TY - JOUR
T1 - Procuring innovation through the European Space Agency's network of business incubation centres
AU - Eldering, Cornelis J.J.
AU - Hulsink, Willem
N1 - The authors would like to particular thank Thomas Weissenberg, Administrator at ESA's External Relations Department from the Director General's Services, and Claes Hansen, Legal Officer from ESA's International Law Division, Legal Services Department, Directorate of Industry, Procurement & Legal Services, for providing constructive feedback to our description of ESA policy
Publisher Copyright:
© 2020 by DLR-SART.
PY - 2020
Y1 - 2020
N2 - The human endeavour to explore space, spurred the research and development of space technologies decades ago. A Big Science and a mission-driven approach was needed to meet the awesome challenges involved in space flight, such as the Apollo programme or the International Space Station. To this end, mission-driven organisations such as the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the European Space Agency (ESA), procure space technology and infrastructure from industry. We specifically look at how ESA provides access to technologies and infrastructure with the aim for businesses to commercialize them. Besides industry, many start-up companies benefit from spin-offs from space-based research and development. To support these start-ups, ESA has established a pan-European network of 22 Business Incubation Centres (ESA BICs) in over 60 locations across Europe, supporting well over 900 start-ups and alumni. All ESA BICs are based on the same best practice of ESA's industrial procurement approach. This explains the standardization in ESA BIC operations European wide. At the same time, each ESA BIC is part of a regional economic development strategy with a strong focus on local entrepreneurs and operated by a local partner. In this paper, we explore how the procurement principles of the European Space Agency are at the core of its business incubation approach and how this approach stimulated the replication of multiple ESA BICs in Europe.
AB - The human endeavour to explore space, spurred the research and development of space technologies decades ago. A Big Science and a mission-driven approach was needed to meet the awesome challenges involved in space flight, such as the Apollo programme or the International Space Station. To this end, mission-driven organisations such as the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the European Space Agency (ESA), procure space technology and infrastructure from industry. We specifically look at how ESA provides access to technologies and infrastructure with the aim for businesses to commercialize them. Besides industry, many start-up companies benefit from spin-offs from space-based research and development. To support these start-ups, ESA has established a pan-European network of 22 Business Incubation Centres (ESA BICs) in over 60 locations across Europe, supporting well over 900 start-ups and alumni. All ESA BICs are based on the same best practice of ESA's industrial procurement approach. This explains the standardization in ESA BIC operations European wide. At the same time, each ESA BIC is part of a regional economic development strategy with a strong focus on local entrepreneurs and operated by a local partner. In this paper, we explore how the procurement principles of the European Space Agency are at the core of its business incubation approach and how this approach stimulated the replication of multiple ESA BICs in Europe.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85100942501&partnerID=8YFLogxK
M3 - Conference article
AN - SCOPUS:85100942501
VL - 2020-October
JO - Proceedings of the International Astronautical Congress, IAC
JF - Proceedings of the International Astronautical Congress, IAC
SN - 0074-1795
T2 - 71st International Astronautical Congress, IAC 2020
Y2 - 12 October 2020 through 14 October 2020
ER -
