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Innovation Circle, an initiative of essenscia dedicated to the free assistance to entrepreneurs and startups in chemistry and life sciences.
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© The Innovation Fund
o Lower row from left to right: Yves Verschueren (essenscia), Staf Van Reet (Janssen Pharma), Jean-Marie Solvay (Solvay), Carl Van Camp (Total) Middle row from left to right: Sonja Willems (Janssen Pharma), Guido Vandervorst (Deloitte), Koenraad Debackere (KU Leuven), Edouard Croufer (Exxon, UCB), Jacques Maigné (Hutchinson) Upper row from left to right: Luc Vansteenkiste (Recticel), Silvio Ghyoot (AlbeMarle), François Cornelis (Chairman), Christian Jourquin (Solvay)
In order to respond to requests from abroad, and notably France, a French member has been appointed to the board. International exposure is on the agenda.
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Subjects to be studied and discussed are selected by the general secretary. Edith Coune is the former head of communication of BASF Belgium. She keeps contacts with the technology transfer offices (TTO’s) of the universities, the research institutes, the incubators and the public innovation clusters. She maintains an active network in the chemical world.
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In 2015, Innovation Circle decided to create a fund to be able to help entrepreneurs in their financing. The board members contributed each 50.000€ for one share of the new fund. Leaning on that building block, Innovation Fund raised from other parties more than 35Mo€, aiming at co-financing close to 50 new ventures over a period of 12 years.
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Innovation Circle is, by statute, limited to 13 board members, captains of industry and academics, who contribute free time to the association. Innovation Circle meets once a month for a two hours meeting and a dinner. It is hosted by essenscia, Belgian federation of the chemicals and the life sciences industries. It is supported by Deloitte, which contributes 75 days of free consultancy per year.
Since its inception, Innovation Circle has already reviewed more than 100 projects. Half of the presented projects were related to process technology, a Belgian specialty. Other projects came from the material sciences, circular economy, biosciences and medical devices domains.
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t was created in 2013, in the footsteps of essencia’s first Innovation Award. François Cornelis, ex-CEO of Petrofina and Chairman of the Chemicals of Total, chaired the Awards’ jury. Impressed by the quantity of innovative projects emerging from the chemical and life sciences ecosystem in Belgium, he decided its creation with the help of experienced CEO’s of the industry.
their financial model, their search for public subsidies or marketing advice. The meeting will generally appoint a board member volunteering as “godfather” to the project who will accompany the entrepreneurs for the following years.
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Innovation Circle is a non-profit association dedicated to the free assistance to entrepreneurs and startups in the Chemicals and the Life Sciences.
c/o essenscia Boulevard Auguste Reyers 80 - 1030 Schaerbeek Tel.: +32 475 90 15 10 Email: edith.coune@gmail.com - https://innovationfund.eu/
Presentations to the board are being made by entrepreneurs looking for industrial contacts, business consultancy, assistance in 77
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Innovation Fund sa/nv
