university–enterprise cooperation

70
www.lifelonglearning.tugraz.at
www.sciencepark.at
D) Based on this strategic commitment TU Graz Principles, both a Lifelong
Leaning (LLL) Office and an Office for Languages, Key Competencies
And In-House Training were established. Based on the existing excellent
know how Graz University of Technology seeks to increasingly establish
itself as a provider of continuing education opportunities taking into
account the fact that learning is a Life-long process.
Life-long Learning Office approaches young graduates as well
as experienced professionals with a technical and scientific
background interested in vocational education and training. LLL
Office organizes a number of University Graduate and Certificate
Programmes, Courses and Seminars and Summer Academies.
Science Park provides entrepreneurship trainings for potential academic
incubator projects including student teams if there is a valuable
business idea; it also organizes Business Plan Competitions. It also
taps a pool of so-called business mentors which give hands-on
advice to entrepreneurs. Its objectives are to support university
graduates of all fields of knowledge who have good business ideas
in the pre-start-up- and start-up-phase by coaching, infrastructure,
mentorship, financing and funding support.
Technology Exploitation Office provides training in IPR issues.
There is a range of project formats to co-operate with industry and business,
including: Student exercises; Team projects; Projects with diploma theses
and dissertations; Feasibility studies/technological and scientific services
and counseling; Contract research projects/R&D collaboration; In-licensing
of a TU Graz invention/patent; Joint ventures.
Undergraduate students, graduate students and PhD students are
frequently involved in projects with business and industry. In
some cases they may be employed by the enterprise. Hundreds of
TU Graz graduates over the last decade have started an enterprise
of their own. Moreover a number of TU Graz inventions have been
licensed to the private sector and been incorporated in new products
and processes.
E) As Styria is a R&D intensive region with a high degree of interorganizational
networking, TU Graz is involved in all regional
clusters, a number of boards of the Chamber of Commerce and
other networks. Two examples shall be given:
• Innoregio Styria is an innovation network initiated by the
Styrian industry, which is supported by companies, academic
and non-academic research institutions, as well as by central
regional players;
• Technology Transfer Office of Graz University of Technology
has assisted the Styrian government in the design of “ERDF
Innovative Measures” Regional Programme of Styria 2000-2006
called TECHNOFIT (Technology-Information-Future-Transfer).
TU Graz has partner institutions both in the European and non-
European area (Partnership Agreements, Co-operation Agreements,
Memorandums of Understanding/Letters of Intent).