Acceding and Candidate Countries and the 6th Framework Programme Conference

European Commission - DG Research - Directorate B – “Structuring the European Research Area”Jean-David MALO – Bucharest, February 12-13, 2004 - NOT LEGALLY BINDING - Page n°1

“Building strong consortia:Partners search and Consortium

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Acceding and Candidate Countriesand the 6th Framework Programme Conference

(Bucharest, February 12-13, 2004)

“Building strong consortia:Partners search and Consortium Agreement”



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The core research work of the Framework Programme is undertaken by projects that are structured as a collaboration between a group of partners who share tasksand responsibilities.

This means that finding the right partners and setting up the collaboration or consortium is a key preparatory task.

Introduction

Partners need to be complementary to each other, but they must share an interest in the common problem that they are going to tackle in their research [I- Partners Search].

The consortium has to establish management structures and procedures adapted to the type and the complexity of the project[II- Consortium Agreement].



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I- Partners search

• The “best” : partners in a project are well known to each other and have worked together previously.

However, this is not always possible, especially when seeking complementary skills and expertise.

Commission services and other bodies offer several possibilities to find partners



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I- Partners search

CORDIS Partners Service

• Interactive free service.

• Your profile can be published on the CORDIS Partners service, which will advertise the fact that you are looking for a partner.

• Searches can be made of the existing profiles to see if there is someone already looking for your type of organisation for their project, or is willing to join your project.



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I- Partners search


• Use e-mail partners alert

• Specific portal dedicated to Candidate Countries.

• More than 8.000 different organisations already registered

www.cordis.lu/partners-service



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I- Partners search


• Search possibilities per:• domain;• type of activities;• partner profile;• country

• Links to Partner Search initiatives

www.cordis.lu/fp6/partners.htm



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I- Partners searchTo find partners, it is also possible on CORDIS to search for FP6 and previous Framework Programme projects to see who are the experienced actors.

• Identification of partners of projects already financially supported ( more than 50.000 projects) under FP6 and previous FP.

• Three level of search• easy;• advanced;• professional (for registered users)www.cordis.lu/fp5/projects.htm

www.cordis.lu/fp6/projects.htm



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I- Partners search

www.cordis.lu/map-search

Easy identification of partner per country



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I- Partners searchOther sources are your local National Contact Point (NCP) for the subject area you are interested in or your local Innovation Relay Centre (IRC).

As the NCPs are national structures, the type and level of services offered may differ from country to country. In general, the following basic services will be available:

• Guidance on choosing thematic priorities and instruments

• Advice on administrative procedures and contractual issues

• Training and assistance on proposal writing

• Distribution of documentation (forms, guidelines, manuals etc.)

• Assistance in partner search



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Network of centres in the European Union and beyond providing local help to promote technology partnerships and transfer. The goal of the IRC network is to promote innovation, to encourage exchange of research results between organisations across Europe, and to provide advice, consulting and training support which meets the specific needs of each company and their local industrial situation.

http://irc.cordis.lu/

I- Partners search



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Another possibility is to look on CORDIS at the Expressions of Interest database

I- Partners search

http://eoi.cordis.lu/search_form.cfm



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As an FP6 project will be a major commitment with financial and legal implications it is important to ensure that all the project partners have a clear understanding of the nature of the collaboration and are fully committed to it.

For the project itself, this understanding will be covered by the Consortium Agreement which is a legally binding agreement that sits alongside the consortium’s contract with the Commission.

II- Consortium Agreement



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The great flexibility and autonomy given to consortia in FP6 projects make the definition of internal rules and modalities of cooperation between the participants imperative.

For this reason the conclusion of a Consortium Agreement is mandatory for most of the actions of FP6 (unless otherwise specified in the call for proposals).

The European Commission will not be a party within this agreement and will not have to give its approval to it (except for SMEs Actions).A checklist is provided to assist contractors to identify issues that may arise during the implementation of a research project and which may be facilitated or governed by means of the Consortium Agreement



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The Consortium Agreement may especially cover :

• The internal organisation and management of the consortium;

• Intellectual property arrangements either generated during the project or existing prior to or acquired in parallel with the project;

• And also : Settlement of internal disputes, change in consortium membership, potential solution to problems relating to technical implementation and solution to potential financial problems, …



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Advices:

• use the check list;http://europa.eu.int/comm/research/fp6/working-groups/model-contract/pdf/checklist_en.pdf

• do not use as such model(s) of Consortium Agreement developed by different bodies, but learn from them;

• before establishing the Consortium Agreement, take good notice of your future legal obligations;

• for IPR, use services like IPR-Helpdesk



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To assist potential and current contractors taking part in Community funded research and development projects with IPR issues. The Helpdesk offers two main services: an informative website open to all interested parties, and a free legal Helpline aimed at participants in EU-funded research under the Framework Programmes.

http://www.ipr-helpdesk.org/index.htm




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The Consortium Agreement must be signed :

• as soon as possible (at any case it may be amended/completed later on), preferably before the signature of the contract;

In any case agreements must be reached before signing the EC contract, for:

exclusion of specific PEKH remuneration of PEKH needed for executing the projectroyalty-free access to PEKH for use of Kremuneration of K needed for use



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THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTIONTHANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION

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Acceding and Candidate Countries and the 6th Framework Programme Conference