The EFFECTIVE project foresees the following objectives: • analyse business trends and market prospects, and perform reviews & workshops to get a consistent set of information for clustering and exploitation of FoF projects activities and results; • develop and industrial exploitation framework for the promotion and transfer of FoF projects activities and results, and structure networks & alliances to achieve such objectives; • active clustering of FoF activities and results based the identification of six major technological FoF areas, addressing also potential sectors and applications for exploitation and transfer of the considered clusters of technologies; • analyse best practices and case studies of FoF results clustering, exploitation and transfer through 4 relevant regional case studies in low-, medium- and high-technology intensive sectors, by means of the involvement of innovation actors of the considered regions; • set up instruments for adequate monitoring of FoF activities clustering and exploitation during the project life-time and beyond, to ensure an effective implementation at programme level; • identification of future FoF priorities within the technological areas of the addressed clusters and roadmapping of needed further research and innovation actions; • promote and disseminate the EFFECTIVE project results and tools to a large community of European actors through qualified networks and associations (such as EFFRA, Enterprise Europe Network, EBN and EURADA); • involve international experts and create strategic links with international initiatives to support the full achievement of EFFECTIVE objectives on global scale.

The new industrial revolution which is based on the deep integration of ICT in manufacturing and characterised by new industrial technologies such as cyber-physical systems, IoT, additive manufacturing, and simulation offers great potential. EU industries are well placed to benefit from the new ICT- driven industry, but a challenge is for SMEs to participate in and to benefit from the new industrial revolution. To turn this vision into reality for European SMEs the I4MS project aims to increase the uptake of ICT by manufacturing SMEs. It does so through innovation and support actions. The Access to I4MS (XS2I4MS) project is a support action to advance the European I4MS community, and expand its coverage, notably through the I4MS Mentoring programme which is aimed at supporting the establishment of a network of Digital Innovation Hubs. XS2I4MS supports the continued expansion of services provided to DIHs in a number of ways. It has established a special section on the single portal for the I4MS community (WP1). The project builds a solid information base for I4MS in WP2 - the I4MS Observatory. Sharing best practices and dissemination (WP3) aims to extend the reach and impact of IMS as widely as possible through the collection of information about other digitization activities in Europe. Brokerage support and information activities (WP4) are aimed at supporting a key task of the DIH and also focuses on the assessment how DIHs can be financed. Specifically, the outreach activities in WP5 (Mentoring and Coaching for Regional Innovation Hubs) aim to extend the network to include SMEs in regions not currently participating in I4MS. WP6 (Management and Coordination) will ensure effective coordination of tasks. The XS2I4MS consortium presents a strong mix of organisations to realise excellence and impact. Three large European applied research organisations, TNO, Fraunhofer and VTT, have as their core business transfer of technologies to manufacturing. They have state-of-the art facilities in open innovation. They have programs tailoring technologies and business models to the needs of SMEs. The Manufacturing Technology Centre (MTC) is specialized on advanced manufacturing and has a dedicated Training Centre. Brainport Development has a major role to support high-tech SME start-ups in developing business plans, and accessing finance for growth.

Although roughly half the world’s inhabitants live in cities, they generate more than 80 percent of the Global Domestic Product (GDP). Around the world, cities are introducing initiatives aimed at addressing urban mobility issues, improving (digital) infrastructures and tackling pollutiAlthough roughly half the world’s inhabitants live in cities, they generate more than 80 percent of the Global Domestic Product (GDP). Around the world, cities are introducing initiatives aimed at addressing urban mobility issues, improving (digital) infrastructures and tackling pollution. It is expected that 80% of the world’s population will live in cities in 2050. Urban Air Mobility (UAM) is described as the lifeblood of modern cities, a critical economic factor and a facilitator of smart, sustainable development. Flying Forward 2020 (FF2020) embraces this new reality and wants to be a European and global frontrunner in solving these environmental, social, economic and technologic challenges of the 21st century by providing integrated, inclusive and sustainable (digital) solutions that are safe, secure and convenient. FF2020 offers an entire state-of-the-art spatial UAM ecosystem which includes a governance model and framework (interoperable and scalable); regulatory framework (machine-readable and executable); geospatial digital infrastructure (technology agnostic digital toolbox); Identity of Things Scheme (identity framework for operators, drones, authorities and AI-algorithms); and interoperability frameworks (technical, semantic, legal/policy and organisational) – which fully comply with existing EU-regulation and yet challenges these regulations. By developing, deploying and testing the UAM spatial ecosystem in 5 Living Labs we are able to involve countries, cities and communities on a regular basis and process their feedback through our iterative approach. The practical results will be best-in-class drone infrastructure, autonomous monitoring and last-mile delivery.

Additive manufacturing (AM) has been highlighted as a key technology with potential for creating sustainable high value European based employment, addressing societal issues and supporting environmental sustainability. It has the potential to revolutionize the way in which products are manufactured and delivered to the customer. Moreover, AM is already having a high economic impact on several sectors and indeed on wider society. Therefore, it challenges the community to reinvent the business models and explore the implications of AM adoption. All those are heavyweight reasons for Europe to make specific efforts to define a plan of action in the field. In this framework, AM-Motion CSA has the ambition to develop a strategy and set up the pillars for its efficient implementation that, ultimately, will contribute to reinforcing the European AM ecosystem. The project will accelerate market uptake of AM technologies across Europe by connecting and upscaling existing initiatives and efforts around defined value chains, improving the conditions for large-scale, cross-regional demonstration and market deployment, and by involving a large number of key stakeholders, particularly from industry, as experts. AM-Motion will identify gaps at technical and non-technical levels for business development and propose specific actions and including a timeline to overcome them. More importantly, it will propose and validate models for business collaboration and unlock AM based business and jobs for Europe. To involve high number of key actors, the project has already achieved the support of several companies, research and education establishments, standardisation bodies, European Technology Platforms, international AM related entities, Regions and Innovation clusters. 52 support letters were received and are included.