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Contact /Annette van Elswijk Datum /

Speed reducers are used to ensure that the right amount of speed or torque by an (electric) motor is delivered for a specific application. IMSystems is one of the first companies that has been able to successfully apply the principle of frictional contact for speed reduction in a compact and lightweight gearbox, resulting in the Archimedes drive. The Archimedes Drive will know many applications in various industries, and especially in the robotized manufacturing industry.

We are convinced that the Archimedes Drive is a significant hardware breakthrough that allows robots to function optimally, with higher precision, less maintenance and at a fraction of the weight of competing drives – Jack Schorsch, founder and CEO of IMSystems

Industrial robots highly depend on the quality of gear teeth transmission. While software developments are moving rapidly, the lack of significant hardware breakthroughs is hampering robotic development. The Archimedes Drive is able to deliver the same amount of torque while being a fraction the weight of competing drives. Besides, it enables robots to operate with a much higher precision due to the lack of backlash traditional gear teeth do have. Furthermore, power transmission through friction nearly eliminates the need for lubrication, thereby lowering maintenance costs.

Jack Schorsch, founder and CEO of IMSystems: “The investment of UNIIQ will enable us to optimize our product more quickly, to ultimately get our product faster to market. We are convinced that the Archimedes Drive is a significant hardware breakthrough that allows robots to function optimally, with higher precision, less maintenance and at a fraction of the weight of competing drives.”

With the investment of UNIIQ the precision, reliability and lifetime of the Archimedes Drive will be tested in various setups. Following the technical validation, IMSystems expects in collaboration with leading robotics manufacturers to release a commercial product later this year. “And this focus on realizing commercial traction in an early phase is equally important”, says UNIIQs fundmanager Liduina Hammer. “We primarily invest in companies with pro-active teams that focus on both the technical and commercial part of their organisation”.

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Contact /Chris van Voorden Datum /

Attractive business climate in the Netherlands

Minister of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy, Eric Wiebes, commented: “The presence of foreign companies is important for our country. Some 1.4 million Dutch people have a job directly or indirectly thanks to these companies. The excellent annual NFIA results confirm that we benefit from a good investment climate. Our highly educated population, good infrastructure, pleasant housing and living conditions and competitive fiscal climate attract foreign companies and employees. For our future economic growth and employment it is important that the Dutch business climate remains attractive. We all benefit from that. ”

Sigrid Kaag, Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation, under whose responsibility the NFIA falls as well, commented: “The Netherlands has an attractive business climate, and the Dutch economy is in good shape. Also, with a view to Brexit, there is increasing interest from international companies to move activities to the Netherlands or to establish themselves in the Netherlands. It is therefore important that the NFIA, Dutch embassies and consulates overseas continue to put the Netherlands on the map abroad.”

Distribution centers and headquarters

Within the Invest in Holland network, the NFIA was directly responsible for 8,158 of the 12,686 jobs. In 2017, the NFIA registered 224 foreign direct investment projects for the Netherlands, corresponding to 1.23 billion euros in investments. The NFIA results show that most new jobs were created in distribution centers (1,864), at headquarters (1,345), in marketing & sales offices (1,316), R&D (1,259) and production sites (1,081). To illustrate, Netflix expanded its European headquarters in Amsterdam with a customer contact center of 400 jobs. Merck Performance Materials invested 15 million euros in its production plant for so-called liquid crystal glass in Veldhoven. Meanwhile, Japanese gelatin producer Jellice expanded its production plant in Emmen, resulting in 25 additional jobs.

US companies lead employment creation

As in 2016, the majority of ‘foreign’ jobs were created by companies from the United States. NFIA results for 2017 indicate some 2,516 jobs created by US companies, bringing 110 million euros in investments.  Companies from within Europe also provided a substantial number of jobs (2,879), including the UK (872). Japan and India provided 655 and 423 jobs, respectively.  Majority of jobs from foreign investments in 2017 came from creative industries such as fashion and entertainment & media (2,126). Additional jobs by sector include agrifood (1,788), IT (1,219), life sciences & health (600) and business services (457).

Brexit

Within the Invest in Holland network, including West Holland acquisition partners The Hague Business Agency, Rotterdam Partners and InnovationQuarter, special attention was on Brexit last year. The NFIA is in contact with more than 200 foreign companies that are considering a switch to the Netherlands in the wake of Brexit. Many companies choose to wait before they announce their plans for the future, due to the lack of clarity about the new relationship between the UK and the EU. In 2017, 18 companies made a Brexit-related move to the Netherlands. These re-locations accounted for 483 jobs and 19 million euros added to the Dutch economy. In these results, the relocation of the European Medicines Agency (EMA) to Amsterdam is not yet included.

 

Source / NFIA

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Contact /Chris van Voorden Datum /

Recordaantal buitenlandse bedrijven investeren in Den Haag

FMost investments are from China and the United States

With 14 companies, China proved to be the largest investor in The Hague again last year. However, the extra efforts of The Hague Business Agency and InnovationQuarter to attract companies from the United States, the United Kingdom and India in particular paid off in 2017. Some 11 US firms chose The Hague as a base for business, while six companies from the United Kingdom invested in the city and no fewer than five Indian enterprises opened a new branch here.

Deputy Mayor Karsten Klein (Economic Affairs, Harbours, Welfare and Health): “The Hague has made great strides in recent years to raise its international profile as an attractive business destination. New partnerships with the Indian states of Karnatarka and Telangana, as well as the collaboration between our acquisition partners and other partners within the city, have contributed to this. There has been an immediate and visible growth in investments from this country, which will ultimately result in more jobs for the city.”

Record number of foreign companies invest in The Hague

IT, Tech, Cybersecurity and Energy

The Hague is very popular with companies in the IT, Tech and Cybersecurity sectors. LeoSat, a US tech firm, opted for The Hague and starting in 2019 is slated to be the first company in the world to offer low-latency, long-distance data traffic using optical inter-satellite connections.

The Indian company Krypc Technologies, a fast-growing international supplier of blockchain platforms, and the US cybersecurity business Dtex Systems, which develops unique software for detecting threats from the inside and infiltration from outside, both chose The Hague as the location for their European headquarters. In addition, the Danish energy company Ørsted (formerly Dong Energy) chose The Hague as a base from which to prepare the construction of wind farms in the North Sea.

These developments serve to boost the city’s role in vital sectors, such as Energy, IT, Tech and Cybersecurity, and have a knock-on effect by making The Hague even more attractive to foreign companies looking to invest.

Deputy Mayor Saskia Bruines (Knowledge Economy, International Affairs, Youth and Education):  “Our policy of stimulating the knowledge infrastructure as well as encouraging close cooperation between educational institutions and the business community are clearly having a positive impact. The focus on innovative economic sectors is already resulting in extra jobs. We are also working hard on strengthening the peace and justice and security clusters by internationally raising the profile of the city in these sectors and emphasising their economic added value.”

Blockchain platform provider KrypC Technologies opens its European office in The Hague

Krypc Technologies / from left to right: Mark Beermann, Danny Frietman (Enterprise Summit), Karsten Klein (Deputy Mayor for Economic Affairs, Harbours, Welfare and Health), Venu Rajamony (Ambassador of India), Ilja van Haaren (The Hague Business Agency), Chris van Voorden (InnovationQuarter) and Paul de Kroon (34 Capital).

International city of Peace, Justice and Security

More International organisations and NGOs are also finding their way to The Hague, international city of peace, justice and security. In 2017, the Department of International Affairs (Bureau Internationale Zaken, BIZ) in collaboration with The Hague Business Agency helped UN OCHA and International Alert set up office in The Hague.

UN OCHA is a data centre for collecting and analysing information on people affected by natural disasters and humanitarian crises. The non-governmental organisation International Alert was established to help people in conflict zones find peaceful solutions.

Additional jobs for The Hague

The Hague’s appeal as a business city is increasing. In addition to the companies that were actively supported by the acquisition partners mentioned above, other international firms have also opted for The Hague. AstraZeneca, a biopharmaceutical firm with its international head office in the United Kingdom, moved 200 people from Zoetermeer to The Hague, while the British company Merlin Entertainments confirmed The Hague as the location for a Legoland Discovery Centre. This tourist attraction is expected to open its doors to the general public in 2019.

Cooperation in The Hague region

Attracting foreign investment is of great importance to The Hague as well as to the Netherlands. It contributes to economic growth and creates jobs. The 54 investment projects are the result of a joint effort by The Hague Business Agency and InnovationQuarter in association with the Netherlands Foreign Investment Agency (NFIA), an operational unit of the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate. As ‘Invest in Holland‘ partners, the two acquisition partners support the City of The Hague in profiling the region internationally as an economically attractive business location. Have a look also at the NFIA results 2017.

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Contact /Chris van Voorden Datum /

The Netherlands in Top 10 in Global Talent Competitiveness Index 2018

Global Talent Competitiveness Index 2018

The human factor is the most critical resource for national competitiveness. Launched in 2013, the Global Talent Competitiveness Index (GTCI) is a benchmarking tool for governments, cities, businesses and not-for-profit organisations to help design their talent strategies, overcome talent mismatches and be competitive in the global marketplace.

The annual index assesses policies and practices that enable countries and cities to attract, develop and retain both ‘technical/vocational skills’ and the ‘global knowledge skills’ associated with innovation, entrepreneurship and leadership.

The GTCI 2018 edition found that the Top 10 countries have several key characteristics in common and share one major feature: they all have a well-developed educational system providing the social and collaboration skills needed for employability in today’s labor market. Other characteristics in common between the top-ranking countries include a flexible regulatory and business landscape; employment policies which combine flexibility and social protection; and external and internal openness.

GTCI 2018 - Top countries and cities ranking in talent competitiveness

The Netherlands ranks 9th

European countries continue to dominate the rankings, taking eight of the Top 10 spots:

  1. Switzerland
  2. Singapore
  3. United States
  4. Norway
  5. Sweden
  6. Finland
  7. Denmark
  8. United Kingdom
  9. Netherlands
  10. Luxembourg

Top 10 cities

In the cities portion of the index, eight out of the Top 10 ranking cities are located in Europe. As in the case of countries, over time, higher GDP levels naturally lead to higher technology penetration, creating ecosystems with better quality education, business, healthcare and infrastructure.

  1. Zurich, Switzerland
  2. Stockholm, Sweden
  3. Oslo, Norway
  4. Copenhagen, Denmark
  5. Helsinki, Finland
  6. Washington DC
  7. Dublin, Ireland
  8. San Francisco
  9. Paris
  10. Brussels, Belgium

The Dutch cities Amsterdam, The Hague and Rotterdam ranked respectively 11th, 27th and 34th.

Diversity for Competitiveness

In addition to the talent competitiveness ranking, this year’s report investigated the theme of ‘Diversity for Competitiveness’. The report found that diversity is not an end in itself, but must always be accompanied by a culture of inclusion in order to flourish and have real impact.

“Focusing on diversity and inclusion is crucial to overcome the fractures and inequalities of our age,” said Adecco Group CEO Alain Dehaze. “This means nurturing a culture of inclusion, starting at home and school, fighting bias and developing social and collaborative skills, which are key to unleash the power of work and will make the future work for everyone.”

 

Source / GTIC, Staffingindustry.com

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Contact /Willemien de Vogel Datum /

Dutch tech improved lives at largest electronics fair CES 2018

Holland Startup Pavilion

The Dutch delegation at CES 2018 was led by StartupDelta with HRH Prince Constantijn of Orange as its Startup Envoy. Together with DutchBasecamp they fully prepped the 53 entepreneurs for this highly intensive week and pitching their company to various stakeholders. And it has paid off!

CES  hosted about 185,000 visitors and the Dutch startups got a lot of attention, which was covered by various media. Here’s a media selection.

“The Netherlands is one of the most innovative countries in the world. Startups are the engine of innovation. Our goal is to give all entrepreneurs here a boost, by bringing them in contact with the tech world, large and international investors and corporates. This way these startups get the maximal opportunity to grow further and eventually conquer the world,” said Prince Constantijn.

West Holland at CES 2018

At world’s largest electronics fair CES also 7 West Holland based startups joined the Holland Startup Pavilion. Take a look at the full list of cool startups that represented the Netherlands at www.startupdelta.org.

  • Fizyr (Delft)
    Deep learning for vision guided robotics.
  • INVI (Rotterdam)
    Use the smell to repel – with the INVI Self-defense Bracelet.
  • Sense Glove (Delft)
    Sense Glove enables touch in Virtual and Augmented Reality. Their unique force-feedback system enables feeling the shape and density of virtual objects.
  • Solar Monkey (Delft) / InnovationQuarter portfolio company
    Software that enables solar to become the world’s leading power supply
  • Somnox (Delft)
    The world’s first sleep robot to improve sleep by breathing regulation, sounds, and affection. Sleep faster, longer and wake up naturally.
  • TiledMedia (Rotterdam)
    Stream Amazing Quality VR over Today’s Networks to Today’s Devices.
  • Travis Translator AI (Rotterdam)
    Giving you the Power to Communicate.

InnovationQuarter’s Willemien de Vogel-van Musschenbroek Greve joined CES 2018 to connect with interesting high-tech companies and attract them to the Netherlands. The majority of the companies focused on 5G, smart cities, smart homes, AI, IoT, AR and VR.

But how to find the most exciting technologies on 2,75 million net square feet of exhibit space? It’s impossible to talk to every exhibitor. A thorough preparation in advance made sure we picked out the most promising exhibitors to meet and to discuss the possibilities in setting-up or expand business to Europe’s mainland. Now we will follow up and hopefully welcome some new companies and distribution business to our region within the next years.

Dutch tech improved lives at largest electronics fair CES 2018

Startup Visa in the Netherlands

As an early adopter for new technology, the Netherlands is an ideal starting point to entrepreneurs, innovators and great minds who think on an international scale. The Dutch government made it easier for ambitious entrepreneurs from outside the EU/EEA to start a business in the Netherlands through what is called a ‘Startup Visa’. For a one year period, this visa grants you the possibility to start an innovative company in the Netherlands. CIC Rotterdam, YES!Delft, PortXL and Erasmus Centre. for Entrepreneurship (ECE) a.o. are facilitators for this Startup Visa.

CES 2019

Next year, the CES might benefit from additional Dutch knowledge on resilience! After all, the Dutch have some knowledge on coping with rain and making sure the business continues!

 

Source / StartupDelta / NLinSF

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Contact /Willemien de Vogel Datum /

RoboHouse, smart industry fieldlab for advanced cognitive robotics applications

What to find in RoboHouse?

RoboHouse is RoboValley’s fieldlab where manufacturing companies and innovative organisations can discover the possibilities cognitive robotics offer, develop their own applications and test them in an industrial setting.

Why use RoboHouse?

The rapid developments in robotics will have a major impact on many sectors. A few organisations already make use of advanced robots, which apply artificial intelligence, are self-learning and can work autonomously. Machines that interact with their surroundings and can collaborate with people.

These cognitive robotics enable many new applications. Think of robots that can identify and process a variety of unknown objects and that can be deployed for order picking tasks in warehouses. Another example are inspection robots for remote and dangerous areas or production processes where humans and robots work together to solve complex tasks.

Most manufacturing companies are aware of the existence of these intelligent technologies and would like to gain practical experience with them. RoboHouse is the place where you can, in a practical way, learn to understand the potential – and limitations – of these robotics systems. A test facility to work on your own application and a place to train your employees to collaborate with robots.

RoboHouse will open its doors in the spring of 2018. Based on the campus of Delft University of Technology, RoboHouse offers direct access to the research of TU Delft Robotics Institute and industrial partners, such as ABB and Festo.

RoboHouse, smart industry fieldlab for advanced cognitive robotics applications

RoboHouse: discover, develop and test

What can you do in RoboHouse?

  • Discover
    Take a tour with your management through RoboHouse or book an inspiring hands-on workshop to understand how your organisation can implement intelligent robotics. Define the processes, products or propositions that will be impacted by robotics.
  • Develop
    Create your own advanced robotics application. Follow a course in RoboHouse. We will offer courses on a variety of subjects, for example applying TensorFlow (deep learning) in ROS (open-source Robot Operating System).
  • Test
    Find out how your idea or concept works by using the RoboHouse test centre. We offer various workplaces, well-equipped for different technologies (e.g. vision, grippers, navigation and interaction).

Become a partner of RoboHouse

Become a partner of RoboHouse

RoboHouse is an initiative of RoboValley, Festo, ABB, Exact, InnovationQuarter, TNO, The Hague University of Applied Sciences and Delft University of Technology (TU Delft). They are open for new partnerships.

Do you share their mission to make the Netherlands leading in smart manufacturing? They’re up for a chat! Please contact the RoboHouse team at info@robohouse.nl.

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Contact /Chris van Voorden Datum /

Forbes names the Netherlands No. 3 Best Country for Business

Forbes about the Netherlands

As the sixth-largest economy in the European Union, Forbes reports: “[the Netherlands] plays an important role as a European transportation hub, with a persistently high trade surplus, stable industrial relations, and low unemployment.” Holland was also among the best countries for technology and innovation.

Inside the Ranking

Forbes determines the Best Countries for Business by rating 153 nations on 15 different factors. Those include property rights, innovation, taxes, technology, corruption, infrastructure, market size, political risk, quality of life, workforce, freedom (personal, trade and monetary), red tape and investor protection. Each category is equally weighted.

In addition to the general list, the Netherlands also ranked highly among best countries for personal freedom, technology, innovation, and property rights.

Forbes has rated the business friendliness of the world’s biggest economies annually for the past 12 years. Have a look at the full report at www.forbes.com.

 

Source / Invest in Holland

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Contact /Niels Krol Datum /

Ruimteonderzoeksinstituut SRON naar Leiden en Delft-980x450px

Good opportunities for collaboration

SRON has some 200 staff working in Utrecht and Groningen and is part of the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO). SRON Utrecht needs to relocate because the current building at the Uithof is approaching the end of its lifespan.  The NWO executive board and the board of the Netherlands Space Research Institute SRON have expressed their preference for the joint bid of Leiden University and Delft University of Technology. In this bid, SRON Utrecht will relocate in several years time to a new building on the campus of Leiden University. NWO and SRON are pleased about this new location and the many possibilities it offers for collaborating in science, technology development and instrument construction. West Holland has a unique ecosystem in the area of space travel and earth observation. The bid by the two universities is supported by the municipalities of Delft and Leiden, InnovationQuarter, the Province of South Holland, TNO, ESA ESTEC and the regional space sector. Once the advice from the works councils has been received, the NWO executive board will take a final decision in 2018.

There is a very strong colaboration between Science and Engineering in this region, and the arrival of SRON will give an even greater impetus to this. -Tim van der Hagen, President of TU Delft

Reactions

Vice-Rector Hester Bijl from Leiden University is delighted with the proposed relocation of SRON to Leiden’s Science Campus: ‘This is fantastic news. It has been made possible thanks to intensive cooperation with TU Delft, the Province of South Holland and the two municipalities of Leiden and Delft. The presence of SRON in Leiden will mean an enormous boost for research and teaching in both Leiden and Delft.’

Tim van der Hagen, President of TU Delft is also very happy with the arrival of SRON in South Holland: ‘There is a very strong colaboration between Science and Engineering in this region, and the arrival of SRON will give an even greater impetus to this.’ In Delft SRON will be using existing clean rooms and may well work on the construction of new clean rooms together with TU Delft.

Mayor Henri Lenferink from the municipality of Leiden: ‘We are very happy that SRON is coming to Leiden. The institute is an excellent match for the existing infrastructure of the city and will further strengthen the cooperation with the space cluster, including with ESA ESTEC, in the region. This is another success story arising from the strong collaboration with Delft.’

Three bids

This spring it transpired that the previously planned relocation of SRON Utrecht to Amsterdam could not go ahead. NWO subsequently explored the interests of Dutch universities to accommodate SRON on their campus. Three bid books for the new accommodation of the SRON location in Utrecht were assessed by a selection committee over the past few months. The three bids were of a high quality and closely matched each other. After an extensive procedure, the selection committee advised NWO and SRON to proceed with the South Holland consortium.

Excellent connection with research

The overarching argument from the selection committee to choose the bid from Leiden University/Delft University of Technology was the opportunity to optimally realise a future-proof location for SRON. Furthermore, the research connections between SRON and Leiden/Delft, the continuity of the research, the commitment of the bidding party and the financial aspects were important criteria for reaching the final assessment. The enthusiasm and broad support at both universities in combination with a solid and generous offer meant that the selection committee saw many excellent prospects for SRON in the area of space research in South Holland. In addition, the selection committee judged that there is an excellent connection with the technology and instrument construction of SRON. There is also a very good connection with two scientific programme lines of SRON: astrophysics and exoplanet research. The connection with the third programme line, Earth research is still limited in South Holland at present. However, in the bid from Leiden University/Delft University of Technology the selection committee does see sufficient possibilities for realising this connection in the future.

About the selection procedure

The selection committee received a total of three bids. Besides Leiden University/ Delft University of Technology, the consortia University of Amsterdam/University of Twente and Radboud University/ Eindhoven University of Technology also submitted a bid. The three bids were assessed by a selection committee that was appointed in consultation with SRON and the NWO Science domain. The selection procedure consisted of two written rounds of questions followed by interviews with delegations from the submitting consortia. On the basis of this, NWO and SRON jointly chose which two consortia could continue in the procedure. At the start of December, site visits were paid to the two remaining locations. After the visits, the committee reached a choice and it advised the NWO executive board and SRON board to opt for the bid from Leiden University/Delft University of Technology with new accommodation in Leiden.

Source / Leiden University

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Contact /Jacqueline Schardijn Datum /

RAMLAB unveils worlds first class approved 3D printed ships propeller-980x450 The five-company partnership started pooling their collective resources and knowledge to develop the world’s first 3D printed ship’s propeller seven months ago. Promarin provided the design of the triple-blade propeller. The Port of Rotterdam’s RAMLAB (Rotterdam Additive Manufacturing LAB) carried out fabrication using Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing (WAAM) techniques with Autodesk’s Powermill software. Damen provided Research and Development resources in addition to one of its Stan Tug 1606 vessels for operational testing purposes. Bureau Veritas’ role was to verify the entire development, production and testing process.

298 layers of 3D printing

The consortium reached its first milestone in August with the completion of the first WAAMpeller prototype. With valuable experience gained, production of the second version, with the aim of achieving class certification, started immediately. “We learned a lot from producing the prototype,” says Vincent Wegener, Managing Director RAMLAB. “Mainly relating to hardware/software interaction because, when laying down 298 layers of Nickel Aluminium Bronze alloy, it is important to have a tight control on all process parameters.” “Production of the second WAAMpeller was greatly improved because we had learned to manage these process parameters.” RAMLAB unveils world’s first class approved 3D printed ship’s propeller

Testing in Dordrecht

With the second WAAMpeller completed, the project then progressed to the testing stage, the first phase of which saw the WAAMpeller installed on a Damen Stan Tug 1606. This particular vessel is of extra interest in that it is equipped with a Tier III compliant engine, making it future proof for the ever stricter environmental rules and regulations in harbours. Damen’s testing engineers performed operational testing of the WAAMpeller on 20 November, with representatives from all of the consortium partners present. Furthermore, the day’s procedures were also overseen by Bureau Veritas surveyors throughout. The testing programme included bollard pull and crash stop testing in addition to speed trials. “Of course, we were all a bit nervous beforehand – after all, innovation always comes with a certain amount of unknowns – but the testing was a success,” says Kees Custers, Damen Project Engineer R&D enthusiastically. “We were pleased to report that the WAAMpeller displays the same behaviour as a conventional casted propeller in all of the tests. This includes the same level of performance in the crash stop scenario, which – going from full throttle ahead to full throttle reverse – is the heaviest loading that a propeller can experience. “From day one, this project has been characterised by a good working atmosphere and team dynamics, so there were quite a few high-fives on board when we had successfully completed the tests!”

Future thinking

Talking before the WAAMpeller unveiling event, Allard Castelein, CEO Port of Rotterdam took the time to highlight the efforts of the collaborating partners: “The WAAMpeller project is special for many reasons. Not only has it produced the world’s first class approved 3D printed ship’s propeller, but this has been accomplished within a very impressive seven-month timeframe and only one year after the official opening of RAMLAB”. “Everyone involved has worked extremely hard to make this happen. Damen, Autodesk and Bureau Veritas have supported the project all the way. Promarin have really shown their expertise with the finishing of this WAAMpeller. And last, but not least, the production process at RAMLAB continued 24/7, with their experts permanently on hand.” Looking at the bigger picture, Mr Castelein went on to identify the implications of the WAAMpeller project on the maritime industry. “This project has shown the shipbuilding industry the potential of 3D printing techniques for the production of vessel components. We will continue our intensive research into this very exciting area.

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Contact /Stef Prinsen Datum /

The State of European Tech: 2017

The State of European Tech: 2017

Atomico and Slush provide an annual, in-depth analysis of the European tech ecosystem by addressing a number of topics, such as talent, community, capital flows, deep technology, and regulation. Working with several data partners and surveying thousands of people within Europe’s tech ecosystem enable us to develop insights about what is really going on in the ecosystem.

https://2017.stateofeuropeantech.com/

The highlights

Authored by Tom Wehmeier, Partner and Head of Research at Atomico, the report identifies numerous insights and trends. A few highlights:

  • Total capital of $19bn invested into European tech breaks records. Invested capital is estimated to be $19bn, and the average deal size has increased compared to the record-breaking last year. Since the beginning of 2015, Europe has seen more than $3bn invested per quarter and the long-term investment trend reflects the expansion of its tech ecosystem.
  • European deep tech keeps its momentum and attracts $3.5bn of investments in 2017. Last year, the report pointed out that deep tech is thriving and diversifying across the continent, and today we see that Europe has been able to maintain its momentum. Within deep tech, AI and blockchain are seen as the areas where Europe is best-positioned to gain world-leading status.
  • Every European city is becoming a tech city. There are already over 160 hubs in Europe, and the number has been steadily growing during the past few years. Europe is seeing the spread of tech communities: there are hundreds of tech-related events happening daily across Europe’s tech ecosystem.

Clearly, it has been a great year for European tech and the future looks encouraging. The Huge talent pool, ambitious founders, and increasingly sophisticated investors allow Europe to march to its own beat. Questions of whether Europe can produce world-class innovation and $100bn companies are answered: definitely yes.

The State of European Tech: 2017

The challenges

But that yes doesn’t come without a but. There are some barriers on the way still:

  • Regulation is considered as the biggest barrier to scaling European tech. The European market might lack common rules or there is uncertainty around future regulation of deep tech. Cooperation between corporations, startups, and regulators is much needed to transform the regulation from a hindrance into a competitive advantage.
  • Gender imbalance remains a notable challenge. Since only 9% of CxO positions at venture-backed European startups are held by women, attracting more female into tech is crucial. Although the road ain’t easy, Europe could take the leader’s position in diversifying the global tech scene.

Reading this year’s report will give you a comprehensive, up-to-date picture of the state of European technology – hopefully you’ll enjoy it! The full report can be found on a slick website, provided by Atomico. You can read and download it here: www.stateofeuropeantech.com.

 

Source / Slush / StartupDelta

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Contact /Rinke Zonneveld Datum /

ECE's Scale-up Dashboard 2017

Scale-ups in the Netherlands

The Scale-up Dashboard 2017 shows that:

  • The number of scale-ups in The Netherlands has increased to 3237. This means that the number of scale-ups increased by 5.4% in the past year compared to the previous year.
  • The number of startups becoming scale-ups rises tremendously. Over the past two years, this has increased by no less than 220%. One in ten scale-ups in the Netherlands arise from a startup.
  • Top sectors count relatively many scale-ups. The top sectors Energy, High-tech and Life Sciences & Health are at the frontrunners.
  • An increasing number of companies in the Netherlands are hardly, if at all, growing. Almost a third of Dutch companies are even shrinking.

ECE's SCale-up Dashboard 2017, the statistics

More startups become scale-ups

Prof.dr. Justin Jansen: “The Scale-up Dashboard is the first list that truly takes into account and measures all companies in the Netherlands with more than 10 FTE. There are more lists about scale-ups available, but those give limited insights because companies have to register themselves or the lists are focused on specific sectors. Insight in which companies truly belong to the Top of scale-ups is missing and that is what we hope to achieve by creating and launching this Top 250 Scale-ups (Top 250 Groeibedrijven) – of over 3000 scale-ups – in the Netherlands.”

“Although more and more startups are making the step to scale-up, considerable efforts are still needed to keep countries like China, Israel and America up and running”, says Prince Constantijn van Oranje, special envoy of StartupDelta. Find out what he has to say more about the current position of startups and scale-ups in the Netherlands and the research findings (interview BNR in Dutch).

Interested? Have a look at the preview above or request the Scale-up Dashboard 2017 via www.ece.nl. A similar dashboard (in Dutch) is available for scale-ups in Zuid-Holland.

 

Source / ECE

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Contact /Tanja Baars Datum /

Three South African companies open offices in The Hague region

From left to right: Wayne Abegglen (Regional Property Executive Hyprop Investments Ltd.), Guido Landheer (Director of Economic Diplomacy and Transition), Karsten Klein
(Deputy Mayor The Hague), Maruis Conradie (Strategy Director NuvaLaw), Jeroen Nijland (Commissioner NFIA).

“We are looking forward to Hystead, IoT.nxt, and NuvaLaw joining professional and creative forces with other Dutch and international businesses in The Hague, and nearby cities such as Leiden.” They are a great addition to our innovative and fast-growing ecosystem in this region”, commented The Hague’s Deputy Mayor Karsten Klein. Expanding to The Hague region The three diverse companies are a boost for the region, and are deemed to have a beneficial impact on the Dutch economy. Hystead Limited is a leading specialist shopping centre fund that operates a portfolio of shopping centres in South-Eastern Europe. They are planning on opening one of their management offices in The Hague. IoT.nxt is a provider of a globally leading IoT platform that enables companies to integrate and leverage all of their existing investments and systems – the enabler of rapid digitization and embracing of the 4th industrial revolution.

NuvaLaw is a LegalTech company that designs and implements digital platforms that transform the way the legal information exchange is managed and how disputes are settled. It is currently focused on reducing inter-party costs between insurers. The company is an alumnus of the Startupbootcamp in London and is also engaging with The Hague Institute for Innovation in Law. NuvaLaw will set up in Leiden to initially partner with large insurance companies in The Netherlands, especially in The Hague and Leiden.

“We are very excited to establish one of our management offices in The Hague to look after our growing SEE shopping centre portfolio,” said Yvette van der Merwe, COO Hystead. “Our office in The Hague will function as the base for international expansion. We are specifically building partnership with world leading system integrators in the field of IoT. These partnerships will allow us to scale up even faster and enable more businesses to access the benefits of our IoT solution,” commented the company’s CMO Joe Bester.

“We like the open innovation that takes place in the Netherlands. The Hague region is especially attractive as it hosts many of the big insurance companies with whom we hope to partner. Collaboration and Access to Justice are part of our company DNA and so this region is a natural cultural fit for us as we expand into Europe,” explained Maruis Conradie, Strategy Director at NuvaLaw.

Volvo Ocean Race 2017

Dutch Economic Mission

The City of The Hague is in collaboration with The Netherlands Enterprise Agency in Cape Town for a Dutch Economic Trade Mission focusing on water and technology-oriented products, services and solutions, or companies that can contribute to a future-proof society. Over 20 companies travelled together with the City of The Hague and The Hague Business Agency to Cape Town. The Mission comes together with one of the official stops of the Volvo Ocean Race. The Hague will be the final destination for the finish of the Volvo Ocean Race in 2018.

“During the economic mission we look at the international opportunities in Cape Town and South Africa, but we also want to be an attractive location for South African companies that want to expand to Europe. It’s wonderful to experience the business opportunities the Volvo Ocean Race creates in light of the 2018 finish in The Hague.” Karsten Klein Deputy Mayor The Hague.

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Contact /Chris van Voorden Datum /

The Netherlands in Top 10 on IMD World Talent Ranking 2017

The Netherlands in Top 10

The prestigious annual IMD World Talent Ranking assesses the methods countries use to attract and retain the talent their businesses need to thrive.

Europe continues to dominate the 2017 list, with 11 out of the 15 most talent competitive economies based on the continent, after a strong performance in 2016. Switzerland, Denmark and Belgium remain the most competitive countries in the 2017 IMD World Talent Ranking. Austria, Finland, Germany, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden make up the Top 10.

IMD World Talent Ranking

The annual IMD World Talent Ranking report covered 63 countries and assessed the methods the countries adopted to attract and retain talent. The rankings are based on a country’s performance in three main categories: investment and development, appeal, and readiness. The Netherlands was ranked 3rd, 7th and 15th on these terms, respectively. The three categories assess how countries perform in a wide range of areas. These include education, apprenticeships, workplace training, language skills, cost of living, quality of life, remuneration and tax rates.

It is European countries’ outstanding education systems that set them apart from the rest of the pack. On average, each has a high level of investment in education accompanied by a superior-quality educational system, from primary to tertiary levels. This allows them to develop local talent and at the same time attract foreign, highly-skilled professionals, which many European businesses rely upon to perform.

The Netherlands in Top 10 on IMD World Talent Ranking 2017 (page 73)

The Dutch score

The Netherlands entered the Top 10 and is in 6th place in the IMD World Talent Ranking 2017.

The Netherlands ranked 3rd in the investment and development category, with a strong performance in health infrastructure (2nd) and its effective implementation of apprenticeships and the prioritization of employee training (both 6th).

The country ranks 7th in appeal, mostly because of the well-educated and skilled people (3rd), a  high quality of life (5th) and a high worker motivation (5th). The Netherlands is also ranked first for language skills.

 

Source / IMD

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Contact /Niels Krol Datum /

Magnitude Space wordt Hiber en opent nieuw R&D Centrum Delft

Rebranding: Magnitude Space becomes Hiber

Dutch satellite company Magnitude Space is rebranding under a new name, Hiber, to reflect the importance of the launch of its new Low Power Global Area Network (LPGAN) in 2018. According to Hiber, the LPGAN represents the company’s transition to a “global internet service company” rather than one focused exclusively on space.

Helping tackle climate change, grow crops more efficiently, manage natural resources better, and even protect wild animals are just a few of the company’s goals. Hiber’s LPGAN service delivers affordable access to their global satellite network and allows data to be easily and cheaply transferred via the internet from the remotest locations.

‘To that end, Hiber is no longer a ‘space’ company. We are an ‘Earth’ company. Our mission is to work with and enable business partners and individuals wherever they are on our beautiful planet,” said Hiber Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Ernst Peter Hovinga.

According to Hiber, the new name also highlights the technology at the core of its LGPAN, as the modem “hibernates” until a satellite passes over to downlink data.

Opening Hiber R&D Center – Small Sat Delta

Hiber recently opened a new Research and Development (R&D) center in Delft Working in collaboration with Hyperion and ISISpace, the teams at Delft will develop software and hardware for enhanced connectivity and facilitate the launch of even more satellites, Hiber stated.

 

Source / Hiber / Satellite Today

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Contact /Thijs Schaap Datum /
Get in the Ring the Netherlands 2017

© Marco De Swart

Get in the Ring

Get in the Ring the Netherlands is organized by the Erasmus Centre for Entrepreneurship (ECE) and supported by the City of Rotterdam and EY. The event took place for the fifth time in Rotterdam and is part of the Global Entrepreneurship Week, a week in which thousands of events take place worldwide that focus on entrepreneurship.

The startups are looking for customers and strategic partners for the growth of their company. ”There are a lot of opportunities for this during Get in the Ring Netherlands. The 70 multinationals and governmental organizations present are happy to be available as customers, suppliers or partners ” says Martin Luxemburg, director of the ECE. Based on requests from the startups, more than 600 speed dates with the participating organizations took place on Thursday. The effect of these conversations appears to be significant; 65 percent of the speed dates result in a follow-up conversation that in some cases even leads to a collaboration.

“It is still too early to say to which collaborations the conversations of this year will lead, but the City of Rotterdam is a nice example. Based on their participation with Get in the Ring last year the City of Rotterdam has started a project with a startup in solar panels that have been placed at test locations in the city” says Martin Luxemburg.

For the startups the speed dates were not the only activity; they were also challenged to qualify for the evening program to ascend the stage and to pitch their startup for a 700-strong audience (read: possible customers, partners or talent) in the ring. No competition without jury members, this year the Champion jury members were the founder of international software company WeTransfer; Bas Beerens, founder of scale-up YoungCapital; Rogier Thewessen, and entrepreneur Janneke Niessen.

Startups Kozie, LABFRESH en Convious winnen Get in the Ring Nederland

And the winners are…

The startups do not step in the ring alone, but will compete against an opponent in their own weightclass. Dementia technology startup Kozie took the win in the lightweight category against SeraNovo. Kozie develops multi-sensor technology that enhances the perception of people with dementia, so that demented people can recover memories from their childhood through a music pillow or music rug. The middleweight winner is LABFRESH after a strong pitch battle against Somnox. LABFRESH sells clothing of a special material that does not stain and smell. The heavyweight winner Convious offers a platform where people can buy tickets and determine the price themselves. Convious was in the ring against Felyx. The three winning startups receive a ticket to the Global Meetup of Get in the Ring. In addition, they receive 1 year access to the EY Finance Navigator. This Finance Navigator is the first corporate startup of EY and was launched yesterday during the event.

Get in the Ring The Netherlands is part of a worldwide network of the Get in the Ring Foundation, which annually organizes 150 events in 100 countries. The winning startups of all these events worldwide will meet in Cascais, Portugal, from 30 May to 1 June, during the Global Meetup of Get in the Ring. Entrepreneurs, investors and corporates can join the Global Meetup, which is entirely dedicated to establishing international connections.