Summary
Win4Collective is the regional branch of the Group Research Programme. It also has an international component: the CORNET measure.
The Win4Collective call aims to bolster the expertise and know-how of approved research centres in key areas for the future of Wallonia. The selected projects will closely align with the philosophy of the group research, that is, pre-competitive research carried out for the benefit of the largest number of companies possible, in particular SMEs. It responds to a request from an industrial sector or group of companies with common technical and economic needs. For these reasons, the goals of collective research are primarily generic and are clearly differentiated from contractual research, where the goal is to develop a specific new product or process that can be used by a single company. For this reason, the results of projects will be widely disseminated on a non-exclusive and non-discriminatory basis.
Key points
The research deliverable will be clearly identified, defined in a comprehensive manner and justified with respect to the state of the art and its economic interest for Wallonia.
The project will last for a maximum period of two years.
Effective collaboration with other approved research centres, university departments, college departments or public research institutions is mandatory, in order to encourage the transfer of scientific knowledge between approved research centres. To this end, the project should be supported by a partnership with sufficient skills that are necessary to achieve the planned aim. In particular, all of the relevant CRas for the problem under consideration will be represented in the project.
The budget for academic partners (university departments, college departments, public research institutions) will be limited to 30% of the total budget.
A cooperation agreement must be drafted between the partners to steer the smooth operation of the project, in terms of protecting intellectual property, promoting results and outlining the rights and duties of everyone involved.
In order to ensure that the project aligns with the needs of Walloon companies, the project will be part of the regional strategy for the sector in terms of technological innovation and priority investments, or the promising areas for Wallonia: Areas for Strategic Innovation (DIS), the Smart Specialisation Strategy (S3) or areas that have been specifically highlighted in the Regional Policy Declaration (DPR), such as space or cyber security.
Finally, in order to monitor the research and facilitate the promotion of the results within the sector, an industrial steering committee will be described in the proposal and established when the works begin. This will comprise industrial sponsors (that is, companies that are likely to use or eventually promote the results in the Walloon region). As the results of the research primarily target the activities of SMEs, it is requested that the steering committee include at least five Walloon SMEs.
In detail
The project sponsor will be an approved research centre. However, collaboration with at least one other partner is mandatory.
Eligible partners include:
- approved research centres
- university departments
- college departments or centres with links to colleges
- public research institutions
The total number of partners shall be dictated by the skills that are sufficient and necessary to conduct the research.
Eligibility criteria
A proposal is eligible if:
- the project sponsor is an approved research centre;
- it involves at least one other partner that is an approved research centre, a university department, a college department or a public research institution;
- the budget for academic partners (university departments, college departments, public research institutions) is limited to 30% of the total budget;
- a steering committee made up of industrial sponsors (with at least five Walloon SMEs) has been established;
- the submission procedure outlined in Point 8 of this call for proposals has been followed (in particular, the completeness of the file, which includes all the requested annexes);
- the project pertains to a Walloon region skill for economic development;
- the research has not received any other public funding;
- when submitting the project, the partners have fulfilled all of their administrative obligations with respect to their prior agreements with the administration (reports, declarations of debts, etc.), in accordance with the deadlines outlined in these agreements or established by the administration.
Assessment criteria
Research projects are assessed on a technical level in accordance with the criteria defined by the Decree of 3 July 2008 and the Walloon Government Decree of 29 June 2017 concerning support for research, development and innovation in Wallonia. Each of the criteria defined in the decree has its own maximum score and is defined below:
- Article 38: The innovative nature of the project (rating/20);
- Articles 45/46: Excellence and experience (rating/10);
- Article 39: The quality, feasibility and relevance of the project (rating/20);
- Articles 40 – 43/1: The promotion of innovation (rating/40);
- Article 41: The contribution to sustainable development (rating/10)
The support consists of granting subsidies. The amount of the subsidies is expressed as a percentage of eligible expenses before taxes or other contributions and is set at 75% for approved research centres (CRa) and 100% for university departments, college departments and public research institutions.
Submission procedure
The submission procedure involves 3 stages:
- Stage 1: Declaration of intent
A declaration of intent, in the form of a succinct proposal that includes a summary of the project and mentions the partners, must be sent to the administration via the online form, which is available via the FPS Research ‘ONTIME’ portal: https://recherche-technologie.wallonie.be/ontime/.
- Stage 2: Information and support meeting
Information and support meetings between the administration’s representatives and the project leaders will be organised after the declaration of intent has been submitted. Applicants will present their project to the administration, with a view to receiving support.
- Stage 3: Detailed proposal
The detailed proposal (an online form, as well as all the requested annexes: project description, sector roadmap, cooperation agreement, etc.) will be completed and sent to the administration via the online form.
Selection process
The selection procedure involves 3 stages:
- Stage 1: Eligibility
The eligibility of each of the detailed proposals is examined by the administration, based on the eligibility criteria outlined in the call for proposals.
- Stage 2: Evaluation
The assessment process is carried out by the administration and involves two phases:
- The technical evaluation is graded with an overall rating from 0 to 100.
- Projects that are deemed to be eligible for funding are included in a ranking list, which is submitted to the members of the selection jury.
- Stage 3: The jury
After reading the submitted eligibility and assessment reports, the selection jury provides the Minister for Research with the following elements:
- the project ranking, which is drawn up on the basis of the ratings from the assessments carried out by FPS Research;
- the minutes of the meeting, as validated by all of the members of the jury that were present, containing the various items that were discussed and the results of the votes;
- where applicable, the report, as validated by the jury, with the comments and/or recommendations of the jury, which are explained and justified.
These elements will form the basis of the Minister for Research’s decision with respect to funding the selected projects.
Appeal procedures
How can I contact the department who made the decision?
You may contact the administrative department that made the decision at any time, independently of the appeal procedures outlined below, in order to obtain information about why the application was rejected.
You must contact the following department:
PSW Economy, Employment and Research
Technological Research and Development Department
Place de la Wallonie, 1 (Building III), 5100 NAMUR (JAMBES)
Phone no.: +32 (0)81 33 45 32
This free process is not subject to any specific formalities and does not suspend the periods for filing an appeal. The absence of a response from the administration does not constitute acceptance of your request.
How to file an appeal
Unless the dispute can be viewed as relating to a subjective right – in which case only courts of law and legal tribunals have jurisdiction – an appeal may be submitted to the State Council, in accordance with the procedures outlined below.
Request for cancellation
Cancellation of the decision may be requested by filing a request with the State Council, either:
- electronically to https://eproadmin.raadvst-consetat.be ;
- via a signed and dated registered letter to
Conseil d’État
Greffe
Section du Contentieux administratif
Rue de la Science, 33
1040 Brussels
You must submit your request within 60 calendar days from the date of notification for the disputed decision.
In your request, you must indicate the ‘reasons’ for your appeal, that is, the legal rights that have been infringed by the decision and the way in which they have been infringed.
Request for suspension
Sending a cancellation request does not suspend the effects of the decision.
If an emergency arises which is incompatible with the processing of the case, and if a serious argument is manifestly likely to lead to the cancellation, you may file a request to suspend the decision with the State Council.
The request for suspension may be submitted before, at the same time as, or after sending the request for cancellation.
In exceptional cases, and under specific conditions, you may also request the suspension of the decision in cases of extreme emergency.
Practical information
Requests for cancellation and suspension requests are only valid if they contain certain annexes and information. Reference is made to the coordinated laws and decrees mentioned below, which are available at http://www.raadvst-consetat.be (‘Procedure’ section).
Each requesting party must pay a fee of €200 (amount as of 9 January 2017), using a transfer form that will be sent to the party after the appeal is received. Payment is not currently subject to any deadline and the payment of the sum may be made at any time before the closure of the dispute.
Find out more: laws on the State Council, coordinated on 12 January 1973, Regent Decree of 23 August 1948 determining the procedure before the administrative disputes department of the State Council, Royal Decree of 5 December 1991 determining interlocutory proceedings before the State Council, which are available at http://www.raadvst-consetat.be (“procedure” section).
- Decree of 3 July 2008 concerning support for research, development and innovation in Wallonia
- Decree from the Walloon Government of 18 September 2008 concerning support for research, development and innovation in Wallonia, which was amended on 15 May 2014
- Text concerning the management of State aid for research, development and innovation (2014/C 198/01)
- General Block Exemption Regulation (GBER) - State aid (Wallonia.be)