R&D Success As Growth-Driver in Austria
Since the ‘80s, Austria has been providing tax incentives for research and promoting the cooperation of the scientific and business communities, based on training initiatives for competence and excellence. As a consequence, Austria has developed an internationally acclaimed innovative prowess in the fields of environmental technology, ICT, medical engineering, life sciences and biotechnology. All these sectors are have driven the country’s emergence as one of Europe’s most attractive research and technology locations.
As Karl Strobel, Managing Director of Robert Bosch AG Vienna, comments, “Austria offers important features serving as the basis for successful development work, including the availability of highly-qualified specialists due to the high educational level at Austria’s polytechnic schools and universities of technology, indirect tax benefits and direct research funding, as well as proximity to our customers. As a result, the research and development areas of Bosch located in Austria have become international competence centres for automotive engineering.”
Science & Business
An significant factor in the success of the R&D sector in Austria is the synergy between science and business. Johannes Khinast, CEO of the K1 Research Centre for Pharmaceutical Engineering (RCPE) explains that, “The universities provide valuable know-how and excellent research personnel. The scientific facilities carry out basic research work which many companies could simply not afford to the same scientific breadth and depth. This makes it much more cost-effective and efficient for companies to cooperate with scientific facilities, and entails far less risk. The partnership encourages innovation in business, whilst also opening up new opportunities and benefiting the universities.”
Clusters
What strengthens these partnerships is the highly beneficial existence of strong clusters, pioneering research and development. The clusters contribute hugely to this fertile breeding ground for the development of productive networks between the scientific and business communities, due to their own outstanding research. Clusters include lISA VR (Life Science Austria Vienna Region), Eco World Styria (Clean Tech), Vienna IT Enterprises (VITE), Ac Styria (Automative Cluster), and the Mechatronics Cluster (MC) Upper Austria. There is active cooperation between the organisations that make up the clusters, so development moves fast.
Advantageous General Conditions
Apart from funding and promotion of R&D in Austria, the sector also benefits from a famously motivated workforce, the quality of life attracting multinationals, and a geographical location right in the centre of Europe. When asked about the choice of Austria as a business location, Evelyn Schödl, Vice President and General Manager of GlaxoSmithKline Austria said that; “The level of research and development in the fields of life sciences and biotechnology is very high here. Moreover, the quality of the underlying conditions is also high – from productivity to the professionalism of the local management.
To find out more about R&D and funding in Austria, visit Invest in Austria’s listing, which includes contact details.
