ETAP 4th European Forum on Eco-innovation
Unlocking global market opportunities
BUSINESS SUCCESS FACTORS IDENTIFIED BY DELEGATES
Funding
Demonstration plant financed by state aid resulted in selling 30 wastewater cleaning
plants in China. Try to combine financial aid with technology demonstration in a new
market.
Aid Funded Business Services, a UK agency, helps British companies to engage in
environmental projects in developing countries.
Innovation
First mover advantage: Early innovators can exploit new markets – e.g. Danish wind
farms.
Innovation (financing, management, low costs)
Marketing
Making money from reducing volume (cement) and increasing quality (higher margin) in
low cement low CO2 refractory concrete.
Marketing strategy: Publicise the key environmental statistics for any product or service.
Understanding real needs – what is specific in a market
Brand and credibility/reputation
Cost/benefit ratio of a product
Events: Euro 08 in Austria and Switzerland or Euro 2012 in Poland and Ukraine
Work with local partners. Could also be local sector associations (can Google). They could
help to find customers.
Find your niche. Focus on ‘one possibility out of ten’.
Life-cycle costing (efficiency) > good selling argument both to customers and to
policymakers
For example: Mefso Tissue’s paper machines make less water
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Help them with solving problems instead of selling an item of equipment
For example: Take polluted waste water, extract chemicals and sell them back again – a
better and better idea with time
Good marketing and good market analysis by companies supported by political initiatives
such as LMI
Develop support systems: business and management skills can often present engineering
focus
European international exhibition and foresighting/futures – learn from Japan show
running since 1999
System/culture/market research
Product development in local context – i.e. base new products on dated technologies that
are still in use in developing countries to bridge the technology gap.
Internalise costs to arrive at true pricing to make market mechanisms work
Understand local circumstances – don’t just drop high technology anywhere….
Train the purchaser to calculate lifecycle costs and carry out life cycle analysis as well as
define the functional unit
Information of local market: legislation, financing, barriers, etc.
Partnership with the appropriate local partner and existence of reliable local personnel
Nobody does business with strangers, so you need partnerships/networks. Instruments to
create networks include: brokers (embassies, etc.), study exchange programmes and city
partnerships
Bring knowledge about funding, subsidies, etc. and financial possibilities
National contacts (local)
Offer solutions instead of just selling products
Policy and government support
Government/public policy should be clear and stable:
– Long term, clear, confidence
e.g. waste: landfill? incineration? recycling?
– Enforcement of policy, including fines
Risk-reducing measures:
– Whole project funding, not just studies/R&D
– Risk capital/tax breaks
– Political risks
Much successful technology transfer has been done by NGOs (charities) without much
government support
Smarter integrated policy framework, including incentives
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– demand
– supply
– Pricing signals
– Awareness
– Appropriate regulation in the receiving country
Example of heat display
– Market awareness
– Social aspects > food considerations
– Verification/standardisation/market/food labelling of technologies
– Reuse existing technologies – don’t reinvent
– Make food local training!
– Crucial condition: strong home market first
Success only possible if there is a political will to enforce legislation. Make sure the
polluter pays – or be punished.
At least five to ten year government strategy.
Take EU approach to China, etc. rather than queue of separate nations.
Green public procurement in favour of innovative products and services provides
showcases for standards and knowledge transfer to foreign countries and brings down
unit costs.
Regulatory environment/legislation
Size of companies – small ones need co-operation
Environment is used as an argument for ‘normal’ innovation
In home markets legislation and in markets abroad policy transfer and awareness raising
generate demand/pressure (scientists, ….).
Liberalised trade in environmental goods and services – Doha process – would be a
critical success factor (not yet the case)
Companies depend on reliable political framework conditions
Is there a common EU mechanism for supporting exports? (Integrated at EU level and not
only led by Member States.) There is no practical EU agency.
The USA has been successful in providing such support (ECOLINK project) > the simpler
the better.
A common EU platform for environmental technology export is hindered by the ambiguities
surrounding the definition of environmental technologies
Regulation to push profitable actions by both consumers and producers, combined with
initiatives to increase awareness and change attitudes – such as energy-saving light bulbs
Reduce political risks and instabilities to make market mechanisms work
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Reference or demonstration plant
Support legislative frameworks
Government support in starting/opening new relations/networks with other countries – in
terms of getting new information, ‘door opening’, etc.
Smaller R&D programmes – such as ERA-NET
Platform creation – smaller companies working together
Local environmental regulatory enforcement = local framework conditions for
environmental technologies
Encourage common technical standards and processes
Standards
Support in standard settings
Encourage early standardisation – but with care as could work either way….
Standards should be formulated for new products fast on worldwide level and then used.
Corporate social responsibility (CSR) standards for enterprises
Miscellaneous
Multi-partner projects:
– Knowledge leader
– Big partner in lead
– SMEs in R&D, logistics and facilities
– Grow to be a project leader
Swedish Centre:
– Longer-term presence
– Early re opportunities
Austrian Chamber of Commerce
– Trade mission creates opportunities
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