Climbing the Mountain of Knowledge Transfer
A Swiss Template for Impact in Technology and Innovation
Elena Benedetto (University of Geneva/NCCR PlanetS, Switzerland) explores how the NCCR PlanetS Technology and Innovation Platform (TIP) has helped shape innovation, industry relations and instrumentation development for the Swiss community of planetary sciences.
Read article in the fully formatted PDF of the Europlanet Magazine.
The NCCR PlanetS is a consortium that fosters collaborations and research in planetary and exoplanetary sciences across teams and individuals from four Swiss institutes: the Universities of Bern, Geneva and Zurich and ETH Zurich. Created in June 2014, PlanetS has been funded for a period of 12 years by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) through the National Centres of Competence in Research (NCCR) scheme. Besides three scientific ‘domains’ divided into projects, the NCCR PlanetS has a number of ‘platforms’ that provide structural elements for all participants. These platforms cover a wide range of topics, including communication, education, diversity, databases, satellite operations, and knowledge and technology transfer.
The Technology and Innovation Platform (TIP) is an initiative to create impact through innovation and by fostering knowledge and technology transfer, with activities in four areas:
- Short-term programmes (externships)
- Seed-funding of innovative ideas
- Training
- Networking and innovation
participation.
Externships
One of our most successful programmes enables researchers to step beyond academia and engage in mutually beneficial projects proposed by private partners (typically small companies). We call these projects ‘externships’, as they work along similar lines to internships, but are designed to promote knowledge transfer towards the private sector.
Externships strengthen industryacademia collaboration and highlight the value of advanced research in commercial and industrial settings. Participating researchers bring their technical expertise, scientific knowledge, rigour and problem-solving skills into the host company of the externship. At the same time, externships offer researchers the opportunity to experience working in a private-sector environment, and can help them make an informed career choice between moving to industry or staying in academia. Because the prime focus is knowledge transfer, externships are not limited to space-related companies and can cover any industry or services sector. Many participants secure employment with the host company at the end of the project.
All participants, even when staying in academia, benefit by adding valuable industry experience to their CVs. Most importantly, researchers gain confidence and a deeper understanding of how their skills are transferable and can be applied outside academia.
A Structured Yet Flexible Model
Over the past decade, we have refined a structured but adaptable approach to externships. The model consists of:
- Three-month university-funded projects that allow researchers to apply their expertise in real-world industry settings. Priority is given to early-career postdocs, as well as PhD candidates that are eligible under the SNSF funding regulations.
- Optional extensions funded by industry partners, providing companies with additional time and
flexibility to complete projects and potentially prepare for a hiring. - A template contract between the university and the private partner that sets out the framework, whereby the researchers stay employed by the university but should comply with the rules of the company when on site. The contract also clarifies working conditions, e.g. options for
teleworking and reimbursement (travel, sustenance, parking, etc.) at the charge of the company. - Intellectual property (IP) and non-disclosure conditions that give the company security, but
allow the university to promote the externship within agreed parameters of confidentiality.
These conditions vary significantly depending on the partner and the focus of the project, e.g. software development is normally open source, but hardware is usually protected. - High flexibility that ensures the individual researchers and businesses can tailor the project to
their specific needs.
The flexibility of the scheme is a key strength, enabling each researcher to use the externship funding in a unique way. For example, one researcher gained experience in the finance sector so that they could strengthen their career opportunities following a planned return to their home country. Another participated in a business-creation training course that eventually led them to launch their own company. Others joined start-ups and contributed their expertise in an entrepreneurial setting.
Impact and Recognition
In bridging the gap between academia and industry, externships open new employment pathways for PhD-holders and provide experience in solving real-world challenges. The model also allows businesses to assess the capabilities of PhD-holders without immediate hiring commitments, fostering relationships that often lead to longterm employment. In 60% of cases, externships led to a job offer.
Originally developed within the NCCR PlanetS framework, externships have also been supported at a wider level by the universities, who have a growing demand for structured programmes to help increase employability of researchers. Four of the twelve externships completed have been financed through external sources, underlining the success and adaptability of our model.
Seed funding
The second pillar of the TIP strategy, targeted seed funding, has enabled the NCCR PlanetS to support and explore creativity, knowledge transfer, and innovative ‘out-ofthe-box’ R&D projects with high technological and commercial potential. Seed funding is a key instrument to drive meaningful innovation and foster collaboration between academia and industry. The scheme is also an effective stepping stone to larger-scale proposals and grants that bridge the gap between fundamental science and real-world applications. The selection process prioritises high-risk high-gain ideas, encouraging researchers to take bold steps in unexplored directionsand maximise the programme’s impact in cultivating cutting-edge advancements.
The full impact of the TIP seed money is normally seen after several years. Our most highprofile example is the seed-funding provided to researchers from the University of Bern in 2018, which supported the spin-off company Spacetek Technology to kickstart the development of compact mass-spectrometers for industrial applications (page 43).
Recent recipients of seed funding include projects on Machine Learning algorithms, optical technology with applications in the medical field, as well as an invention with commercial potential in the niche astrophysics market. We look forward to seeing the full impact of these projects emerge over the next five years or so.
Fostering an Entrepreneurial Mindset
Taking an idea from the laboratory and developing it into a business involves challenges that are not unique to planetary science. Each year, the NCCR PlanetS pools resources with other NCCRs across all fields of research to hold a week-long workshop, bench2biz, with a focus on early-stage ideas for start-ups.
Applicants submit ideas, from which the organisers select 8-10 ‘champions’. Each champion is assigned a diverse team of experts to support them in learning the fundamentals of building a business case. Lecture sessions are alternated with brainstorming sessions, during which the teams can work on each fundamental area of their business. Organised annually since 2010, and based on the Pre-Seed Workshop™ programme, the next bench2biz event will take place in November 2025. Participants report the brainstorming sessions with experts as a highlight, and say that the workshops are a great way to not only develop their business idea, but also learn about a variety of topics, such as project management or IP.
Most bench2biz applicants come from pharmaceutical research and/or from the polytechnic schools involved in the NCCRs. For fundamental sciences like astrophysics, where the start-up culture is much less developed, attracting applications has been more of a challenge. The NCCR PlanetS has developed strategies to foster participation, including the organisation of preparatory events, as well as early and intense advertising campaigns. As a result, three teams from the NCCR PlanetS have participated in bench2biz, including Spacetek Technology a climate-related project, and a Machine Learning endeavour for exploration of lunar resources.
Aside from bench2biz, the TIP organises a variety of events to foster an entrepreneurial mindset and provide training, collaborating with partners including university innovation offices and the European Space Agency (ESA) Business Incubation Centres (BIC).
Industry-Related Events
The TIP’s mandate includes raising awareness among Swiss industries of ‘Big Science’ opportunities in the domain of planetary science and astronomy. Key to achieving this aim is a collaboration with the Swiss Industry Liaison Office (Swiss ILO), which connects Swiss industry with international research organisations. The TIP represents the European Southern Observatory (ESO) on the Swiss ILO steering committee and co-organises Participants at the Bench2Biz workshop in 2019. Bench2Biz Magazine 32 Issue 8 activities, such as shared stands to promote Swiss industries at international scientific conferences. A particular success has been the co-organisation of the Swiss ESO-Industry Days, during which industrial participants can learn about procurement opportunities and meet ESO representatives or Swiss researchers working on instrumentation. As an example, the ELT Instruments Day 2022, which was one of the first events held after the pandemic and targeted industrial suppliers for the Extremely Large Telescope (ELT) instruments, attracted 140 in-person and 45 online participants. The TIP and the NCCR PlanetS have also collaborated with the Space eXchange Switzerland (SXS) platform of the Swiss Space Office in events aimed at ESA and spacerelated industries.
Supporting our Engineers
The main focus of the NCCR PlanetS has been to support networking among astrophysicists and planetary scientists. However, the advancement of science relies heavily on the development of instrumentation and, to date, no dedicated platform has been established to promote and strengthen collaboration between engineers working in the field.
To bridge that gap, we organised a workshop to brainstorm how to create an environment where engineers could exchange knowledge, coordinate efforts, optimise resources and collectively tackle shared challenges in instrumentation development.
Participants discussed requirements for infrastructures and expertise, mapped out available resources, identified opportunities for collaboration, and looked at how connections between research teams could be established to enhance efficiency and capabilities.
The meeting also served as a forum to discuss the varied structures and organisational approaches within instrumentation research. Best practice was shared on tackling common challenges, such as hiring long-term personnel – independently of specific projects – a significant hurdle for sustained innovation and development. Ultimately, this workshop, and similar future events, will support the establishment of a technology platform within the NCCR PlanetS and its legacy structures that will help integrate efforts into larger scientific initiatives and facilitate long-term collaboration and technical development.
Conclusions
Over 12 years, the TIP of the NCCR PlanetS has played a critical role in promoting knowledge and technology transfer between our members and industrial partners.
Although there are challenges inherent in a fundamental area of research like astrophysics or planetary science, the TIP has demonstrated real impact in developing links with Swiss industry and has been praised by our international review panel. Our activities have been designed to foster exchange between industry and academia at all levels, supporting the participating scientists at each step of their journey. Through multi-disciplinary partnerships, we have increased the benefits to all parties and provided more opportunities to engage with a broad range of industry.
As the NCCR funding comes to an end, we are in the process of creating the Swiss Institute for Planetary Sciences (SIPS), which will provide a sustainable legacy based on a similar overall principle and structures. Thus, the activities of the TIP will continue to support knowledge transfer and will address ongoing challenges, such as increasing engineering collaborations between our institutional partners.
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