

Following the overhaul of our strategy in 2013, Skywin opted for a different approach: going directly to see the 20 most active members and assessing their training requirements with them.

This approach was implemented in collaboration with our training partner WAN (Wallonia Aerotraining Network), and concluded with the development of CAMPUSS, a framework project with a budget of more than €4 million.

What can you tell us about the investment projects approved by the cluster?

In contrast to our collaborative projects, investment projects are headed up by a single player in line with a strategic development plan. For the past eighteen months, we have seen very high demand for these investment projects. They were especially visible during our last project tender: 6 small businesses submitted an investment project. This is proof that the sector is growing and that it is reinvesting in production means (building extensions, new testing equipment acquisitions, etc.) to meet increasing demand.

CAMPUSS can be broken down into 3 key areas: hard skills (training engineers to use new simulation tools – CAD); operational excellence (to improve production competitiveness) and soft skills, much in demand from our members (project and team management, negotiation with partners and suppliers, stress management, etc.). CAMPUSS was launched in 2014 for 4 years with a management committee including ten industrial establishments. Arrived mid-term, this great example of Skywin’s bottom-up approach will now focus more specifically on SMEs and the 4.0 industry, the impact of which will be huge on industrial processes and training. That is why Skywin will associate with other Walloon competitiveness clusters in 2017 in order to

The latest investment project which we approved on the 2nd of July 2015, as part of the 13th project tender, was the SOBINV2.

This is headed by Sobelcomp, a small business active in the composite materials sector, which is growing through the acquisition of new premises. It certainly looks like small Walloon businesses believe in the future of the aeronautics and space sector!

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What kind of services do you offer your members?

We ensure full and permanent technological oversight, with the organisation of regular technological conferences based around specific themes. For these events, we invite guest speakers with experience in some of the finest organisations, frequently from abroad. These conferences are perfect vehicles for brainstorming, and frequently bear the fruit of ideas for collaborative projects.

Next, we work to monitor how projects are started up, offering coaching services for the development and completion of a project (which often involves finding the right consortium with the right research partners). The aim is to give the project the best possible chance of being selected.

© Courtesy of Safran Aero Boosters

For our international activities, we are very well connected to the major aerospace clusters and aerospace regions wordwide. We participate every two years to the biggest Aerospace shows like Le Bourget (with more than 50 Walloon entities as exhibitors) and Farnborough (with approximately 5 to 10 Walloon entities as exhibitors).

This year 2018 was quite active with international missions to Singapore Airshow, ADSS Seattle, Rendez-vous Forum of Montréal and Farnborough in July, but also with the very first B2B business convention in the field of Aerospace in our own country: Aerospace Summit Brussels.

The manufacture of composite components is taking on special significance, and requires completely flawless production methods.

Here is part of a composite booster, designed by Safran Aero Boosters.

The first edition of the Aerospace Summit Brussels can be seen as a first try-out in order to offer even more international visibility to the Belgian/Walloon aerospace sector. More generally, the participation of Skywin to international missions and trade shows is always in line and coordinated with the interests of our members, in order to help them access new market segments or stabilize their current business.

I should also highlight the MACH initiative, inspired by a project launched in Quebec in 2011. Using our collaboration with the Aéro-Montréal aerospace group, we decided to create an initiative in Wallonia to support local businesses and help them increase their overall levels of quality in terms of both operational excellence and supplier-contractor relations. The principle behind this approach, jointly financed by the government of Wallonia, is simple: a major purchaser sponsors a small business, which agrees to follow an in-depth improvement plan in order to meet increasingly demanding tenders. As part of this Walloon initiative, 4 small businesses were selected in 2014.

Their feedback has been very positive: on one hand, they form a privileged relationship with their sponsor, and on the other, they learn about their internal organisational problems which they can then work to overcome. The MACH initiative was relaunched late 2015 to form a second cohort: 4 SMEs have joined the initiative and 2 of the first 4 selected SMEs decided to start a new coaching process. For the first time, non Walloon purchasers volunteered to coach the Walloon SMEs. That speaks volumes about the MACH initiative’s increasing visibility.

We see ourselves as a focal point, an entry door, a facilitator to the Walloon competences in the aerospace sector.

ACP: framework-building project for composite materials Approved during our first project tender in 2007 and headed by Sonaca, the ACP research and training project (aircraft plus composite) has brought together 8 industrial partners and 7 research organisations for a total budget of €19.3 million (€15.3 million for R&D and €4 million for training). Their objective: to develop the composite materials industry in Wallonia. ACP opened the door for 10 other projects aiming at integrating composite technologies in production workshops in order to increase the efficiency of industrial processes.

Additionally, the cluster organises an annual series of small seminars with high-profile guest speakers (Boeing, Airbus…), who present the strategic future of their company in front of an audience of industrial professionals. These events enable our members to strengthen their networks and benefit from highflying training programmes. Lastly, Skywin represents Walloon industrial companies to improve cooperation in the field of military activities: when a contract comes up, potential foreign suppliers have an active interest in learning about the Walloon economy. As such, they can use the cluster to learn about the sector and come into contact with Walloon industrial companies through B2B meetings. This helps Walloon companies increase their visibility.

This is most notably the case with Tecshpace Aero, which launched several composite material projects with applications for boosters, carters and drum components. These projects have led to products which are now on route to the market. This technological road map, which is moving closer and closer to the market, can also be used for the development of increasingly commercial and increasingly compact satellites, and for additive manufacturing in the field of metallic compounds (with 3 projects set up alongside the MecaTech cluster).

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© Courtesy of SABCA

© Courtesy of Cenco International

Skywin members’ activities also include the design and construction of aircraft motor test beds.

The members of the Skywin cluster make a significant contribution to various programmes led by Airbus. Here, a “Lower Shell” can be seen under a large piece of A380 fuselage, produced by SABCA in Brussels.

How are you implementing your international development policy?

Skywin has signed 8 agreements with international consortiums. On a European level, the cluster is a member of the EACP (European Aerospace Cluster Partnership), a place to exchange good working practices, share experience gleaned from international trade fairs and much more. The EACP also plays a role in the representation of its members in smaller trade fairs where they may not wish to make an appearance. Moreover, the EACP has at its disposal teams working on governance problems, economic and technical problems, technological development strategies and other issues. Furthermore, they provide a discussion platform for the constitution of consortiums with the aim of participating in European projects (Horizon 2020, CleanSky).

And if you’re not worried about going a little further afield, we’ve also signed a contract with the SIATI, a group of Indian aeronautics companies. As such, we have organised visits for Walloon industrial partners in India, we’ve participated in the Aero India trade show and invited Indian industrial groups to visit Wallonia… while we wait for more tangible results. We apply the same patience in our collaboration with the Samara region in Russia – a collaboration which is difficult to get back on track, given the current political climate. However, our cluster is ready and waiting for business to resume between the European Union and Russia.

The Skywin cluster has also entered into bilateral partnerships.

This is the case with our French counterpart, Aerospace Valley, based in Toulouse. The final objective of this partnership is to implement joint projects to fulfil project tenders in both Wallonia and France. I should mention that since the end of 2014, the Walloon Government has opened up project tenders to nonWalloon industrial and academic partners. Thanks to this, we predict a number of beneficial and innovative research collaborations. For instance, Skywin and Aerospace Valley are taking part in the European project “Abroad”: the aim of this project is to help SMEs to develop largest export activities, i.e. beyond European boundaries. In this prospect, a number of countries has been selected (Brasil, Japan, the American West Coast, Mexico) and each member of the project was assigned one of the target countries in order to organize a prospecting mission before taking European SMEs on site. Skywin was assigned Brasil: we have performed a prospecting mission early in 2017 and returned with SMEs at the end of 2017.

In short, the cluster is striving to maintain and cultivate our various collaborative projects, even if they don’t always bear fruit immediately. Setting up partnerships abroad is just the first step, but we’re just facilitators after all!

Similarly, Skywin has started to collaborate with the other French competitiveness cluster, ASTech Paris Region. The vicepresident of ASTech is also a member of our project selection jury… but of course, is sworn to confidentiality!

Another major issue is the acceleration of our production rate: Airbus has imposed a near doubling rate in 3 years, forcing production units to speed up while maintaining their technological skills. That is why there were so many investment projects submitted in 2015: production capacity had to be increased rapidly. The entire supply chain is affected by this trend: everyone will have to maintain full operational excellence and implement production improvements across the board – while remaining competitive, of course.

For you, what are the major issues yet to come in terms of research and training in the aerospace industry?

Our sector is facing the advent of the 4.0 industry at all levels of the supply chain: the ongoing digitalisation is blurring the boundary between the design office and the production floor. Engineers and workers will have to learn to work together more than ever before. This is also true for aspects related to maintenance.

A genuine cultural change is underway and Skywin is ready to play its part to help its members cope with it. The greatest challenge will undoubtedly be to raise SMEs’ awareness of this evolution: if they don’t jump on the bandwagon they will ultimately be thrown out of the supply chain.

Quebec also plays a part in our international development project.

I’ve already talked about Aéro-Montréal, but they are not our only local partner: we’ve also signed an agreement with CRIAQ (the aerospace research and innovation consortium in Quebec).

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Ensuring a digital transition and the sustainability of the food processing sectors An interview with Mr François HEROUFOSSE, Director General of the Wagralim competitiveness cluster

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and approved research centres to gain a better grasp of the evolution in purchase terms and conditions and offer our members the opportunity to explore new businesses.

hat are the key figures for Wagralim?

The Cluster gathers together 170 active members and has given its label to 45 projects (30 in research, 15 in training) for a combined global amount exceeding €95M (public and private funding). In addition, Wagralim calls on two lasting technological platforms.

Could you tell us about your members?

They are representatives of the academic community (5 universities, food processing research centres, approved research centres and Higher College Associates), training players (skills centres, private players, sectoral funds that back food processing projects) and of course companies: thirty multinational companies and for the remainder SMEs active throughout the sector and a few service companies that provide technological or organisational solutions. © Wagralim

Could you tell us about the tasks and strategies of the cluster?

An expert in the food processing sector, Wagralim relies primarily on collaboration between those working in industry, universities, research centres and training centres in order to speed up the creation of value within Walloon companies in the sector through innovation, partnerships and openness to the world. The Cluster is therefore positioning itself as the reference partner in the area of technological, business and managerial innovation in the food processing sector. In order to do this, it has defined three strategic orientations: nutrition and health, industrial efficiency and sustainable industries.

What services do you offer your members that carry innovation projects?

The food processing sector is constantly looking for new new products, processes and services, as well as the tools needed to train its workers in a timely and targeted manner. Wagralim therefore helps its members to bring concrete shape to their R&D projects (idea for a project either internally or in collaboration with other Walloon, Belgian or international businesses), training (in particular for jobs with labour shortages) and investment (proposals for advantageous financial incentives for their projects).

In September 2018 we launched Ffeedback, a swift and high performance market validation tool. This innovation started out from an observation: some food processing companies do not carry out any cutting-edge research and yet they innovate. It is therefore a matter of bringing them into contact with consumers in order to align their new concepts to the needs of the latter. Along with Ffeedback, we do not hesitate to call on university researchers, Higher Colleges

© Wagralim

By committing to a Cluster innovation project, a company is a winner three times over: it taps into the largest sources of funding in the Walloon Region for research, with subsidies up to 80% depending on the size of the company and up to 100% for those directly involved in research; it oversees the implementation of an innovative training programme tailored specifically to its needs; lastly, it receives a maximum 5% bonus in traditional investment grants.

Marketing and digitization

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Thanks to its expertise and its network in the food processing industry, Wagralim supports companies with due confidentiality: the innovative idea is assessed, a solid partnership is built up with companies, training and research players to give it concrete shape and the project’s assembly is taken care of (taking into account expert recommendations, market analysis support, searching for funding and the filing of the dossier with the Walloon Region). Once the project has its label, the Cluster

© Wagralim

Inauguration of the Natextra platform

expertise services for the resolution of certain problems.

These services are short-term offers: they generally ranges from between 2 to 3 weeks and a few months. This scientific and technological support, which is founded on existing knowledge, makes it possible to add density to the Cluster’s network and raise the interest level of companies which may, in a second phase, envisage the implementation of research programmes.

assumes responsibility for its follow-up, which implies help with the promotion of results, recourse to a neutral point of contact in the event of a disagreement and the provision of communication support.

Could you give us a few examples of projects in progress?

The project “Porc Biota” concerns the development of prebiotic solutions that favour the development of bacterial microflora in animal feed. Piglets are at the heart of this project. It is a matter of avoiding the use of antibiotics in the food chain and increasing animal farming productivity.

© Wagralim

In addition, the Cluster supports “Wallep”, a sector project intended to stimulate spelt cultivation (Wallonia is in second position nationally in terms of surface area for this niche cereal). The aim of this project is to launch a new range of spelt-based products with new versions for pasta, fermented drinks, raw materials for the industry (cereal syrup), bread products etc. It is about developing the first transformation of the spelt and investigating formulas for the introduction of this raw material into the regional food processing sector.

What does the Keyfood platform consist of?

This platform aims to pool university expertise and act as an intermediary with companies who are seeking scientific

Wagralim has developed a collaboration with a Chinese partner, IFND.

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On top of this, the Cluster has carried out missions in Canada, the United States, China and Brazil and has associated with several European regions through European projects involving other clusters.

What international support services do you place at the disposal of your members?

Wagralim answers “present” for its member companies who want to establish themselves internationally on a new market or find skills via scientific partnerships abroad. Its international support services make it possible quickly to target the best foreign partners by activating its international network, enhancing other available export support systems (AWEX) and limiting risk and uncertainty.

Could you tell us about your training activity?

The Cluster offers training in managerial innovation (to increase the industrial excellence of its members) and purely technological innovation (particularly via Keyfood). By way of an example, the purpose of the “Key process” project, which has recently been completed, was to train staff in the food processing industry on the virtualisation of production equipment control (ability to control remotely).

Wagralim aims to be an international business accelerator thanks to its business packages, approach to distant and complex markets via specific actions (organisation of fringe events during international trade fairs, establishing collective offices, pooling consultancy and market research costs etc.), providing contacts with thousands of potential scientific partners and international projects such as New Frontiers in Food (NF4), which offers a comprehensive support service to stimulate international collaboration and the business development of European SMEs in the food processing sector in 4 foreign target markets (Brazil, Canada, China and the United States). NF4 brings together 5 food clusters: Clusaga (Spain), Food Valley NL (Netherlands), Valorial (France), Vitagora (France) and Wagralim, specialising in 3 food industry value chains which are processed foods, health and nutritional food products and connected foods.

In addition, the Cluster has launched mobile training units.

These are semi-trailers equipped with training workshops and sent to business sites to train their employees as well as job seekers using the raw materials of the businesses concerned. As this training is approved by the Federal Agency for the Safety of the Food Chain (AFSCA), the businesses are able to market the products formulated on this occasion.

© Wagralim

Could you give us a few examples of Wagralim's success stories?

Internationally, the Cluster has developed a partnership with the Chinese authorities with a view to facilitating the placing on the market of food products that meet nutritional needs (health nutrition) and comply with Chinese standards.

Networking at the annual event of Wagralim

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Š Wagralim

The Keyfood platform is a center of scientific and technological expertise for companies.

between the food processing and the agriculture sector in order to design an agricultural system and not simply a transformation industry. There are serious links to be cultivated between the two!

I would also like to talk about the Natextra platform: this consists of the extraction of bioactive components for food ingredients. Within this framework, the Cluster has just launched an industrial facility to allow for transition to the production phase. Thanks to a consortium of businesses and research centres, it becomes possible to develop these products and produce them on demand.

What events are you planning to organise in 2019?

In March we will be in Chicago (United States) to lead a prospecting assignment there and attend the ProFood Tech trade fairs. In addition, two new calls for projects will be organised, one at the end of March and the other at the end of June. In September the Cluster will organise its annual event: Wagralim Food Connections. As every year, it will bring together its members and international visitors around a rich programme of conferences.

Š Wagralim

In your opinion what will be the main challenges that economic players in the food processing sector will have to face in the years to come?

I can envisage several. The first concerns the integration of the digital dimension into the business model of our member companies. These companies are confronted with a nagging question: how will people consume tomorrow? Wholesale distribution is under pressure: it needs to adapt to the change in value chains and the increasingly strict sustainability requirements of the food processing sectors in order to overcome the challenges that face us in terms of the environment, growth and consumption. This adaptation will have to take place on several levels: sourcing (raw materials), protein independence of the European Union compared with other regions of the world, the higher share of vegetable proteins in the consumption of Europeans, increased production efficiency to avoid waste etc.

Lastly, there is an urgent need to create a genuine connection

Stand of Wagralim on the Fair of Libramont

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MecaTech: Hybridization of Technologies and Innovations to Mechanical Engineering An interview with Mr Anthony VAN PUTTE, Director of Mecatech Cluster + 10% for large corporations, whereas the sector of mechanical engineering indicates a fall of 4%. The same applies to added value: + 86% for SMEs and + 71% for large corporations vs + 6% for the sector.

From 2006 to 2016, the Cluster's member companies (excluding ArcelorMittal and AGC) saw their investments (property, plant and equipment) increase from € 938 to € 2.718 million. SMEs contributed significantly to this increase, with growth of € 525 million over this period.

LORA-SENSE The LoRa-SENSE project aims to develop new industrial tools that are autonomous, wireless, intelligent and modular for predictive maintenance, environmental monitoring and industrial equipment monitoring applications.

The project will last for 3 years to ensure wireless communications in industry, or to develop smart sensors with low energy consumption. Demonstrators and industrial prevalidation will be implemented in the cement sector and the wind sector. This project also aims at the development of networks based on the LoRa standard, capable of responding to “hard” industrial constraints for radio transmission, such as strongly metallic or high burial environments.

© MecaTech

Consortium: I-Care, Micro Mega Dynamics, Modyva, Multitel, Cerisic.

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© MecaTech

hat are the key figures for the Walloon mechanical engineering sector and the MecaTech Cluster?

If we assess the first 23 calls for projects, we count a total of 113 projects (78 research projects, 13 investment projects and 22 training projects) involving 291 players (47 large companies, 140 SMEs, 78 university laboratories, 18 research centers, 5 higher schools and 3 competence centers; e.g., overall 549 participants). This represents an investment of € 316 million, of which € 106 million derive from private funding (88 millions € for large enterprises and € 139 million for small and medium enterprises).

The companies involved in MecaTech have known an important growth in terms of employment as well as in added value. Employment developed from 2006 to 2016 + 54% for SMEs, and

The LoRa-SENSE project aims to develop new industrial tools for various applications.

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industrial processes in between. It is a field of knowledge that encompasses the entire product/equipment life cycle, from design to manufacturing, maintenance, and finally recycling.

Furthermore, the MecaTech Cluster participated in the setting up of 3 platforms in order to respond to the sector’s new opportunities: Walibeam (Industrial Platform for Ion Implantation), Reverse Metallurgy (Metals Recycling Platform) and Proton therapy center.

Over the years, expertise in the sector has focused on six priority markets for which the MecaTech Cluster companies provide products, services, and industrial machinery: - Housing & Construction (Construction systems and equipment) - Energy & the Environment (Energy and Environmental systems and equipment) - Mobility & Transport (Transport systems & equipment) - Defence & Security - Industry (Industrial systems & equipment) - Healthcare & Well-Being (Medical devices & systems).

Could you briefly resume the Cluster’s mission and strategic axes?

The Walloon Government entrusted MecaTech with the following objectives: create jobs and stimulate economic activity; act as a driving force for the Walloon sector of Mechanical Engineering; and contribute to the re-industrialization by structuring and implementing innovative projects with an international vocation combining large corporations, SMEs, universities, research and competence centers.

Mechanical engineering relies on an increasingly varied base of knowledge as well as scientific and technological know-how. The Cluster encourages innovations and especially disruptive innovations via hybridization of technologies and implementation of synergies among key players, some of which at first glance seem quite unlikely (for example, IBA, a leader in Proton therapy cooperates with AMOS and the Ateliers de la Meuse, which are active in the field of space observation in order to develop its new system of proton therapy to cure cancer).

Could you give us some examples of Cluster-certified R&D projects?

Let’s start with COMET’s PHOENIX project, which intends to develop let us an integrated global enhancement process of the organic matter contained in metal crushing waste from end-of-life vehicules, in order to produce alternative hydro-liquid carbons, metal and carbon concentrates to be used in steel industries.

Thanks to this process, COMET meets more than the 95% recycling/ recovery rate requirement of vehicule of the current European Directive.

MecaTech chose two main key perspectives to draw up its strategic framework. The first one consists in the development of finished products, machines, and various equipments for consumption or industrial production. The activities linked finished products are very important, as they generate greater added value; they are less dependent on order givers, and are more resistant to downturn than activities done as subcontractor. The second perspective consists in the development of technologies and new processes. The projects of the MecaTech Cluster organized themselves around four technological areas (1. new materials and surface functionalization; 2. global and additive shaping manufacturing; 3. micro-technologies and mecatronics; and 4. intelligent maintenance and production). These four sectors cannot be exclusive, since we often diversify the product value chains in terms of technologies and we must stay open to new technologies and ideas.

ECOLAS’ objective is to save energy in the production methods by using the new, clean and efficient laser techniques. There are two objectives in this respect: to apply new semiconductor laser technologies (laser diodes) to the treatment of materials sectors still driven by classic technologies, and to develop new sources and interfaces in order to resolve the problems linked to particular applications. In 2018, LASEA, leader of the ECOLAS project, has 68 employees (one third of additional commitments each year), consolidated revenues, which have grown of 34% annually since 2011 (12 million euros in 2017), 11 patents ( 4 are in preparation for this year), and participation in almost 10 H2020 European projects and Mecatech Cluster projects.

© MecaTech

Mechanical engineering is a transverse field that has applications in most industries, ranging from consumer products (automotive, household appliances, etc.) to healthcare, with machines and

ECOLAS’ objective means to save energy in the production methods by using new, clean and efficient laser techniques.

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© MecaTech

Finally, LIONEL’s objective is to set up an innovative procedure for the production of soft intraocular lenses from a nano-composite type material. The LIONEL project has enabled Physiol to put launch three new Premium IOLS lenses (intraocular lenses): Fine Vision®, POD EYE® and Ipure®. These products benefit from innovations made during the project in terms of materials, manufacturing

© MecaTech

LIONEL’s objective means forming an innovative procedure for the production of soft intraocular lenses from a nano-composite type material.

• r esearch for funding (access to specific fundings of the Walloon competitiveness Clusters, others public funding sources, relations with public and private investors), • assistance in the formalities with the administration, • support given to project management, market analysis, training, …

processes, quality control and simulation. For 30 years, the spinoff PhysIOL has been offering innovative solutions in the field of eye implants developed in partnership with surgeons and in close collaboration with universities and specialized research centers. A real success that opens the Scandinavian markets!

The success allows PhysIOL to take off internationally. In 2016, PhysIOL sold very precisely 238,973 intraocular lenses and planed to sell 20% more in 2017; the company employs more than 120 people. This project also enabled Lambda-X to develop a new quality control equipment for all type of lenses.

MecaTech offers visibility (regional and international) and contacts through its network, for example, via networking events of the key players of mechanical engineering in Wallonia; the support given to members in their participation in AWEX’ action abroad; the publication of a newsletter; the organization of a kick-off meeting for each certified project; and a large number of relays with the press.

Could you expand a little on your training activities?

MecaTech’s 22 training projects reside in partnerships with FOREM, Technifutur/Technocampus and the Automotive Campus.

They co-exist in intimate association with technology development projects. The Cluster also partners with some Agoria, the Belgian Technology Industry Organisation, programs such as “Factories of the future.” It focuses on advanced technologies outside the competencies of the training operators.

How do you implement your international development policy?

Initially, our Cluster concentrated on the neighboring countries, to avoid branching out: The Netherlands, Germany, Luxembourg, Lorraine, Champagne-Ardenne, Nord-Pas-de-Calais, Switzerland, Rhône-Alpes, Pays Basque (covering the” blue banana” area).

MecaTech also takes part in the Vanguard project involving 27 regions. In a second phase, after having reached the critical mass, MecaTech acted selectively in order to conduct more remote actions in Massachusetts, Québec, and Romania.

What kind of services do you offer to your members?

In order to support the development of their project(s), our Cluster actively offers different services. Their setup and monitoring include: • search for partners and competencies (enterprises, laboratories, research and competence centers, higher schools and universities, etc.),

MecaTech was co-involved in different European Projects, such as for example the launch of Intermat, a Meta-Cluster with Materalia 126

(Lorraine and Champagne-Ardenne) and Luxinnovation (Luxembourg) or the INTERREG INTERMAT GR (Grande Région) project, based on materials and processes in partnership with four Clusters and four universities. More recently, following MecaTech’s strategy on Industry 4.0/Digitalization/Automation, the Cluster co-submitted 3 European Projects related to this topic. Two of them are already accepted: the INTERREG France-Wallonia-Flanders project “FACTORY 4.0” which is gathering 7 partners and the INTERREG GR (Grande Région) project “ROBOTIX Academy” gathering 5 partners. Another Horizon 2020 project on the topic of Internet of Things (IoT4Industry) has also been launched, gathering 8 partners. Last, but not least, MecaTech members (enterprises, Research Centers…) take part directly in European programs.

DOLRE The DOLRE project is an alternative to traditional guardrails, which offers sufficient resistance to restrain cars and buses. This is achieved by maintaining the appearance of a pedestrian guardrail.

The placement of these contrivances on the engineering structures will be carried out by means of a beam of distribution of the forces to which they will be anchored via a force limiter. This combination will affect both the causes and consequences in terms of solicitation of work.

This will enable road managers to save more than several times the cost of the solution.

MecaTech collaborates with NCP Wallonie to encourage the participation of members in these programs.

Changes in other sectors are planned: explosion, nuclear, seismic...

To summarize its international development strategy, the Cluster follows several guidelines: focusing on actions that may lead to projects, relying on the selectivity of geographical areas while giving a priority to adjacent countries. MecaTech is also collaborating with AWEX-Invest in Wallonia to raise awareness about Wallonia’s attractiveness towards foreign investors.

Consortium: Desami, GDTech, Ateliers JLM, ULiège, UCL.

What are the main future challenges in mechanical engineering?

Industry 4.0 is a key technological step and Wallonia must seize it as an opportunity to redeploy its industry. For several years, the MecaTech Cluster has been involved in this way through the funding of several R&D projects within the framework of the Clusters' policy.

The strategy of the MecaTech Cluster is to work on 3 dimensions: - Demand side: digital integration in products: automotive, medical devices, machines and various equipment…

- Demand side: digital integration in industrial processes to improve productivity and competitiveness at different stages of the value chain.

- Supply side: development of the skills of digital companies to meet on demand. The skills to offer include simulation, automation, high computing, big data, additive manufacturing, sensors actuator, intelligent maintenance, microelectronics, power electronics, micro-fluidics, digitization of integrated chains.

© MecaTech

The aim is therefore to match the capabilities of “supply” companies with the needs of “demand” companies through different action programs, project development and training.

This strategy has led to the creation of a support program for Walloon companies (mainly SMEs) which consists of: - a diagnosis to define action plans (Factory 4.0 - Interreg V) which aims to answer the first challenge of companies, namely: imagine, anticipate how these technologies can be combined to transform products, processes and services offered; - the implementation of adapted training (Factory 4.0 - Training) to master these technologies, often outside the core business, to be able to create these new processes, products, services: develop or acquire the HR owning these news skills is key; - the animation of a network of Numeric | Industry 4.0 experts able to support and develop the necessary solutions and financing of proof of concept, pilot projects (IoT4Industry - H2020, calls for projects of competitiveness Clusters, other regional aids).

The DOLRE project is an alternative to traditional guardrails.

The second challenge concerns the transition towards service functionality and circular economy. This transition involves material and product recycling but also energy and material-saving technologies, including additive manufacturing technologies.

Unlike the substractive production process, which incurs great losses of materials, additive technology ensures material savings by depositing successive coats in order to create digitally the most complex shapes. Without any doubt, this technology promises excellent innovation and development prospects in the sector of mechanical engineering!

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BioWin: Providing growth for SMEs in the health sector in Wallonia An interview with Mrs Sylvie PONCHAUT, Managing Director of the BioWin competitiveness cluster

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As part of the deployment of the Marshall Plan 4.0, BioWin is focusing on internationalization and interdisciplinarity in order to promote these strategic goals. The cluster will be offering its members new opportunities for R&D collaboration with the best ecosystems in the world, near or far (Flanders, Massachusetts, Israel, etc.) and will be providing help to set up European projects.

hat are the key figures for the biotech and medtech sectors in Wallonia?

With 22,000 hospital beds, the health sector in Wallonia is the European leader in Phase I of the clinical trials. It also has total private expenditure of 1.2 billion euros on R&D. Over the period 2005-2016, 1, 358 billion euros of private capital was raised by 174 SMEs who were members of BioWin. The health sector in Wallonia also weighs heavily in terms of jobs: 50,000 direct and indirect jobs. Finally, it stands out for its favourable tax environment, financial incentives to support R&D and a unique location for logistics at the heart of Europe.

We are also planning to internationalize the Training department. BioWin will be identifying the best training programmes abroad linked to its members’ activities and to the key technological domains in our region. The cluster will also be recruiting the best international trainers. © Tilt

Could you talk to us about the cluster’s strategy?

Smart specialization, an international outlook and technological leadership: that’s BioWin’s triple goal for 2015-2020. The cluster’s role is to accelerate innovation to respond to the public health challenges of the future and to develop knowledge, jobs and the competitiveness of everyone involved in the health sector ecosystem in Wallonia.

By 2020, BioWin aims to make Wallonia a region internationally known for its world-class academic, clinical and industrial research environment in the cluster’s technological domains.

To add to the value chains and consolidate the ecosystem, the work done by BioWin in close collaboration with AWEX to attract foreign investors will be reinforced. To ensure consistency with the smart specialization strategies deployed in Europe, BioWin will be giving priority to areas of activity and technology sectors in which Wallonia has competitive advantages on a world scale.

This strategy should enable us to consolidate our 6 areas of industrial excellence: (bio)pharmacy, cell therapy, radiation applied to health, medical devices and in vitro diagnostics, biomanufacturing and data science.

To take up these challenges, BioWin will continue to follow the strategic goals that it deployed at the outset: supporting the emergence/development of R&D projects; developing expertise; developing companies in international markets; developing networks and largescale structuring projects.

What services do you offer your members?

BioWin covers over 90% of the health biotechnologies and medical technologies sector in Wallonia. The cluster therefore

Key figures for the BioWin cluster (2016) - 7 world leaders and 174 SMEs; - 4 accredited research centres; universities with 400 research units, 11,000 researchers -5 and 3 university hospitals; -4 4 R&D projects that have involved 253 partners developed 44 products and 25 services for a total budget (public and private) of 142 M€;

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upport for the creation of 5 technological and/or collabora-S tive platforms: cell therapy, proton therapy, biobanking network, animal facilities and MedTech in Wallonia;

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training projects continued to run in 2017: Biophare, STIP, -5 Bioinformatics, Technimed & 4cells; 6 new training programs and 160 training modules were developed (45.000 hours of training).

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has a clear view of the technological value chains and an indepth knowledge of the stakeholders in the region. This allows it to offer its members the most appropriate services in terms of R&D, internationalization, skills development and technology platforms. With regard to R&D, BioWin combines the accompaniment of projects arising from regional and international calls, from emergence to commercialization, with one-off assistance to SMEs and start-ups to support their economic development.

Could you give us a few examples of R&D projects that have been awarded the cluster label?

Six promising projects have been recently labelled by the Walloon Region and fit into the smart specialization strategy which gathers 6 technology themes.

Biopharma: The IT-Targets project coordinated by Iteos Therapeutics aims to identify innovative drugs candidates and biomarkers for cancer immunotherapy and auto-immune diseases in order to improve the response of patients to immunotherapy.

Looking at internationalization, the cluster works with the world’s most innovative regions to help its members find the best partners.

It focuses on networks and partnerships, forging links with clusters and/or science parks, identifies the technological domains in which the members of each entity can develop collaborative projects and carries out an initial selection of the entities that may be of interest to Walloon members.

Cell Therapy: Promethera is developing, via the Improve project, a new cell therapy product that will be used for the treatment of fibro-inflammatory chronic liver diseases.

Medical device: The project eLISA coordinated by Neoma Labs is focusing on the development of a light medical device to treat patients suffering from respiratory sleep disorders.

The cluster also works to support human capital, a strategic focus for supporting its members’ innovation and growth through the following actions: contributing towards the forward management of skills and talents within each sector, encouraging consistency in the region’s training initiatives, supporting the development of a regional skills/talents pool, helping to create bridges between university courses and the industrial world, organizing calls for regional training projects and helping to sustain the services/programmes developed for these purposes. BioWin is always ready to provide its members with guidance on their intra-company training needs, issues and goals.

Radiations applied to health: The company Trasis is on the way to develop a set of integrated solutions for the preparation of best performing imaging radiotracers labelled with Fluorine-18 and Gallium-68 for the diagnostic of prostate cancer (ProsPect project).

Biomanufacturing: BioCloud 4.0 gathers 8 partners among which Sapristic, the company leading the project, and aims at designing and developing an integrated innovative IT solution to support the biotech industry in deploying the Industry 4.0 principles in bio-production processes, thanks to an end-to-end integrated solution (“from clean room to patient”) combining new generations of smart sensors, a radically innovative radio transmission solution and patient-centric software solutions.

Finally, the cluster encourages and accompanies innovation platform projects and collective infrastructure projects that aim to fill a gap in the development of the biomedical activity in Wallonia. It has helped to set up 5 technological and/or collaborative platforms: cell therapy, proton therapy, biobanking network, animal facilities and MedTech in Wallonia.

Data Science: the BIDMED project is currently developing the applicability and use of “Big Data” digital technologies with 129

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a specific objective of improving performances and reducing costs associated with proton therapy, for which the Walloon company IBA is known as the world leader.

iTeos Therapeutics SA creates a branch in Boston

© iTeos Therapeutics SA

Could you give us a few examples of training projects that have been awarded the cluster label?

I’d like to highlight BioWin’s efforts to encourage sandwich training courses, which have a key role in promoting consistency between academic courses and industrial requirements.

The aim of the training project is to set up a collaboration programme between higher education establishments and companies in order to improve the provision of sandwich training. If we can close the gap between the needs of companies and higher education courses (bachelors’ and masters’), we will be helping graduates and companies by improving the specific skills that the companies require.

Michel Detheux, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer of iTeos Therapeutics SA

iTeos Therapeutics SA, a biotechnology company developing novel cancer immunotherapies, announced in June 20, 2018 the completion of an oversubscribed $75 million (€64 million) and creates a branch in Boston, the mecca of the US pharmaceutical sector.

The BioPharE (“Biotechnology & Pharmaceutical Excellence”) project has thus been designed as THE core project with a view to developing critical skills for cross-disciplinary integration, together with operational and strategic excellence in the health biotech business value chain.

“This oversubscribed financing underscores the enormous potential of our innovative next-generation immuno-oncology pipeline and confirms the confidence in our leadership team to deliver value for patients and investors. We plan to continue to rapidly advance our promising therapies into the clinic and to design additional therapeutic candidates based on our industry leading drug discovery and early clinical development expertise” said Michel Detheux, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer of iTeos.

To take up the challenges of the BioProduction, cell therapy and regenerative medicine sector, 4 training centres, 2 universities and BioWin decided to combine their experience and expertise, monitoring activities, networks and infrastructures, to offer a comprehensive training programme (“one-stop shopping”) in the field of cell culture via the 4Cells project, between 2016 and 2019.

Regarding iTeos development in Boston, Michel Detheux commented: “In the field of immuno-oncology, Boston is a must.

For a simple reason: in Europe, there are about 2,000 biotech companies. They are 1,500 in Boston and its agglomeration.

If you want to grow and become a world-class actor, you have to be there.”

Technimed is a long-term project led by Cefochim. This project aims to offer a work-study programme for company personnel wishing to become a versatile production technician in the (bio) 130

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pharmaceutical industry. This project is innovative in that its training course brings together the main training bodies for the biopharmaceutical sector in the Walloon region, namely: GIGA, Biopark, Culture In vivo (Nivelles Laboratoires) and CEFOCHIM. It will thus be possible to offer an extensive training course covering all the necessary skills, without superfluous training development.

Univercells raised €16 million with the help of the Gates Foundation in July 2018. The Carolo biotech conducted a new roundtable led by GHIF, a New York Impact Fund created by the Gates Foundation. Founded in Hugues Bultot, 2013 by Hugues Bultot CEO and Co-Founder of Univercells (CEO) and José Castillo (Scientific Director), Univercells develops bioproduction miniplatforms the size of a large cabinet that can provide cheap vaccines and treatments.

© Univercells

A € 16 million fundraising for Univercells

The funds raised will enable Univercells to accelerate the commercialization of its innovative technologies for the production of biological drugs. Its most advanced and iconic project is a platform to produce doses of polio vaccines that are one-tenth the price of what is currently available.

This “turnkey” equipment, whose development was funded by the Gates Foundation, can be used for the production of other major vaccines in terms of public health. Thanks to new funding, Univercells will be able to target other diseases - malaria, measles, yellow fever… - for which proven vaccines already exist, but are often too expensive for some countries.

What do you think is the BioWin cluster’s greatest success story?

I’d like to point to the success of an entire sector: cell therapy.

The sector is led by 5 very rapidly growing companies: Celyad, Bone Therapeutics, Promethera Biosciences, Novadip Biosciences and MaSTherCell. This concentration of world-class players is supported by a dedicated technology platform; it’s quite exceptional and augurs well for Wallonia’s increasing attractiveness in a promising sector for the regional economy.

in the MedTech sector become international. This sector is one of the priority topics of BioWin. It is a first stage and we hope that MAGIA will open the door to other projects in this field”, concludes Monique Marrec-Fairley.

What partnerships have you developed in Europe and abroad?

Over the past years, BioWin has developed several collaborations and concrete matchmaking activities with European clusters (Medicen, Lyonbiopole, Atlanpole Biotherapies, Eurobiomed, BioAlps, etc.) and maintains close links with the Israeli R&D ecosystem, which is very complementary to the Walloon ecosystem. Thanks to its implication into several European networks (CEBR, EDCA, etc.), BioWin reinforces its visibility strategy and more importantly its smart specialization strategy (cell therapy, radiopharma, vaccines, etc.) and our members’ technologies.

And as one European project leads to another, BioWin is moving into second gear and is now taking part in the S3martMed project, which was officially launched in October 2018. Thanks to the mapping work done by MAGIA, this new project has a sound basis to begin. 5 regions are working on this project: Lyonbiopole (Coordinator), BioWin, BioPmed, MedSilesia and BioRegioStern. The aim of this new project is to map the skills of each region and their requirements, whether at the financial, business or regulatory levels, in order to secure the SMEs of the sector over the long term.

Since 2017, BioWin guides SMEs in setting up strategic technological cooperation with European partners by responding to calls for proposals launched by the European Commission H2020 programme. In addition, BioWin participates in 2 interregional and inter-clustering COSME European projects to foster SMEs competitiveness in the MedTech sector at the global level: MAGIA, and at European level: S3martMed.

What do you think are the great challenges to come for the Walloon biotech and medtech sector?

I see three. The first is an absolute necessity to support and fund high-quality upstream research, in other words fundamental research, because that’s where the future therapeutic applications will come from. This is a crucial European issue. The second challenge, for Wallonia and the European Union, is to create a context that favours the growth of SMEs. Wallonia’s SMEs currently employ an average of 30 to 50 people; they could rise to between 200 and 400 employees if the government were to introduce the right tax incentives and financial instruments. Finally, the third challenge is to integrate the industry 4.0 concept in order to reindustrialize Europe. This is an important part of the Marshall Plan 4.0 and we must build it into our R&D projects and structures. It’s crucial to the future of our economy and competitiveness.

MAGIA - the European Medtech alliance dedicated to supporting the internationalisation of SMEs - groups 4 clusters of excellence, with the main objective of promoting the internationalisation of their SMEs, firstly through cooperation and sharing resources, and secondly by making the innovative European medical-technologies industry more visible.

“The MAGIA project is a fine opportunity for Wallonia and for the cluster” says Monique Marrec-Fairley, Director of European projects for BioWin.“We are going to work with 3 other European regions to establish a strategy which aims to help SMEs 131

GreenWin, the chemical engineering and sustainable materials cluster An interview with Ms Véronique GRAFF, Managing Director of the GreenWin competitiveness cluster

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45% in 2007. In addition, employment (FTE) has risen by 13%, i.e. by 17% more than the evolution of employment in the reference system. Lastly, the added value increased by €4.1 billion (+ 59%), i.e. an increase of 45% more than the evolution of added value in the reference system (14%).

hat are the key figures for GreenWin? With nearly 200 members including over 150 businesses, the cluster has given its label to 37 projects for a budget of €100M. GreenWin has been the coordinator of 2 European projects and is a partner in 2 others.

GreenWin is split up into 9 Strategic Activity Areas covering the chemistry, construction and environmental technology sectors. GreenWin is the leader of 2 inter-cluster research themes: the circular economy and carbon neutrality. Moreover, the cluster has launched 2 technological platforms (PEPIT, dedicated to the circularity of plastics and CONNECT) and is a member of 5 international networks. It has also concluded 4 international partnerships (not forgetting the 800 contacts of its international network) and an interregional partnership with Flanders and Brussels.

Thanks to its activities, GreenWin finds itself at the heart of a network of businesses with a job growth rate of 20% and an added value growth rate that is at the same level.

© Ch. Delvaux

Could you talk to us about the cluster's strategic activity areas and themes?

GreenWin is organised into 3 main areas of activity: chemistry, construction materials and environmental technologies. In addition, the cluster deploys in 9 strategic activity areas concerning the following sectors: green chemistry, the transformation of CO2, biotechnologies, sustainable materials, energy storage and efficiency, construction systems, recycling, soils and sediments, sewage and sludge, air and sediments. Two transversal areas (the circular and digital economy) are added to this.

These various activities have openings in three application sectors: chemistry, construction and environment.

Could you present GreenWin's industrial sectors to us?

They represent 85,000 direct jobs (26% from industrial employment) and 160,000 indirect jobs, plus €1.6 billion in R&D expenditure (60% of expenditure on private R&D) and €15 billion in exports (36% of Walloon exports). Between 2007 and 2016, the 935 business members of the clusters (130 in more than one cluster, 91% of which are SMEs) created 13,052 jobs (FTE). In 2016, the businesses in the Clusters represented 53% of the “industry” reference system in terms of jobs (FTE). The reference system is made up of the manufacturing industry, the construction sector (10%) and the logistics transport sector. This percentage was

© GreenWin

© GreenWin

Could you talk to us about your members and the services that you offer them?

GreenWin members, above all a network of SMEs, large businesses, universities and colleges of higher education, Approved Research Centres (CRAs) and training centres… are among the best performing in their field and produce the most impressive results. The cluster's businesses generate job growth of between 20 and 40%. Lastly, the cluster is made up of a network whose individual members are highly inspirational: we call them GreenWinners.

GreenWin, a network of 800 contacts internationally

GreenWin, the crossroads of innovation

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MEDIX focuses on micropollutants in effluents from the hospital and pharmaceutical sector, with some success. It brings together a company active in sewage treatment and one active in ecodesign, cutting edge expertise that is the result of European projects involving some Universities and CRAs.

What partnerships have you developed?

130 innovation partnerships have been developed in our strategic sectors. We work tirelessly on “interoperability” with other Walloon clusters, in particular in the field of the circularity of polymer production. We have just signed an interregional Memorandum of Understanding with our Flemish alter ego Catalisti, and this agreement has itself generated an agreement between the Walloon, Flemish and Brussels administrations to facilitate putting interregional projects together, whatever the size of the consortium partners. This is an historic first in our country. The goal is to allow for smoother innovation opportunities and to stimulate the creation of direct and indirect jobs within the interregional projects.

For its part, GreenTechs is a training course aimed at production and laboratory technicians in chemistry and sustainable materials production. Its objective is to place skilled people on the job market in sectors with a shortage of candidates, prepared for the necessary changes in industrial apparatus, with a qualification level that corresponds to the actual needs of businesses with a concern for the environment and safety. It is a matter of meeting needs for qualified jobs in green chemistry. At least 80% of trainees have returned to direct employment after the training course. CEFOCHIM was a partner.

Could you give us a few examples of projects bearing the cluster's label in R&D and training?

We have several success stories of which we are very proud, and here is a selection.

What do the Walloon projects WaloSCRAP and BATILOOP consist of?

These two projects are linked to the identification of deposits of recyclable materials in Wallonia which combine several characteristics: • A challenge for industries given the volumes concerned; • The characteristics that allow for the deployment of a “selfcarrying” business model; • Their capacity to generate activities and income.

© GreenWin

ATISOL C2C develops new solutions for building insulation by combining three advantages: use of circularisable materials whose energy performances are more efficient and that are easier to implement. The project is made up of partnerships between manufacturers of insulation materials, coatings, adhesive materials, an architecture consultancy and several CRAs.

Innovative construction materials, one of GreenWin's strategic activity areas

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Batiloop and WaloSCRAP have made it possible to build innovation partnerships in the field of recycling for plaster, flat glass, automotive glass etc.

Via WaloSCRAP we deal with other sectors such as the plastics sector via the implementation of PEPIT – Polymers Ecocircularity Platform for an Industrial Transition.

PEPIT is a platform of partners, a group of technologies, skills, equipment and a network of experts.

The platform's goal is to accelerate innovations in industry based on three technological lines: mechanical recycling, chemical recycling and biotechnologies.

© GreenWin

It is created and acts with a view to the integration of these lines into a circular economy so as to allow for the circularity of plastic materials.

Networking at the service of innovation

It has a threefold objective: • making an integrated technological structure accessible to industries for the performance of specific tests and analyses, in particular with a view to reducing the risks linked to the launching of innovation projects; • ensuring the rapid start-up of concrete projects - via the pooling of skills and equipment and a direct connection between the research players and industry; • accelerating the bringing to market of competitive industrialisable solutions, by allowing industries in Wallonia to access a regional skills pool via a platform that groups together several Approved Walloon Research Centres working in partnership on project guidance and feasibility.

© GreenWin

Could you tell us about the LCiP project? How do you rate it as regards the Walloon SMEs involved?

LCiP (Life Cycle in Practice) is a European project which the cluster has been a partner. Its goal was to make life cycle analysis (LCA) accessible to SMEs.

Environmental biotechnologies are leading to solutions.

8 Walloon SMEs have played the game and benefited as pioneers from customised tools as well as being able to take strategic decisions to adapt their business model to the LCA principles.

These are businesses such as PREFER, MOBIC, PCIM, ISOHEMP, RUBBERGREEN, PUR VER, BIOWASTE RECYCLING and PAN-TERRE. In addition, the cluster has put in place a resource centre articulated around 3 of our members: CSTC, MATERIA NOVA and ULiègePEPS. It is consequently perfectly possible for any interested SME to contact the cluster in order to access the services of this resource centre.

© GreenWin

Another European project for which we have been a coordinator is remarkable for its pioneering status and high involvement: SCOT, the number 1 European initiative in the field of capturing and using CO2, which has generated the notion of carbon neutrality and/or carbon circularity.

Climate change, a challenge at the heart of green chemistry issues

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This project brought to the table clusters from France, Germany, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom and defined the European strategic agenda in this regard. And for the continuation of this project, GreenWin has been commissioned to establish

© GreenWin

© GreenWin

PEPIT (Polymers Ecocircularity Platform for an Industrial Transition) groups together partners, technologies, skills, equipment and experts.

Green chemistry, the guarantee of a better future and a sustainable world

other sources of cooperation, expansion and international promotion.

a lasting European structure carried by industry in a number of different sectors: CO2 Value Europe. The initiative has been the beneficiary of a Public-Private Partnership in sustainable chemistry between industries and the EU. SPIRE, a Public-Private Partnership between industries and the European Commission, has for that matter integrated the lessons from SCOT into its strategy and in its priority areas. This is also the case for the BBI JU (Joint Undertaking).

What are the main challenges that have to be overcome in the next few years by players in sustainable chemistry, materials, sustainable construction and environmental technologies?

The challenges in our fields of action are in truth cross-disciplinary but our areas of activity are at the heart of the solutions to be developed and deployed to overcome them on a broader stage, that of society.

What calls for projects are planned for 2019 on the cluster’s themes?

Three calls for projects will be organised with the projects to be submitted in March, June and December 2019 respectively.

They always follow the same procedure: starting with handing in a letter of intent and holding an orientation meeting with the cluster's operations team, and ending with a validation of the file with the GreenWin technico-economic panel of experts. After that comes the submission of the full project to the Walloon Government. The opinions of the Administrations concerned are then sought and the government’s panel proceeds to make a selection and submit its report to the government which will then decide which of the projects will be retained for the label. Lastly it is time to finalise the consortium agreement which will open up the path to agreement and project start-up.

Chemistry is faced with a threefold challenge:  The challenges linked to climate change;  Vulnerability of access to resources;  Access to energy.

Limitation to access to resources and climate change will lead to the emergence of tensions and geopolitical pressures from which no one is able to escape.

The very nature of our planet is circular and finite, and the increasing rarity of resources will pose problems. Green chemistry will therefore be a crucial key to reduce these pressures and risks of conflict.

Construction for its part is faced with a twofold challenge:  In the very short term, the digital tidal wave that is washing over the links of the production chain and its impact on the creation of new jobs, all the contours of which it is currently impossible to imagine, as well as on employment in this sector with the risk of crisis that this implies;  The calling into question of business models and flexibility, which will increasingly be key factors in the industrial prosperity of our sectors and of Wallonia.

In addition, our partnerships with the competitiveness clusters of other territories will make it possible to open collaborations and consortia with businesses and other bodies from these regions and countries. We can therefore extend our schedule of Walloon calls for projects to those for Flanders (via Catalisti), France (via Axelera), Quebec (via CRIBIQ) and Italy (via SPRING).

What activities are you developing internationally?

Other than those deployed within the framework of cluster projects (130 members are active in GreenWin projects), we are also developing strategic structural partnerships with clusters outside of Wallonia, with the two most recent being those with Catalisti in Flanders and SPRING in Italy. This allows us to extend the project potentialities and consortia well beyond the geographic limits of Wallonia.

There is also a need to take waste management into consideration, both at industry and consumer level. In this respect, “cradle-tocradle” is increasingly imposing itself as the solution but it implies the changing of the entire sector of recycling which needs to become a partner and not an adversary of “zero waste” by agreeing to call into question its mode and type of functioning according to Lavoisier's universal principle which retains its full force today: nothing is lost, nothing is being created, everything is being transformed…

In addition, our partnership with the EU's BIC networks for European projects in the area of biosourced technologies represent 135

© MecaTech

Centre Terre et Pierre – CTP The Belgian expert in “Mineral processing” and “Mining” CTP is an R & D Center of Excellence serving Companies in the Environmental and Materials fields. It was created 20 years ago by UCL university, IDETA organization and Ateliers Louis Carton company (ALC). UMONS and ULB universities became co-opted members in 2000.

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on-site treatment of streams from demolition activities, etc. In terms of collaborative research (in partnership with other research operators in the Walloon Region and elsewhere in Western Europe), CTP is currently studying the development of “ecobinders” for soil treatment, waterproofing and roads, as well as refractories technologies (eco-design of sustainable energy recovery units, etc.).

TP is one of 19 accredited research centers in Wallonia. The expertise of CTP is dedicated to companies exploring and developing natural deposits (“Mining”) but also those that process and recycle industrial and post-consumption wastes for the purpose of upgrading to the “material” route with high added value. This expertise encompasses the main processes of “Mineral Processing” which are fragmentation, its physico-chemical separations and the extractive metallurgy of first transformation (hydro- and pyrometallurgy).

© CTP

CTP can be proud of one success story among many others: a French company, from the Chambéry region, came to Tournai in 2008 with an idea and Stéphane NEIRYNCK, a few kilograms of gypsum board waste. After two The company employs 40 people and has an annual General Manager of the CTP years of R & D, the company has set up in its region turnover of around €3.5 M, among which 60% a plant processing 40 kT p.a. of plasterboard from deconstruccomes from direct contracts with the world of industry. CTP has a tion in order to valorize both the gypsum (manufacture of new truly recognized expertise at international level, and works with boards) and the paper/cardboard fraction. An almost 100% clients from all over the world (Australia, Canada, Thailand, India, recycling rate for this process entirely imagined and developed United Kingdom, France…). Nearly 65% of the industrial contracts within the CTP! of the CTP are contracted outside Belgium.

Since 2015, CTP set up what is known as a collaborative platform, called IMPRoVE (Industrial Mineral and Plastic ReVErse processing) composed of a selection of “mineral processing” equipment sized at an ‘industrial pilot’ scale – TRL 5 PILOTE platform for the recovery of precious metals by the hydrometallurgical route to 8. This platform, unique in Europe by its size (more than 6,500 m²) and the huge range of equipment available in one place, enables manufacturers to Centre Terre et Pierre – CTP raise their R&D project towards an industrial pre-project and to Chaussée d'Antoing, 55 assess the CAPEX and OPEX, as well as fine tune their business B-7500 Tournai plan.

Tel.: +32 (0)69 88 42 51 Fax: +32 (0)69 88 42 59 Email: info@ctp.be http://ctp.be/en/

CTP runs many industrial projects on various subjects such as the sustainable valorisation of end fractions from the treatment of light and heavy ordinary industrial wastes, studying the concept of 137

© CTP

CTP provides many services through its Studies and Tests department (drawing up economically viable solutions), its Analytical department with various laboratories equipped with state-of-the-art techniques, its pilot plants which enable to meet the requirements of large batch or continuous treatments and its specialists which provide tailored consultancy upon request for plant start-ups or mining projects development.

A focus on Biomarkers and Medicines, Mind and Health, Integrative Biomedicine and Motor Skills An interview with Prof. Philippe DUBOIS, Rector of UMONS

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-D evelopment of software imaging solutions for improved diagnosis of bone diseases; - Risks prevention in hospital organisations and in healthcare networks.

ow is health research organized at UMONS? Research at UMONS is carried out by more than 850 researchers in some 100 departments within 10 research institutes. Among those 10 Research Institutes, one is directly dedicated to health (Health Institute). The Research Institute for Health Sciences and Technology combines 22 academic departments of UMONS, comprising more than 160 people (researchers, teachers and technicians) whose research activities concern the health sector and, more specifically, focus on improving individual and public health.

Together, those institutes combine complementary skills and expertise, allowing our research teams to address complex issues related to the health sector.

What collaborations did you develop with hospitals?

UMONS also actively collaborates with several local hospitals such as CHU Ambroise Paré. In 2012, UMONS and CHU Ambroise Paré created a university and clinical research centre called “UMHAP Medical Research Center”. This partnership covers the development of research projects, the carrying out of scientific and clinical studies, the sharing of equipment and materials, the sharing of data and knowledge for the implementation of research, the hosting of students and researchers, etc. Three joint research units were created: the BioMedical Profiling Unit, the Language Unit and the Research unit in experimental psychopathology. © UMONS

Taking care of people’s physical and mental health is crucial in today’s society. Longer life expectancy, access to care, human development and wellbeing are challenges that we have to confront and manage.

In this context, scientific and technological development in the field of health requires greater coordination between all those concerned (i.e. physicians, pharmacists, psychologists, biologists, managers, etc.). The aim of the Health Institute is to provide to scientists working in the field of health with an interface, in order for them to understand its complexity in a transdisciplinary way.

Likewise, UMONS and EpiCURA set up in 2016 a common scientific platform dedicated to research in the medical field and in disciplines related to hospital life. In addition to consolidating and expanding existing collaborations, the two partners also decided to forge other projects. UMONS contributes its expertise in research and teaching, particularly in the fields covered by its Research Institutes and its Faculties, while EpiCURA contributes

The institute’s research areas are: - Research and Development of Biomarkers and Medicines; - Mind and Health: bilateral relations between the human brain/ mind and health; - Design, development and testing of new scientific methods dedicated to solving the issues surrounding health care institutions, such as improving organisation and logistics; - Integrative Biomedicine; - Motor Skills: being familiar with human movement gives the ability to use it to transform motor behaviours and learn techniques to optimise or restore the human motor potential at different periods of life.

Their inputs in the health sector allow us to cover topics such as: - Integration of IoT technologies in hospitals and cleanrooms; - Language and neurodegenerative diseases; - Clinical phonetics; - Development of innovative supports for cell culture and tissue engineering;

© UMONS

Is the Health Institute the only player in health research at UMONS? Other Institutes also carry out research projects linked to health: InforTech (Research Institute for Information Technology and Computer Science), Language (Research Institute for Language Science and Technology), Materials (Research Institute for Materials Science and Technology), Biosciences (Research Institute for Biosciences) and Risks (Research Institute for the Science and Management of Risks).

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its skills and operational expertise in the various fields of hospital action (medical, nursing, paramedical) and, more broadly, in all matters of interest to a large company.

Can you tell us about UMONS technology platforms in the field of health?

The BioProfiling platform was established with the financial support of the European Union and Wallonia under the ERDF-ESF 2014-2020 programme. This project, involving teams from UMONS and ULB, has received €3.4 million of funding to acquire advanced equipment for the identification and quantification of biological markers.

The BioProfiling platform consists of two perfectly complementary technological platforms: a “Meta-Vision” platform, dedicated to small molecules, and a “MS-Quanta” platform, shared with ULiège, dedicated to macromolecules (proteins).

It is located at UMONS, which is recognised for its longterm expertise in NMR spectroscopy (Nuclear Magnetic Resonance) and mass spectrometry, and already has many researchers and instruments in this field.

For its part, the Centre for Microscopy and Molecular Imaging (CMMI) is a research centre of the Health Institute, which was founded in 2011 thanks to financial support from the European Union and the Walloon Region (ERDF funds).

© UMONS

The platform is open to all in the biotechnology sector - universities, research centres, hospitals and businesses for applications such as metabolic analysis (NMR-based) in body fluids, study of the mechanisms associated with toxic and pathological events, identification of the metabolic signatures of a disease, development of alternative methods to test the effectiveness and/or toxicity of chemical compounds and drug candidates.

that can be used to follow the implanted material in vivo using non-invasive magnetic resonance imaging techniques.

The CMMI meets the needs of the University of Mons and the Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB) to pool and complement remarkable equipment and skills in order to offer the scientific community an integrated high performance preclinical biomedical imaging platform.

The aim of the Textos project (Interreg V) is to design woven supports (using 3D weaving techniques) for bone regeneration using polyester yarns and supplemented with bioceramics and coated with chitosan. Another Intereg V project, Isaid aims to develop support methods for people with mental disabilities via a cross-border partnership platform to support social and professional life. For its part, Iconcensus (H2020, Innovative Medicines Initiative) is a public private partnership (PPP) with a €9.4 million project budget to develop a platform of novel analytical tools for more efficient and safe production of biopharmaceuticals.

Located at the Biopark Charleroi Brussels South, the CMMI is an interuniversity platform that offers services in preclinical imaging to researchers at universities and in industry. It carries out high quality technical and methodological developments in this field thanks to the scientific expertise present within the team of academic leaders. The objectives of the CMMI are to increase the quantity and quality of scientific productivity of its employees and to act as an essential partner in the development of projects on preclinical imaging.

I would also like to quote 3 First Spin-Off projects. The first one is InOvo : it focuses on the development of an in vitro method of assessing the toxicity associated with the presence of endocrine disruptors. The test to be validated is a morphological one which will be able to highlight a change in oocyte maturation induced by an endocrine disruptor. The second one, Opticell, aims to develop cell culture substrates optimised to promote physiological phenotypes by modulating the mechanical and biochemical environment. Last but not least, the third projet is entitled CLEO (Computer-aided Low-dose Estimation of Osteoarticular disorders). CLEO targets the development of a software solution which aims at generating a 3D image of a bone or series of bones from two radiographies, avoiding the cost and harm of IRM imaging for the patient. As you can see, health researchers at UMONS work hard to improve human health!

CMMI offers a wide range of modern instrumentation and methodologies ranging from electron microscopy to in vivo animal imaging.

Coud you give us a few examples of ongoing health-related flagship projects?

Let us start with Nanocardio : this Interreg V project targets the development of nanoparticles for the early detection and analysis of atheroma through MRI and optical imaging (this non-invasive method fails to use ionising radiation and displays an excellent resolution). As for the VIVOIMAG project (H2020, MSCA), it aims at preparing bone scaffolds integrating a magnetically functionalised extracellular matrix material (MFEM) 139

True proximity between clinicians and researchers at the heart of the Charleroi CHU (University Hospital Centre) An interview with Dr Frédéric FLAMAND, General Manager of hospital strategy at Charleroi CHU

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of the fasting effect on hepatic cytolysis. The LME is also interested in atrial fibrillation, which increases the risk of a stroke. Named EMPEROR and given a label by the BioWin cluster, this project is being carried by the company Frid Mind Technologies and aims to develop a device placed in the aorta to deviate blood clots from the heart to peripheral circulation. © Charleroi CHU

hat are the strong points of Charleroi CHU research?

Charleroi University Hospital Centre is a public structure whose role is to supply the population of greater Charleroi with healthcare based on the methods and techniques that have been the best validated at the cutting edge of technology. In addition, it is a University structure that takes part in the basic training of future doctors whilst providing supervision for those applying to be specialist doctors.

What are the main challenges faced by human health researchers in your opinion?

In Europe there is a prevalence of non-transmissible diseases such as cardiovascular diseases and cancers, but also mental problems linked to the ageing of the population, which are on the rise and also becoming chronic illnesses. Researchers working on chronic illnesses will have to highlight mechanisms studied in laboratories in patient populations. Another issue is that of antibiotic resistance in infectious diseases. Here, the research must be accompanied by a better use of antibiotics.

The public hospital is also a place where research is carried out. The strong point of research at Charleroi CHU is the closeness of the relationship between clinicians and researchers within the institution. This is the only example that exists outside of academic hospitals. The other strength is the existence of a reflection group that is responsible for the critical analysis of clinical practice by dissecting the methodologies and analyses used in scientific publications. In addition, since 2012, a “clinical research” unit has been established to provide support on an administrative and legal level for the medical teams carrying out trials with pharmaceuticals companies.

The arrival of artificial intelligence will also shake up the way we build epidemiological and clinical studies. Clinicians will have to assimilate these techniques to interpret the results thereby obtained. In the same way, the management of healthcare institutions in the short term will have to integrate these approaches to outline the factors that may be associated with mortality, the frequency of complications or infections. Lastly, healthcare research will have to continue to prioritise the long term in the interests of the human race and not the short term for immediate profit.

Could you please present to us the activities of the Experimental Medicine Laboratory (LME)?

The main activities of the LME are the whole of the vascular system but also oxidative stress and metabolism. With regard to oxidative stress, the works of the LME study the role of myeloperoxidase in a number of different biochemical processes that take place in the blood flow or in certain organs. The LME also participates in teaching through its employees and by giving lessons, seminars and conferences in a number of different academic and public institutions. In addition, it is developing an epistemology programme aimed at graduate schools with international collaborations and takes part in European projects. Lastly, it enters into partnerships with large biotechnology companies established in Wallonia such as Frid Mind Technologies, Cardiatis, OncoDNA and Bio.be.

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Could you give us a few examples of research programmes in progress at Charleroi CHU? I would like to talk about sepsis, widespread damage to organs that is fatal in approximately 35% of cases and largely attributable to an attack on blood microcirculation. Intensive care services and the LME study the involvement of red blood cells and blood platelets in patients as well as in the in vitro systems that reproduce microcirculation.

For its part, the Anaesthesia Department is carrying out research into the identification of molecular mechanisms

Experimental Medicine Laboratory (LME) at Charleroi CHU

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Caprion Biosciences

Š Caprion Biosciences S.A.

Š Caprion Biosciences S.A.

Proven expertise providing advanced immune monitoring for oncology and vaccine development

from large data sets. Caprion performs these complex studies in a quality environment, which is an important differentiator as it generates high quality data that the clients can use for regulatory submission.

Caprion Biosciences S.A. is the Belgium branch of Canadian-based Caprion Biosciences, a leading specialty CRO laboratory offering bioanalytical, biomarker and immune monitoring solutions to innovative life sciences companies throughout the world.

Altogether, Caprion services are relevant to all stages of the drug discovery pipeline, from discovery to clinical trials, and across all therapeutic areas. And with sites in North America and Belgium, Caprion supports global clinical trials using standardized processes, ensuring a uniform and robust output for its biopharmaceutical partners.

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aprion Biosciences was co-founded in 2000 by current President and CEO Martin LeBlanc. Caprion acquired its first immune monitoring laboratory in 2011, followed by acquisition in 2016 of its Belgium site located in Gosselies, allowing the company to expand its footprint in Europe and address the rapidly increasing global demand. The recent acquisition of US-based Primity Bio further expanded its immunology and molecular profiling service offerings.

Thanks to its expertise Caprion helps its pharmaceutical and biotech industry partners face the challenges of precision medicine: the on-going development and understanding of biomarkers to efficiently target the right patient sub-population for each therapeutics. As a result, and in parallel to the explosion of immune therapies, the field is witnessing an increased demand for complex cellular assays to be performed as part of clinical trials, which calls for a rare combination of scientific know-how and robust, quality-driven processes - a combination that requires the expertise of a global yet specialized and agile service provider such as Caprion!

Since 2000, Caprion has been recognized for its proteomic and bioanalytical expertise. Using its advanced mass spectrometry platform allowing for the simultaneous profiling of thousands of proteins in a wide range of sample types, Caprion performs target and biomarker discovery studies as well as supporting process development for biologics with the identification of impurities in biologics.

Caprion’s other area of speciality is immune monitoring, which is the characterization of the immune response in patients who are administered new immune modulating drugs during clinical trials. As the primary focus of the Belgium site, this area is experiencing rapid growth, fueled by recent advances in immunooncology. Caprion is a recognized leader due to its expertise in the development of complex cellular assays and integrated immune monitoring solutions. The use of state-of-the-art flow cytometers allows for the characterization of all sub-population of blood cells to study how the immune system responds to treatment. Caprion has a unique expertise in immuno-oncology and vaccine development, as well as state-of-the-art bioinformatics and statistical analysis to mine and extract useful information

Caprion Biosciences S.A. 8 rue Adrienne Bolland - B-6041 Gosselies Tel.: +32 (0) 71 96 23 36 - Fax: +32 (0) 71 96 21 86 E-mail: info@caprion.com - http://www.caprion.com 141

Innovatech Innovation affects all aspects of companies A non-profit association created in 2002 with funding from the Walloon Region and the European Union, Innovatech is first and foremost a pilot project initially located on a part of the Walloon territory. The activities were then extended to the whole of the region in 2008. Its goal: to contribute towards increasing the number of innovative companies and accelerate the marketing of a larger number of innovations (products, processes, services), for all industrial sectors combined.

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nnovatech’s activity is guided by three main missions: to stimulate SME innovation; guiding their technological innovation projects and supporting them with a view to improving their innovation practices. Thanks to the twenty employees (engineers, lawyers and communicators), in the past 10 years the non-profit association has provided guidance to 1,600 companies and 1,800 projects, i.e. an annual average of 220 companies, 190 new projects and 35 collaboration contracts (between companies, companies and research centres, companies and universities) generating nearly 4 million Euro.

© Innovatech

vision of the innovation project and a functional analysis (which will determine the useful functions and accessories of the future product throughout its life cycle). Innovatech analysis and guidance tools are placed at the disposal of SMEs as the project advances according to coaching approach. The company remains in charge of its process: Innovatech offers but does not decide. This sometimes can cause a few instances of frustration…

Innovation through the lens of technological and legislative changes

In addition, each year Innovatech organises beInnovatech’s services are aimed at all industrial tween 23 and 25 seminars on the management sectors but the main industrial clients today are Mr Laurent Letellier, of innovation and useful technologies for SMEs. in the sectors of electromechanics, IT, the agrodirector of Innovatech It also runs a 6-day training cycle on the innovafood industry, chemistry and construction. Added to these are sectors undergoing strong growth such as health tion process for companies. And let’s not forget “Discovering (biotechs, manufacturers of medical devices etc.), energy and Walloon innovations”: this major networking event presents the environment and telecommunications. These sectors create sixty innovations by supported Walloon companies every year. value in a context of large-scale changes that are technological (micro-production, fast prototyping, big data, intelligent sensors, Targeted services for innovative sectors decision-aiding tools, REACH regulations etc.) and legislative: the obligation to ensure compliance is a powerful innovation Innovatech offers three types of services to companies: project lever. management from idea to product launch on the market; intellectual property and guidance in elaborating a communication Always keen to stress the importance of innovation at regional strategy linked to innovation, whether it is an individual project level, Innovatech intends to hold a large event in the first half or a company’s innovation system. It is a matter of identifying of 2019. This event will be added to the 8th edition of “Discovering the risks inherent to all kinds of innovation so as to propose an action plan to reduce these risks to an acceptable level and conWalloon innovations”. Moreover, Innovatech will pursue the ortain them. The various components of an innovation thus come ganisation of seminars and re-edit its training course “6 days under the microscope: technical, legal, commercial, standards, to innovate better” and its technological breakfasts, a 2-hour organisational etc. formula to deal with a technology developed in a laboratory and applied by a company that comes to talk about it.

This examination calls for a cross-disciplinary approach combining research into better sources of funding, a more “agile” Beyond the event aspect, Innovatech cultivates partnerships. The non-profit association is active in the EEN (Enterprise Europe Network), a technological transfer and evaluation network cofinanced by the Walloon Region and the European Commission.

It also takes part in the Interreg Euregio project “Innove2Market”, which links the Belgian and Dutch regions of Limburg, Aachen and Liège to facilitate technology transfer and cross-border collaborations between businesses.

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Discovering Walloon innovations

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Innovatech believes it is vital to communicate on Walloon success stories. Among them is the company Belgagri: with 25 people and specialising in the struggle against “pests”, it has been able to develop a nettle-based fertiliser (nettle manure) thanks to Innovatech’s guidance. For its part, the company Glutton (45 employees) has become known for its urban waste vacuum

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cleaners. Innovatech followed it through the project covering the various parts of its product and the enhancement of its innovation system.

creating a new product or improving an existing one. Thanks to this approach developed in the IT sector and applicable to all other sectors, it has become easy continuously to improve a prototype until the “right” product is obtained. In addition, agility is essential in order to increase the company’s responsiveness.

In the area of health, Innovatech has helped the company Analis (135 employees) to develop an in vitro diagnosis kit to facilitate blood analyses in the hospitals of disadvantaged countries. However, Innovatech also knows how to make itself known to very small enterprises such as Ampi: this 2-person family company received guidance in the development of a topof-the-range grounding power socket for wooden terraces. Last but not least, the company Végépack, which employs 15 people, has developed a new range of ready-to-use (prepackaged) vegetables that uses a special sterilisation method thanks to the good deeds of Innovatech.

Another pre-requisite for innovation: being able to listen to the emerging markets. This involves spotting the so-called “weak” market signals (these early warning signs announce a potential change in paradigm) and learning to anticipate them. There is also a need to go beyond the simple activity of a market watch in itself and adopt a more visionary and consequently more risky approach. That is where Innovatech comes in: the nonprofit association is giving companies back their appetite for risk by identifying factors so as to better master them.

Improving the innovation capacity of Walloon companies

Nevertheless, an appetite for risk alone is not enough. Companies must also improve their own capacities for technological absorption to allow smoother partnerships with technical providers and facilitate technology transfers. This means going beyond the differences in functioning, approach and objectives. Yes, innovation is also a matter of culture!

In spite of these successes, Innovatech knows that there is still some way to go to improve the innovation capacity of Walloon companies. Indeed, traditional companies do not always realise that innovation is a key success factor in their growth.

There is still a need to mobilise all employees and assign them the means necessary for its follow-up. Innovation still needs to raise itself to the top rank of company strategy.

But that is not all: to be more innovative, companies are well advised to adopt an open innovation approach – this is a must in the era of globalised and over-abundant knowledge. There is therefore an urgent need to pool skills and enter into a co-development process, faithful to the logic of competitiveness clusters and mobilising programmes.

Innovatech asbl Rue Auguste Piccard, 20 - B-6041 Charleroi Tel.: +32 (0)71 91 98 60 E-mail: info@innovatech.be - http://www.innovatech.be/

In the same way, company bosses are invited to adopt an integrated approach for the innovation process at the same time as a more “agile” product approach, whether it is a question of 143

TThe Catholic University of Louvain (UCLouvain), the top university of the Wallonia-Brussels Federation for participation in European programmes An interview with Prof. Vincent BLONDEL, Rector of the Catholic University of Louvain (UCL)

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© Christophe Delarsille

hat are the key figures and the strong points for research at UCLouvain?

UCLouvain has more than 3,000 researchers including 2,000 doctoral fellows. Our university confers a doctorate per working day and the PhD theses represent more than a third of theses defended in the Wallonia-Brussels Federation (FWB). Moreover, €242m has been granted to research in 2018 and 30% of the overall budget of the university is supplied by external credits obtained by UCLouvain researchers. The university has 21 research institutes and 36 technology platforms and it has received 38 ERC Grants and 21 Francqui Prizes. It is the top university of the Wallonia-Brussels Federation for participation in European programmes and the 2nd Belgian university (behind KU Leuven) in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings.

NRBC training centres (these two projects are coordinated by Prof. Jean-Luc Gala); finally, the project DoDyNet aims to improve the understanding of the synergistic effects resulting from the combination of distinct dynamic methods within the polymer network (Prof. Evelyne Van Ruymbeke, Institute of Condensed Matter and Nanosciences).

The strong points of its research are nutrition, treatment of pain, mathematics, philosophy, microbiology, climatology, economics, oncology, political science, education and new materials. The UCLouvain researchers are involved in 93 projects selected and funded by Horizon 2020. UCLouvain coordinates six of these: the project Beta3-LVH is tackling the prevention of heart failure (Prof. Jean-Luc Balligand, Institute of Experimental and Clinical Research); the project REASSURE is developing a clear methodology for the evaluation of the resistance level of protected applications (Prof. François-Xavier Standaert, Institute of Information and Communication Technologies, Electronics and Applied Mathematics); LightKone is developing software applications with the IoT for health, safety, domotics etc. (Prof. Peter Van Roy); ENCIRCLE is creating tools and strategies to enable the consolidation of communities of NRBC suppliers and users in the EU; eNOTICE is developing a pan-European network of

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In addition, four EOS projects are coordinated by UCLouvain (out of 17 partnerships: the be.h. project (Pr Fabio Maltoni), Viral interference with RNA sensing and processing (Prof. Thomas Michiels), the MUSE-WINET project (Prof. Luc Vandendorpe) and PARAMOUR (Prof. Hugues Goosse).

Martin Delguste, winner of the Belgian final of the contest 'Ma thèse en 180 secondes’ (My thesis in 180 seconds), with Prof. Jean-Christophe Renauld, Research pro-Rector. Martin Delguste is a doctoral fellow at Louvain Institute of Biomolecular Science and Technology (LIBST).

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Could you tell us about the four ERC Starting Grants obtained for projects at UCLouvain?

UCLouvain received 38 ERC grants including 24 Starting Grants.

The four most recent grants were obtained in 2018. Prof. Géraldine Laloux, an FNRS researcher at the de Duve Institute was selected for her project “PREDATOR: Revealing the cell biology of predatory bacterium in space and time”. Corentin Claeys Bouuaert, PhD Research Fellow at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York was selected for his project “BrokenGenome: Breaking and rebuilding the genome: mechanistic rules for the dangerous game of sex”. Finally, Prof. Sylvie Nozaradan, FNRS Research Fellow, convinced the jury with her project “Rhythm and Brains: How musical rhythm moves humans: functional mechanisms of training and perception-action coupling”. In addition, an ERC Starting Grant was awarded to Anne Réverseau (KU Leuven), FNRS science collaborator in UCLouvain, for her project “HANDLING: Writers handling pictures: a material intermediality (1880-today)”.

Can you give us a few examples of research projects on health?

The research of Prof. Patrice Cani, who established the link between microbiota and some diseases such as obesity and diabetes, led to the creation of the spin-off A-Mansia. The funds raised by A-Mansia will enable the researchers to begin development of a food supplement or a drug to treat these diseases.

© Alexis Haulot © Alexis Haulot

Prof. Géraldine Laloux, an FNRS researcher at de Duve Institute, is one of the four researchers to have received an ERC Starting Grant in 2018.

UCLouvain has been awarded 38 ERC grants.

The atomic force microscope, of which UCLouvain has several, is a unique tool in French-speaking Belgium. It is mainly used in research carried out

by Prof. David Alsteens and Yves Dufrêne (LIBST).

Another remarkable advance is that pharmaceutical firm AbbVie has decided to take under licence an experimental anti-cancer drug developed by the teams of Prof. Sophie Lucas and Pierre Coulie (de Duve Institute) and argenx, a Belgian biotechnology company. This is the result of a fundamental research idea of 14 years ago!

What are the strong points of UCLouvain research in 2018?

A spin-off of UCLouvain - IntoPix, set up by Prof. Antonin Descampe conjured up the image compression standard of tomorrow, JPEG XS, which will take over from the standard JPEG which is over 25 years old. In the field of climate sciences, Prof. François Massonnet, who has just been appointed an FNRS researcher, uses two sources of complementary information to estimate the state of the climate and its future, climatic models and observations on climate through satellite data and observations on the ground.

In terms of the environment, the platform Trase with the collaboration of the team of Prof. Patrick Meyfroidt, aims to reconstitute the sectors of the main agricultural products responsible for deforestation. In 2018 UCLouvain launched a new chair, the Anthropology of Contemporary Europe Chair, to form a network of researchers on the experience and representations of Europeans. In the health sciences, I would like to refer to the most recent discovery in mechanobiology by Prof. Yves Dufrêne, FNRS research director at Louvain Institute of Biomolecular Science and Technology and Welbio researcher. This presents new perspectives in the fight against hospital-acquired diseases caused by staphylococci.

Also, the team of Prof. Jean-François Collet discovered a new protein, CnoX, which plays a major role in defending bacteria against our immune system.

UCLouvain is also involved in the WALLINOV projects with Prof.

Bonaventure, Chaumont, Declerck and Gala, as well as some Teamup projects of the Brussels-Capital Region with Prof. Delvenne, Mens and Jungers.

Dr Anabelle Decottignies (de Duve Institute) won the Allard-Janssen Award for her work on telomeres. The aim of her team is to achieve a better understanding of the mechanism for maintaining telomeres in cancerous cells to identify new target therapies. I would also like to refer to the discovery of Prof. Sandrine Horman and Christophe Beauloye who demonstrated that the modification of the activity of a particular enzyme enabled the control of the lipid content of platelets, which paves the way for new treatments for patients at risk of a cardiac arrest.

How does UCLouvain promote research results?

The Louvain Technology Transfer Office (LTTO, www.ltto.com) manages the funding of research contracts, protection and intellectual property management and its commercialisation (through licenses and/or spin-offs). More than 75 spin-offs have been created, currently generating more than 2,000 jobs. In 20172018, UCL obtained the support of the Brussels-Capital Region for 3 spin-off mandates (Launch program): StellaScreen (Screening for new medicines for hepatic disorders), Innovadent (Innovative dental composite) and MMaaS (Marine Modelling as a Service).

One First Spin-Off (FSO) mandate was supported by the Walloon Region: Spinovit (New biomarker for the prevention of cardiovascular diseases).

Finally, at the Louvain Institute of Biomolecular Science and Technology (LIBST), the team of Prof. David Alsteens discovered the essential role played by a glycoprotein present on the surface of herpes virus, responsible for several potentially serious diseases in immunodeficient persons and foetuses.

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Science policy playing a leading role in the economic redeployment of Wallonia An interview with Mr Jean-Christophe RENAULD, Chairperson of the Walloon Science Policy Cluster, Pro-Rector for Research at UCLouvain

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hat are the missions of the Walloon “Science Policy” centre?

Successor to the Science Policy Council (CPS) and set up

by Decree of 2017 to rationalise the consultative function, the Science Policy Cluster submits opinions on policy papers of the Walloon Government and on preliminary drafts of Decrees on science policy. The Cluster also makes proposals on ways to mobilise with a view to promoting effective development and coordination of research activities in both the economic and academic sectors, formulates suggestions on the funding of science policy and Regional participation in national, regional and international scientific or technological research activities.

Every two years the Cluster evaluates the science policy of the Region in a detailed report. Finally, it gives an opinion on the activities of the Walloon Institute for the Evaluation of Foresight and Statistics, and makes recommendations to the government on statistics, evaluation, strategy and future planning advice.

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How do you view the Walloon Government’s science, research and innovation policy?

Wallonia has shown itself to be very dynamic in matters of research and innovation. The “Regional Innovation Scoreboard 2017” published by the European Commission rates Wallonia as a strong innovator among the regions of the European Union. Our region has distinguished itself for its level of spending on R&D for enterprises, the quality of its fundamental research, the level of training of the population and the creation of employment in high-tech services. Nevertheless, the most recent statistical analyses show that these competitive advantages seem to be levelling off. Also, we must be careful about our weaknesses linked to public expenditure on R&D, commercialisation of research, R&D and innovation in traditional sector SMEs and on human resources in science and technology.

On what subjects do you plan to submit advice on your own initiative ?

We are currently preparing the publication of the 7th Evaluation Report which will give a valuable update on the Walloon research and innovation sector. These elements will represent a strong objective base to enable us to draft a memorandum for the political world for the next elections in 2019. This memorandum is a key opportunity for all the partners involved in science policy to have their say in a strong and consensual manner and to contribute to defining the main elements of Walloon science policy for the next five years.

What do you think are the main challenges to overcome for the Walloon Region in terms of scientific research and innovation?

Broadly speaking, I think there are three major challenges that the Walloon Region will have to overcome. First of all, garnering public support for research with the continuation of the effort to bring public R&D expenditure up to 1% of GDP to reach the global target of 3% in 2020, while maintaining Walloon support for the National Fund of Scientific Research essential for supplying the pipeline of applied research. Then, to put in place measures to enable specific evaluation of the different support mechanisms for research and innovation so as to inform strategic decisions. Finally, to facilitate the transition between research results and commercialisation so that science policy fulfils its leading role in the economic redeployment of our region.

Subjects on the agenda for our next meetings and which could lead to own-initiative opinions include analysis of Walloon budget appropriation granted to R&D in 2017 and 2018, the outcome of the FIRST Spin-Off initiative after 20 years and the outcome of the BEWARE programme co-funded by the Walloon Region and the European Union.

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Research team under Prof. Eric GAIGNEAUX Institute of Condensed Matter and Nanosciences – Molecular Chemistry, Materials and Catalysis Specialized in heterogeneous catalysis, the research team of Prof. E. Gaigneaux of the Bioengineering Faculty is part of a group of 26 collaborators including two professors, five post-doctoral fellows and seven doctoral fellows.

Its aim is to make catalytic processes more effective and less energy demanding.

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nternationally recognized (quadrennial symposium on the preparation of heterogeneous catalysts, the Operando Spectroscopy group, World Congress on Oxidation Catalysis, International Congress on Environmental Catalysis and guest professor at the EPN in Quito, Ecuador), Prof. E. Gaigneaux has developed comprehensive expertise in the field of heterogeneous catalysts, i.e. solids that accelerate chemical reactions without being consumed and thus that can be reused several times. This expertise is based on four lines of laboratory studies: the preparation of heterogeneous catalysts, their physico-chemical characterization, measuring their performance in liquid or gaseous reactions and post-catalysis characterization to probe and improve the life cycle and the possibility of reusing the catalysts. In addition, the laboratory of Prof. E. Gaigneaux is one of the few ones in the world to combine characterization and performance measurement in in situ and operando modes to improve the understanding of the process at work.

and to develop air-depolluting catalytic coatings (in partnership with a glass company) The capacity of the laboratory to produce catalysts at a small pilot scale enables preindustrial trials.

Manufacturers can also benefit from services to regenerate spent catalysts and physico-chemical characterization, standard (ex situ) or in situ and operando (see above).

© IMCN - UCLouvain

On the strength of its expertise, the team of Prof. E. Gaigneaux contributes to overcoming the challenge of intensifying chemical processes (smaller reactors and more local production that is limited to requirements, FEDER project “Flow4Reactor”). Prof. E. Gaigneaux shares a mutual interest in the transition from the petrochemical era to that of bio-sourced chemistry (see above) with his former doctoral fellow and now colleague, Prof. D. Debecker, who is working mainly on the promotion of CO2 through its conversion into useful molecules (methane, Close-view of the operando reactor allowing Raman methanol, formate, etc.), and on enzyand UV-Vis spectroscopies of a catalyst at work matic catalysis. As a final string to his (here in the methanol-to-dimethylether reaction) bow, Prof. E. Gaigneaux is doing reHistorically focused on petrochemical search on more ecological production of reactions (oxidation of hydrocarbons), ammonia. Actually, hydrogenation of nitrogen represents 50% the research of Prof. E. Gaigneaux expanded 10 years ago of the energy consumption of the chemical sector and 3% of to include bio-sourced chemistry. In this context, he is working, overall global consumption. In addition to its extensive indusfor example, on the production of acrylates using acid catalysts trial use, ammonia could be an alternative solution for energy via the dehydration of fermentation-derived lactates (in partnerstorage. Manufacturers who are interested and the European ship with a lactic acid producer) and on the conversion of bioCommission, get in touch! methanol into dimethyl ether, a clean bio-based fuel that could in time replace diesel. The team of Prof. E. Gaigneaux is also involved in fine chemistry, which means intensifying processes of the pharmaceutical industry by providing it with solid heterogeneous catalysts capable of ensuring continuous operation of reactors (and not intermittent as is often the case today). Finally, the team of Prof. E. Gaigneaux is working on air depollution (development of catalysts to destroy indoor air pollutants and to depollute industrial gas waste – with more than 15 years of exInstitute of Condensed Matter and Nanosciences – perience working on volatile organic compounds and chlorinated Molecular Chemistry, Materials and Catalysis (MOST) aromatics). They are also working on water depollution (removal UCLouvain of dyes by combining plasma and heterogeneous catalysis, in collaboration with the University of Yaounde in Cameroon).

Lavoisier building

Place Louis Pasteur 1, mailbox L4.01.09 B-1348 Louvain-la-Neuve Tel.: +32 (0)10 47 36 65 E-mail: eric.gaigneaux@uclouvain.be https://uclouvain.be/en/research-institutes/imcn/most

Prof. E. Gaigneaux has formed several partnerships with manufacturers as part of projects funded by the Walloon Region. His fundings have enabled the transformation of plant oils to industrialgrade bio-lubricants (in partnership with an oleochemical company) and the formulation of a new catalyst to produce oxygenated water 147

Institute of Condensed Matter and Nanosciences (IMCN) Molecules, Solids and Reactivity (MOST) Prof. Olivier Riant’s research group Part of the MOST cluster of the IMCN at the Université Catholique de Louvain, the research team under Prof. O. Riant was created in 2012 and is developing cutting-edge expertise in organic chemistry. This expertise has a wide range of applications in materials and healthcare.

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With these promising prospects, the team under Prof. O. Riant is confident in its ability to meet two major challenges ahead. The first challenge is to continue the development of catalytic systems with ever-higher performance and that are adapted to current issues, starting with the transition from hydrocarbons to biomass for the basic building blocks of the chemical industry. In other words, it involves ‘chemico-compatible’ systems that are increasingly exact and complex, avoiding the use of cumbersome protective groups. The second challenge concerns the application of organometallic catalysis in biology: the concept of selectivity will be increasingly applied within the complex biological systems of cells that cause transformation reactions without affecting the cells. Major medical advances to be expected!

ith around twenty researchers, the team under Prof. O. Riant is currently conducting around twenty research projects and producing around ten publications per year. Their work in organic chemistry is centred around two specialities: the homogeneous organometallic catalysis of copper (as well as ruthenium, iridium, gold and palladium) and asymmetric catalysis (using achiral raw material). For organometallic catalysis, the research focuses on the development of new complex reactions to create carbon-carbon bonds through cascade processes catalysed by copper chemistry.

The development of bimetal homogeneous catalysis systems (palladium-copper) is also part of the ongoing work and a number of partnerships add a welcome interdisciplinary touch. An example of this is the collaboration with the team under Prof. T. Leyssens, which enables the use of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) for different nuclei and various chemical kinetics tools. Similarly, the collaboration with the team under Prof. S. Hermans is contributing to the development of recycled homogeneous catalysts (functionalisation of nanocarbon with carbon nanotubes and graphene via organic synthesis methods in order to graft organic molecules onto carbon for a range of applications).

© Pr. Riant’s research group - IMCN

© Pr. Riant’s research group - IMCN

In the field of biological and medical chemistry, the team under Prof. O. Riant is working with the team under Prof. O. Feron, a researcher at the Institute of Experimental and Clinical Research (IREC) at the UCL and a leading specialist in tumour hypoxia and cancer metabolism. In this field, it is developing therapeutic molecular tools targeting tumour hypoxia and the metabolism of tumour cells, as well as organometallic catalysis processes in living tumour cells: a selective way of targeting tumour cells and modifying standard inhibitors to make them act directly at the core of hypoxic tumour cells.

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Université Catholique de Louvain Prof. Olivier RIANT Institute of Condensed Matter and Nanosciences (IMCN) Molecules, Solids and Reactivity (MOST) Place Louis Pasteur 1 bte L4.01.02 B-1348 Louvain-la-Neuve Tel.: +32 (0)10 47 87 77 E-mail: olivier.riant@uclouvain.be https://uclouvain.be/en/research-institutes/ imcn/most/riant-s-research-group.html

Laboratory of Applied Materials Chemistry – CMA

© CMA

New materials for sustainable development

Prof. C. Aprile

Created in 2011 with the arrival of Prof. Carmela Aprile at UNamur, the CMA has welcomed three post-doctoral fellows, 9 doctoral fellows, about twenty master’s students and some visiting researchers. It is renowned for synthesis of materials and their catalytic applications as well as for the use of solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance.

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he activity of CMA is focusing predominately on sustainable development and green chemistry. Bearing this in mind, the CMA follows four main research lines: conversion of CO2 into useful chemicals (cyclic carbonates and methanol); valorisation of glycerol, a by-product of biodiesel production, employing novel catalytic systems; photocatalysis, for example the photodegradation of organic pollutants; design of new three-dimensional architectures for photophysical applications.

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The CMA is currently involved in various research projects including a FEDER, an ARC project (in collaboration notably with UCLouvain) and several FNRS projects. A recently awarded FNRS “large scale” project will contribute to the renewal of a solid-state NMR instrument – an advanced characterisation tool developed in close collaboration with Dr Luca Fusaro which enables collecting structural information on a large variety of solids. Moreover, a project for hydrogen production in collaboration with the University of Hasselt recently stared. CMA has also developed numerous research partnerships in Belgium (e. g. UCLouvain, UMONS and ULB) and also in Spain (e. g. Polytechnic University of Valencia), in Italy (e. g. University of Palermo, Polytechnic of Turin, University of Perugia), in the Netherlands (e. g. Groningen University), in the United Kingdom (e. g. Cardiff University) etc. CMA is also participating in research projects involving industrial partners and it often provides a support to solve scientific problems or for the in-depth characterisation of different materials.

CMA group

Focusing on this dual expertise, the CMA contributes enthusiastically to the development of novel heterogeneous catalysts displaying high activity and at the same time low environmental footprint.

Various catalytic systems were already proposed, however there are still challenges. Strong emphasis is given to find sustainable processes, fulfilling efficiency criteria and working under solvent free conditions or with non-toxic solvents, requiring low energy input and minimizing waste production.

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The CMA intends to continue its involvement in the development of new materials as well as in the development of several characterisation techniques and especially solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance which is part of the technology platform of physicochemical characterization (PC²: http://platforms.unamur.be/ platforms/pc2) of UNamur. With the CMA, green chemistry has a bright future!

Cambridge Design Bullfrog batch reactor with temperature control and mechanical stirring, designed to operate, if needed, at high temperature and pressure.

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Laboratory of Applied Materials Chemistry (CMA) UNamur Rue de Bruxelles 61 B-5000 Namur Tel.: +32 (0)81 72 45 14 E-mail: carmela.aprile@unamur.be https://www.unamur.be/sciences/chimie/cma/presentation

Bio- and Soft Matter – IMCN Research team under Prof. Evelyne Van Ruymbeke As part of the Bio and Soft Matter cluster at the IMCN (Institute of Condensed Matter and Nanosciences), the team under Prof. Van Ruymbeke has a total of 12 researchers working in the field of soft condensed matter. This work has a range of promising key industrial applications.

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n her rheology laboratory, the team under Prof. Van Ruymbeke works to study the flow and properties of soft condensed matter, aiming to connect their composition to their response to stress (forces) and to develop molecular models to predict how they flow.

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On the strength of its expertise, the team under Prof. Van Ruymbeke has participated in a number of European projects. One of these was an ITN project (Initial Training Network) called Supolen (Supramolecular Entangled Polymers) aimed at better understanding the macroscopic properties of supramolecular polymer networks by clarifying the connection between their composition, structure and dynamics. This work made it possible to determine how to “design” new materials to obtain the desired properties and consider new applications. In particular, reversible networks created via supramolecular bonds between molecules allowed the development of more innovative materials such as self-repairing materials.

The team under Prof. Van Ruymbeke

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A follow-on from Supolen, DoDyNet (Double Dynamics for design of new responsive polymer networks and gels) began in September 2018. Coordinated by Prof. Van Ruymbeke, it is made up of 13 doctoral candidates and 10 research teams seeking to develop polymer networks able to respond to stress via a dual dynamic. This should allow the development of self-repairing materials able to maintain their shape or even materials that are both tough and stretchy. To meet such challenges, the researchers pool their expertise in all areas of materials: synthesis, characterisation of properties, modelling… This project is also the result of close collaboration with three manufacturers. The adhesive manufacturer tesa, is interested in developing new adhesives able to resist severe stress, regardless of outdoor conditions. The coatings specialist Allnex is promoting the development of new coatings with haptic properties. As for the manufacturer DSM, it is hoping to take advantage of better understanding of thermoplastic elastomers which are used in a range of fields (cars, packaging, sports, etc.). Here again, the aim is to adjust the composition of these materials to control their properties, for example how they behave in response to temperature.

The rheology laboratory of the team under Prof. Van Ruymbeke

For the team under Prof. Van Ruymbeke, the main challenge is better understanding the viscoelastic properties of polymers in melt state when subject to high levels of deformation. There are currently no quantitative models available to predict this behaviour from the composition of the sample. However, the recent development of new rheometers, allowing the collection of reliable data on the flow of a polymer subject to large deformation, means that a range of new prospects have opened up for the team under Prof. Van Ruymbeke for developing this kind of model. Such a discovery would benefit a wide range of industrial sectors such as agro-food, cosmetics, tissue engineering, adhesives, coatings and 3D printing. So, the future looks promising!

Bio- and Soft Matter Institut IMCN – UCLouvain Boltzmann building Place Croix du Sud, 1 B-1348 Louvain-La-Neuve Tel.: +32 (0)10 47 3560 E-mail: secretariat-imcn@uclouvain.be https://uclouvain.be/en/research-institutes/imcn/bsma 150

Louvain Centre for Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology Interdisciplinary expertise in the fight against cystic fibrosis An internal structure of the IREC (Institut de Recherche Expérimentale et Clinique) created in 2009, the Louvain Centre for Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology (LTAP) brings together 10 research directors who lead 8 research groups including 10 researchers, 3 scientific collaborators, external researchers, 14 researchers (mainly post-docs) on external credits and 10 PhD students.

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the underlying mechanisms of PCP may lead to the development of targeted interventions. In a collaborative research program led

by Dr. Rita Vanbever (Louvain Drug Research Institute, UCLouvain), the group also develops a nanomedicine able to neutralize neutrophil elastase released in excess in patients’ airways - a project funded by the Walinnov program of the Belgian Walloon Region.

he LTAP research focuses on the interactions between xenobiotics and human health, with the following main themes: pathophysiology, diagnosis and treatment of cystic fibrosis; experimental pulmonary pathology; personalized therapy; epidemiology and biomarkers. Moreover, the laboratory is well equipped and has the expertise to conduct in vitro and in vivo experiments thanks to its access to technical platforms in bioinformatics, molecular, physiology and imaging biology, cell imaging, applied molecular technologies, clinical studies…

Among the main challenges looming ahead for the research groups, improving the quality of life and lightening the burden of treatments should be major concerns beside increasing survival. The advent of personalized medicine is also becoming an essential line of research, since more than 2,000 CFTR putative mutations have been identified. The hope is to offer to each patient a treatment à la carte and to develop methods to assess the efficacy of treatments.

Over the last twenty years, the group of Teresinha Leal has been working on Cystic Fibrosis (CF), the most common lethal genetic disease worldwide that affects multiple organs and systems. The translational approach comprises genetically modified mice and cell lines as models of CF disease. A current research program of the group explores the therapeutic potential of phosphodiesterase type 5 (PDE5) inhibitors, sildenafil, vardenafil and taladafil, to rescue the basic defects of the most common and one of the most severe CFTR mutations, the F508del. In collaboration with the Transgene Platform of the De Duve Institute, the group is currently developing ‘humanized’ mouse models of the disease by taking advantage of gene editing CRISPR-Cas9 technologies. The main goal of the project is to generate more adequate CF disease models better mimicking patient’s signs, symptoms and responses to therapies.

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In another large collaborative research program supported by the European Commission Horizon 2020 and orchestrated by ProQR Therapeutics, a Netherlands-based company, the T. Leal group is involved in RNA therapy for CF. Encouraging preclinical results, followed by positive patient findings during phase I/II clinical trials, were obtained with Eluforsen, a short oligonucleotide sequence for inhalation designed to restore function of CFTR in patients homozygous for the F508del mutation. In collaboration with the University of Heidelberg, the group is also studying the loss of planar cell polarity (PCP) in CF which seems to be a key event in CF pathogenesis as it contributes to lung tissue remodelling and transdifferentiation of epithelial cells into motile mesenchymal cells. The group believes that understanding

© LTAP

Bronchial epithelium section from a patient with cystic fibrosis.

Immunofluorescence. Nuclei stained with DAPI.

Bubble sweat test as a measure of therapeutic efficacy in patients with CF, a collaborative project with the Verona CF center and the Stanford University.

Sweat production imaged as bubbles formed in an oil layer covering a small skin area of a forearm. Colourless bubbles: preserved CFTR-independent cholinergic stimulation in a healthy subject (A); Blue-stained bubbles: defective, CFTR-dependent β-adrenergic stimulation in a patient with CF (C) compared to a healthy subject (B).

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Louvain Centre for Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology Avenue E. Mounier 53 B-1200 Brussels - Belgium Tel.: +32 (0)2 764 94 73 E-mail: teresinha.leal@uclouvain.be https://uclouvain.be/fr/instituts-recherche/irec/ltap

Incize Your partner in semiconductor characterisation Having started as a spin-off from UCL in 2011, Incize became a private limited company (SPRL) in 2014 and specialises in semiconductor characterisation and modelling for digital, analogue/RF and harsh environment applications. The company has eight staff members and its sales and services are expected to reach €1 million in 2018. It has 16 clients, mainly international.

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© Incize

ncize is known worldwide for its expertise in the area of RF SOI (Radio Frequency Silicon-on-Insulator). The technology was developed at UCLouvain by the group of Prof. Jean-Pierre Raskin (Institute of Information and Communication Technologies, Electronics and Applied Mathematics – ICTEAM). Today, Incize is known for its ability to test, qualify and model this technology which is present in every smartphone. In fact, it is the basis for circuit blocks used for high frequency communication (Front End Module – FEM). Incize also extended its services to include characterisation and modelling of Si, SOI and III-V materials and devices (active and passive) for RF And RadHard applications.

Incize continues its close partnership with UCLouvain to provide customised services for its clients. Thus, the company makes use of the Welcome characterisation and the Winfab cleanroom, both technology platforms from UCLouvain, to carry out electrical tests and fabrication of test structures. In addition, Incize works with other European laboratories, in Germany and France in particular, to complete its offer of tests for R&D projects. The company can now combine services carried out “internally” and outsourced services.

© Incize

Alongside these services, the company provides ongoing training that is also customisable. This training deals with the technique of RF SOI characterisation and modelling which has already led to two conference days in Hawaii and Granada. Moreover, Incize organises workshops on the clients’ premises, providing targeted training for technical teams.

Currently, Incize is continuing its R&D activities in order to perfect the RF SOI platform and to develop an up-and-coming technology: Gallium Nitride-on-Silicon (GaN-on-Si). The company is also planning to develop intellectual property for new characterisation systems. Finally, Incize is focusing on the development of new types of RF circuits for wireless applications in telecoms (smartphones, radar, etc.) and in other industries (automobile, space, etc.).

© Incize

These applications go hand-in-hand with Incize’s geographical expansion policy. In 2019 the company is opening its first office and laboratories in Nanjing with a view to targeting the Chinese market as well as the wider Asian market. This new location will allow the company to be very close to its clients in South Korea and Taiwan, without neglecting the US and European markets. A winning position.

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Incize Chemin du Cyclotron, 6 B-1348 Louvain-la-Neuve Tel.: +32 (0)10 39 22 60 E-mail: info@incize.com http://incize.com

University College of Namur-Liège-Luxembourg - Henallux Continuing professional development, services and research in the paramedical category

The University College of Namur-Liège-Luxembourg has around 6,700 students in 5 categories: economics, education, social, technical and paramedical. The paramedical category includes the nursing and midwifery sections, a Centre for Continuous Education, Research and Society Services (FoRS) and a health simulation centre (NaSim).

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ince 2017, the paramedical category has been a partner, with the universities UNamur, UMons and the Henallux social category, of the Master’s specialisation degree (MAPEMASS) to develop the professionals’ competencies from the sectors of education, management, social action and health in the support of the development of their colleagues or teams.

In all the initial and continuing training programmes, the teaching team supports the students in developing a scientific approach in an applied research process. In initial Bachelor’s nursing and midwifery training, students carry out a research project (end-of-studies internship) which aims to analyse a subject disciplinary problem and takes the form of a scientific article. In 2018, student midwives won the first prize of the Belgian Professional Union of Midwives for their work entitled “Detecting sexual violence between partners and accompanying them during the prenatal period: the role of the midwife”. Teachers also carry out applied research projects, as for example: “Simulation-based pedagogy: a vector for better interprofessional collaboration in the non-hospital sector”. © Henallux

In the specialisation programmes (SIAMU, SCOM and SPO), several projects have emerged: the creation of a car and a didactic ambulance as part of the simulation, the SimErgency project, a programme to simulate acute and rare emergency situations using virtual reality, in collaboration with the technical category. The integration in a local project, RESINAM, to create a new role as care manager in the primary health care system of Namur, to support integrated chronic care for people with accumulation of fragilities.

Graduation work done by nursing and midwifery bachelor students

The FoRS paramedical centre was created ten years ago. The centre has several goals such as stimulate, create and coordinate continuing education, research and services projects in close collaboration with the other categories of HENALLUX and the regional and international partners. Participants in continuing education carry out research projects in their field of expertise. An R&D axis The SimErgency project simulates emergency situations is being developed through projects thanks to virtual reality. such as “MADER - Strengthening the skills of health professionals in Morocco through a certifying training programme in resource management and development”, the “Zero waste... or almost” project, which aims to harmonize practices and more specifically waste management policy in the HENALLUX in order to perpetuate this culture, and “Be.Hive”, a chair project consisting in supporting interdisciplinary scientific research that strengthens primary care.

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© Henallux

Finally, the Namur Simulation Centre (NaSim) develops simulation research such as, for example, “Study of the impact of simulation on knowledge retention and procedural skills acquisition in neonatal resuscitation” and “Simulation, a laboratory to support the development of relational skills?”

Henallux is now looking forward to opening the Master’s degree in Nursing Sciences to promote the development of research and to involve the paramedical category in research in collaboration with its regional, national and international partners.

HENALLUX Rue Saint-Donat, 130 - B-5002 Namur Tel.: +32 (0)81 46 85 00 E-mail: info@henallux.be http://www.henallux.be http://www.namursimulation.be

© UNamur

Collective intelligence for excellence in research

By Prof. Carine MICHIELS, Vice-Rector for Research and International Relations, University of Namur

(https://www.unamur.be/en) The University of Namur (UNamur) is located in Namur, the capital city of Wallonia. Located in the center of Namur and near its wellknown citadel, UNamur is fully integrated into the vibrant life of the city, its amenities and cultural offers. It promotes partnerships with the local economic partners. It develops research projects and offers expertise to the public and private sectors. These activities extend well beyond the regional or national borders through ongoing collaborations with international bodies and partners.

© UNamur

The University of Namur

Tandetron Linear Accelerator (ALTAIS) with different beam lines for ion implantation, atomic and nuclear spectroscopies, surface and interface analysis and radiobiology (cell irradiation)

Teaching environment

treatments, new materials and renewable energies, biophotonics, complex systems, mobility, software engineering), computer and digital sciences and human sciences (development economics, linguistics of sign language, information, law and society). Research activities lean on state-of-the-art scientific equipment grouped in 8 technology platforms and researchers develop inter- and transdisciplinary projects implying fundamental as well as applied research. UNamur is involved in numerous research projects funded by the European Union, the Federal State, the Walloon Region and the Wallonia Brussels Federation and collaborates with many Belgian and foreign companies.

Some examples of collaborative projects

With over 40 different programs at the Bachelor, Master and Doctorate levels, the UNamur welcomes about 7,000 students in six Faculties: Arts, Law, Economics, Social Sciences and Business Administration, Computer Science, Medicine and Sciences. Its reputation is based on the quality of its education, the availability of its professors and sufficient resources to ensure maximum chances of success for each student: introduction to study techniques, preparation courses, small group work, course materials available on-line and personalized assessments.

The project Planet Interior, directed by Prof. Anne Lemaître and financed by ESA, aims at studying the interior of Mars, Mercury, Venus and the Galilean satellites by means of geodesy.

The investigation focusses on the gravity field, the rotation and the tides of these celestial bodies. Contributions will be made to the development of observation strategies of BepiColombo and JUICE and to the scientific models of these bodies, in order to improve and refine the interpretation of the upcoming data from these two space missions.

UNamur has fully designed its study programs to be in line with the European harmonization of Higher Education (“Bologna Process”) and has widened the choice of its studies to reconcile both specificity and openness to social and human issues. The quality of study in Namur is a first-class advantage for those who wish to discover a university on a human scale at the crossroads of Europe, as part of a study exchange program or to prepare to enter professional life.

Another project sponsored by ESA is RISE “Rotifer in SpacE”: “Bdelloid rotifer Adineta vaga: a new eukaryotic extremophile model organism to study the impact of radiation and microgravity on biological processes” developed by Prof. Karine Van Doninck and Stéphane Lucas. Bdelloid rotifers are found all over the world, mostly in semi-terrestrial environments and appear to be extremely stress tolerant. Their desiccation tolerance at any stage of their life cycle is known to confer tolerance to a variety of stresses including high doses of radiation and freezing. Bdelloid rotifers appear to survive such extreme conditions because of an efficient antioxidant and DNA repair mechanism. Specific objectives are to understand what are the limits of bdelloids extreme resistance to radiation and what are the molecular mechanisms involved in protection and repair of damage induced by different radiation sources.

UNamur welcome 900 international students (12% of the total number each year). Most of them are degree-seeking students, but it includes also an increasing number of exchange students from the 250 partner universities all over the world. Many UNamur study programs strongly recommend for its students the possibility to spend a study or internship period abroad as part of the program and the university is therefore an active participant in the Erasmus and other exchange programs.

UNamur is a partner of the eSCALED “European School on Artificial Leaf: Electrodes Devices” project, an ITN Marie Sklodowska-Curie Action (MSCA, funded by the EU program Horizon 2020. The aim is to conceive a unique device based on a solar cell in microreactors for sustainable energy generation.

Bioinspired reduction of CO2 produced by the human activities via artificial photosynthesis will not only diminish the amount of this greenhouse gas in the atmosphere but also produce “solar fuels” or commodities for chemistry in a stable and storable chemical

Research landscape Research at UNamur aims at balancing ethics and excellence. It is developed in 11 transdisciplinary research institutes, active in arts, law, humanities, social and exact sciences, medicine and computer science. It excels notably in sectors such as health sciences (senescence, thrombosis, eco-toxicology, cancer), sciences and technologies (nanotechnologies and nanotoxicology, surface 154

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The TeSLA project provides to educational institutions, an adaptive trust e-assessment system for assuring e-assessment processes in online and blended environments. It supports both continuous and final assessment to improve the trust level across students, teachers and institutions. The system is developed taking into account quality assurance agencies in education, privacy and ethical issues and educational and technological requirements throughout Europe. This project is funded by the Horizon 2020 program and gathers 16 partners, including Prof. J.-M. Van Gyseghem from UNamur.

form. The eSCALED collaborative project brings together for the first time, 12 internationally recognized academic and industrial research groups in which Prof. Bao-Lian Su is participating.

ACtIVAtE “The virulence potential of human pathogens: how Acinetobacter baumannii survives Acanthamoeba castellanii predation”, an MSCA Individual Fellowship action led by Dr. C. Van Der Henst and hosted at Prof. S. De Bolle and K. Van Doninck laboratories, sheds light on the yet unknown global virulence mechanisms of the bacteria A. baumannii by generating original screening methods using the amoeba A. castellanii as an infection cellular model. This innovative and interdisciplinary project provides a high-level training of one outstanding researcher benefiting from a fully equipped Biosafety level 2 and 3 laboratory, real-time and live-cell fluorescence imaging as well as electron microscopy techniques developed at UNamur.

Thanks to a co-funding of the European Commission via the Life Programmme, EDF Luminus is setting up an ambitious project to facilitate the fish downstream migration in the Belgian Lower Meuse. The “LIFE4FISH” project runs for 4.5 years from October 2017 to March 2022, with a budget of €3.9 millions. The Meuse River flows in an environment of great ecological value but has suffered much damage due to high industrialization.

Ambitious species restoration programs are in progress, targeting Atlantic salmon and European eel. The project includes a characterization of populations and downstream migration routes along the Lower Meuse River. It also aims to develop solutions consisting of specific technologies (repulsive barriers and fish passes) and new hydropower control strategies favoring the downstream migrating process. Prof. P. Kestemont is one of the co-leaders of this project.

In the project TYPHON “Polyglot and Hybrid Persistence Architectures for Big Data Analytics”, Prof. A. Cleve develops a methodology and an integrated technical offering for designing, developing, querying and evolving scalable architectures for persistence, analytics and monitoring of large volumes of hybrid (relational, graphbased, document-based, natural language etc.) data. TYPHON brings together research partners with a long track record of conducting internationally-leading research on software modelling, domainspecific languages, text mining and data migration.

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Namur Research Institute for LIfe Sciences From Life Sciences to Health facilities, the UNamur Ovine Research Center and the UNamur technology and life sciences platforms.

NARILIS harbours six multidisciplinary research entities: - The Namur Research Pole in Infectiology (NaRePI) dedicated to research on infectious diseases, with a particular emphasis on global public health threats, such as antimicrobial resistance; - The Namur Thrombosis & Hemostasis Center (NTHC) conducting research to improve the management of thrombotic pathologies and to better assess the thrombotic and/or bleeding risk associated with anticoagulation therapy;

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ARILIS is a research institute that was founded in 2010 as a partnership between the UNamur and the CHU UCL Namur hospital. NARILIS promotes life sciences research, with the aim to improve health and wellbeing in human and animals. NARILIS therefore supports research expanding the understanding of fundamental biological processes underlying normal and pathological conditions, as well as advancing diagnosis, treatment and prevention of diseases.

- The Namur Nanosafety Centre (NNC) addressing the safety and risk associated with nanoparticles for the environment and human health, through a combination of three research activities, namely nanomaterials characterization, in vitro cytotoxicity assays and in vivo toxicology;

NARILIS conducts research activities within a broad variety of areas and at different levels, from gene to public health.

- The Namur Medicine & Drug Innovation Center (NAMEDIC) carrying out research towards new effective and innovative

Multidisciplinary and collaborative research

drugs and dedicated to medicinal chemistry from new hit identification to lead optimization;

NARILIS gathers scientists from diverse disciplines, including biologists, physicists, chemists, geographers, pharmacists and veterinarians from the UNamur, as well as human healthcare professionals from the CHU UCL Namur. NARILIS fosters bidirectional interactions between basic- and clinical-oriented researchers, and enables to build bridges from bench to bedside.

- Omnibus Animalibus Studia Sanitatis (OASIS) using the sheep as animal model to study human diseases, in particular musculoskeletal diseases such as osteoarthritis and intervertebral disc degeneration; - The Cancer Research Pole engaged in many aspects of cancer research such as unravelling the mechanisms of cancer resistance, developing new treatment strategies against cancers, and understanding the mechanisms behind cancer development and metastasis.

NARILIS researchers have access to several facilities available at the CHU UCL Namur and the UNamur, including the CHU UCL Namur Biobank, the CHU UCL Namur in vivo imaging 156

INFOPOLE Cluster TIC A facilitator to generate innovation and collaboration projects A network of private companies with 140 members, of which 90% are SMEs, universities, research centres and incubators operating in information and communication technologies (ICT), INFOPOLE Cluster TIC co-organises over 30 events a year and generated over €1.2 M in turnover from the business contracts it helped to sign between 2016 and 2018.

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closely analyzed, giving rise to targeted recommendations. By helping to define the needs of these companies, INFOPOLE Cluster TIC can offer them the services of digital companies best able to meet these needs.

rawing on its companies, that are particularly strong in the field of software, INFOPOLE Cluster TIC has a panel of very diverse and cutting-edge skills in seven important fields of activity: cryptology and security management; VoIP solutions and collaborative tools; hosting, grid- and cloud-computing, virtualisation; network services and equipment; mobile applications, embedded and intelligent systems; software development – web, portals, marketing and communication; software development – multi-layer/business applications. Added to these are the promising niche markets such as digital simulation, artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things, smart cities, etc.

Alongside these initiatives, INFOPOLE Cluster TIC is developing coherent and shared activities with Agoria, the Walloon Employers’ Association (UWE), competitiveness clusters and other clusters whose companies, in full transformation, are looking for the skills of the digital providers. In this it plays its role of facilitator.

In sync with the digital strategy of Wallonia, the INFOPOLE Cluster TIC intends to meet three major challenges. The first is to increase the size and the value of digital companies by positioning themselves on innovative technologies or services and new business models. The second is to increase their presence on the international market with an accessible service with high added-value (in collaboration with AWEX). The third is to make companies aware of the possibilities offered by blockchain, artificial intelligence, etc.

Walloon enterprises are invited to innovate and the INFOPOLE Cluster TIC has well and truly decided to support them along the way!

INFOPOLE Cluster TIC provides these services for large-scale regional initiatives. Alongside the “ICT meets…” meetings that have already generated about 15 contracts and €600,000 in turnover between 2016 and 2018, two initiatives are particularly appreciated. INFOPOLE On Tour consists of visiting industrial companies such as Prayon, CMI, Alstom and Thales, to determine their evolution in computer and digital, their needs in these two areas and their innovation projects. It is about facilitating contacts between these industries and their member companies. In 2017, 5 industrial visits generated a turnover of over €100,000. In addition, calls for skills relay to their members the specific skills needs of public services, industrial or IT sector companies: their members can thus directly contact them in order to offer them their services. Between 2016 and 2018, around ten contracts were signed in this framework.

© INFOPOLE Cluster TIC

INFOPOLE Cluster TIC is also a partner of the Made Different Digital Wallonia initiative. It is about offering industrial enterprises target skills like the Internet of Things or simulation to help them make the digital transformation towards Industry 4.0. A first phase of awareness-raising and support took place in 2018 in collaboration with the competitiveness cluster and the Digital Agency. The current situation of some industrial enterprises was

© INFOPOLE Cluster TIC

Networking Event on the Blockchain

INFOPOLE on Tour at Prayon

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INFOPOLE Cluster TIC Atrium Crealys Rue Camille Hubert, 2/5 B-5032 Gembloux Tel.: +32 496 21 84 17 E-mail: infopole@infopole.be http://clusters.wallonie.be/infopole-en/

BIMWAM: an integrated methodology for an efficient water supply strategy

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n January 2018, the 5 years project BIMWAM (Building up an Integrated Methodology for Water resources Assessment and Management in urban coastal areas) started. This project, funded by the ARES-CCD (Académie de Recherche et d’Enseignement Supérieur – Cellule de Coopération au Développement), involves three Belgian universities (UCLouvain, UMons and UNamur) and two Philippine ones (USLS Bacolod and XU Cagayan de Oro).

The experimental sites are located in the Misamis Oriental Province of Mindanao Island.

© Unamur

In the Philippines, coastal areas are prone to severe anthropogenic pressures in terms of rapid and uncontrolled urbanization.

In this context, supplying safe drinking water to the local population is challenging. This is why the BIMWAM team develops, tests and integrates the following innovative approaches: • Hydrogeological investigations consisting in the compilation of various information in a data base (spring and well inventories, meteorological data, …), implementation of hydrogeological maps, location of salt water contaminated aquifers (water analysis, geophysical investigations, …). Results will help to locate high potential aquifers, to set up production wells, to run hydrogeological models and to manage aquifer resources in a sustainable way.

• Water supply network engineering that assesses the actual water supply network efficiency and will improve it or design new networks according to the groundwater resources estimation and location, the population needs and their financial capacities, …

• Analyzes of water demand and supply and of the potential impacts of economic, technological and organizational innovations on the supply side. A household survey will enable to geo-spatialize the water needs, to identify the determinants of drinking water demand and to understand how to modify it.

The analysis of the socio-economic fabric will enable to predict changes in economic activities and location choices triggered by change in water quality and supply. Based on the other contributions in hydrogeology and engineering, a decision tool using an integrated digital model will, for the very first time, help public and private decision makers to predict the impacts of their choices in the economic, environmental and public health dimensions and decide accordingly.

© Unamur

Groundwater catchment at Medina

Water supply network at Medina

By developing these competences and innovative tools for decision making, the BIMWAM team will create with the Xavier University a center of expertise for water studies in coastal areas that will be led by the PhD scientists graduated at the end of the research project.

This new generation of researchers, together with their institution, will conduct in a multidisciplinary environment all the scientific analyses required to manage local water resources efficiently.

Project coordinators: G. Calalang (XU) and V. Hallet (UNamur).

Scientific committee (Hydrogeology): A. Carmona (USLS) and P. Goderniaux (UMons), M. Tan (XU).

Scientific committee (Engineering): S. Soarez (UCLouvain).

Scientific committee (Socio-Economic): I. Adant (UCLouvain), C. Almaden (XU) and R. Yap (XU).

PhD researchers: M. Sabines (XU) and A. Agbon (XU).

Département de Géologie - UNamur Rue de Bruxelles, 61 - B-5000 Namur Tel.: +32 (0)81 724 476 E-mail: vincent.hallet@unamur.be http://www.unamur.be/sciences/geologie http://www.xu.edu.ph/BIMWAM 158

Laboratory of Structural Biological Chemistry – UNamur Researching original compounds of pharmaceutical interest Set up in 2004, the Laboratory of Structural Biological Chemistry has an average of 10 to 15 researchers at work every year, with about a dozen doctoral theses defended, about thirty master’s theses, about ten research projects in progress and 280 publications with more than 5,000 citations.

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© CBS – Unamur.be

he Laboratory of Structural Biological Chemistry has developed two lines of research. The first, structural physical chemistry, is studying compounds of pharmaceutical interest using crystallography. The second, biological chemistry, encompasses activities of purification, characterisation and crystallography of enzymatic systems for the pharmaceutical sector in collaboration with the Research Unit in Biology of Microorganisms (URBM).

Currently, the researchers of the Laboratory of Structural Biological Chemistry are interested in enzymes involved in the metabolism of amino acids and are exploring the pathway of tryptophan degradation to find anti-cancer compounds. Likewise, study of the serine pathway could lead to the design of anti-tuberculosis components. In addition, the researchers are studying the energy metabolism involving lactate dehydrogenase for the purpose of fighting cancer (an interuniversity collaboration funded by Télévie). They are also working on the characterisation of new solid forms (co-crystal) based on colourants or compounds with a therapeutic interest. The colourants provide applications for photochromism, a change of compound colour upon exposure to light.

Crystallographic structures of compounds of pharmaceutical interest through analysis of crystals and diffraction images

in a European network with the universities of Zagreb, Rouen and Bologna (COST Actions). Partnerships are also extended to pharmaceutical industries: Prof. Johan Wouters published a book on crystallography recently that was co-edited with UCB-Pharma.

Developing partnerships is one thing. The need to find funding is another: a search that goes on every day! At the same time, the Laboratory of Structural Biological Chemistry is faced with the difficulty of conducting interdisciplinary research that involves finding common vocabulary and partners that are open to dialogue. And it does not end there: at a time when information overload is jostling the lines of scientific communication, it is becoming difficult to keep up to date with the mass of publications while being productive in the area of original research – without actually being in competition with other teams. To differentiate itself, the Laboratory of Structural Biological Chemistry is relying on solid formulations: the study of co-crystals will enable it to devise new substances for the pharmaceutical industry that can be patented. Likewise, the development of original inhibitors from new molecules that can be patented or published is paving the way for interesting therapeutic treatments. A way forward!

© Laboratory of Structural Biological Chemistry

The Laboratory of Structural Biological Chemistry is collaborating actively with the Unit of Theoretical and Structural Physiochemistry (UCPTS) and the Medicine & Drug Innovation Centre, Namedic, in the Narilis Research Institute of UNamur. In addition, its director, Prof. Johan Wouters, is a member of the National Committee for Crystallography attached to the Academy of Sciences. On an international level, the Laboratory of Structural Biological Chemistry collaborates with important infrastructures such as the SOLEIL synchrotron in Gif-sur-Yvette and the one in Grenoble (France) and is involved

The team of the Laboratory of Structural Biological Chemistry

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Laboratoire de Chimie Biologique Structurale UNamur Rue de Bruxelles 61 - B-5000 Namur Tel.: +32 (0)81 72 45 50 E-mail: johan.wouters@unamur.be https://www.unamur.be/sciences/chimie/cbs

Laboratory of Theoretical Chemistry – Unit of Theoretical and Structural Physical-Chemistry – Namur Institute of Structured Matter – UNamur Chemistry supporting simulation and new materials With about ten researchers, twenty international publications a year and as many presentations at international congresses, the Laboratory of Theoretical Chemistry (LCT) of UNamur is currently leading about ten research projects.

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ocused on multidisciplinary research and training for research, the LCT is developing theoretical research methods to implement them in simulation codes/programmes, to understand the properties of matter, to deduce propertystructure relationships and to design new materials with target properties.

© UNamur

Hercules, HPC server of the PTCI (technology platform for High-Performance Computing) of UNamur, is an integral part of the CECI (Consortium of Equipment and High-Performance Computing) of the Walloon-Brussels Federation.

The LCT has numerous research international partners: Bordeaux and Angers (France), Osaka (Japan), Krakow (Poland), Sherbrooke (Canada), Sfax and Tunis Molecular switch showing a nonlinear optical contrast response (Tunisia), Bologna (Italy), Calcutta (India), etc. At national level, its participation in three successive projects in the context of the Belspo Interuniversity Attraction Poles, has led to supervising a thesis under joint supervision with UHasselt. The subject is TADF (Thermally Activated Delayed Fluorescence) and it aims at enhancing the efficiency of organic light emitting diodes. The LCT is also involved with a team from KULeuven working on fluorescent proteins, used for medical imagery.

© UNamur

For this purpose, the main lines of research are molecules/materials for nonlinear optics, vibrational spectroscopy, electronics and molecular photonics. Within the context of an ARC inter-university collaboration with the teams of Prof. J. Wouters (UNamur) and T. Leyssens (UCLouvain), LCT researchers are studying the phenomena of solid state photochromism and thermochromism in order to optimise these. They are also developing quantum chemistry methods to calculate the responses of molecules, surfaces and solids to magnetic fields and geometric deformations. This enables the simulation of high-level optical responses and vibrational signatures of chiral structures. Moreover, they are studying molecular switches which have the potential to be active elements in sensors and in logical devices (on a molecular level).

stability and implementation of these new phenomena still need to be fine-tuned.

Then, with the University of Bordeaux, a collaboration revealed methods of triggering molecular switches and generating high second-order nonlinear optical contrasts. In addition to the transformations brought about by the variation in pH or irradiation, the researchers have shown the capacity of intelligent molecules to recognise and distinguish cations (a prediction that is awaiting experimental confirmation). On the other hand, the demonstration that chiral vibrational spectroscopies can provide information on polymer chain structures has been confirmed by experiments.

At the moment the LCT is facing two challenges: first, that of taking into account several levels, both of size and time, in simulations and second the development of simulation codes that could be used reliably by non-specialists. This is the reason for the series of software programmes DrawMol, DrawSpectrum, etc. developed by Dr V. Liégeois (FNRS researcher) and available on Mac. Using this powerful graphic interface, you can visualise and construct molecular structures. This is a boon for extending scientific research to ordinary citizens!

Laboratoire de Chimie Théorique Unité de Chimie-Physique Théorique et Structurale Namur Institute of Structured Matter UNamur Rue de Bruxelles 61 - B-5000 Namur Tel.: +32 (0)81 72 45 54 E-mail: benoit.champagne@unamur.be https://www.unamur.be/sciences/chimie/lct

The collaboration with Osaka University has proved to be particularly productive. First, it enabled the researchers to forecast in theory that compounds with intermediate diradical character should present high third-order nonlinear optical responses – which was confirmed by experiments some years later. From then on, it became possible to apply a magnetic field to modify the electronic and optical properties of these materials that are still not well known, even if the aspects of 160

LISE laboratory at the University of Namur Specialist in material surfaces and interfaces Part of the “Namur Institute of Structured Matter” (NISM) at the University of Namur, the LISE laboratory has produced almost 1,000 publications since its creation in 1972. Its 15 physicists, chemists and engineers are running five to ten projects at the same time.

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© LISE

he LISE carries out two main activities: the characterisation of surfaces and interfaces by electron (XPS and AES) or ion (ToFSIMS) spectroscopies and by scanning tunneling microscopy (STM); the deposition of thin layers (polymers, oxides, metals, semiconductors, nanoparticles, etc.) by low pressure plasma, evaporation under vacuum or molecular beam epitaxy. These two activities contribute to its four strands of research which are: • Energy: development of new generation organic and perovskite solar cells, development of proton-exchange membranes for fuel cells through plasma synthesis of metallic nanoparticles used as catalysts; • Hybrid materials: recognised expertise in organic/inorganic interfaces such as those between an oxide or a metal and a polymer, depositing nanoparticles on carbon materials; • Two-dimensional semiconductors: graphene and transition-metal dichalcogenides; • Cutting-edge characterisation methods: study of physical interactions between photons, electrons, ions and matter to reach a better understanding of and optimize ToF-SIMS and XPS methods.

Inside the ToF-SIMS spectrometer and sample holder

© LISE

Buoyed by these special features, LISE is currently participating in three European research projects. The M-ERA.NET project “Laser Stamp” aims to develop expertise in laser welding of metal-polymer materials with promising applications in the biomedical and transportation industries. The LISE is also a stakeholder in two FEDER projects: “Inoxypem”, for the anticorrosive coating aspect of stainless steel electrodes that can be inserted in PEM-type fuel cells, and “Clean Air”, which aims to develop filters made of hybrid materials for the destruction of volatile organic compounds (VOC) in the home. At the same time, the LISE is involved in several applied research projects funded by the Walloon Region on solar cells, fuel cells, CO2 conversion, design of biosensors for the detection of pathogens, etc. Thanks to funding from Wallonie-Bruxelles International (WBI), the LISE is also involved in a long-term collaborative project with Laval University in Quebec on the covering of coronary stents by layers of molecules preventing inflammation and thrombosis, and on dental implants in titanium coated with a thin antibacterial layer promoting osseointegration. Finally, the LISE has developed fundamental collaborative research with the University of Kyoto in Japan (development of new mass spectrometry analysis methods), with the Université Paris Diderot (Paris 7, France) and with the University of Illinois at Chicago.

Electron microscopy image of carbon nanotubes coated (“decorated”) with platinum nanoparticles for applications in the field of catalysis in fuel cells

Situated upstream from the TRL chain (2-4), the LISE uses the SIAM technological platform of the University of Namur as its interface with industrial partners in TRL 6 or above. It has developed close contacts with the CRM Group, stakeholder of projects funded by the Walloon Region on the design of intelligent self-cleaning types of steel or with photovoltaic properties, AGC Glass, for whom they do the deposit and characterisation of multi-coloured, intelligent or luminescent glass, IMEC and the CEA-Leti in Grenoble… So many ways of putting its expertise to good account.

LISE University of Namur Rue de Bruxelles 61 - B-5000 Namur Tel.: +32 (0)81 72 45 12 E-mail: laurent.houssiau@unamur.be http://www.unamur.be/sciences/physique/lise 161

Namur Research Institute for Life Sciences (NARILIS) – Laboratory of Cellular Biochemistry and Biology (URBC) Composed of 46 people including 19 doctoral fellows, the URBC is a laboratory of cellular biology, studying the mechanisms of cellular response to stress. Its research resulted in 73 publications between 2015 and 2017.

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he URBC studies stress as it is relevant to chronic pathologies prevalent in ageing populations. The team of Prof. M. Raes is working on atherosclerosis, caused by local inflammation and accompanied by vascular permeability. This leads to infiltration, oxidation and accumulation of lipoproteins that contribute to the formation of atheroma that “blocks” the arteries. The research group’s interest is focused on the effects of oxidised lipoproteins on the polarisation of macrophages and contributes to the development of endovascular devices while characterising their endothelialisation.

© URBC

In the field of ageing, Dr F. Debacq-Chainiaux’s group studies stress response of skin keratinocytes and fibroblasts that cause premature ageing. The group develops more physiological culture models (culture with low oxygen concentration and threedimensional cell models) and studies the relationship between ageing cells and the cellular micro-environment (with a focus on secreted proteins likely to influence the behaviour of cancerous cells). They also have an interest in identifying markers of human ageing linked to age, stress and fragility.

From left to right and from top to bottom: fluorescent labelling of the mitochondrial network. Model of human skin reconstituted in vitro (dermis and epidermis). Fluorescent labelling of endothelial cells having recovered an endovascular prosthesis in vitro. Fluorescent labelling of integrin α5 (green) and the Golgi apparatus (red) on cells cultivated on fibronectin.

Prof. C. Michiels’ team studies the effects of hypoxia on the cellular process that contributes to the survival of cancerous cells (the migration mechanisms of cancerous cells, genes (TMEM45) specifically expressed in response to hypoxia in the context of chemotherapy treatment). The group is also involved in the understanding of the interplay between the cancerous cells and the macrophages, whose attraction to the tumour is favoured by hypoxia. Moreover, collaboration with the Laboratory of Analysis

by Nuclear Reaction (LARN) of Professor S. Lucas contributes to a better understanding of the effects of radio and proton therapy on cells and tissues at molecular and cellular levels.

group also showed that mitochondrial impairment affects the adipocyte differentiation and revealed several transduction pathways associated with this phenomenon. In addition, the differentiation of stem cells requires modification of the abundance and metabolism of the mitochondria. Prof. Arnould also lends his knowledge to the study of the role of mitochondria in infection through intracellular bacteria like Brucella abortus.

The URBC is also committed to characterisation through proteomic and peptidomic approaches to transformed food for humans, with special attention to allergens.

In addition, Prof. T. Arnould and Renard’s group explores mitochondrion and its dialogue with other organelles (endoplasmic reticulum, lysosomes and nucleus). They study the adaptive cellular responses to mitochondrial impairment: metabolic modifications of pre-adipocytes, dialogue with the nucleus and cell death. The

© URBC

Today the URBC has every intention of remaining at the cutting edge and to promote its expertise in the field of ageing, nanotoxicology, cancer and the research of stem cells in their metabolic and mitochondrial aspects. The fields of the future, no doubt!

The use of confocal florescence microscopy is one of the techniques widely used in the URBC.

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Unité de recherche en biologie cellulaire animale (URBC) UNamur Rue de Bruxelles 61 - B-5000 Namur Tel.: +32 (0)81 72 41 22 E-mail: secretariat.urbc@unamur.be http://www.urbc.be

Molecular physiology research unit - URPhyM

© URPhyM

Cells and tissues Laboratory (Prof. Yves Poumay)

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The team of Prof. Yves Poumay is located within the Molecular Physiology Research Unit (URPhyM), created 15 years ago and that currently associates 9 research teams together in the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Namur (UNamur). The URPhyM is itself a member of NARILIS, the UNamur Life Sciences Institute.

© URPhyM

ith 10 people including 3 doctorate students and 3 post-doctorate collaborators, this team has built up expertise in the cellular biology and pathology of the human epidermis. For fifteen years now it has been developing an epidermis model reconstructed in a culture that allows for cutaneous in vitro toxicology studies. Currently this model is used for the modelling and understanding of epidermal pathologies.

This modelling work has already led to in vitro studies of genetic diseases (Darier’s disease), of atopic dermatitis and of skin eczema in the aspects of weakening the epidermal barrier. Recently the team of Prof. Poumay carried out the modelling of infection of the human epidermis by dermatophyte fungi. New developments are currently focusing on the cellular signals involved in epidermal keratinocytes to help treat inflammatory and/or infectious conditions.

Currently Prof. Poumay’s team is carrying out four main research projects. Initially named MYCAVERT, one project is aimed at identifying growth inhibitors of dermatophyte fungi when these organisms come into contact with a human epidermis. Thanks to funding from the Walloon Region passed on by UNamur, the team’s researchers have identified a kinase inhibitor with an interesting effect on the fungi. The team soon hopes to receive support from a manufacturer of medical devices in order to continue this work.

Culture of human epidermal keratinocytes

© URPhyM

For its part, the BAREPI project (named after the epidermal barrier) is concerned with certain interleukin receptors - expressed in inflammatory circumstances by the epidermis - and which have not yet been taken into account in order to limit consequences of skin inflammation. It is part of a collaboration with Straticell company, a spin-off of UNamur, for the modelling of atopic dermatitis. In addition, discussions are under way with a pharmaceutical company regarding the development of interleukin receptor blockers.

On top of this, other research partnerships are going on with the department of Pharmacy at the University of São Paulo for skin toxicology and with the department of Molecular biology of the University of Montana in Missoula MT to assess treatments for the replacement of retinoids in skin conditions.

Making of histological cuts in tissue

For Prof. Poumay’s team, the main challenge lies in increasing the complexity of available models whilst remaining under controllable conditions, which are required for the understanding of the mechanisms investigated. It has to be said that it is frequently juggling between in vivo (animal models) and in vitro.

And it is a fact that a mouse’s epidermis does not exhibit same properties as a human epidermis. This explains the usefulness of reproducing human tissue and inserting it into an acceptable in vitro study model. One problem is that the current model does not integrate all the immunity parameters. And making the model more complex makes it harder to interpret. Modelling has reached its limits here. Only confrontation with in vivo will allow them to be pushed back. A fruitful dialogue is in prospect!

Unité de recherche en physiologie moléculaire - URPhyM UNamur Rue de Bruxelles 61 - B-5000 Namur Tel.: +32 (0)81 72 42 57 E-mail: yves.poumay@unamur.be https://www.unamur.be/medecine/urphym 163

Index of Company Profiles and advertisers A

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Accessia Pharma............................................................85 Aquilon Pharma SA.........................................................95 Artialis S.A................................................................ 90-91 ASIT biotech...................................................................50

Jabil Circuit Belgium N.V. Hasselt Research & Design Center...................Cover 4, 36-37

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Laboratory of Applied Materials Chemistry (CMA) - UNamur..........................................................149 Laboratory of Structural Biological Chemistry – UNamur......159 Laboratory of Theoretical Chemistry – Unit of Theoretical and Structural Physical-Chemistry – Namur Institute of Structured Matter – UNamur.................160

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Becetel vzw............................................................... 30-31 Belnet.............................................................. Cover 2, 12 Bio- and Soft Matter - IMCN...........................................150 Bridge2Health - B2H.................................................. 86-87

Liège Space Centre – CSL..............................................106 LISE laboratory at the University of Namur.......................161 Laboratory of Neurophysiology and Movement Biomechanics - LNMB................................51 Louvain Centre for Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology ...........................................151

C Caprion Biosciences S.A................................................141 Center for Education and Research on Macromolecules - CERM............................................103 Centre Terre et Pierre – CTP............................................137

M

D

Miracor Medical SA .......................................................92 Mithra Pharmaceuticals............................................... 88-89

Département de Géologie - UNamur...............................158

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EyeD Pharma..................................................................93

Namur Research Institute for Life Sciences (NARILIS) – Laboratory of Cellular Biochemistry and Biology (URBC)......................................................162

H HELMo Gramme.......................................Cover 3, 108-109 University College of Namur-Liège-Luxembourg HENALLUX...................................................................153 Higher College of the Province of Liège - HEPL..................107 Howest University of Applied Sciences...............................35

S SCK•CEN................................................................. 38-39 Structural Biology and Biocomputing Centre.......................62

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Thales Alenia Space Belgium....................................... 75-77

Incize..........................................................................152 INFOPOLE Cluster TIC...................................................157 Innovatech asbl...................................................... 142-143 Institute of Condensed Matter and Nanosciences (IMCN) Molecules, Solids and Reactivity (MOST) Prof. Olivier Riant’s research group ................................148 Research team under Prof. Eric GAIGNEAUX Institute of Condensed Matter and Nanosciences – Molecular Chemistry, Materials and Catalysis...................147 ISSeP - The Walloon Public Service Science Institute....... 72-73

U Molecular physiology research unit - URPhyM Cells and tissues Laboratory (Prof. Yves Poumay)...............163

V Vlerick Business School............................................... 32-34 164