The Government of Catalonia approves UOC project worth one and a half million euros to boost knowledge transfer

The University's Knowledge Transfer and Value Creation Strategic Plan (PETER) has five strategic lines involving 12 activities and 48 sub-activities to be completed by 2021. The project aims to boost the UOC's knowledge transfer through collaboration with its community, and partners from the local economy and society. The PETER project has a budget of one and a half million euros - 50% of which will come from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF).

The project aims to markedly increase the number of UOC knowledge transfer and value creation projects, such as patent applications or spin-offs. It also aims to treble the number of businesses working with the University, moving from the 105 from three years ago to over 300 in 2020.

Strategic lines

The PETER project involves five strategic lines.

-Continuous improvement of the unit as the benchmark for quality.

-Fostering of collaboration with local businesses and targeting the R&I activities to respond to the real needs of business and society.

-Value creation and marketing of R&I results; making an impact both economically and socially.

-Boosting entrepreneurship through active links with stakeholders in society.

-Promoting a culture of transfer and dissemination of R&I results.

This strategic plan is an initiative coordinated by the Knowledge Transfer and Entrepreneurship (KTE) unit at the UOC's Knowledge Transfer and Research Support Office (OSRT). The unit aims to act a point for reference for transfer for the University's knowledge areas, fostering a cultural change both at the University and beyond. The unit works to ensure that the UOC community is increasingly innovative, guaranteeing that the results of the University's R&I meet the real needs of business and society by offering top quality products and services. Its activities, and the creation of spin-offs in particular, help produce skilled employment to boost the productive, economic and social capacity of Catalonia's businesses.

The PETER project is aligned with the UOC's Strategic Plan; specifically, it falls within subplan 0404, Creating Value of Knowledge, of the fourth strategic line, UOC R&I. The UOC's proposal was awarded the fourth highest rating among Catalan universities in the call for applications coordinated by the Catalan University and Research Grant Management Agency (AGAUR), which forms part of the Catalan Ministry of Business and Knowledge's Department for Universities and Research.