The National Centre for Research and Development (NCBR) plans to launch new research and development initiatives in cooperation with public sector entities. Their goal will be to develop solutions addressing the identified needs of public institutions related to the transformation towards the European Green Deal and digitization. A total of 505 million PLN (113 mln EUR) from the European Funds for Smart Economy program will be allocated to this purpose. In carrying out these initiatives, NCBR plans to cooperate with three groups of stakeholders: public sector entities, R&D project contractors, and potential users of the developed solutions.
"We have successfully completed 12 initiatives, including as many as 9 in the area of the European Green Deal, which resulted in the creation of, among others, a future-oriented district heating system in Lidzbark Warmiński, an innovative biogas plant in Brody near Poznań, and an energy-efficient multi-family building in Mysłowice. Now, under the next European Union financial perspective, we continue our efforts. We have planned to launch at least 15 new R&D initiatives in cooperation with public sector entities, in the form of pre-commercial procurement projects, as well as educational activities in the area of innovative public procurement targeted at the public sector. We want the solutions developed to contribute to improving the state of the environment or adaptation to climate change, which will positively affect the quality of life for each of us" said Prof. Jerzy Małachowski, PhD, Director of the National Centre for Research and Development.
The topics of the projects will be approached from the perspective of benefits for the environment, society, and the economy. Aiming to create opportunities for the implementation of developed technologies, NCBR seeks to collaborate with other public institutions, such as the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management (NFOŚIGW), the Bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego (BGK), and the Polish Development Fund (PFR).
"On the National Centre for Research and Development's website, we have launched a special module for public institutions to submit research challenge proposals, and in the coming months, based on the challenges and needs identified or submitted by these institutions, we will launch projects aimed at developing new solutions. Initially, they will focus on the area of district heating and related technologies" explains Agata Rakowska, Director of the Department of Innovative Management Methods for Program Management at NCBR.
Pre-commercial procurement as an alternative to grants and subsidies “Innovative Public Procurement” is a non-competitive project that will run until December 31, 2029. Its aim is to increase the involvement of public institutions in transforming the Polish economy in line with the European Green Deal by using the pre-commercial procurement (PCP) model. In this model, the contracting authority (NCBR) commissions the development of an innovative and unavailable product or technology through research and development activities. PCP ends with the development of a product or technology ready for full-scale implementation. The contracting authority does not take all the results and benefits from the contract exclusively for its own use but shares them with the contractors on market-based terms.
Pre-commercial procurement is a solution available to any public procurer. In carrying out research projects under this model, NCBR applies the “problem-driven research” approach, which views science and the R&D process as multiple paths leading to the goal defined by the contracting authority.
How will an R&D initiative under the Innovative Public Procurement non-competitive project look in practice? The announcement of the project will be preceded by extensive consultations with the entire market interested in both the development and use of the given technology. Signing contracts with selected contractors in the PCP process will begin the R&D work and initiate the selection process for participants in each phase based on specific criteria (the so-called “funnel model”). Each stage will conclude with an assessment of the results obtained. This will also be the point where the contracting authority and contractors can verify the assumptions, budgets, and implementation timelines. In the final phase of the PCP process, one or more independent entities may participate, and the entire process will end with a final evaluation of the results of the contractors participating in the last stage.
The Innovative Public Procurement project is a non-competitive initiative implemented under Action 2.13 of the “European Funds for Smart Economy” program for 2021-2027.
This article was first published on 5 February by NCBR.
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