Deadline: 31 March 2022 at 12.00 CET
Budget: 2 x NOK 3.000.000 = NOK 6.000.000
About Nordic Innovation
Nordic Innovation is an organization under the Nordic Council of Ministers working to promote cross-border trade and innovation, located in Oslo. The Nordic Council of Ministers is the official intergovernmental body for cooperation in the Nordic region. With 26 million inhabitants in the Nordic region, Nordic Co-operation is one of the most comprehensive regional partnerships anywhere in the world.
Nordic Innovation is contributing to taking part in implementing the Nordic Prime Ministers 2030 vision for the Nordic cooperation. Its mandate is to contribute to making the Nordics a leading region for sustainable growth and to increase entrepreneurship, innovation and competitiveness in the Nordic region. Nordic Innovation supports projects and programs to stimulate innovation and works to improve the framework conditions for Nordic markets and exports.
Nordic Innovation is situated in Oslo, Norway, with 20 highly qualified employees from all the Nordic countries with expertise from different business fields. Nordic Innovation’s annual budget is approximately NOK 100 million.
For further information, please refer to the following links:
Purpose and context
The purpose of this call is to strengthen Nordic value chains and testbed networks in the field of health technologies. Through this initiative, Nordic Innovation sets out to promote sustainable growth, innovation, entrepreneurship and global competitiveness of Nordic companies.
By strengthening existing Nordic testbed networks, Nordic Innovation aims to nurture a more robust testbed capacity in the Nordics, with the capacity to test a higher number of solutions and products, and lower thresholds for companies to test health technology solutions in several testbeds in various Nordic countries.
Nordic Innovation has until the end of 2021 supported the Nordic Proof testbed network, which is a network of testbeds within the field of health tech in the Nordics. The final report from the project is can be downloaded below:
Background
The Life Science and Health Tech program is one of eight initiatives launched by the five Nordic Ministers of trade , innovation and industry. The initiatives represent a determined advance towards a stronger and more sustainable Nordic region and support the vision for the Nordic region to be the most sustainable and integrated region in the world by 2030. The aim is to strengthen the Nordic companies' opportunities in the field of life science and health technology to create new products and solutions for the benefit of Nordic citizens.
Read more about the Life Science and Health Tech program.
To realize this ambition Nordic healthcare systems need to evolve. This means focusing on a Nordic citizen perspective rather than a patient perspective. We would like to keep the Nordic citizens healthy and live long, without necessarily “ever” becoming hospital patients. From an innovation and business policy point of view it is beneficial to highlight the concrete opportunities that a common data platform could offer both related to development of new technical solutions and the possibilities for scaling.
Nordic life science and health tech business ecosystems are crucial for understanding needs and possibilities for Nordic life science and healthcare SMEs. Access to testing of solutions and products are one of the common challenges for companies. Multiple testing facilities, living labs, along with testing in hospitals gives better results and solutions while supporting the growth of innovative companies.
In relation to scaling the Nordic solutions, the program-based collaboration increases possibility to link Nordic value chains to international ecosystems and introduce solutions and businesses to potential international customers and partners, attract international talent and investments, as well as immaterial properties.
The Nordic countries will not achieve transformative change by acting alone. A Nordic approach to life science and health tech will support and contribute to the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals in the 2030 Agenda and work to strengthen the ambitions of EU Green Deal. It will also allow for ecosystem partners to take part in the Horizon Europe missions.
Funding
Nordic Innovation will provide funding of NOK 3.000.000 for two existing Nordic testbed networks within the field of health technologies. There is a minimum requirement of 50% co-funding. The project time frame is 3 years. If the below described annual deliverables are not met, the project financing can be terminated.
Who can apply?
Existing Nordic testbed networks within the field of health technologies and medical technologies, this includes testbed networks for pharmaceutical related health technologies, such as, for management of drugs. Testbed networks for purely pharmaceutical products are not eligible to apply.
Deliverables
- In each of the networks that receive funding, there is a minimum requirement of ensuring 25 new companies testing their solutions in year one, increasing to 50 new companies who start year two and also a minimum of 50 new companies staring in year three. In total a minimum of 125 new companies during the contract period.
- A minimum of 50% of the new companies that are testing solutions must be from at least three different Nordic countries.
- By the end of year one, a sustainable financing mechanism/ business model is to be presented to Nordic innovation, by the end of year two, this financing mechanism is put in place.
- By year two, at least two thirds of the companies will be testing their solutions in more than one Nordic country.
- By year two there is a well-structured and easy way-in for companies (“one ticket solution” preferably digital).
- By year two there is a capacity and willingness to include non-Nordic companies who want to have their solutions tested in the Nordics.
- The screening of solutions that are to be tested in the testbed networks are done with a range of care facilities in mind. This means that hospitals is one category but will need to be paired with for instance elderly care facilities, mental institutions, municipalities, and drug management facilities – all will have signed a non-disclosure protocol.
General eligibility criteria
- Project partners must be eligible for de minimis state aid under Regulation 1407/2013 or 360/2012 (de minimis Regulations) of 18 December 2013.
- Testbed networks must consist of partners from a minimum of three Nordic countries.
- Funding can only go to testbeds in the Nordic countries. Non-Nordic testbeds can be part of a funded testbed network but cannot receive funding from Nordic Innovation. Contributions (financial or in-kind) from a non-Nordic testbed cannot count as co-financing towards the co-financing requirements of a funded testbed network.
The selection of the two winning testbed networks
Nordic Innovation will select the testbed networks who Nordic Innovation deems best suited to deliver on the tasked described in this call.
The project proposals that meet the conditions set out in this call will be examined and evaluated by an expert panel. The expert panel consist of three external experts and two senior advisors from Nordic Innovation. Each expert/advisor will individually evaluate each proposal based on the assessment criteria specified in the call text and rank them, with the best proposal ranked highest. All applicants that submit a project proposal will receive a short, written feedback from the expert panel.
Evaluation criteria
All applications/project will be evaluated based on the following six main criteria.
- Number of testbeds in the network?
- How many Nordic countries and regions does the testbed network span?
- How diverse is the testbeds in the network? (How many different types of testbeds are part of the testbed network?)
- Are the testbeds in the network relevant for the aim of the call? (has health-tech/med-tech solutions been tested before? If not, is it clear why the testbeds are relevant for this call? - cross-sector testbeds are looked upon as positive, but relevance needs to be explained)
- How big is the capacity to test solutions?
- Based on the application, is it convincing that the network demonstrates necessary and relevant implementation capacity and competence?
All evaluation criteria will be valued equally.
Formality requirements
- The project proposal shall be in English and submitted in a pdf file - no longer than 10 pages. The budget template can be submitted separately. This template will be made available at this page by 11 February.
- The project proposal must be valid until four weeks after application deadline.
- Signed letter of commitment from all participating partners shall be included.
- By the end of the project a formal report is to be written up and send to Nordic Innovation, describing both results and learnings.
Application deadline
The application deadline is 31 March at 12:00 CET.
The project proposal must be submitted electronically to Nordic Innovation at info@nordicinnovation.org and labelled <Project proposal – LS&HT Strengthening Nordic Testbed Networks>.
Important dates
| Activity | Date |
|---|---|
| Call is opened | 3 February 2022 |
| Deadline for asking questions regarding the call | 14 February 2022 |
| Deadline for submission of proposals | 31 March 2022, 12:00 CET |
| Evaluation process | 1-7 April 2022 |
| Choice of project partners notified | No later than 20 April 2022 |
| Contract award | No later than 21 April 2022 |
Please note that the dates may be subject to change.
Miscellaneous
The submitter of the project proposal is responsible for ensuring that all questions, requirements and clarification points are answered / highlighted and documented in the project proposal. Project proposals and other information received after the application deadline will not be considered.
Nordic Innovation may refuse all project proposals if the result of the evaluation process gives a reasonable ground for doing so. If all the project proposals are refused, Nordic Innovation will notify those who have submitted proposals of the refusal.
The decision about to whom the contract is awarded, will be published on Nordic Innovations’ website.
Please note that Nordic Innovation’s Standard Terms and Conditions apply to this call:
Nordic Innovation Standard Terms and Conditions
Contact information
Rasmus Malmborg
Senior Innovation Adviser, Program lead - Life Science & Health Technology
r.malmborg@nordicinnovation.org
+47 95 12 14 80
Thordur Reynisson
Senior Innovation advisor, Program Lead – Sustainable Ocean Economy
t.reynisson@nordicinnovation.org
+47 91 57 65 79
