European Innovation Procurement Awards (EUIPA) 2021: discover this year’s semi-finalists!

European Innovation Procurement Awards (EUIPA) 2021: discover this year’s semi-finalists!

11 applicants are in the semi-final of the first EUIPA edition.

Supported by the European Innovation Council under Horizon Europe, the European Innovation Procurement Awards recognise powerful cases of public and private buyers on promoting innovation procurement practices across Europe. It also emphasises the importance of close buyer–supplier cooperation in bringing the innovative solutions to market.

The 2021 semi-finalists selected by a jury of independent experts are (in alphabetical order):

The Innovation procurement strategy category

1. INNOSPRINT DIH (France)
2. INNO-AHA SERGAS (Spain)
3. NCBR-IS (Poland)
4. RESAH INNOVATION (France)
5. Smartiago (Spain)
6. WBL PCP and PPI (The Netherlands)

The Facing societal challenges category

1. Citizen e-Desk Bari (Italy)
2. IHSI (Belgium)
3. WBL PCP and PPI (The Netherlands)

The Procurement leadership category

1. C-SOC SDAPA ICT (Italy)
2. MS-1 (Poland)

Mariya Gabriel, Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth, said:

“Innovation procurement is a key instrument to ensure the European recovery in a sustainable way. It positively transforms the economy by not only creating new and sustainable markets, but also by tackling societal challenges such as climate change. I look forward to rewarding the first winners of this new EIC prize, and I am convinced that with their experience and strategies, they will set the path for other to join to boost the use of innovation procurement within the European Union.”

What happens next?

Each semi-finalist will be invited to a private hearing with the jury members held remotely in October 2021.  The hearings will follow a strict procedure that allows each applicant to present the submitted application and answer to jury questions related to the award criteria laid out in the rules of contest

The jury members will then select one winner and one runner-up per category, and they will be announced at the European Innovation Council Summit on 24-25 November 2021.

Apart from the prestigious recognition, the winner of each category will be rewarded with EUR 75 000 while each of the runners-up will receive EUR 25 000.

All semi-finalists will be invited to join a group of pioneering procurers to showcase their experimentation and gain inspiration from experiences of other procurers – for example, to learn about new approaches through the exchange of good practices, initiatives, ideas, and innovations.

Background

The European Innovation Procurement Awards

Innovation procurement modernises public sector with more economical and higher quality solutions. These practices directly contribute to EU competitiveness, by opening a route-to-the market for new players, especially SMEs. They also help larger companies to bring innovative products to the market, stimulating cross-border company growth and the creation of jobs. Innovation procurement also serves to tackle the most pressing societal needs.

This is one of the four 2021 European Innovation Council Prizes that celebrate those shaping the future of innovation in Europe, alongside with the EU Prize for Women Innovators, the European Capital of Innovation Awards, the European Social Innovation Competition.

More information:

EISMEA-EUIPAwardsec [dot] europa [dot] eu (EISMEA-EUIPAwards[at]ec[dot]europa[dot]eu)

European Innovation Procurement Awards

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