European Cluster Matchmaking Event organised in the context of the HANNOVER MESSE, 13th - 14th April 2015, Hanover, Germany

Submitted by Camille DURAN on 12 May 2015

Cluster cooperation was the focus of the networking event. On 13th and 14th April 2015, a European delegation of cluster managers from eight European countries met at HANNOVER MESSE. Cluster representatives from a wide range of technological backgrounds met in over 60 meetings to discuss international cooperation possibilities.

On 13th and 14th April 2015, the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs together with HANNOVER MESSE organised a European cluster matchmaking event in Hanover (Germany) in collaboration with SteinbeisEuropa-Zentrum and the Enterprise Europe Network, with the aim of fostering cooperation between clusters from across and beyond Europe. The event was integrated in the Enterprise Europe Network’s Technology Cooperation Days at HANNOVER MESSE.

The implementation of the mission was successful: In total, 25 clusters from nine countries (Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Spain) applied for the event, with 19 clusters from eight countries finally participating. They represented a wide variety of sectors including ICT, automotive, aerospace, nanotechnology, photonics, the furniture and habitat sector, environment, new materials and mechanical engineering.

The cluster representatives met in 44 Cluster2Cluster meetings and 17 Business2Cluster meetings, amounting to a total of 61 meetings. Further exchanges are planned with the six clusters that were unable to participate in person. Guided tours to key European technology providers complemented the meeting programme at HANNOVER MESSE.

Feedback from cluster representatives was very positive and a number of potential cooperation agreements between the clusters are foreseen, such as joint proposals for European funding programmes including Horizon 2020 projects or joint events.

The cluster matchmaking event represented a unique opportunity for representatives of cluster organisations interested in European cluster collaboration to explore possible common areas of interest for cooperation and complementarities, in terms of sector, value chain, and market focus of their SMEs and companies with a large panel of European and international clusters.

Related Event
EU-US Matchmaking event at Hannover Messe, Germany
Share this Article