Summary
The Win2Wal measure is part of the PROJECT axis (Obtaining funds intended for conducting a research project alone or as part of a partnership) of the research aid reform based on identified needs (Win4Research).
The Win2Wal programme funds industrial research projects within universities, colleges and approved research centres, which will facilitate the creation of a new product, process or service (PPS). Starting from a base of scientific and technological skills and knowledge, the project will make it possible to deepen these skills and knowledge and, ultimately, validate the results in a representative environment for the PPS. The creation of a laboratory prototype/demo may be carried out in this context. If necessary, technological platforms may be used. Each proposal must fall within the remit of the themes defined in the call and align with Wallonia's Smart Specialisation Strategy.
Key points
The programme is part of Wallonia’s RIS3 Smart Specialisation Strategy and favours themes connected to this (Smart Specialisation | Economie@Wallonie). The projects must help Wallonia to follow the roadmaps for each area. These are available on the FPS-EER website:
- Roadmap for circular materials
- Roadmap for innovations for improved health
- Roadmap for innovations for agile and safe design and production methods
- Roadmap for sustainable energy and residential systems
- Roadmap for the agri-food chains of the future and innovative environmental management
The 2022 call is open for the following two themes:
- DIS 2: Innovations for improved health
- DIS 5: Agri-food chains of the future and innovative environmental management
The 2023 call will be open for the following three themes:
- DIS 1: Circular materials
- DIS 3: Innovations for agile and safe design and production methods
- DIS 4: Sustainable energy and residential systems
In detail
The sponsor must be:
- a university department;
- a college department or a research centre linked to a college.
The project may be carried out by the sponsor alone, or with partners, depending on the research needs. Possible partners include:
- a university department;
- a college department or a research centre linked to a college;
- an approved research centre.
The research consortium must be supported by a unique company that is likely to promote the results of the project.
Target audience – Eligibility criteria
A detailed proposal is eligible if the following elements are all answered in the affirmative:
- The sponsor originates from a university or college;
- Any partners originate from a university, an approved research centre or a college;
- At the time of the submission, the project is supported by an existing company with headquarters in Wallonia, which satisfies the definition in the Walloon Decree of 3 July 2008 concerning support for research, development and innovation in Wallonia;
- The project concerns one of the technological fields included in the programme, which corresponds to the on-going call;
- The project last for a maximum of forty-eight months;
- A consortium agreement signed by all the partners (including the company) is attached to the proposal when it is submitted;
- The project has not already received public funding.
Assessment criteria and project selection
Research projects are assessed on a technical level in accordance with the criteria defined by 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/15);
- Article 45/46 – Excellence and experience (rating/20);
- Articles 39 and 45/46 – The quality, feasibility and relevance of the project (rating/20);
- Article 40–43/1 – The promotion of innovation (rating/35);
- Article 41 – The contribution to sustainable development (rating/10)
Other conditions
The company provides complementary and additional support on top of the funding from the Walloon region. It must be motivated and detailed.
Any contribution (provision of equipment, provision of specialised research staff, supply of consumables, purchase of equipment, employment of staff, financial intervention, etc.) will be evaluated to both satisfy the research needs and demonstrate the real interest for the company. This evaluation will be considered in the overall evaluation of the project, as part of the “Added value of the innovation” criterion.
The support consists of granting subsidies that are expressed as a percentage of the eligible expenses:
- For university departments, college departments, research centres associated with a college: funding consists of a subsidy. The amount of this subsidy is set at 100 %.
- For research centres: funding consists of a subsidy. The amount of this subsidy is set at 75%.
Subsidies are intended to cover costs related to conducting research, in accordance with the ‘Guide to eligible expenses’.
They cover:
- staffing costs for researchers and technicians;
- operating costs;
- general costs;
- acquisition of specific equipment for the research;
- cost of equipment used;
- subcontracting costs.
Research projects will last for a maximum of forty-eight months, with a mid-term evaluation.
The submission process has the following three stages:
- Stage 1: Declaration of intent. This is submitted, in accordance with the provisions of the call for tenders, via the ‘ONTIME’ platform, which is used for the entire procedure.
- Stage 2: The declaration of intent is submitted to the administration by the sponsors, in order to allow the administration to assist the sponsors with the submission of a detailed proposal. The company and a representative of the sponsor’s research department must be present. At the end of the meeting, a link for accessing the detailed proposal on the ‘ONTIME’ platform is sent to the sponsor.
- Stage 3: The detailed proposal. Only detailed proposals that have been the subject of a declaration of intent and a presentation, and which have been submitted in accordance with the rules of the call in effect, shall be taken under consideration. The date on which the electronic submission occurs on the FPS-EER IT server shall prevail. In the event of multiple electronic submissions of the same detailed proposal, only the last version submitted before the submission deadline will be considered. The detailed proposal includes a generic section (consortium, project, budget, work plan, etc.) and a scientific annex.
In cases where the project includes sensitive data from an industrial proponent or lab, a special document may also be appended.
The selection procedure involves three successive stages:
- Stage 1: Eligibility
The eligibility of each of the detailed proposals is examined by the administration, based on the outlined criteria. Ineligible detailed proposals are not evaluated.
- Stage 2: Assessment
The administration assesses the projects that have been submitted based on five defined criteria and ratings. The evaluation results in an overall score of between 0 and 100 (that is, the sum of the scores for all the individual criteria). The administration may use independent experts, if necessary.
There are two possible outcomes of the technical evaluation:
- Favourable: The project receives a score greater than, or equal to, 60 % for each of the evaluation criteria;
- Unfavourable: The project receives a score lower than 60 % for at least one of the evaluation criteria.
There are two rankings for detailed proposals (‘Favourable’) that are selected for funding:
- a ranking for proposals with a university department as the sponsor;
- a ranking for proposals with a college, or a research centre backed by a college, as the sponsor.
The administration provides the selection jury with ‘an eligibility and evaluation report’ on all the eligible detailed proposals.
- Stage 3: The jury
At a minimum, the selection jury comprises a representative for the Minister for Research, a representative for the Minister for Economy, four representatives from the ‘Scientific policy’ centre of excellence from Wallonia’s Economic and Social Council and three representatives for the administration. It suggests a ranking of the projects to the Minister for Research, who will make any decisions about funding.
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).