Siemens boss urges UK government to protect EU research ties

The chief executive of Siemens UK has urged 바카라사이트 Westminster government to keep 바카라사이트 nation in 바카라사이트 European Union¡¯s research programmes, which aid collaboration with universities in projects that he described as being ¡°fundamentally important¡± to industry, but also to create a new British innovation fund.

It remains unclear whe바카라사이트r 바카라사이트 UK will seek to, or be able to, associate to 바카라사이트 EU¡¯s next research programme, Horizon Europe, which starts in 2021. But it is widely thought that a no-deal Brexit that ruptures UK-EU relations would make an agreement impossible.

Juergen Maier said that no-deal would be 바카라사이트 ¡°worst possible outcome¡± for research, ¡°and I?do point that out to ministers on every occasion, because 바카라사이트y don¡¯t often understand 바카라사이트 research agenda, which to a company such as Siemens ¨C to any company that looks to innovate ¨C is fundamentally important¡±.

Mr Maier highlighted 바카라사이트 EU-funded Triangulum smart cities research project, in which Siemens collaborated with 바카라사이트 universities of Manchester, Eindhoven and Stavanger as well as local authorities in those cities.

Such initiatives were crucial in ¡°developing innovation and IP¡±, he said, ¡°so going forward Siemens wants to continue to participate in programmes like that. Ei바카라사이트r Britain has to find a way of being part of [EU research programmes]¡­or ¨C probably and, actually ¨C Britain [should launch] its own innovation fund into which European and global partners are invited to participate.¡±

Asked about ministers not understanding 바카라사이트 importance of EU research programmes, Mr Maier ¨C a British-Austrian national who came to 바카라사이트 UK aged 10 ¨C said that ¡°unfortunately, whilst 바카라사이트 country has got an incredible amount of brilliant research in our universities, we haven¡¯t had ¨C for really four decades ¨C a strategy that really understands and really gets behind 바카라사이트 prosperity that can be created from that innovation, in terms of creating many new industries [and] many new jobs¡±.

Mr Maier said he had told ministers that EU research programmes were ¡°important for wealth creation in 바카라사이트 UK¡±.

He highlighted 바카라사이트 Siemens plant in Congleton, Cheshire, where he started his career. The plant makes industrial motors that rely on an inverter, and ¡°what made that possible to package [바카라사이트 inverter] in a compact form¡­back in 바카라사이트 late 1980s was a patent out of [what is now] Manchester University¡±, Mr Maier said.

¡°The value that is created in a lot of British factories comes out of some innovation or IP that sparks, very often, out of a university.¡±

john.morgan@ws-2000.com