essenscia the patent cell 5th anniversary
essenscia the patent cell 5th anniversary
“ The patent sessions are an ideal occasion to exchange points of view with experts in the field and to discuss challenges we have in common with other companies.” Sébastien Fastrez Head of Research & Development at Realco
More than 50 companies in the chemical and life sciences industries take part in the Patent Cell sessions each year; two thirds of the attendant companies are SMEs. These participating companies reflect the diversity within our sector, with attendees representing basic chemistry, petrochemicals and derivatives, basic inorganics, pharmaceuticals, biotech, plastics, paints and inks, detergents, perfumes and cosmetics.
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Celebrating the upcoming 5th anniversary of the Patent Cell Yves Verschueren essenscia Managing Director
s managing director of essenscia, I am pleased to celebrate the upcoming 5th anniversary of the chemical and life sciences industry Patent Cell, this is a good time to take stock and reappraise the initiative. We believe the Patent Cell has created added value, for the government, for the Belgium economy, for our sector, which is a good thing to celebrate. I hope this 5th anniversary can draw greater attention to our Patent Cell, showing how we have captured the imagination of those in the Belgium chemical and life sciences industry and beyond. It should allow us to build on our success and reach out to companies who have yet to get involved with the Patent Cell, so that in another 5 years we have even more to celebrate.
How things got started
The Patent Cell is an initiative initiated by the Belgium government and funded by its Ministry of Economic Affairs. It has formed partnerships with a number of industry sectors and 5 years ago began working with the chemicals and life sciences industry. We are incredibly happy to be part of the scheme. We work with the government to undertake a range of activities which support and encourage innovation within our sector. Over these 5 years the government has gained a much better understanding of the importance of our sector in creating innovation within the country.
“ How our member companies’ deal with the protection of their IP is the cornerstone of everything we do in the Patent Cell. ”
IP protection and patenting are crucial
A Programme which responds to the needs of our companies
We hold at least three workshops a year. Each is delivered several times, in Flanders and in Wallonia. Over the 5 years of our Patent Cell, we have addressed more than 10 subjects, including: how does patenting works; what particular procedures do you have to undertake to develop a patent in Belgium, in Europe and globally; how should companies carry out patent searches; how does patent litigation work; and how does one value an innovative product with or without patent. Each workshop session has attracted around 40 to 50 attendees. The active participation of our member companies is a measure of the success of our Patent Cell, and so is our members’ feedback. They obviously appreciate learning from companies who have experience of applying for patents. Attendees have to commit around 5 to 6 hours for each session; busy executives would not give up this time unless they thought these workshops were valuable. I hope to help even more member companies benefit from these workshops in the coming years. To do this, we need to continue creating attractive programmes that respond to the needs of our member companies.
Belgium at the forefront of innovation
Our country has always played a lead role in stimulating innovation. essenscia has always supported initiatives aimed at improving opportunities for innovating
to strengthen their knowledge of IP, particularly value these workshops. The Patent Cell offers a personalized service to help companies with the protection of their innovations.
companies, especially SMEs. Belgium has a highly competitive “Patent Income Deduction”, scheme where only 20% of the income of the patent and patented products is taxed. It used to be the case that a company could only benefit from the patent income deduction arrangement, if their patent was developed in a R&D centre; essenscia warmly welcomed the 2013 revision of these rules, which exempted SMEs from the R&D centre requirement. The revision placed Belgium at the forefront of innovation showing its keenness to keep innovative companies here. The Patent Cell has held sessions about the Belgian tax incentives for R&D, as well as the regional subsidies, so that SMEs know all the benefits of patenting. The Patent Cell helps raise awareness of the options companies have in terms of protecting their innovations, and does this mainly through workshops, which are attended by representatives from all sectors of our industry. SMEs with limited resources, but who want
The main priority of our Patent Cell is to ensure that our members better understand the importance of IP protection and the role patenting can play within this, be this through brand names, trade secrets, or patenting. Belgian companies are very innovative, but they don’t always pay enough attention to the protection of IP and the role that patenting can play in protecting it. Or they believe that patenting and IP protection are complex and costly. This is truer of SMEs than it is of our larger member companies. That is why the initiative is primarily aimed at SMEs, who really appreciate the advice we offer and the fact that it is offered for no cost. The importance of the essenscia Patent Cell initiative should not be underestimated. It highlights the importance of innovation and the importance of protecting innovation in our sector and through industries throughout Belgium. It has proved to be a crucial part of what we do in terms of encouraging competitiveness, promoting innovation and bringing new products to market. Helping companies attract investment and people through innovation is the lifeblood of our sector. The chemical and life science industries are not only the biggest sector in Belgium in terms of R&D and hence innovation, they are also the number one sector in terms of depositing patents with the Belgian patent offices. They were also the first to apply for the new European patents. Our initiative is clearly playing a vital role in this – and has a great deal more to offer.
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FPS Economy, the first supporter of the essenscia’s Patent Cell
Patent filings for essenscia subsectors source: EPO
9,4%
Renaud Colette or Kristel Wierinck
“ The Patent Cell strengthens the SMEs competitiveness and capacity to innovate.”
12,1%
Basic materials chemistry
Macromolecular chemistry, polymers
35,4% Pharma
he Federal Public Service Economy believes Patent Cells are essential in supporting SMEs to better exploit their Intellectual Property (IP) rights during the development and launch of their products, services and processes. Patent Cells are created to raise the awareness and knowledge base of SMEs, enabling them to adopt an IP strategy that is adapted to their needs. Clearly, by taking full advantage of the opportunities offered by the Patent Cell, an SME strengthens its competitiveness and its capacity to innovate. We have supported a network of Patent Cells since 2004. The first three cells were established in the technology, textile and construction sectors. When the opportunity to expand this network arose, we were very interested in working with essenscia, because the chemical and life sciences industry is a key sector within the Belgium economy. It contains many SMEs and it is very active in R&D, which made it an ideal candidate for a Patent Cell programme. A Patent Cell in the chemical and life sciences industry means SMEs within the sector have much greater knowledge of the nature of patents and the information contained within patents. Patent Cells effectively research patent databases, enabling essenscia to inform companies which patents already exist This can be crucial knowledge in helping these companies decide if the patent route is right for them. It is obvious that essenscia’s Patent Cell has evolved in a positive way and we are sure that appropriate efforts will be made, in the coming years, to ensure that these achievements are built upon.
1/3 3,1 billion euros 12.063 patent Organic fine chemistry
25,0%
biotech
18,1%
Chemistry and life sciences, the champions of innovation: R&D expenses in 2013: 3,1 billion euros 12.063 patent fillings in Belgium Within 10 years, the number of patents has more than doubled in Belgium 1/3 of the patents requested by the sector in Europe
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An extensive IP-programme Since its creation in 2011, the Patent Cell covered a broad range of subjects related to the protection of innovation. Each year the modules were delivered several times, to different audiences.
Year One
Introduction module
“ I found it very useful to attend the Patent Cell session on the unitary patent. I’m working on such a patent, and now I know and fully understand all the background elements of this measure, so now I don’t have to only rely on external advice for my information.” Celine Beys | Legal counsel at Pro-Duo
In our first year we introduced companies to the advantages of seeking patents and how patents related specifically to the chemical industry and life sciences sectors. This was especially useful to many of our smaller member companies who were not always fully aware of how protecting their Intellectual Property impacted on their growth strategies.
Subjects covered
— Advantages of patenting — Patents in the chemical industry — Impact of Intellectual Property (IP) on growth strategies — Checklist for companies
Year Two
Applying for patents
In the second year of the initiative we began by explaining the procedures that companies needed to undertake in order to ensure they were granted a patent. Attendees also learned about what federal and regional subsidies existed and how best to fiscally optimise their intellectual property rights, through protecting their innovations.
Subjects covered
— Applying for patenting: where to begin — Patenting procedures: what steps are needed to ensure that your patent is granted — Making sure your patent application benefits from fiscal and regional support — Reinforcing your business strategy by securing your intellectual property rights — Understanding the value of protecting innovation through defending your IP rights
Year Three
Policies protecting innovation
The third year programme focused on more practical policy aspects of protecting innovations. Companies’ shared the good practices that had helped them deal with various patent-related issues. Further information was given on legal methods available to protect companies’ innovation. Strategic options for dealing with patent infringements were also a key element of these workshops.
Subjects covered
— Developing policies on innovation: a practical guide — The Innovation Circle and practical guides to legally protect innovation — Responding to infringements of your patent, a strategic approach
Year Four
A practical guide to patent databases
The fourth year of the initiative offered practical guidance on using patent databases, setting out the various database options and how these could be best utilised. Attendees were informed of the relevance of trade secrets and their importance in protecting innovations and aiding competitiveness, particularly in relations to a new European Commission directive. The advantages and application procedures of the new EU unified patent was also covered in these sessions.
Subjects covered
— A practical guide to using patent databases — The importance of trade secrets and how to protect them — Opportunities provided by unitary patents
Year Five
A new programme
2015 offers a promising and diversified programme ranging from general knowhow protection to highly technical sessions regarding claims and digitalisation.
Module 1
How to protect innovative company knowhow February – March 2015 This session will discuss how to best use and protect knowhow within the company concerning innovation. The winner or a nominee of the essenscia Innovation Award 2014 will be a guest speaker. The session is organized in close collaboration with Cefic, the European chemical federation.
Module 2
How to write claims – A technical session May – June 2015 Top Patent Attorneys from leasing companies will give attendees tips and advice on how a ‘scientific’ claim can be written into a technical claim to be included in the legal framework of the patent filing, in order to offer maximum protection to the intellectual property rights of the applicant.
Module 3
Intellectual Property aspects of digitalisation Autumn 2015 This module will deal with aspect of managing ‘big data’, detailing IP-aspects of information that is stored in the cloud, as well as how best to use opensource software, specifically focusing on the chemical industry and life sciences. The session will also explore ways to protect the knowhow in a partnership, for example, by drafting non-disclosure agreements.
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“It is important to know what legislation exists where, how you go about protecting your innovation and how you make sure your innovations are not copied and exploited.”
olvakem Chemicals Recycling Solutions works in the field of “Industrial Ecology”. We help chemical companies by integrating their byproducts into the production of other industrial companies, which brings value to both parties and benefits the environment (circular economy). For example, we are studying the opportunity to valorise the powders from expired fire extinguishers into the production of fertilizers. While studying a new valorisation opportunity we discovered a new process and considered patenting it, so when essenscia informed us about these Patent Cell workshops, we were very interested. I attended three sessions and generally learned about the patent process and how to react if you feel other companies are counterfeiting your products and processes. I found the workshop sessions both interesting and useful, and I was able to share the knowledge I learned with the rest of the staff in the office. The most important thing we learned at the workshops was how the complete patenting process works and how to apply for a new patent. We had read a bit about this before but received much more substantial information at the training sessions. We were given information on the unique nature of the European patent. And as importantly, we found out about the difference between a patent and a business secret.
Patenting innovations
Our innovation concerns a new binding agent and process for polymers, which offers numerous advantages that do not exist today. We believe our innovation is more
Experiencing essenscia’s Patent Cel Workshops Amaury Rosier General Manager at Solvakem Chemicals Recycling Solutions
environmentally friendly and less expensive than what is currently on the market. We are currently in the process of testing our process and so far the signs are positive. In line with what we learned at the Patent Cell workshops we have signed non-disclosure agreements with our partners. We have inventoried the secrets within our innovation and have informed all our employees of what they can and cannot say to clients and competitors when talking about our new process. Again, the workshops informed us of the best ways to ensure that secrets remain within the company. As with our new process, we are always looking to diversify our offer and our services. We thought it would be interesting to patent our new process and possibly use this experience as a template for patenting any further new innovative processes that we develop.
Strategies for SME’s
For a small company like ours – there are only six of us here – with no internal training programme on patents, business trade secrets and Intellectual Property (IP) rights, the Patent Cell training workshops were extremely useful. We learnt about the diverse range of options we had to protect our IP. Big companies probably know about this but for us it was all relatively new. As for our potential patent, we learnt that 18 months after registering it we would have to make details of it public. In the light of this knowledge, and now knowing more about other options, we decided to go down the trade secret route. We felt that a public exposure of elements of our process 18 months after registering our patent would put competitors in a position to copy our innovation. The cost of patenting also became an issue for us, particularly as you have to pay an ongoing annual sum in each country in which you choose to register and enforce your patent. It is important to know what legislation exists where, how you go about protecting your innovation and how you make sure your innovations are not copied and exploited.
“It was interesting to hear from colleagues in our industry who are closely involved with issues of IP, patents and trade secrets.”
Wouter Meulemans European Patent Attorney Bayer CropScience NV
changes in the areas of trade secrets and unitary patents, so I wanted to get more up-to-date on these changes and believed the Patent Cell workshops would be very helpful. We learned about the status of legislation, which countries had ratified already, what the law would mean for companies and what was expected to take place in the future.
atents are extremely important to Bayer CropScience NV. Our company began life as a small start-up company in Ghent in 1982. Without patents, we would not have been able to become the company we now are. Our innovations have been protected by patents, which allowed us to attract further investment. This allowed us to further develop innovative products. It is very expensive to create new products and new technologies, especially when you operate in a high tech area such as life sciences. But once a new product has been made, copying is relatively easy. So the Intellectual Property (IP) protection that patents bring is incredibly important to us. This allows us to protect our inventions and allows us to recover our investments and plan for the future. When essenscia informed me about the patent cell workshops, I was immediately interested. The speakers seemed well qualified. The workshops were local, relatively close to the office, so it would not take a lot of time to attend. I was also keen to meet colleagues working in the same field as myself.
New legislation on the way
I attended two patent cell workshops, one on trade secrets and the second on EU unitary patent law and unitary patent Court. Currently there are numerous legal
I would say I found the workshops quite useful. I learned a lot about the subjects in a relatively short period of time. It was also nice to get a Belgian perspective in a European context, fully focused on IP, unitary patents and trade secrets; often such courses are about the US or miss a Belgian perspective.
Learning from colleagues
Even though I qualified as a European patent attorney and work as a Senior Patent Counsel, who files patent applications to protect inventions and undertakes patent prosecution, I still thought I could learn something new from these Patent Cell workshops. And it was a good opportunity to meet colleagues from different branches of our industry who are involved in different activities concerning IP and patenting. Primarily, I wished to learn more about pending EU legislation relating to trade secrets and unitary patents. Of course I have some knowledge but I wanted to hear on the current status, on what the likely new rules would mean for companies and when they were likely to be implemented. The Patent Cell workshop speakers were very qualified to offer a good overview on the subjects. It was also interesting to hear from colleagues in our industry who are working on IP matters. I think that in Belgium awareness around IP issues has increased. However, many people are still unfamiliar with patent law or the importance of patent protection, and even for people more familiar, the laws are constantly changing, so these workshops are very much needed.
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On the journey to success Wouter De Geest President of essenscia
We are also able to emphasize to the government the connection between intellectual property rights and innovation, as well as the need to encourage innovative practices through increased R&D expenditure.
The Innovation Circle, a close partner of the Patent Cell
Innovation is the future of our industry
Looking forward, I believe the future success of the Patent Cell will be measured in the increase in the number of patents filed by companies in our industries. By analyzing patents data we will have a greater awareness of what instruments contribute to bringing innovation to market. We will see more clearly the key drivers of success and how cooperation contributed to innovation.
Entering the 5th anniversary of our Patent Cell initiative shows we are on the journey to success. We at essenscia would like to use this special occasion to say thank you to all those involved with the Patent Cell, to all those who have worked hard and given their time to make the initiative the success we see today. The essenscia Patent Cell has proved itself to be very important in that it allows us to offer support to companies who have innovative products and processes which they are ready to bring to market. We can help them use patents to protect intellectual property, or, if a patent is not right for them, we help them with other options such as trade secrets, which can protect their innovations. The initiative also keeps up to date with the status of patent legislation and how this is being implemented in different countries. As a large federation with many SMEs, it is good that we have been able to assist companies in the difficult process of getting a patent. This has become a little easier now that there is a uniform European patent on the way, and I am proud that, by the end of the Belgian presidency of Europe, there were a number of breakthroughs in the area of unitary European patents. The Patent Cell programme can help us as we seek to lower the administrative and bureaucratic burden of our member companies - particularly the SMEs. This is very important to us.
The innovation, which the Patent Cell fosters within our industries, is all about the solutions we can offer to the major world-wide challenges. We aim to address the mega-trends we face globally through innovation. With the World’s population set to reach 9 billion by 2050, there will be a need for more energy, food and clean water. Our industry is uniquely placed to find innovative solutions to these major challenges. Real innovation leads to new products which meet society’s needs and responds to future challenges.
A multidisciplinary approach
Innovation is less driven by technicalities and more driven by an integrated and holistic approach to megatrends, which has not been the traditional approach to innovation. That is why we now encourage smart innovation, which depends on partnerships with all aspects of the value chain. We have partnerships with downstream and upstream companies, our suppliers and our customers. Innovation is also about a more multi-disciplinary approach, so we in chemistry have partnerships with organizations in physics or marketing and we all work together to meet global challenges. The Patent Cell workshops will continue to play a crucial part in the services we offer to our member companies. We have made massive progress in these five years and I have no doubt we will use this initiative to assist companies to bring even more innovative solutions to market.
Edith Coune Secretary General of the Innovation Circle
he Innovation Circle was founded in January 2013 to help start-ups and young entrepreneurs operating in the area of chemistry and life sciences. It was created when the chairman of the jury of essenscia’s Innovation Award, François Cornélis, former President of Total Chemicals, was impressed with the quality of entries submitted for awards and realised that a number needed further development if they were going to mature into functioning projects. He then reached out to a number of ex-CEOs from the chemical and life sciences sector and convinced them to join him and use their extensive experience in business in general and the chemical and pharmaceutical industry in particular to support and guide potential projects. The Innovation Circle meets nine times a year. We have the full support of essenscia and the backing of Deloitte, who give us fifty days a year of free consulting time. We also work with the KU Leuven and have engaged with venture capitalists who are helping us secure funds for projects. We began work in June 2013, and one of our first projects is now starting up a pilot plant: in just over a year it went from initial contact with the Innovation Circle to beginning production. Currently we are working on 18 projects, representing 18 possible businesses. They cover a diverse range of products and processes, all with a great deal of innovation embedded within. Each project has a personal
mentor from the Innovation Circle, who looks at what practical support can be offered or arranged in order to progress a project. These projects reflect changes in the chemical industry. They are small start-ups, looking to create small companies, based primarily on innovative products and processes. Therefore, Intellectual Property (IP) rights and the role patenting can play in protecting these rights is extremely important. Young entrepreneurs or start-ups may not be so aware of what is available in these areas. We do our best to make them aware of legislation regarding IP and they can ask for help if they wish to patent a product or a process. We also put them in contact with the essenscia patent cell, giving them access to people who are experts in these fields. Our ultimate goal is to add value within the Belgian chemical and life sciences industry and to the Belgian economy as a whole. I would be happy if after three years we had helped create 10 or more successful companies. For me personally, it is an honour and a privilege to work with so many talented and experienced leaders from the chemical and life sciences industries. Seeing them give back something to the upcoming generation of chemical industry entrepreneurs is a very gratifying experience.
“ The Patent Cell sessions are very useful because the world of patenting is continuously evolving, the most recent development being the upcoming unitary patent. Ecosynth is an R&D-driven SME who wants to stay up to date with the latest legislation, so we can strategically adapt our running patents.”
The essenscia Patent Cell provides a permanent point of contact where companies in the fields of chemicals, plastics and life sciences, especially SMEs, can ask questions about intellectual property and other related subjects. The Patent Cell raises companies’ awareness of the importance of intellectual property rights and the best ways to use these during an innovation process.
Koen Van Aken | CEO of Ecosynth
Our innovation experts at your service
Working in close collaboration with technological partners, the Patent Cell dispenses information about innovative technological trends, which are positively influencing the world of the chemical and life sciences industry. The Patent Cell also offers advice on how to obtain and use patents and other forms of intellectual property and, through free online consultations, supports companies who want to use the knowledge of patents for third party agreements. The chemical industry and life sciences sectors invest substantial amounts in Research and Development. Companies within the sector invest around 3 billion euro each year in R&D, which represents 50% of all the industrial R&D-expenditures. This clear strategic focus on research, development and innovation is the best guarantor to anchor the future of our sector in Belgium. This focus on innovation is essential to maintain the competitiveness of Belgian companies in the chemical, plastics and life sciences industries.
Saskia Walraedt T. +32 2 238 97 81 swalraedt@essenscia.be
Fabian Scuvie Innovation Advisor Wallonia/Brussels T. +32 2 238 97 56 fscuvie@essenscia.be
“The Patent Cell workshops are very interesting for a SME like ours; they allow us to keep up-to-date with the latest developments regarding intellectual property rights and legislation. They also allow us to share experiences with other companies.” Frantz Scheirlinckx Head of Research & Development at Chembo
The essenscia Innovation Award, inspired by The Patent Cell Initiative The essenscia Innovation Award was instigated by the Belgian federation for Chemistry and Life Sciences in 2012. Chemistry and the life sciences play a major role in Belgium’s R&D investment programme, accounting for more than half of all Belgium’s private-sector R&D investment in 2013. R&D investment can be a key indication of innovation; protecting Belgian innovation is a key driver behind essenscia’s Patent Cell initiative, which is closely linked to the Innovation Award. The essenscia Innovation Award throws a spotlight on Belgian companies within the chemical and life sciences sector who have shown the most innovation within their field over the past year. The competition also aims at encouraging innovative companies to protect their innovation. A key point to win the competition is the importance of having a strong IP strategy such as patents and business trade secrets to protect Intellectual Property (IP) rights. The competition is open to all Belgian companies, they do not have to be essenscia members. Submitted projects must have a clear link to chemistry or the life sciences and must also make a demonstrable contribution towards sustainable development in tackling a major societal challenge.
Belgische federatie van de chemische industrie en life sciences vzw Diamant Building Auguste Reyerslaan 80 B – 1030 Brussel T +32 2 238 97 11 F +32 2 231 13 01 www.essenscia.be