Focus 2 - A Thriving Space Industry

focus

N° 2 / 2009

on Research & Innovation in Luxembourg

A thriving space industry

Dedicated to a knowledge-based future Pages 5 - 7

www.innovation.public.lu

Bright prospects for biomedical research Pages 36 - 37

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EDITORIAL

editorial International business and research collaborations are important for any knowledge-based economy, and crucial for Luxembourg with its small but outwards-oriented market. Its hightech environment, highly skilled workforce and business-friendly legal and regulatory framework also make Luxembourg an attractive location for innovative activities carried out both by indigenous companies and foreign investors.

These factors combine into a solid basis for the assistance provided by the Luxembourg Board of Economic Development (BED) to investors interested in the Grand Duchy as a business location.

Several key sectors with strong growth potential are in focus of the BED’s efforts to further diversify Luxembourg’s economy and increase its attractiveness for partners abroad. The BED promotes Luxembourg as an intercontinental logistics centre and supports the creation of new activities within the ecotechnologies and sustainable development sector. The comprehensive biomedical research collaboration recently established between several of Luxembourg’s public research organisations and leading research institutes in the United States considerably stimulates the health technologies sector and constitutes a major step forward for the Grand Duchy’s research relationships around the world.

Strengthening the integration of Luxembourgish actors in international scientific and technological research networks was also a main reason for the country’s adhesion to the European Space Agency (ESA) a few years ago. The Grand Duchy’s space sector, portrayed in this issue of FOCUS on Research and Innovation in Luxembourg, is now reaping the rewards of ESA membership through its participation in various transnational research projects.

Patrick Nickels, Managing Director, Luxembourg Board of Economic Development

Luxinnovation, the National Agency for Innovation and Research which has now been active for 25 years, has built up a strong reputation for guiding entrepreneurs and researchers who wish to get involved in European research programmes and projects. FOCUS highlights the mission of this institution to support research, development and innovation activities in all enterprises present in the Grand Duchy. This issue will also showcase the international relationships of the University of Luxembourg, widely renowned research carried out by other institutions and the world-class success of the Luxembourgish “Young Entrepreneur of the Year” 2008 finalists.

Welcome to this issue’s exploration of Luxembourg’s innovative landscape!

Patrick Nickels

Managing Director Luxembourg Board of Economic Development

Focus 2 – 2009 I 3

TABle of CONTENTs

Table of contents Keynote interview

Dedicated to a knowledge-based future Interview with the President of Fedil – Business Federation Luxembourg

05

News from innovative Luxembourg

08

Space sector

A thriving space industry Innovation takes to the skies Satellite pioneers in Luxembourg ... and far beyond Space for skills Advanced composites … from planes to satellites Satellite control from the ground up Complex space challenges elegantly solved Earth observation activities track floods at Public Research Centre Gabriel Lippmann

11 12 13 15 16 18 19 20

Innovative spaces

A European meeting place

21

Entrepreneurship and innovation

News A firm commitment to growth and diversification e-Xstream models take the world by storm The stage is set for innovation International recognition for Luxembourg’s internet business leaders Investors keen to back innovative projects Public research

CRP Santé paves the way for Luxembourg’s future in biomedical research The science of the very, very small Masters of mobility Internationalisation brings new ventures to the University of Luxembourg Luxinnovation: Making innovation happen Pursuing research excellence in organic chemistry Reliable data inform social policy change

25 27 28 30 32 34 36 38 39 40 42 44 45

Did you know it’s from Luxembourg?

Luxembourg’s outstanding contribution to New York’s One World Trade Center Five questions for …

Mr Adrien Ney, President and Chief Executive Officer of LuxairGroup

48

The RDI directory

50

FOCUS on Research and Innovation in Luxembourg is published by Luxinnovation GIE National Agency for Innovation and Research Director of publication Gilles Schlesser Editor-in-chief Lena Mårtensson lena.martensson@luxinnovation.lu Journalists Susan Alexander, Ros Browne, Stephen Evans, Frederick Gordts, Mandy Tamlyn

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Copy-editing Frauke Hertel Graphic design and layout Alternatives Communication Cover © ESA /NASA Printed in 15,000 copies Sponsored by Luxembourg Board of Economic Development National Research Fund

For a free subscription, please contact info@luxinnovation.lu The publisher has tried to ensure all information is accurate but cannot be held responsible for the use which might be made of the information, for omissions or for any mistakes which might appear.

Reproduction is authorised, provided the source and copyright are acknowledged. © 2009 Luxinnovation GIE

KEYNOTE INTERVIEW

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Robert Dennewald, President, Fedil – Business Federation Luxembourg

Dedicated to a knowledge-based future

Developing a strong, innovative manufacturing sector is in Luxembourg’s DNA. The Grand Duchy decided to move its economy up the value chain as early as the 1970s, restructuring its industry for high value added products created by a high-knowledge workforce. Fedil – Business Federation Luxembourg is at the forefront of this drive, encouraging firms to innovate and helping the government to attract foreign players. FOCUS spoke to Fedil President Robert Dennewald about this ongoing process of keeping ahead of the curve.

“At Fedil we know that Luxembourgish manufacturing cannot compete on price with lower-cost production sites, but we can provide an environment where innovation can flourish,” notes Mr Dennewald. “It is always important to try to be amongst the best,” he continues. “To guarantee a sustainable future for Luxembourg it is important that such an attitude is a feature of all business in the country, and this is one of Fedil’s main ambitions.”

R&D operations in the Grand Duchy. They were attracted by a skilled multilingual workforce, a location at the heart of Western Europe and a government willing to consider and support innovative ideas. Although this strategy has proved successful, there was never any complacency as Luxembourg knows it has no option but to move with the tides of globalisation. So even before the current crisis, Fedil actively promoted research.

At the heart of innovation

“I am proud to say that Fedil is a key partner for discussions with the government and civil servants about research and innovation,” Mr Dennewald remarks. “We have a dedicated

This outlook has impressed a lot of international high-tech companies over recent decades, many of whom have based major European

Focus 2 – 2009 I 5

KEYNOTE INTERVIEW

Thus Luxembourg is equipped with an impressive toolkit of measures that can interest international and local innovators. The country prides itself on its open-minded attitude to doing business, with the government and research institutes willing to act when presented with good ideas from the private sector.

Thinking outside the box

The President of Fedil does more than just talk about innovation, as he clearly believes in leading by example. Not only does his Luxembourgbased construction products group Eurobéton offer several technologically cutting-edge solutions, but he also gives active support to new ideas. “Innovation is not a matter of just pressing a button and off you go,” he notes. However, the basic recipe is not complicated even if the practice is not always so simple. “Usually you begin where your experience lies and then you try to improve your existing offering of products or services in order to meet your clients’ needs.”

Studio Frank Weber

committee within Fedil which discusses researchrelated issues, and all members who would like to try to influence public policy can join. As well, we represent industry on the boards of all public research centres, and there are also close ties to the University of Luxembourg. By being active members of the national agency Luxinnovation, which promotes this agenda, we have also made a strong statement.” Fedil has now also been awarding an annual Innovation Prize for nearly 20 years. The aim is to draw attention to the wide range of research activity that is ongoing in Luxembourg, with the 2008 ceremony seeing six different trophies presented.

Imaginative measures

As well as the public research institutes offering direct opportunities to private sector companies, there is also an important human resources angle. Attracting talent remains a challenge even in a downturn, and having a strong public research infrastructure aids this process. “We conduct regular annual surveys of our members’ needs for skills,” Mr Dennewald adds. “This gives the government a guideline for the direction of education policy.”

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He cites a recent example of innovative thinking from his own business. Rather than developing a new product, his team has worked to use existing expertise to offer a new service. “In recent years the government has put a lot of emphasis on boosting the value-adding logistics industry, and this got us thinking of how we could help with this effort within the Eurobéton Group,” comments Mr Dennewald. The result was the Engineered Packaging Centre (EPC) which provides specialised and personalised packaging services ranging from inspection, wrapping and labelling to assembly, as well as a more basic offering such as stocking. He and several partners have also played the role of business angel for the company Epuramat, which has developed a revolutionary waste-water treatment system.

Pushing the boundaries

He first met the founders of Epuramat after they had entered the “1,2,3 Go” regional business plan development programme, one of several schemes supported by Fedil and Luxinnovation.

Mr Dennewald was one of the programme’s founders and is also the current president.

Epuramat moved to the technology-oriented business incubator in Esch-sur-Alzette. “It became too small,” he observes, “and then we decided to invest and give them a home. They keep coming to us for extra space.” With the price of water increasing all the time, Mr Dennewald is convinced that industrial clients will be among the first to adopt this system.

KEYNOTE INTERVIEW

Eurobéton also pushes the boundaries in its core business where it has brought several new products to market. The main focus of the group is on the Luxembourgish company Chaux de Contern, which employs three full-time research staff out of a total staff of 200. Mr Dennewald reckons that his company has little option but to follow such a policy. “Just sticking to what you have always done will kill the business,” he affirms. “If you do not have this desire to work with new ideas, you will go backwards in the market.” Nevertheless, he points out that this is not an easy option: you need the financial means, you need patience and strength to sustain the effort. “This is particularly so for us where our products require high levels of investment, sometimes necessitating the development of new machinery. I must praise Luxinnovation,” he adds. “They have offered efficient support in helping us with the files that we presented to the government, who themselves have been excellent in their support for innovation.”

Creation out of the ashes

Luxembourg faced a problem in 2006 when recording media company TDK saw its large production plant in the south of the country become uneconomic. At one point 800 people were employed in the 36,000 m2 facility, but structural changes in the market made closure inevitable. “This was a big loss for Luxembourg,” Mr Dennewald recalls. “When I saw the closed factory, it was one of the saddest things I’ve seen as it had been a very well equipped, high-tech plant.”

However, this gave him the motivation to attempt to build something from the wreckage. “The land was the property of the state and is located in a national development zone in the south of the country. The government asked me if I would give it a try as they could not find a replacement, and so my partners and I purchased the building, founding the company Site industriel SA.” The partners converted the site into 20 business units with Mr Dennewald acting as commercial director, and almost immediately it attracted attention. The company had an early coup when the American firm Performance Fibers decided to locate their European headquarters there, and by early 2009 the premises were almost full. “Now we have 270 people working there; that is not 800, but it is positive,” he says with satisfaction. “We have good, experienced people running this facility and we would be willing to do this again.”

Studio Frank Weber for DuPont de Nemours

Robert Dennewald

With more than 530 members representing around a quarter of national output, Fedil – Business Federation Luxembourg speaks for many of the main companies that provide depth and diversity to the economy. Robert Dennewald has been Fedil’s president since 2006 following nearly 10 years on the federation’s board of directors, and is also the vice president of Luxembourg’s Chamber of Commerce. He is a serial entrepreneur, as reflected by his role in the management buyout of his own group Eurobéton and his active support for innovation – whether it is developed in-house, or driven by local start-ups or foreign investors.

Eurobéton +352 35 88 11 60 3 info@eurobeton.com

www.haus.lu

Fedil – Business Federation Luxembourg +352 43 53 66 1 fedil@fedil.lu www.fedil.lu

Focus 2 – 2009 I 7

News from innovative Luxembourg

Funding scheme for doctoral and postdoctoral grants in Luxembourg and abroad

Supporting researchers in their doctoral and postdoctoral training in Luxembourg and abroad is of central interest for the National Research Fund (FNR).

The AFR grant scheme (Aid for Training and Research, or Aides à la Formation-Recherche in French) managed by the FNR contributes to the improvement of researchers’ training and working conditions and enhances their career development. It promotes work contracts between AFR beneficiaries and their host institutions as well as public-private partnerships.

News Transatlantic exchanges promote nanoelectronic development

The Materials World Network is a joint research and education programme promoting transnational scientific cooperation. One of the projects selected under this programme explores the use of boron-carbonitride compounds in creating the thin films used in nanotechnology applications.

Co-sponsored by Luxembourg’s National Research Fund and the US National Science Foundation, the Public Research Centre Gabriel Lippmann’s Department of Science and Analysis of Materials partnered with the University of Texas at Austin to explore the formation of the ultra-thin amorphous films that are used in microelectronics device packaging and nanoelectronic applications. © CRP Gabriel Lippmann

In order to be eligible for an AFR grant, the PhD and postdoc projects have to have a very close link to Luxembourgish research.

Interested in an AFR grant? Check eligibility conditions and deadlines for forthcoming calls at the web address below. www.fnr.lu

Video on your mobile phone

The project supports graduate students from Texas coming to Luxembourg to study as well as researchers from Luxembourg going to Texas in a transatlantic exchange of differing scientific disciplines, cultures and know-how. www.lippmann.lu

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MOVIES is a project aiming to develop a range of new mobile services. It seeks to combine two existing technologies – digital broadcasting and mobile cellular systems – to enable video on demand on your cell phone.

With mobile handsets offering increasing power and functionalities that range from MP3 players and cameras to internet surfing and GPS, taking it to the next level by including video broadcasting is a logical progression.

News from innovative Luxembourg

The process that Propanergy will develop from laboratory to pilot plant scale will be easily integrated into a biodiesel or biogas refinery. The glycerine by-product will be converted into fertiliser and 1.3-propanediol (PDO). The process is designed to be particularly cost-effective to implement for small producers and developing regions. www.propanergy.eu

Systems biology at the University of Luxembourg

MOVIES won silver in the prestigious 2008 Excellence Awards presented by the EUREKA cluster programme Celtic.

Systems biology combines biochemistry with physiology, with the goal of understanding the whole system being studied. Systems range from single cells to organs to, finally, entire organisms.

Various modelling techniques are applied to the systems to derive accurate descriptions of their behaviour and to analyse them. The ultimate practical goal is to understand how diseases affect these systems. © Franz Pfluegl

MOVIES was funded by EUREKA, a pan-European programme that promotes research. With a consortium that included France’s AlcatelLucent and Thomson and Spain’s Telefónica, MOVIES’ Luxembourg participants were the Public Research Centre Henri Tudor and Broadcasting Center Europe (BCE), a division of RTL. Together, the research centre and BCE implemented MOVIES’ full operating platform and achieved the first-ever broadcast in DVB-H, the new standard for global mobile television, in Luxembourg.

Late in 2008, the University of Luxembourg established a new laboratory for modelling in systems biology headed by Professor Thomas Sauter. The main focus of teaching and research lies on the application of mathematical models for the analysis of biochemical networks in mammalian cells.

www.bce.lu www.tudor.lu

Saving the planet with more efficient bioconversion processes

Luxembourg’s Agraferm Technologies, part of the German Agraferm Group, is a key participant in the consortium of Propanergy, a project funded under the EU’s Seventh Framework Programme for research and technological development.

Propanergy seeks to address the problem of the glycerine that is produced as a by-product in making biodiesel. With soaring demand for renewable energy, so much glycerine is being generated that it has become a waste product with no commercial value. The project intends to maximise the value of the glycerine by using all of its components during bioconversion.

The university’s Life Sciences research unit will benefit from a partnership with Seattle’s Institute for Systems Biology. With the sponsorship of the Luxembourgish government, a Centre of Systems Biology Luxembourg will be established in Esch-Belval, the future site of the university’s campus. www.uni.lu

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News from innovative Luxembourg

a better connection between the tip and steel body of the drill. These two assets considerably prolong tool life.

How smart is your tyre?

Innovation Award

Luxembourg’s Goodyear Technical Centre was awarded first prize in the 2008 Innovation Award for its “OptiGrip Tyre with SmartWear Technology”. The tyre, developed by Goodyear’s R&D team based in the Grand Duchy, uses innovative technology that reveals new tread as it is driven to ensure high levels of performance and safety throughout its life.

www.ceratizit.com

© Goodyear

This Innovation Award (Prix de l’Innovation) is handed out every year in the Grand Duchy

by Fedil – Business Federation Luxembourg.

Ceratizit manufactures in hard metals and is sensitive to environmental and quality issues for its “made in Luxembourg” components. Its Luxembourg research laboratory, called the “Tooling Academy”, puts all parts through the most rigorous testing of geometries, coatings and grades. A durable tool is a sustainable tool.

Sustainable hydrogen, safe hydrogen

Hydrogen is the simplest, most abundant element on earth. It is also not without its dangers. In tanks, it is safe, but if it escapes, it can explode, especially in the presence of oxygen. It burns more easily than gasoline.

The SmartWear Technology employs an advanced tread design along with a unique layered combination of two compounds. Hidden channels below the tread surface appear as the tyre wears to retain resistance to aquaplaning. Tests show that even after being driven for 30,000 kilometres, the Optigrip tyre had a 20 % shorter breaking distance in the wet than other competitive makes. Tyre handling in dry conditions is bolstered with a 3D interlocking mechanism. www.goodyear.com

Prize-winning innovation in tool design and manufacture

Ceratizit is a Luxembourgish company that makes the hard metal components used in tools from ballpens to metal cutting and metal forming parts. Its products incorporate the latest technology – Ceratizit was recently recognised for its nano-coatings and macro-gradients that make its tool parts ultra-resistant to wear.

Ceratizit was awarded the silver prize in the 2008 Innovation Award for its gradient drill tip used for concrete. This tip is not only more durable than alternative products, but it also facilitates

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Consequently, using hydrogen as a substitute for fossil fuels requires certain precautions. It must be transported under pressure and stored securely. For his work on dealing with this issue on a most practical level, Dr Thomas Andreas of Luxembourg’s Rotarex received second prize in Luxembourg’s 2008 Innovation Award. His work produced a hydrogen reservoir security system for use in vehicles.

Rotarex, founded in 1922 as Ceodeux, is a global specialist in gas valves, regulators and fittings for liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), compressed natural gas (CNG) and ultra high pressure gas (UHP). Its product range also includes fire extinguishers, semiconductors, medical facility and industrial gas applications. www.rotarex.com

SPACE Sector

Luxembourg is constantly seeking to diversify and innovate. One relatively recent industry where it excels is the space sector. SES ASTRA was established here as early as 1985 to provide the pioneering satellite telecommunications services for which it has since become renowned throughout Europe and around the world. Many other highly advanced technology companies now operate in the space sector in the Grand Duchy, such as Euro-Composites, HITEC and LuxSpace. An official member of the European Space Agency since 2005, Luxembourg extends financial, operational and intellectual support to both new and established companies.

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© SES ASTRA

A thriving space industry

SPACE sector

Innovation takes to the skies

The space industry is a key high-tech sector for Luxembourg. The Grand Duchy’s love affair with space sparked up with SES ASTRA in the mid 1980s, and it has resulted in a high concentration of dynamic space-related companies. The Grand Duchy strives to attract both SMEs and large corporations active in this field by providing excellent support and infrastructure. Several dedicated structures, such as GLAE and the AeroSpace cluster, have been set up to further this goal by helping Luxembourg-based companies and laboratories gain access to the space sector.

Luxembourg does not have a national space agency, but focuses on cross-border collaboration with other countries. Numerous international cooperation projects on space-related research and development were established and continue to be launched.

In 2005, GLAE (Groupement luxembourgeois de l’aéronautique et de l’espace), an industry group for the aeronautic and space industry, was constituted. Members include all the leading companies in the space sector in Luxembourg.

GLAE’s goals include exploiting niches which are not already dominated by major European space actors, enhancing the competitiveness for those niches and building around the position of SES by introducing new space-related technologies and services in Luxembourg.

© ESA/SOHO - EIT

Luxembourg’s growing space industry tends to converge to the east of the capital. The birthplace of SES seems to be an auspicious location for space ventures, as demonstrated by the constellation of thriving firms that have established themselves in close proximity to the world’s number one telecommunications satellite operator.

Other successful space companies are scattered across the Grand Duchy. And large or small, established or aspiring, all of them have one thing in common: they develop cutting-edge technologies. For example, the security solutions in telecommunications and information technology produced by Telindus, or HITEC’s ground control stations for the Galileo satellite navigation fleet.

Although SES has been active in the country for more than two decades, the real boost in the space sector came in 2005, when Luxembourg officially joined the European Space Agency.

As space is such a high-tech activity, it attracts knowledge-based companies with a high level of research and innovation. Unlike other countries,

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GLAE offers Luxembourg’s companies the opportunity to create synergies and partnerships at the national and European level for both the private and the public sector. Yves Elsen, president of GLAE, explains: “GLAE and its members are convinced that the space sector can contribute to national competitiveness objectives and further the diversification of the economy.”

Luxinnovation is the national contact point for ESA collaborations and encourages innovative activities and collaboration within European research programmes through the AeroSpace cluster. The sector’s companies also collaborate with research institutions, such as the University of Luxembourg and the Public Research Centres Henri Tudor (mainly for satellite communications) and Gabriel Lippmann (for earth observation).

GLAE – Luxembourg Aeronautic and Space Industry + 352 43 53 66 1 glae@fedil.lu www.glae.lu

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SPACE sector

Romain Bausch, President and CEO, SES

Satellite pioneers in Luxembourg… and far beyond

If you are watching television by satellite in Europe, there is a good chance your dish is pointed to one of the SES group’s ASTRA satellites. SES, established in 1985, has been providing pioneering satellite services since 1989. The company, which is headquartered in Luxembourg, now has 40 satellites in orbit and has branched out into many other innovative activities.

We spoke to the group’s President and CEO Romain Bausch and Gerhard Bethscheider, Managing Director of SES ASTRA TechCom, about the company’s key position and its bright future.

SES was originally established in Betzdorf, to the east of the capital of Luxembourg, and launched its first ASTRA satellite in 1988. The SES group includes SES ASTRA in Europe, the newly combined SES AMERICOM-NEW SKIES, which covers North America and provides global connectivity throughout the rest of the world, 90 % of SES SIRIUS in the Nordic countries, strategic holdings in Ciel in Canada and QuetzSat in Mexico as well as SES ASTRA TechCom. Currently, more than 1,600 employees work for SES. A quarter of this workforce is based in the Grand Duchy. SES is the world’s pre-eminent satellite operator, and its ever-growing, global fleet of satellites ensures comprehensive landmass coverage around the world. In 2008, the group reported a turnover of € 1.6 billion with a net profit of € 388 million. Mr Bausch comments: “These figures are impressive, but one must note that this is a capital-intensive business. Launching just one satellite accounts for an investment of € 250 million or more.”

Innovative from the start

“In the 1980s, national governments from large European countries, such as France and Germany, launched ‘high-power satellites’. These allowed people to watch a maximum of five television programmes, which was not a very appealing business proposition,” Mr Bausch recounts. “As an independent company, we introduced the concept of the ‘medium-power satellite’, which allowed for up to 16 channels. The only difference was that one needed a slightly larger dish of 60 cm. That way, we developed ‘direct-tohome’ (DTH) in Europe.”

Currently, more than 53 million households watch television directly via the ASTRA satellites, and nearly 70 million more through cable providers who rely on their coverage. This amounts to half of the homes in Europe. SES also pioneered the colocation of satellites so that viewers only need to point their dish to one position, a real innovation which every other satellite operator is now copying.

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SPACE sector

customers a package deal including broadband internet access, IP telephony and television (both free-to-air and Pay TV subscriptions).

SES ASTRA TechCom supports its many customers around the globe with fully integrated turnkey solutions, including complete satellite operation centres, teleports, TT&C stations, network operation centres, satellite payload operation centres and the associated training and operational services. Most of its products are quite unique, and protected by numerous patents. “As I speak, our teams are finalising the installation of Hellasat’s satellite backup control facility in Cyprus, integrating a large teleport at a site in Abu Dhabi and starting the rack integration of the turnkey network operation centre of our customer Vinasat in Hanoi,” Mr Bethscheider says.

Studio Frank Weber

“Apart from DTH, which represents 70 % of revenues, our communication satellites are also used by governments and for enterprise networks, for example to reach oil platforms in the sea or gas stations outside of cities,” Mr Bausch adds.

Internet through space

TT&C

TT&C stands for telemetry, tracking and command. TT&C stations are used to position, monitor and maintain the orbit of a satellite. Usually these stations are located around the world to control one or more satellites.

DVB-SH

DVB-SH is the acronym for Digital Video Broadcasting – Satellite services to Handhelds, used to deliver IP-based media content and data to handheld terminals such as mobile phones or PDAs.

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SES ASTRA TechCom is the commercial technology arm of SES, providing independent engineering services and solutions for the global satellite industry. “The objective is to leverage the 20-year technical experience of SES in designing, procuring and operating satellites to deliver technical services and products to our industry. We also act as an enabler for the development of new businesses for SES, and are currently involved in the design of Europe’s satellite navigation system Galileo,” Mr Bethscheider explains. SES ASTRA TechCom employs 35 highly qualified specialists in Betzdorf. Another 45 people are working on ESA’s satellite control facilities in Belgium, in partnership with satellite supplier Verhaert.

The company is involved in the development of Astra2Connect, an innovative technology operated and commercialised by ASTRA Broadband Services. Astra2Connect is based on the SATMODE technology, which was developed by a European consortium led by SES ASTRA as part of a Luxembourg-funded ESA project and provides internet access “through space”. “It is a cost-effective alternative to DSL and cable, and enables broadband internet access anywhere in Europe,” Mr Bethscheider remarks. A small, easy to install dish and a reasonably priced modem are all that is required to access broadband internet services via ASTRA. The service can also support “triple play” applications, which offer

Mobile communications and broadcasting

SES ASTRA, together with competitor Eutelsat, recently developed a satellite pilot programme in the S-band, a frequency range optimised for mobile communication. This technology enables broadcasters to offer mobile television – for example on mobile phones, smartphones and in cars. “The European Union decided to release the same frequency range for terrestrial broadcasts, meaning the same reception devices can also capture the signal indoors, for example in large cities where there is no direct view to satellites,” Mr Bausch notes. “With this project, we also helped to develop and promote the new worldwide DVB-SH standard.” He expects the first commercial applications to be available by 2010 through Solaris, the joint venture with Eutelsat.

Innovation in Luxembourg

“For us, innovation means the creation, exchange, evolution and application of new ideas into marketable products and services for the success of the organisation,” Mr Bausch observes, adding that innovative projects rarely generate profit straight away, but need time to mature. “At SES, we have about 145 employees who work primarily on innovation,” he specifies. “We are constantly developing innovative activities which ESA is cofinancing. The government does not co-finance our activities directly, although public funds have been awarded through ESA contracts since 2005.

This is very important for any company active in the space industry in Luxembourg.”

SES ASTRA +352 71 07 25 1 info@ses-astra.com

www.ses-astra.com

SPACE sector

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François Biltgen, Minister for Culture, Higher Education and Research

Space for skills

Luxembourg’s involvement in the space sector ties in perfectly with the policies of promoting economic diversification, boosting research and developing high value-adding skills. SES relied on support from public authorities when it was a young company and with this resounding success in mind, the government has sought to deepen the country’s involvement with international space industry networks. Minister for Culture, Higher Education and Research François Biltgen told FOCUS how this strategy was progressing.

As it became increasingly obvious during the 1990s that Luxembourg was home to a global leader in the shape of SES, thoughts turned to how this success could be built upon. The firm was already attracting highly skilled professionals to the Grand Duchy, and the spillover into the business and research sectors was considerable. To give this trend a boost, the government decided to increase international ties by cooperating with the European Space Agency (ESA) in 2000, leading to work on the ARTES telecommunications programme and the related SATMODE project, which resulted in the commercial launch of a new satellite service. Luxembourg became a full member in 2005 and then committed to spending € 47 million of public money between 2009 and 2013 in the ESA programmes most devoted to telecommunications projects.

Knowledge – the final frontier

“A national action plan for the space sector was drawn up by the government and representatives of industry and public research,” Mr Biltgen notes. The aim is to consolidate and increase existing skills in the area of media and electronic communication in order to decrease the level of risk and the amount of investments required.

“This is a sector in which both businesses and researchers can grow, improve their competitive position and create sustainable niches for themselves and others,” he adds. Public support is offered to cope with a very competitive, cyclical market which, in Europe, is largely limited to the communications sector. By working with ESA the hope is to further facilitate the development of skills and the integration of Luxembourgish actors into international networks.

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SPACE sector

Identifying the best ideas

The most notable national initiative is the LuxLaunch programme, which supports the identification and creation of innovative ideas in the space sector and was put in place in 2005 when Luxembourg joined ESA. Mr Biltgen highlights the specific objectives: “First we want to help businesses and researchers to better understand the markets they are looking to enter. We want to increase visibility for all actors (business and researchers) and to help better define the needs of potential clients. To this we add improved definition of long-term research projects, the identification of niche markets and opportunities within ESA programmes.” In addition, to facilitate the building and reinforcement of international cooperation, the programme assists with applications to ESA. To collect and identify good potential projects, LuxLaUnch has organised a series of “calls for ideas” which have resulted in 68 suggestions, of which 18 were chosen to be studied in greater depth. “It’s not yet possible to talk about the concrete impact of this programme given its recent implementation,” says Mr Biltgen, “but it has undeniably generated interest in spacerelated activities for a wide range of companies, researchers and NGOs.”

Goal setting

Ultimately, Luxembourg’s space programme is all about extending the knowledge base of the population. Recently two participants from the Grand Duchy were enrolled in ESA’s year-long Young Graduate Trainee scheme. They are two of only 60 successful candidates who found a place on this course following applications from 800 people. As well, there is a new programme to guarantee places for two young Luxembourg-based graduates in the annual programmes over the next four years.

So as well as providing opportunities, the policy underlines the country’s vocation for innovation and technological progress. This will widen the scope for Luxembourgish students, businesses and researchers to pursue ambitious objectives in new areas and open up exciting possibilities for those coming in from abroad.

Ministry of Culture, Higher Education and Research Department of Research and Innovation +352 24 78 52 19 recherche@mcesr.public.lu www.mcesr.public.lu

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Heike Poignand, Vice P

Although Euro-Composites may not sound as familiar as SES ASTRA, the track record of this company is impressive to say the least. Founded 25 years ago, the company currently employs 686 people, primarily in the 108,400 m2 state-ofthe-art facilities in Echternach, where the R&D departments are also located. The company also has sites in Germany and the United States. It specialises in advanced composites, combining classic and innovative materials and technologies to create products mainly designed for the aviation sector and to a lesser degree also for the railway sector.

Number one worldwide

Euro-Composites started with pioneering work in honeycomb technology, producing honeycombs from materials like aluminium foil and aramid foil (Nomex® and Kevlar®). Structures and parts with a honeycomb core are very stable and light, and therefore ideally suited for applications in the transportation industry and in mechanical engineering in general.

Euro-Composites’ products are used in airplanes made by Boeing and Airbus, but composites technology is also employed for train interiors, for example in very large panels covering the ceiling of a railway carriage. Euro-Composites does not only produce these parts, but can also assemble them for its customers and currently generates more than two-thirds of its turnover from assembled and finished parts. Ms Poignand explains: “Honeycomb also has a very high stiffness with the same mechanical properties as other materials, without any corrosion if the

SPACE sector

Advanced composites… from planes to satellites

President Sales Space, Euro-Composites

A global player in the field of advanced and demanding composites products, Euro-Composites was founded in Luxembourg in 1984. The company’s main business lies in the aviation and rail sectors, but since 2005, Euro-Composites has also been making a name for itself in the space industry. We spoke to Heike Poignand, Vice President Sales Space, about the company’s first steps in this new and innovative business segment.

correct composition is used.” Euro-Composites is currently the world’s leading producer of composites products with a honeycomb core.

Satellites and ground equipment

you do not get a project. So you need to find somebody to give you a chance,” she explains.

Luxembourg’s adhesion provided this chance, enabling Euro-Composites to benefit from ESA’s support for companies in new member states.

Focus areas include solar array substrates, heat exchanger panels and embedded heat pipes.

“We also develop modified core material, such as honeycomb with carbon nanotubes,” Ms Poignand remarks. Within the framework of the Luxembourg Industry Incentive Scheme, a special programme set up to enable the country’s space industry to familiarise itself with ESA procedures, contracts were awarded to EuroComposites, among others, for a honeycomb panel with embedded heat pipes to be used in telecommunication satellites.

A chance for new projects

Even though Euro-Composites can point to an excellent track record in the aeronautics industry, it is, according to Ms Poignand, not easy to start in the space sector: “If you do not have heritage,

Studio Frank Weber

Euro-Composites expanded into the space industry in 2005, when Luxembourg joined the European Space Agency. “It was a unique opportunity to diversify and start new projects in this industry, which has a bright future,” Ms Poignand comments, adding that this move enabled the company to participate in the development of new satellites right from the beginning and acquire additional know-how in the process. “This helped us to apply this knowledge to commercial technologies and create new space-oriented products.”

Euro-Composites is also a member of the administrative council of the GLAE, the Luxembourgish industry association for Aeronautic and Space, and is now also cooperating on research projects with other companies including SES ASTRA. “It is very interesting that a company of our size has such an impact in a country like Luxembourg. We can easily give our point of view to the Ministry, and it will be taken into account. Luxinnovation also knows exactly who is doing what in Luxembourg, so they can get the right companies together quickly,” Ms Poignand concludes.

Euro-Composites +352 72 94 63 1 info@euro-composites.com www.euro-composites.com

Focus 2 – 2009 I 17

blitz agency

SPACE sector

Galileo, an exciting challenge

Although HITEC has been active for more than 20 years, its space business only really took off in 2004. “There has been more potential for innovative solutions since Luxembourg joined ESA,” confirms Yves Elsen, CEO of HITEC. In the space sector, moreover, strategic partnerships are crucial in order to establish “heritage” and build a real track record. “In 2006, together with SES ASTRA TechCom, we were commissioned to build two large TT&C antenna systems to track the Galileo satellite fleet in orbit from the ground,” Mr Elsen explains.

Yves Elsen, CEO, HITEC

Satellite control from the ground up

Satellites in space require constant monitoring and control. Powerful, sophisticated ground stations are needed, and Luxembourg-based HITEC is one of the companies providing them. Combining decades of experience with state-of-the-art expertise, HITEC works with major players such as SES and also contributes to the development of Galileo, the European satellite navigation system that is currently under construction. Portrait of a thriving company with innovative projects in many areas.

Established in 1986, HITEC develops solutions for the ground segment of satellite communication equipment, such as large dishes and antennas. It also handles monitoring and control systems, the so-called telemetry, tracking and control (TT&C) systems. Fixed and mobile uplink stations as well as maintenance and support services round out its space-related business. But while HITEC’s staff of 40, mainly composed of scientists and engineers, are fascinated with the skies, they keep their feet firmly on the ground: in addition to space-related activities, the company provides leading-edge applications and solutions for earthbound industries. HITEC’s broad range of services includes industrial applications, such as rubber testing, as well as engineering and ICT-related services, for example for road traffic control systems.

18 I Focus 2 – 2009

The project covers the design, manufacturing, engineering and on-site installation of the antennas and the training of operators in cooperation with other European partners from France, Italy and Switzerland. These antennas, measuring 13 metres in diameter, use brand new technologies and will be positioned above the polar circle and close to the equator.

Once completely installed, Galileo will offer an alternative to the GPS system widely used today, which is controlled by the US Department of Defence. Mr Elsen notes: “Taking part in a major project like this is a challenge, but it is also a chance to demonstrate at an international level the skills available in Luxembourg. This kind of cooperation strengthens Luxembourg’s international position in advanced technology.”

Beyond Europe

Acting as a subcontractor of SES ASTRA TechCom Services, HITEC also built two limited motion antennas with a diameter of 13.5 metres for the Vietnamese Vinasat-1 satellite, which was launched in 2008. The company handled the design, manufacturing, engineering and on-site installation of the antennas and also trained the staff.

HITEC Luxembourg +352 49 84 78 1 info@hitec.lu www.hitec.lu

SPACE sector

Complex space challenges elegantly solved

Space matters can be quite daunting for corporate and institutional clients who need to solve a multifaceted problem or require a quick turnaround for their project. System integrators such as LuxSpace, with their expert knowledge of the sector, offer valuable support in the form of system consultancy, engineering and integration services. LuxSpace plays a key role in several ESA-funded projects, and will in the future also manufacture highly innovative microsatellites for the global market.

LuxSpace was established in Betzdorf in late 2004 by the German company OHB Technology based on a cooperation agreement with SES ASTRA. The company currently employs about 20 people and has plans to grow towards 50 staff in the coming years. It is the only system integrator for space in the Grand Duchy. LuxSpace mainly focuses on the design and integration of space systems, technologies and applications related to earth observation, meteorology, telecommunications, navigation and science.

LuxSpace, alongside other European companies from Germany, Sweden and Switzerland, is currently involved in the implementation of the next generation of small, highly innovative and versatile geostationary satellites supported by ESA. This satellite type will offer capabilities in the telecommunication domain that used to require satellites of twice the size several years ago.

“Innovation is considered of paramount importance to our company,” says Mr Harms, “and the solar sail materials project is certainly a good example.” A consortium led by LuxSpace and comprising two of the Grand Duchy’s public research centres, Luxembourg-based DuPont de Nemours and partners from around Europe has been selected by ESA to study and design solar sails to propel satellites, and also to produce the required materials – more specifically an ultrathin polymer foil coated with reflective and emissive layers.

In the near future, LuxSpace will add the design and manufacturing of satellites in the 30 to 90 kg class with a size of 30 to 50 cm to its product and service portfolio. “There is a growing number of applications where this satellite size can provide the required capabilities and no innovative offer is available in Europe today,” says Managing Director Jochen Harms. The first application currently in the implementation process is the so-called Automatic Identification System (AIS), which allows the tracking of ships on the global scale.

Through the implementation of several projects in the field of AIS, LuxSpace is already considered as one of the major players in this domain, which was underlined by the fact that the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries recently awarded the currently largest contract related to AIS to LuxSpace.

The company is just finalising, and soon to launch, its first AIS system with the support of EmTroniX (also based in Luxembourg). Further systems are under development. “This is the first space hardware entirely ‘made in Luxembourg’,” underlines Mr Harms.

Studio Frank Weber

LuxSpace +352 26 78 90 40 21 harms@luxspace.lu

www.luxspace.lu

Focus 2 – 2009 I 19

SPACE sector

Earth observation activities track floods at Public Research Centre Gabriel Lippmann

Water is essential for life. Yet too much water can be as devastating as too little. Last year in India, more than one million people had to flee floodwaters from the Kosi River. Dozens perished, and displaced survivors found meagre support for withstanding hunger and disease. The efforts of the Department of Environment and Agro-biotechnologies (EVA) of the Public Research Centre Gabriel Lippmann are aimed at alleviating such tragedies.

EVA monitors key environmental variables, such as precipitation, temperature and soil moisture, and processes these data to calibrate and validate a sequence of models. Atmospheric modelling then eventually provides forecast information on precipitation and temperature. Hydrological modelling estimates how much rainfall will become runoff based on the amount of water already held in the ground. Hydrodynamic modelling gives the extent, depth and duration of the flooding and supports risk management.

In 2007, EVA implemented a geomatics platform that integrates activities in remote sensing, photogrammetry, geographic information systems, surveying, cartography, hydrology and other geosciences. A particular focus is the development of algorithms to assimilate satellite data into hydrological, ecological and atmospheric models.

© ESA / NASA

Geomatics is the science and technology of gathering, analysing, interpreting, distributing and using geographic information.

Photogrammetry is a technology that determines geometric properties about objects from photographic images and other remote sensing data such as airborne and satellite sensors.

20 I Focus 2 – 2009

Broadly, EVA provides information needed for water resource management. It suggests answers to such questions as: can floods be anticipated? How frequent and intense will they be?

Can they be prevented? Is it prudent to build in a particular area? In flood conditions, EVA helps civil protection agencies anticipate flooding, map out flooded areas, identify how to best deliver aid and devise means of prevention.

EVA uses data from the radar satellites of the European Space Agency, the Canadian Space Agency and NASA. “The advantage of radar is that it can provide data at night and also through cloud cover. The latter is a particular benefit in rainy Luxembourg,” says Dr Lucien Hoffmann, EVA’s Scientific Director.

Because such modelling requires tremendous computing power, EVA is developing highperformance computing (HPC) capabilities.

Computational performance of more than 3 Tflop is achieved by clustering a high number of computation nodes. Together with dedicated pre-/post-processing and visualisation servers as well as storage and backup facilities, this cluster forms the HPC system. With such a system, the required technical infrastructure and human know-how, EVA can attract partners from both the commercial and the public research spheres.

EVA’s geomatics platform can also be used to assess drought, plant health and land use management using hyperspectral remote sensing data.

With concerns about global warming skyrocketing, EVA can measure plant photosynthesis, track CO2 uptake and analyse soil properties for proportions of organic vs. inorganic carbon contents.

CRP Gabriel Lippmann Environment and Agro-biotechnologies (EVA) +352 47 02 61 40 0 hoffmann@lippmann.lu www.lippmann.lu

INNOVATIVE SPACEs

A European meeting place

As one of the European Union’s founding members, Luxembourg plays a vital role in European integration and provides an ideal setting for the work of the citizens, the organisations and the businesses who drive this process on a daily basis.

Studio Frank Weber

The recently constructed European Parliament Towers are amongst several buildings in the City of Luxembourg that accommodate the Secretariat of the European Parliament. Environmentally inspired, these 19-storey modern glass structures consist of a pair of internal and external glass skins, separated by an air corridor. This double-skin façade ensures sun protection and cost-saving thermal insulation. The buildings are used exclusively by translation services, catering for around 1,700 staff whose job it is to translate the European Parliament’s documents.

Focus 2 – 2009 I 21

INNOVATIVE SPACES

The imposing new structure of the European Congress and Conference Centre has solved the problem of insufficient space that became an issue following the accession of 10 new EU Member States in 2004. Its plenary meeting room provides a comfortable 800 seats for conferences as well as for meetings of the Council of the European Union, which are attended by ministers of all Member States.

Any Council meetings to be held in Luxembourg will be hosted here from 2012. Currently in progress are plans to provide 27 cabins for interpreters and facilities for the attendance of up to 1,000 journalists.

22 I Focus 2 – 2009

Studio Frank Weber

INNOVATIVE SPACEs

Focus 2 – 2009 I 23

At an eye-catching height of 100 m, the new European Court of Justice Towers are vast landmarks of the spectacular expansion project of Luxembourg’s European Court of Justice (ECJ), by acclaimed Parisian architect Dominique Perrault. These elegant 24-storey twin towers, clad in a striking golden mesh, provide 24,000 m2 of working space for around 600 staff of the court, including translators and lawyer linguists. The structure’s strong visual presence is symbolic of the ECJ’s role as defender of European Community rights and enforcer of EU law, the backbone of relations between the 27 Member States.

24 I Focus 2 – 2009

Studio Frank Weber

INNOVATIVE SPACES

Entrepreneurship and innovation

Innovative female entrepreneur rewarded

© Brasserie Simon

The third Dexia Woman Business Manager of the Year Award for 2008, a prize attributed by a panel of independent judges to the year’s most daring and innovative female entrepreneur, went to Betty Fontaine, the young Managing Director of Luxembourg’s Simon Brewery.

News Innovation through industrial design

DLux Design is a small industrial design company founded in Luxembourg in November 2007 by a Danish team of entrepreneurs. It offers an innovative design consultancy service to industrial clients, combining a sound research-based methodology with an “intuitive creativity”. It is also the network hub of a highly dedicated team of industrial designers and engineers that incorporates a Scandinavian group of retailers. The company is member of Design Luxembourg, an association promoting design professionals in the Grand Duchy.

The key factor that clinched the title for Ms Fontaine was her evident social responsibility towards her workforce combined with her desire to promote a typically Luxembourgish project.

With the aim of promoting the role of women in the country’s economy, the award includes prize money of € 10,000, which will be allocated for training purposes, recruitment or investments in infrastructure.

A location in the heart of Europe was deemed essential in order to derive dual benefits of the European market and mindset, while establishing strong manufacturing links with China, Asia’s fastest growing market. The DLux network team, strategically spread across Northern Europe, is ideally situated to spot market trends, identify customer needs and research opportunities and requirements.

“There should only be one limit to the creative imagination, and that is the unflinching respect for the biologically sound ingredient.”

The DLux Design network is a dynamic organisation whose team is constantly expanding with new talents and nationalities. The range of innovative projects undertaken includes complete design from concept to realisation, or building on an existing idea to create a more contemporary marketable product. The network approach guarantees that each specific job, such as the design of a mobile phone, a wristwatch or a high-end mint dispenser, is handled by the most qualified people.

Ms Fontaine’s innovative project involved the re-establishment of a beer brand formerly produced by a micro-brewery which ceased activities in 2005. “Okult N° 1” is a high fermentation beer, made exclusively with products from organic farming.

www.dlux-design.com www.designluxembourg.lu

> Betty Fontaine Managing Director Simon Brewery

Her award-winning idea is inscribed in the company’s logic of supporting local and regional farmers, while preserving its independence through dedication to a high-quality niche, rather than a deliberate expansion policy. www.brasseriesimon.lu

Focus 2 – 2009 I 25

Entrepreneurship and innovation

Picture-perfect optical systems

Lion Systems is a specialist in addressing complex industrial challenges with its high-performance optical systems. Based in the Ecostart incubator in the southern town of Foetz, the company provides customised systems for motion analysis and fault recognition.

Lion System’s range of cutting-edge technology includes video cameras, high-speed cameras, thermal infrared cameras, 3D time-of-flight (TOF) cameras and high dynamic range contrast cameras. Data recording and transformation of these image sequences are effected through the company’s own multisensory control synchronisation software. Analysis of the recorded image sequence is then performed by means of PROTrack measurement and analysis software.

“Lion Systems is now developing a ground-breaking high-resolution 3D time-of-flight camera.”

The company’s optical systems are presently used in areas including process automation and control, test centres, sports, medicine, biomechanics, surveillance and security. Adding to its current camera range, Lion Systems is now developing a ground-breaking high-resolution 3D TOF camera for high-precision dynamic 3D measurement. www.lionsystems.lu

26 I Focus 2 – 2009

Taking the lead with RFID

Since its development in 2006, AIRFIELD, a company which specialises in radiofrequency identification (RFID) architecture, has offered its services from Esch-sur-Alzette’s Technoport incubator. Founded by CEO Arnaud Bellaire, the company is holding its own in this rapidly growing sector, with its team of highly qualified experts able to lead projects from the planning to the implementation stage.

AIRFIELD’S main focus is currently in the area of logistics. The company also shares its expertise through training programmes and workshops to help companies define their RFID strategy.

Beyond their normal remit, solutions provided

by AIRFIELD range from equipping forklift trucks in Germany to identify cargo and recall storage positions to providing the heat-resistant tracking devices needed in the high-temperature environment of a French steel mill.

RFID architect Arnaud Bellaire remains convinced that the more entrepreneurs from all walks of industry understand the enormous potential of the technology, the more diversified his clientele will become. www.airfield-rfid.com

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Jeannot Krecké, Minister of the Economy and Foreign Trade

A firm commitment to growth and diversification

Luxembourg is constantly looking for promising entrepreneurs and innovative ideas. Powerful measures are launched to support them, such as the dedicated ecotechnology cluster and the favourable intellectual property law. The government also fosters the establishment of knowledge-based companies and actively searches abroad to find the required talent. FOCUS talked about this with Jeannot Krecké, Minister of the Economy and Foreign Trade.

“Luxembourg governments have been pursuing a diversification policy since the end of the Second World War. A good example of a major industrial investment is Goodyear, which came to Luxembourg in the 1950s and started the production of tyres here. A balance between different sectors and industries is vital, so that the economy of a small country like Luxembourg is less vulnerable if one sector goes down or even disappears,” the Minister argues. “In the 1970s, we faced a problem with the global steel crisis, and as a result we put all our efforts into building up the financial sector. Today, we want to diversify by allowing innovative companies to start up or expand here.

Before the recent financial crisis, some people questioned the need of having industrial activities here in Luxembourg, but now they have seen that one cannot only live on services.”

Promoting technologies for the future

“Up to the beginning of this decade, we mainly looked abroad for financially stable companies with a good track record and invited them to come to Luxembourg. For certain sectors, this

is becoming increasingly difficult. Upon consideration, we decided to focus on specific sectors: life science technologies, logistics and ecotechnologies.”

Environmentally friendly technical solutions – or ecotechnologies – are not new to Luxembourg.

188 companies active in this sector have been listed. Some of the larger companies among them, such as engineering company Paul Wurth SA, have researched and used these technologies for years. “Ecotechnologies offer a bright outlook and they are, of course, also about the future of our country and, ultimately, our planet,” Minister Krecké adds. The Ministry and Luxinnovation have launched an ecotechnology cluster, the budget for environmentally friendly research via the National Research Fund has doubled, and the Board of Economic Development promotes Luxembourg as a centre of excellence for ecotechnologies. “Moreover, the trade promotion agency Luxembourg for Business assists companies in promoting products and technologies made in Luxembourg on the international markets,” the Minister adds.

Focus 2 – 2009 I 27

Entrepreneurship and innovation

Luxembourg also aims to promote the logistics sector more actively. “This is an area where we have a lot of experience, with large companies such as Cargolux based here,” Mr Krecké says.

“Luxembourg is centrally located in Europe, and we think the sector will expand a lot in the coming years.”

A very receptive government

Luxembourg’s government is open to new ideas and actively promotes the country as a base for business activities. The Grand Duchy has invested in the development of a conducive business environment, including effective support instruments, excellent industry locations and powerful infrastructure. “We put our own business infrastructures at the disposal of high-tech start-ups which do not yet have the means to invest in bricks and mortar,” the Minister explains. Examples of such incubators are Technoport in Esch and Ecostart in Foetz. A new incubator is planned on the future university site at Esch-Belval.

Luxembourg also stimulates public-private partnerships. “Financial support is available for knowledge-based companies willing to invest or to start or expand innovative development projects. The University of Luxembourg is growing, opening its research labs to private companies and allowing companies to cooperate.”

A progressive intellectual property law

A law passed in December 2007 provides for an 80 % exemption of certain types of intellectual property-related income. “This is an important tool to attract innovative ‘brainbased’ companies and have them develop new products and services in Luxembourg.

We are in a knowledge-based society today, and having the brainpower here is becoming increasingly important,” according to Mr Krecké. “Branches of international companies will remain in Luxembourg if their brainbased activities are located here.”

Ministry of the Economy and Foreign Trade Directorate of Research and Innovation +352 24 78 41 28 innovation@eco.public.lu www.eco.public.lu Directorate of Intellectual Property +352 24 78 41 13 dpi@eco.etat.lu www.eco.public.lu

28 I Focus 2 – 2009

Studio Frank Weber

The co-founders of e-Xstream engineering first met at the Catholic University of Louvain-la-Neuve (UCL) in Belgium. Upon completion of his PhD at UCL, Dr Assaker returned home to Luxembourg and to Goodyear Technical Center, where he joined the CAE team as a researcher.

A winning team

Combining the simulation models developed

by Professor Doghri and Dr Assaker’s hands-on experience of the requirements of industrial R&D departments led the two men to create e-Xstream engineering in May 2003. The company developed its trademarked DIGIMAT (DIGItal MATerial) software in Louvain-la-Neuve and at the Luxembourgish incubator Ecostart.

Initial technical collaborations with Goodyear proved very successful.

The power of simulation

“e-Xstream engineering specialises in the development of software for the multi-scale modelling of composite materials and structures,” explains Dr Assaker. “One value of such technology to an R&D business is that, through simulation, the lead time for the development of new products

Entrepreneurship and innovation

e-Xstream models take the world by storm

Dr Roger Assaker and Professor Issam Doghri are co-founders of Luxembourg-based e-Xstream engineering. Their company has gained international status by providing simulation software that supports R&D initiatives in a broad variety of applications. The secret of their success? A powerful blend of outstanding technical expertise, a passion for Computer-Aided Engineering (CAE) and a thorough understanding of industry requirements. can be drastically reduced, which results in reduced R&D costs and critical early-to-market positioning of new products.” The ability of the software to accurately simulate material properties enables composite formulas and expected performances to be established within certain limits before engaging in actual destructive testing. This obviates the need for expensive prototypes and lengthy experimentation processes.

“Through simulation, the lead time for the development of new products can be drastically reduced, which results in reduced R&D costs and critical early-tomarket positioning of new products.”

The profile of the e-Xstream engineering team denotes their high level of technological expertise, with 60 % holding a PhD and 30 % with a Master’s Degree in engineering. The co-founders consider their proximity to a knowledge pool as crucial to the success of their company, and their collaboration with various educational and research establishments is proving to be as

critically important as their close interaction with the R&D departments of their customers, who represent sectors ranging from aerospace and the automotive industry to consumer goods.

Building up a global customer base

e-Xstream engineering has successfully managed a growth in the business while at the same time developing and refining its software for a variety of applications. The company now has more than 60 major customers in Asia, Europe and the USA and offers software and consulting services to support customers in their understanding of a wide range of advanced materials such as reinforced plastics, nanocomposites, rubber, hard metals and honeycomb composites.

The next step for the business will be to formalise its commercial approach with the introduction of worldwide regional sales offices that will further improve the team’s reactivity and responsiveness to customer needs. e-Xstream engineering +352 26 17 66 07 info@e-Xstream.com www.e-xstream.com

Focus 2 – 2009 I 29

Entrepreneurship and innovation

© Waagner-Biro

The stage is set for innovation

“Neither of us set out to be entrepreneurs!” is the modest declaration of Luxembourgers Roland Jacoby and Jean-Marie Schiltz. Their background as skilled tradesmen suggests that, instead, it was the passion for their craft that drove them to create Guddland digital in 1987. Having originally specialised in process control systems for local industrial giants such as Arbed (now ArcelorMittal) and Paul Wurth, their business really took off two years later when they exchanged industrial lubricants for the smell of greasepaint.

Following Guddland’s stage debut in 1989, with a first project in theatre controls at the City Theatre Oberhausen, the company landed an even larger project at the National Theatre in Mannheim, Germany, in 1992. A convincing performance, which inspired a strategic choice: Guddland decided to dedicate itself fully to the theatre industry and launched a productive collaboration with Austrian specialist Waagner-Biro on major projects. In 2002, this company acquired a 51 % stake in Guddland, which was renamed WaagnerBiro Luxembourg Stage Systems SA (WBL).

30 I Focus 2 – 2009

Spectacular stage control systems

WBL’s specific expertise centres around stateof-the-art Computer-Aided Theatre (CAT) stage control systems. The company’s stage management specialists combine high-tech innovations in software programs with more down-to-earth upgrades extending the performance characteristics of long-established concepts such as winches and lifts. The resulting compact, spacesaving devices can move considerable tonnages quickly, safely and silently.

Entrepreneurship and innovation

This specialised know-how makes WBL a popular choice for theatre designers. Particularly so as their requirements for stage machinery are increasingly ambitious. Typical requests today can involve equipment capable of executing complex, synchronised scene changes with transformation of lights, curtains and stage sections, and designed to hoist some 200 tons of steel 20 metres or so above or below stage level with millimetre precision, ensuring the complete safety of the playing actors at all times.

Innovation in both product and customer service

© Waagner-Biro

WBL sets a high priority on customer service, and its presentations at trade fairs are being transformed though the use of innovative methods. The company is in the process of replacing conventional presentation formats, which were centred on a static approach involving technical drawings, with dynamic experiential events.

Jean-Marie Schiltz, Technical Director, Waagner-Biro Luxembourg

The cyber helmets currently under development will enable clients to walk around virtual theatres demonstrating the workings of curtains and side stages during a programmed performance even before the site is built.

In its early years, WBL benefited from the support and mentoring of Luxinnovation as well as development aid from the Luxembourgish Ministry of the Economy and the Société Nationale de Crédit et d’Investissement (SNCI). And since, the

© Waagner-Biro

company has gone from strength to strength. A success that has not gone unnoticed, as innovation and research awards received in 1993 and 2002 from Fedil – Business Federation Luxembourg would tend to confirm.

WBL now has more than 80 installations in theatres in Luxembourg and around the world, notably in Berlin, Caracas, Riga, Miami, Moscow and Venice. The parent company counts a total of just over 100 permanent employees worldwide. Five of the 25 WBL employees are currently based in Shanghai, where the Olympic Games of 2008 reconnected the world with the Chinese art of creating breathtaking spectacles. WBL is seeing strong demand in the emerging nation, having completed its first Asian installation in 2004 at the Oriental Arts Centre in Shanghai and further projects in Dongguan, Guangzhou and Suzhou.

However, it is not just the employees who are travelling. With control systems now installed on the entertainment decks of seven cruise ships, WBL’s solutions are permanently on the move as well. Clearly, WBL refuses to be bound by mere physical constraints.

Waagner-Biro Luxembourg Stage Systems SA +352 50 35 21 stagesystems.luxembourg@waagner-biro.com www.waagner-biro.com

Focus 2 – 2009 I 31

Entrepreneurship and innovation

International recognition for Luxembourg’s internet business leaders

Winners of the competition to name the Creative Young Entrepreneurs of Luxembourg in 2008 have demonstrated the Grand Duchy’s importance as an incubator for raw talent. The three laureates were able to prove their world-class status by also receiving high acclaim at the awards ceremony for the International Young Entrepreneurs of the Year. join the impressive who’s who of multinationals with European headquarters in the Grand Duchy (including such household names as Amazon, Apple i-Tunes, PayPal or Skype). Xavier Buck’s entrepreneurial flair enabled him to stake his claim in this developing market. He identified a niche and the scope for an internet service company designed to fill it – and turned these insights into a highly successful business proposition. A feat which won him first prize in the 2008 Creative Young Entrepreneur Award Luxembourg.

Mr Buck was born and raised in Luxembourg, attending the Luxembourg School of Management and Commerce, and later continued his studies in Belgium. Himself the son of a successful local entrepreneur, he has been involved with internet-related business since 1993.

blitz agency

Xavier Buck, CEO, EuroDNS

The Junior Chamber International (JCI) has a history that dates back to 1915. Over the years, it has expanded into a worldwide network that counts more than 200,000 active members (aged from 18 to 40 years) in 100 countries, including a branch in Luxembourg. The JCI runs local annual competitions to discover and encourage young entrepreneurs who present their credentials and entrepreneurial businesses for judgement. In January 2008, Luxembourg’s three local winners were chosen from a selection of 23 candidates of the Creative Young Entrepreneur Award. All three progressed to the international competition with awards being made during the JCI annual convention in New Delhi, India.

Vision, creativity, perseverance

Internet-related business is a vast area of opportunity, and one which has enabled many thriving start-up companies from Luxembourg to

32 I Focus 2 – 2009

In 2000 Mr Buck co-founded Datacenter Luxembourg as a hosting company that rapidly grew to market-leading proportions, and in 2002 he created EuroDNS, the global internet registrar.

The two complementary companies, which come together under the banner of the DCL Group, share the same values of excellence and innovation and provide a one-stop shop for domain name users. The company counts 45 employees in Luxembourg and a growing number worldwide. The business strategy includes diversifying to meet both marketplace and geographical challenges with the introduction of LatDNS to serve the huge market in Latin America and AsiaDNS to cater for the needs of customers in China, India and Asia in general.

Expanding into secondary markets

The domain name is the easy-to-remember, often catchy title of a particular website (for example, the name “eurodns”) that will overlay an official but far less striking numerical Internet Protocol (IP) address (in this case, the corresponding string 80.92.65.10). There are currently close to 200 million domain names in the world and a variety of top level domains (TLDs) that provide the suffix by country code (such as .de, .fr or .lu) or by generic term (such as .biz, .info or .jobs). As the market matures, while growing exponentially

Entrepreneurship and innovation

blitz agency

Mr Buck founded EuroDNS in the wake of the introduction of the TLD for Europe (.eu), and the business now offers more than 100 alternative extensions to a worldwide customer base.

Initially, it targeted specialist domainers, but now extends to many other areas, which even encompass domain name investment and auctioneering. He explains: “The diversity of our offer is what makes us different and distinguishable from the others.” In the international JCI competition, Mr Buck was awarded fourth place.

Sylvain Zimmer, CTO, Jamendo

Luxembourg’s third prize went to Sylvain Zimmer, the founder and Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of the internet community Jamendo where free, legal and unlimited music is published under Creative Commons licences.

Mr Zimmer interrupted his PhD in Computer Science in 2006 in order to fully concentrate on the creation of Jamendo, which had been launched in the Luxembourg business incubator Technoport in late 2004. In 2007, Luxembourg-based Mangrove Capital Partners provided venture capital to boost the growth of the business and, in 2008, Jamendo left the incubator having acquired a critical mass of artists and users.

Mr Zimmer joined Mr Buck and Mr Vivier in representing Luxembourg at the International Creative Young Entrepreneur Awards and was rewarded with the worldwide ranking of 15th place.

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at 25 to 30 % annually, so the opportunities for EuroDNS have grown from a straightforward “primary market” of providing and hosting a domain name to the aftermarket or secondary market of supporting customers with a choice of names that fits their marketing strategy, assuring maximum hits on search engines, protecting the image and name by acquisition of other similar names or wrongly spelt versions, and in some cases acquisition of “cherished names” that are particularly pertinent or memorable.

Emmanuel Vivier, CEO, Vanksen Group

An education that combined studies in economics, marketing and web design led Emmanuel Vivier to create a series of startup companies. Known collectively as the Vanksen Group, they offer creative consulting and marketing strategy services exploiting the growing Web 2.0 phenomenon of “buzz” or word of mouth marketing.

While Web 2.0 does not denote a new version of the internet, it does reflect a shift in user behaviour, empowering online communities to interact, socialise and share their opinions instantaneously via networking sites (such as Facebook or LinkedIn), video-sharing sites (such as Youtube) or blogs. Buzz and “viral” marketing are non-parasitic approaches that exploit the tendency of users to forward pictures and film clips to friends who in turn pass them on to others, multiplying the number of recipients exponentially. By harnessing this phenomenon, the Vanksen Group ensures that its clients are well recommended in the web community.

Mr Vivier, second-placed Creative Young Entrepreneur in Luxembourg, ranked sixth internationally.

EuroDNS +352 26 19 16 1 info@eurodns.com

www.eurodns.com

Vanksen Group +352 48 90 90 luxembourg@vanksen.com Jamendo SA +352 26 53 42 1 contact@jamendo.com

www.culture-buzz.com

www.jamendo.com

Focus 2 – 2009 I 33

Entrepreneurship and innovation

Investors keen to back innovative projects

BIP is a company listed on the Luxembourg stock exchange that invests finance and support in developing businesses in the Grand Duchy and the surrounding region. Despite sharing the pain of the current financial crisis, Managing Director Marc Faber is confident of BIP’s role as a champion of the entrepreneurs and innovators who will help to lead Luxembourg and Europe out of the recession and towards future prosperity. regional initiatives such as the Creative Young Entrepreneur Luxembourg Award and the startup mentoring programme “1,2,3, Go”.

BIP Investment Partners welcomes entrepreneurs who can provide business proposals which meet their selection criteria: Location: Companies should be registered, or doing a substantial proportion of their business, in Luxembourg or the neighbouring regions in Belgium, France and Germany.

Size: Investments, made alongside other partners, typically range from € 5 million to € 15 million for private equity buyouts and from € 2 million to € 5 million for venture capital in fledgling businesses.

Development stage: BIP typically invests in fast-growing companies during the development and expansion stages. blitz agency

Marc Faber, Managing Director, BIP Investment Partners

BIP Investment Partners was originally created by the Banque Générale du Luxembourg (BGL) in 2000. As a result of an initial public offering, which allowed other institutions and private investors to participate in the venture, the holding of BGL has gradually decreased, while other shareholders have increased their stake. BIP’s current investments of more than € 300 million are split three ways between long-term investments in large local companies (such as ArcelorMittal, Cargolux, RTL Group and SES ASTRA), direct investments in non-listed high-growth companies and cash investments.

The small BIP team has successfully established a wide-ranging portfolio that it has continued to diversify in 2008 by first acquiring a stake in the Luxembourg-based aircraft business Smart Air and subsequently taking on 20 % of the internet domain registrar EuroDNS. The company has proven to be an enthusiastic ally of local entrepreneurs and innovators both through direct investment and via its sponsorship of

34 I Focus 2 – 2009

Sector: BIP currently has three main divisions: finance and services; telecommunications, media, technology (TMT); traditional industries.

Shared vision: BIP plays a role as an important but minority shareholder, by providing value-adding but nonintrusive expertise at board level.

Exit: BIP agrees to exit within five to seven years typically through a trade sale or through a management buyout.

One of BIP’s most celebrated success stories was its early support of Luxembourg’s third national mobile phone operator, Voxmobile, which was exited via a sale to a Belgian operator, Mobistar, in May 2007 for close to € 100 million. In sharp contrast to the current nervousness on the stock exchange, Mr Faber points out: “For ambitious entrepreneurs based in our area, there is no shortage of funds for investment in innovative projects.”

BIP Investment Partners SA +352 26 00 26 1 info@bip.lu www.bip.lu

There’s no limit to imagination Push back your boundaries

Imagine. Create. Innovate.

European Year of Creativity and Innovation: create2009.europa.eu Discover all the events organised in Luxembourg on:

www.creativite-innovation.lu

Coordinators : An initiative of the European Union

Public research

CRP Santé paves the way for Luxembourg’s future in biomedical research

CRP Santé’s main mission is to conduct research and health care studies in biomedical areas which represent major challenges to society.

The centre has benefited from substantial funding over the past decade, and the government has pledged a significant increase over the next five years, acknowledging the importance of biomedical research and its role in promoting public health. Since the institute’s creation in 1988, it has achieved a high level of international recognition and marked several major milestones.

Henri Tudor and CRP Gabriel Lippmann as well as the University of Luxembourg, has joined forces with three outstanding US institutions – the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen) of Phoenix, Arizona, the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Centre and the Institute for Systems Biology, both in Seattle, Washington. “This exciting venture should pave the way for some ground-breaking research, some of which is already under way,” explains Dr Schmit.

Luxembourg’s first international biobank

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Jean-Claude Schmit, General Manager, CRP Santé

As CRP Santé, the Public Research Centre (Centre de recherche public in French) for Health, enters its 21st year, General Manager Jean-Claude Schmit reflects on some of the institute’s major achievements: “On a national level, we have been able to enhance our organisational performance and the quality of our research.” CRP Santé was one of the first organisations to join the European Charter of Researchers, which defines the rights and obligations of researchers. Since 2008, it operates under a performance contract with the government. CRP Santé’s experience during the first year covered by this contract “was a positive one, leading to an improvement of partnerships and the building of a corporate identity.”

CRP Santé is proud to be a key actor in a major international collaboration on biomedical research set up in July 2008 by the Luxembourg government with a financial backing of € 140 million. The institute, along with CRP

36 I Focus 2 – 2009

To facilitate such world-class research programmes, CRP Santé and its national partners recently co-founded Luxembourg’s first International Biobank (IBBL), in close partnership with TGen of Phoenix. The biobank, a centralised human-specimen biorepository, has gained international recognition, and the team has already entered collaborations with the Biobanking and Biomolecular Resources Research Infrastructure (BBMRI) project as well as the international consortium P3G. Launched in December 2008, the IBBL’s basic mission is to store, redistribute and analyse biological samples and data under strict ethical conditions. The aim for the biobank, for which the internationally renowned researcher Dr Robert Hewitt has recently been appointed as director, is to become the centre of personalised medicine in Europe.

Through its advanced technology enabling the study of an individual’s unique biological constitution, treatment options may be tailored to a specific patient’s requirements, thereby resulting in earlier, more effective treatment and an improved prognosis.

This has implications for many of around 100 health projects under way throughout the centre’s six departments, and one of the first to benefit from the biobank’s technology is a major project on lung cancer.

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Early identification of lung cancer

CRP Santé’s oncology department is currently involved in a collaborative project on lung cancer with Nobel laureate Dr Lee Hartwell and his research team from Seattle.

“Lung cancer,” explains Dr Schmit, “remains one of the most prevalent and deadly diseases in the world. The prognosis of lung cancer victims is poor, with a mere five-year survival rate of about 15 %”. Around 200 people die of lung cancer in Luxembourg each year, not an insignificant number for such a small country, and 1.3 million new cases are diagnosed each year in the world.

The problem is that this form of cancer is very difficult to diagnose as patients usually present with very few symptoms until the more advanced stages of the disease. Hence the driving force behind this particular research project: to discover a means of identifying the early genetic changes that precede the full onset of the disease. Early diagnosis could, potentially, boost survival rates to 90 %. Added to this, the substantial costs to the health service imposed by the illness would be reduced considerably.

The study will analyse lung biopsies from the biobank, including 20 taken from smokers with tumours, 20 from non-smokers and 20 from asymptomatic smokers. It will draw on a range of sophisticated techniques such as low-dose computed tomography scanning , autofluorescence bronchoscopy, DNA - and proteomicsbased techniques and identification of biomarkers for lung cancer. Biomarkers are substances found in patients’ body samples, which can be used to identify the presence of a disease such as cancer. If successful, the team also hopes to provide the means for a personalised drug regime to further improve outcome.

Intensifying the involvement in European research projects

CRP Santé aims to be a recognised actor in biomedical research, and to expand its role as Luxembourg’s main centre for public health by developing a government advisory role and its position as a public health data reference centre for the European Union. “We are actively seeking new international opportunities,” explains Dr Schmit. “We are already involved in many high-profile European projects, but could surely still improve and expand our collaborations, in particular within the European Commission’s Seventh Framework Programme for research and technological development.” CRP Santé has just

Studio Frank Weber

signed a collaboration agreement with a private venture capitalist in order to enhance the valorisation of its research and to facilitate access to international business networks.

Looking to the future

“CRP Santé is convinced that clinical and epidemiological research and translational medicine will become increasingly important over the next few years, and our Clinical and Epidemiological Investigation Centre (CIEC) gives us the practical instrument to be a national leader in those fields,” says Dr Schmit. CIEC is CRP Santé’s sixth and most recently opened department, and has already succeeded in securing a close working relationship with the international pharmaceutical industry and major organisations including the European Union and the World Health Organisation. Such alliances can only strengthen what appears a very sound future for CRP Santé.

Computed tomography scanning delivers detailed

cross-sectional body images provided by a computer-linked x-ray machine.

Autofluorescence bronchoscopy is an

instrument with a blue light fixture used to explore major airway passages of lungs and detect abnormalities.

DNA- and proteomicsbased techniques involve large-scale microscopic analysis of body proteins and genes.

CRP Santé +352 26 97 08 93 aurelia.derischebourg@crp-sante.lu www.crp-sante.lu

Focus 2 – 2009 I 37

Public research

Finally, SAM develops the highly specialised instruments and protocols needed to do such work. SAM’s scientists design cutting-edge devices using ultra-vacuum techniques, electrostatic optics and plasma physics. The results are unique analytical instruments and customdesigned surface treatment techniques that can be put directly into commercial use.

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The science of the very, very small

Some people may associate the word “nanotechnology” with the far future, for example with miniature robots that course through the bodies of cancer patients and fight tumours. Others may realise that nanotechnology is already in wide use right now, in everyday products from sunscreen and paint to household appliances and disinfectants. The technology that makes these products possible is developed by research centres such as CRP Gabriel Lippmann here in Luxembourg.

The hub of nanotechnology in the Grand Duchy can be found in the Science and Analysis of Materials (SAM) department of CRP Gabriel Lippmann. It is both a research facility and an analytical services laboratory which has focused on materials and surface R&D since 1992.

Nanoanalysis

primarily determines the elemental and molecular composition of materials. It is similar to microanalysis, but it is performed on a nanometric scale. One nanometre corresponds to 10-9 metre, or one millionth of a millimetre.

38 I Focus 2 – 2009

SAM has three areas of materials science in which it specialises. It performs analyses of materials down to the nanometric level. This enables the characterisation of surfaces, whether they are made of metal, ceramic, glass or polymer or presented as solids, composites or powders.

SAM also works with innovative surface treatments.

At the nanometric level, this means depositing on a surface microscopically thin layers whose chemical, thermal, mechanical and physical properties have been optimised by the researchers.

An example of the resources available at SAM is the array of dynamic secondary ion mass spectrometers, or D-SIMS. These complex instruments bombard a surface with ions, causing an emission of atoms, some of which are ionised, captured and analysed to provide crucial information about the composition of the material.

“SAM’s equipment and the scientists’ proficiency in its use are a major strength of the department and our basis for providing assistance to more than 100 industrial and academic partners worldwide,” explains Professor Henri-Noël Migeon, Director of SAM. Academic partners include universities in Belgium, France, Germany, Spain, the UK and the USA, while corporate partners include ArcelorMittal, Goodyear and CAMECA, the leading maker of SIMS instrumentation.

SAM coordinates the European Network of Excellence Nanobeams, which is dedicated to nanoanalysis using finely focused ion and electron beams. The network connects leading institutions in Belgium, France, Germany and the UK as well as Luxembourg. Nanobeams has set up its own PhD programme, held at CRP Gabriel Lippmann and in collaboration with the University of Luxembourg. Its goal is to train researchers specialised in nanoanalysis.

CRP Gabriel Lippmann Science and Analysis of Materials (SAM) +352 47 02 61 50 0 migeon@lippmann.lu www.lippmann.lu

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Public research

Masters of mobility

As IT and telecommunications functionalities converge, mobile smartphones offer previously undreamt-of possibilities to connect people with real-time information – and each other. Researchers at CRP Henri Tudor’s Centre for IT Innovation (CITI) are developing new services to improve mobility.

Ever get stuck in your car in traffic and not know which alternate route to take? Or miss your train because your bus was late? The CARLINK project aims to help solve those problems by delivering timely traffic information to your mobile phone.

As part of a EUREKA consortium that includes participants from Finland and Spain, CRP Henri Tudor, the Automobile Club of Luxembourg (ACL) and Synergiums SA worked together to create a communications and service platform to provide such information. This successful project won bronze in the 2008 Excellence Awards presented by the EUREKA cluster programme Celtic.

Supporting commuters

Djamel Khadraoui, the researcher driving CARLINK at CITI, tells FOCUS how the new capabilities offered by wireless technology can improve mobility. “We need to work to get realtime information to the commuter,” he explains.

“Transportation companies are going to have to change their work processes so they can provide information on a timely basis. And they will have to start communicating.”

Dr Khadraoui, along with some 140,000 others, crosses Luxembourg’s borders every day to come to work in the Grand Duchy. He knows how difficult the commute can be and how valuable real-time information on traffic and transport conditions could be, as well as suggestions about alternate routes. “A big issue, of course, is trust. Is the person reporting an accident or a traffic tie-up giving accurate information? How to authenticate user input is a problem that is still being resolved.”

Alleviating isolation

A new mobility initiative that is a potential EU project is providing services to the elderly. As people age they can become isolated. Dr Khadraoui envisions using the CARLINK platform to connect people with transportation networks that can take them to shops, movies, dances and other places where they can make social connections. Here the challenge is correctly profiling users and ensuring they find employing the service “natural”.

An additional benefit of the platform would be to assist disabled people with mobility aspects, such as providing optimal route information to

Focus 2 – 2009 I 39

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Public research

Eric Dubois, Director and Member of the Management Board, CRP Henri Tudor

wheelchair users. Pedestrian applications involve special challenges for developers. One example is the urban canyon phenomenon, where tall buildings block the satellite communication on which GPS depends.

“But our work is solving well-defined problems.

Our research is highly defined, not theoretical,” asserts Dr Khadraoui.

Promoting public/private partnerships

Eric Dubois, co-head of CITI and a member of CRP Henri Tudor’s Management Board, agrees.

“Since Luxembourg lacks companies that either manufacture hardware, like Cisco, or produce basic software or middleware, like Microsoft, CITI’s niche is developing applications and services that build on the latest advances of both.”

While CITI’s 120-strong staff includes many software engineers, it also boasts business analysts, process managers and even sociologists, reflecting a multidisciplinary approach to projects.

According to Dr Dubois, CITI’s mission includes technology transfer and another, particularly important initiative: the inclusion of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in CITI’s international projects, whether they are set up under the intergovernmental research programme EUREKA or the EU’s Seventh Framework Programme. Since the vast majority of the Grand Duchy’s businesses are SMEs, developing a culture in which their participation in project consortia becomes standard is a significant undertaking. A recent success story in this respect is the role ACL has played in CARLINK. “Cars today have become so sophisticated, with so many sensors and other forms of advanced electronics; we want to exploit them all to assure optimum mobility,” Dr Khadraoui concludes.

CRP Henri Tudor Centre for IT Innovation (CITI) +352 42 59 91 1 eric.dubois@tudor.lu www.citi.tudor.lu

40 I Focus 2 – 2009

Franck Leprévost, Vice-Rector, University of Luxembourg

Having attracted students from 85 countries, should the University of Luxembourg be satisfied with its global mix? In fact, being global works both ways. As part of his responsibility for the university’s international relations, Professor Leprévost is actively building partnerships with other higher education institutes around the world.

Close ties with partners abroad

His first concern was with the university’s requirement that all students spend a term studying outside of Luxembourg. This was the university’s response to the Bologna Process, an agreement that promotes student exchanges between European universities and is greatly facilitated by comparable programmes.

Professor Leprévost has established specific alliances with universities whose curricula are complementary, such as the University of Coimbra in Portugal or the Sorbonne in France.

He is particularly proud of having launched collaborations with three Chinese universities – Renmin, Shandong and Tongji – and believes the relationship with Renmin in Beijing, known for its reputation in finance, will be particularly interesting for the Luxembourg School of Finance. In addition, ties established with US universities in Colorado, Hawaii and Ohio further broaden the university’s global connections.

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Internationalisation brings new ventures to the University of Luxembourg

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Luxembourg, one of the world’s most internationally oriented countries, becomes even more international as the University of Luxembourg builds global ties.

The university’s openness to the wider world is also reflected in its commitment to partnerships driven by technology transfer. University Vice-Rector Professor Dr Franck Leprévost is taking these developments to the next level.

Technology transfer encouraged

The university is also committed to fostering technology transfer and exploiting the results of its research. An early success story is the creation of AxoGlia Therapeutics SA, an innovative company which develops drugs for use in the treatment of neurodegenerative and neuroinflammatory diseases based on research results from the University of Luxembourg and two French research institutions.

The recently launched Integrated BioBank of Luxembourg project and the Integrated Systems Biology project, which join researchers from the Grand Duchy with colleagues from Phoenix and Seattle in the US, pave the way for further success stories. It is hoped that discoveries in understanding diseases at the genetic level will lead to the establishment of spin-off companies.

Other research areas at the university, such as the Photovoltaics Laboratory and the Laboratory of Algorithmics, Cryptology and Security (LACS), which originally drew Professor Leprévost to Luxembourg, are pursuing work with broad commercial potential as well.

Aside from encouraging a spirit of innovation, the Grand Duchy has implemented concrete policies to stimulate the valorisation of research results.

Chief among these is a law passed at the end of 2007 that establishes favourable tax treatment for intellectual property-related revenue.

Professor Leprévost believes this provides a real

incentive to researchers to think enterprisingly, as well as to the university to support such work, as it also benefits financially from the intellectual property produced in its faculties.

Researchers in motion: Euraxess Luxembourg

A new service has recently been launched to assist researchers who would like to relocate to Luxembourg as well as researchers from Luxembourg who wish to acquire experience abroad. The Grand Duchy’s decision to join the Euraxess network reflects its desire to support international opportunities for researchers. It is a joint initiative of the university, the three public research centres and two government ministries. For incoming researchers, Euraxess lists current vacancies in the public research arena and information about entry requirements and life in the Grand Duchy. For Luxembourg researchers looking abroad, it provides links to the EU’s Euraxess Portal and the Euraxess sites of 34 other nations. www.euraxess.lu

University of Luxembourg +352 46 66 44 1 seve.infos@uni.lu communication@uni.lu www.uni.lu

Focus 2 – 2009 I 41

Public research

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Marco Walentiny, President, Luxinnovation

Luxinnovation: Making innovation happen

Luxembourg is hungry for ideas. As a high value adding, high knowledge economy, it embraces innovation and research, wherever it might come from. Luxinnovation is the Grand Duchy’s one-stop-shop for entrepreneurs and researchers seeking a return on their knowledge. We spoke to its president Marco Walentiny about how to make innovation thrive in Luxembourg.

“Luxinnovation is the nexus for businesses and researchers to find clients and technology partners, as well as showcasing potential and existing research work,” points out Mr Walentiny.

“High-tech start-ups will find answers here too.”

As Luxembourg’s national agency for innovation and research, Luxinnovation raises awareness, informs, encourages and advises innovators to stimulate their R&D and innovation activities and facilitate their access to knowledge and technology.

Moreover, the agency offers them an access point for state funding, helps promote interesting research results and is there to assist high-tech start-ups every step of the way. “Luxinnovation plays a multifaceted role of identifying needs and seeking out potential partners,” says Mr Walentiny.

It is an important national player. Founded 25 years ago, it is supported by six private/ public partners: the Ministry of the Economy and Foreign Trade; the Ministry of Culture, Higher Education and Research; the Ministry of the Middle Classes, Tourism and Housing; the Luxembourg Chamber of Commerce; the Luxembourg Chamber of Skilled Crafts and Fedil – Business Federation Luxembourg.

42 I Focus 2 – 2009

Tapping into the knowledge pool

“You don’t always need to reinvent the wheel,” notes Mr Walentiny. In many cases, the implementation of solutions and technologies already developed by research institutions allows new innovations to take form. Locally Luxinnovation is in close touch with the University of Luxembourg and the Grand Duchy’s public research centres, organisations which built up substantial practical knowledge through close cooperation with local businesses and international colleagues.

The private sector too may have the solution or the potential for partnership. So the government has asked Luxinnovation to drive the concept of innovative clusters, bringing together businesses and researchers with common interests in Luxembourg. Since 2002 the following clusters have emerged: SurfMat concerns surfaces and new materials; InfoCom brings together ICT professionals; AeroSpace encompasses aviation and space experts, and BioHealth is at the heart of the health technologies industry.

In February 2009 the government added EcoDev, a “green” technologies and sustainable development cluster, to this list. As many Luxembourgish

Public research

Speaking up for innovation

Global R&D access point

Luxinnovation is also on hand to advise and support businesses and researchers looking for a place at the table of the international research community. The agency supports researchers and entrepreneurs in their endeavours to participate in European research co-funding programmes and other cross-border partnerships, such as those linked to the EU’s Seventh Framework Programme for research and technological development. It also offers an entry point to research collaboration carried out with support from the European R&D network EUREKA and the programmes of the European Space Agency.

Moreover, Luxinnovation is a member of several multinational networks which can facilitate technology transfer between the public and private entities. It is one of three Luxembourgish partners in the Enterprise Europe Network (EEN), Europe’s largest network in the field of helping SMEs as they go global with their innovative efforts.

Innovation and the implementation of new ideas are crucial for any company wishing to remain competitive in the long run. The Luxembourgish Portal for Innovation and Research (www.innovation.public.lu) is a key instrument for communicating with national enterprises and researchers, and also the access point for local and global actors looking for information and partners. By launching the FOCUS magazine in 2008, Luxinnovation took another step forward in its efforts to inform interested parties internationally on what is happening in Luxembourg.

According to Mr Walentiny, “In collaboration with partners such as the Luxembourg Board of Economic Development, the Chamber of Commerce and Luxembourg for Business, FOCUS allows us to spread the message that the Grand Duchy is the place where ideas grow.”

Bringing business and research together © Luxinnovation

operations are part of global businesses, this adds an international dimension to these efforts.

AeroSpace, BioHealth and EcoDev are also part of specific governmental action plans in favour of knowledge and business development building on space-, health- and environment-based technologies.

Funding for competitiveness

For companies innovating in-house, Luxinnovation provides coaching and access to national support. The government offers research and development aids, and Luxinnovation guides businesses through the process of applying for support. “For this funding to be granted there has to be a clear economic potential to the R&D programme,” notes Mr Walentiny, “but also a degree of technology-failure risk.” The agency can also call upon external consultants to assist firms with their efforts.

Whilst the main focus in Luxembourg has been on manufacturing research, a planned law reform in 2009 will extend support further for the service sector. So be it through the development of new products, systems or processes, Luxinnovation will look to drive forward the country’s creative energies. Despite the downturn, these efforts will continue as business needs to prepare now for the post-crisis world.

As part of its vocation as the key contact point for research and high-tech cooperation, Luxinnovation organises an annual “Business meets research” conference. Here companies and private/public researchers build relationships, explaining their needs and showcasing their technical capabilities. In 2008, a series of workshops bringing together more than 350 participants looked into a wide variety of themes: health, HR, ICT, logistics, materials, risk management and sustainable development.

Luxinnovation, the National Agency for Innovation and Research +352 43 62 63 1 info@luxinnovation.lu www.luxinnovation.lu

Focus 2 – 2009 I 43

Public research

Dr Diederich’s duties at ETH are divided between research, teaching and administrative services.

Assisted by a fellow Luxembourger, Dr Carlo Thilgen, he conducts the research of a 35-member group comprising doctoral and postdoctoral chemists. As Director of the Laboratory of Organic Chemistry, he leads a team of 260 scientists, including nine professors.

“I am highly networked in my research,” explains Dr Diederich. “The majority of my 560 research publications list co-authors from academic and industrial collaborations.” He emphasises the fact that his research options have been almost exclusively interest driven. “I am not saying that fund-based appointed research projects do not work. They do – but the greatest results can be achieved from projects that are close to the heart.” Dr Diederich coordinates a Marie Curie Research Training Network as part of the EU’s Research Framework Programmes. He also works in collaboration with a consortium of multidisciplinary scientists at the Swiss National Centre for Competence in Research in Nanoscale Science, in Basel.

Aimée Hoving

François Diederich, Professor of Organic Chemistry, ETH Zurich

Pursuing research excellence in organic chemistry

The Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH Zurich), with its outstanding research record, ranks among the world’s top universities. 21 Nobel laureates are connected with ETH, of which 10 are chemists. Luxembourg-born Dr François Diederich joined ETH in 1992 and, as Professor of Organic Chemistry, is in charge of his own research group.

He is also a member of Luxembourg’s Higher Committee for Research and Innovation.

Prior to joining ETH Zurich, Dr Diederich was a Professor at the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) for seven years. What prompted his return to Europe? “ETH Zurich was and remains the ideal choice. Its high-level research and teaching, the attractive infrastructure and the long-term commitment of the Swiss government to finance this top research institution are remarkable.”

The ETH Department of Chemistry and Applied Biosciences, in which Dr Diederich is anchored, attracts some of the finest undergraduates, doctoral and postdoctoral fellows in the world.

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One of his four main research interests lies in modern medicinal chemistry with a focus on molecular recognition studies and structurebased drug design. Dr Diederich is currently involved in projects concerning malaria and neglected diseases such as African sleeping sickness or shigellosis. Many of the biological assays to evaluate the efficacy of the newly developed compounds against the underlying parasites are conducted in collaboration with the Swiss Tropical Institute in Basel.

Dr Diederich, who has received numerous prestigious international awards and honours, is keen to share his experience with his home country, as an appointed member of the Luxembourgish Higher Committee for Research and Innovation.

“Luxembourg benefits from a secure financial backing but has yet to build an established reputation and track record. Competition for the best scientists is global and fierce,” Dr Diederich remarks. His aim, through this association, is to encourage and support the Grand Duchy’s increased involvement with international ventures.

ETH Zurich +41 44 63 22 99 2 diederich@org.chem.ethz.ch www.diederich.chem.ethz.ch

Public research

Reliable data inform social policy change Mr Marlier has been in charge of high-level international dossiers for bodies such as the European Commission, the United Nations and several national governments for 20 years. In 2007, he chaired the EU Task-Force on Child Poverty and Well-being whose analysis and recommendations were endorsed by the European Commission and the 27 EU Member States. A reason for his choice to join Luxembourg’s CEPS/INSTEAD in 2002 is that he values its rigorous empirical approach to policy analysis and its commitment to producing sound statistical data. “Robust EU indicators require quality comparative data,” he stresses. One of his main roles at the Centre is to promote its international profile through a strong international presence.

Prior to joining the Centre, he worked inter alia for the Belgian government in the context of the country’s EU Presidency in 2001. As one of his main tasks, he contributed to the design of the methodological framework for developing EU social indicators for use in the OMC and to the first set of EU indicators for social inclusion. The OMC is “a mutual feedback process of planning, targeting, monitoring, examination, comparison and adjustment of countries’ policies, on the basis of shared EU objectives. For the process to be credible, it must be supported by commonly agreed indicators allowing for international, properly contextualised benchmarking,” he explains.

“Social inclusion is the process by which societies combat poverty and social exclusion. Social exclusion is the involuntary exclusion of individuals and groups from society’s political, economic and societal processes, preventing their full participation in the society in which they live.”

At the request of the Luxembourgish Government, Mr Marlier together with Professor Tony Atkinson of the University of Oxford and two other colleagues prepared an academic study in the context of the Grand Duchy’s EU Presidency in 2005.

The emphasis was on improving the monitoring of

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In 2000, the EU’s leaders called on the Member States to cooperate on social policy in order to achieve greater social cohesion. To take account of the diversity of national social protection systems, they agreed that their policy coordination should be handled through an Open Method of Coordination (OMC). Eric Marlier, International Scientific Advisor at CEPS/INSTEAD, is actively involved in this process.

Eric Marlier, International Scientific Advisor, CEPS/INSTEAD

Member States’ social policies and on strengthening EU and national policy analysis. This study had great impact, not least in Luxembourg which is finetuning the assessment of the social impact of its policies.

Mr Marlier presently manages the EU network of independent experts on social inclusion, which covers 31 countries. He has also recently set up a network of 18 partner organisations for the comparative analysis of the main EU data source for the social OMC – the Community Statistics on Income and Living Conditions (EU-SILC). “Involvement in international projects has a dual benefit as the expertise developed there also provides useful input for the national studies which the Centre carries out for various Luxembourg ministries.”

CEPS/INSTEAD +352 58 58 55 51 4 eric.marlier@ceps.lu

Headed by Director Dr Pierre Hausman, CEPS/INSTEAD is a research centre specialising in population, poverty and socioeconomic policy studies.

The acronym CEPS/INSTEAD stands for Centre d’études de populations, de pauvreté et de politiques socioéconomiques / International network for studies in technology, environment, alternatives, development.

www.ceps.lu

Focus 2 – 2009 I 45

Did you know it’s from Luxembourg?

Luxembourg’s outstanding contribution to New York’s One World Trade Center

One of the world’s smallest countries, Luxembourg has produced the world’s largest steel beams for the foundations of New York’s iconic One World Trade Center tower, formerly called the Freedom Tower. ArcelorMittal’s steel plant in Differdange is the only mill worldwide capable of producing the high-strength, recycled giant steel sections.

“Ongoing analysis and testing has further improved this prestigious product,” explains engineer Bob Manet. The 9 m to 17 m beams have been shipped over 6,000 km to the United States. Planned for completion in 2012, the 541 m structure will replace the twin towers of the World Trade Centre, which were destroyed in the 9/11 disaster in 2001. www.arcelormittal.com

46 I Focus 2 – 2009

© nvision

Did you know it’s from Luxembourg?

Focus 2 – 2009 I 47

blitz agency

five questions for…

48 I Focus 2 – 2009

FIVE questions for…

Five questions for …

Mr Adrien Ney, President and Chief Executive Officer of LuxairGroup

Luxair is the national airline of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg.

Thanks to its extensive network, Luxair provides travel opportunities for both business and leisure travellers and also plays an important part in the economic development of the Grand Duchy and adjoining regions in France and Germany.

Adrien Ney joined LuxairGroup in June 2005. Prior to this, he had pursued a top-flight banking career with Commerzbank International. A rewarding time, which enabled him to gain international experience in several countries including Ireland and the United States.

What does innovation mean to you personally?

Innovation is a key issue, especially during tough times such as the ones we are experiencing at the moment. A crisis always is a period of outstanding invention and creativity; it cannot be managed by going about your business as you would normally do. You have to find new products, new business ideas, new ways of communicating and so on. Despite the hardship a crisis can be an opportunity to reinvent your company, and most of us are forced to do so.

What role does innovation play in your company?

We innovate, or we perish. Competition is fierce.

The market moves, our targets move – you have to stay ahead of the game. Anyone who thinks that he can pursue business as usual is putting the survival of his company at risk. New problems call for new solutions.

What was the most important development of your company during the past five years?

Without doubt, the “Building a new Airline” programme, which was launched in June 2006. It gave birth to an entirely new structure. Luxair evolved into LuxairGroup, structured into four business units. Luxair Luxembourg Airlines covers business destinations throughout Europe.

LuxairTours offers a full range of holiday packages. LuxairCARGO is our freight handling expert, and LuxairServices specialises in catering, maintenance, facilities and so forth.

The programme was accompanied by a major communication campaign, a re-branding exercise and a firm commitment to a new corporate

culture. We are delighted with the results.

Particularly so as the programme also appears to have increased our ability to deal with unexpected developments, such as the unprecedented crisis that has unfolded over the past few months.

What key challenges does your company face at the moment?

The financial and economic turmoil precipitated in late 2008 has not spared the aviation industry. Many airlines had already been weakened by soaring fuel prices, and at least 29 have disappeared in the past year. Most of our corporate clients are running cost-cutting programmes and reviewing their travel policy. Private clients are reluctant to book vacations. Air freight is also going down: in January 2009 LuxairCARGO handled 24 % tons less than in January 2008.

This generates many challenges. How can we be even more flexible and adapt our products to the changing needs of our clients, be they corporate or private? How can we bring down cost, since we have no real influence on the crisis as such?

What do you consider as the most important factors for your company to remain competitive over the coming 5 to 10 years?

Stick to the clients’ needs, offer a high-quality service, make the right investments at the appropriate moment and keep an eye on the cost evolution.

LuxairGroup +352 24 56 1 information@luxair.lu

www.luxair.lu

Focus 2 – 2009 I 49

The rdi directory

The RDI directory Governmental portal for innovation and research www.innovation.public.lu

Ministries

Ministry of the Economy and Foreign Trade Directorate of Research and Innovation 19-21, boulevard Royal L-2914 Luxembourg Phone : + 352 24 78 41 28 I Fax : + 352 26 20 27 68 innovation@eco.public.lu www.eco.public.lu

Research and innovation agencies

Luxinnovation GIE National Agency for Innovation and Research 7, rue Alcide de Gasperi L-1615 Luxembourg Phone : +352 43 62 63 1 I Fax: +352 43 81 20 info@luxinnovation.lu www.luxinnovation.lu

National Research Fund Luxembourg 6, rue Antoine de Saint-Exupéry P.O. Box 1777 L-1017 Luxembourg Phone : +352 26 19 25 1 I Fax: +352 26 19 25 35 info@fnr.lu www.fnr.lu

Board of Economic Development Ministry of the Economy and Foreign Trade 19-21, boulevard Royal L-2914 Luxembourg Phone : +352 24 78 43 45 I Fax: +352 26 20 27 68 info@bed.public.lu www.bed.public.lu

Société Nationale de Crédit et d’Investissement P.O. Box 1207 L-1012 Luxembourg Phone : + 352 46 19 71 1 I Fax : + 352 46 19 79 snci@snci.lu www.snci.lu

Chamber of Commerce 7, rue Alcide de Gasperi L-2981 Luxembourg Phone : + 352 42 39 39 1 I Fax : + 352 43 83 26 chamcom@cc.lu www.cc.lu

Luxembourg for Business GIE 19-21, boulevard Royal L- 2449 Luxembourg Phone : + 352 24 78 41 16 I Fax : + 352 22 34 85 info@luxembourgforbusiness.lu www.luxembourgforbusiness.lu

University of Luxembourg 162A, avenue de la Faïencerie L-1511 Luxembourg Phone : + 352 46 66 44 1 seve.infos@uni.lu I communication@uni.lu www.uni.lu

University of Luxembourg Researcher Mobility Centre EURAXESS Service Centre Luxembourg 162A, avenue de la Faïencerie L-1511 Luxembourg Phone : + 352 46 66 44 66 81 I Fax : + 352 46 66 44 67 60 euraxess@uni.lu www.euraxess.lu

Public Research Centre Gabriel Lippmann 41, rue du Brill L-4422 Belvaux Phone : + 352 47 02 61 1 I Fax : + 352 47 02 64 contact@lippmann.lu www.lippmann.lu

Public Research Centre Henri Tudor 29, avenue John F. Kennedy L-1855 Luxembourg Phone : + 352 42 59 91 1 I Fax : + 352 42 59 91 77 7 info@tudor.lu www.tudor.lu

Public Research Centre Santé Bâtiment Thomas Edison 1A-B, rue Thomas Edison L-1445 Strassen Phone : +352 26 97 08 93 I Fax : + 352 26 97 07 19 aurelia.derischebourg@crp-sante.lu www.crp-sante.lu

CEPS/INSTEAD 44, rue Emile Mark L-4620 Differdange Phone : + 352 58 58 55 1 I Fax : + 352 58 55 60 communication@ceps.lu www.ceps.lu

Ecostart Enterprise and Innovation Centre c/o Ministry of the Economy and Foreign Trade 19-21, boulevard Royal L-2449 Luxembourg Phone : + 352 24 78 41 85 I Fax : + 352 26 20 27 68 mario.grotz@eco.etat.lu www.ecostart.lu

Technoport Public Research Centre Henri Tudor P.O. Box 144 L-4002 Esch-sur-Alzette Phone : + 352 352 42 59 91 1 I Fax : + 352 42 59 91 55 5 info@technoport.lu www.technoport.lu

Invest in Luxembourg

Luxembourg business promotion

Main public research organisations

Incubators

50 I Focus – 2 2009

Ministry of Culture, Higher Education and Research Department of Research and Innovation 20, montée de la Pétrusse L-2273 Luxembourg Phone : + 352 24 78 52 19 I Fax : + 352 46 09 27 recherche@mcesr.public.lu www.mcesr.public.lu www.recherche.lu

Research in Luxembourg.

For you. For your life.

Research gives us quality of life. That’s why the National Research Fund (FNR) supports the promotion of science in society. And that’s why the FNR funds national and international research projects. For you. For your life.

See what’s behind on www.fnr.lu

INVESTIGATING FUTURE CHALLENGES

My choice for innovative Business. investinluxembourg.lu High technology environment

Rewarding tax environment

Highly skilled, multilingual workforce

Competitive business costs

Easy access to decision-makers

State-of-the-art infrastructures

Attractive IP destination

Investment and R&D incentives

Business-friendly legal and regulatory framework

High quality of life

Luxembourg, the prime business location.