EIT RawMaterials: Consolidating Europe’s top research on raw materials

€400 million – this is how much the European Institute for Innovation and Technology (EIT) has invested since 2015 in its bid to establish a knowledge and innovation community (KIC) to consolidate innovation-oriented research in the area of raw materials within seven years. The associated call was won by the “RawMatTTERS” consortium, which brings together more than 120 universities, research centres and companies from 20 European countries. The Nuremberg Institute of Technology Georg Simon Ohm is part of the KIC, which is now sponsored under the name “EIT RawMaterials”. As an associated partner, the Nuremberg Tech is also the only Bavarian university to join the largest and most widely respected research network for raw materials in Europe.

The KIC’s aim is to develop new processes and products for the long-term investigation, extraction, handling, recycling and substitution of raw materials and to involve key players along the entire value creation chain.

Thanks to ground-breaking innovations, support for start-up companies and effective training for up-and-coming talents, the European raw material sector should be made fit for the future. This includes a stable supply of raw material for Europe, a competitive industry and ultimately new jobs.

The Technische Hochschule Nuremberg is involved in the fields of teaching, research and development. In the area of development, it is working with the Fraunhofer Research Group for “Particle Technology, Raw Material Innovations and Resource Efficiency” and the Centre of Expertise for Analytics, Nanotechnology and Material Technology. In addition to leading German universities, such as the TU Bergakademie Freiberg, the RWTH University Aachen and the TU Clausthal, the consortium also includes the Fraunhofer group and renowned companies such as BASF, DMT and Heraeus. The KIC is based in Berlin.

The journey to success - Fit for the champions league

Its involvement in “EIT RawMaterials” is not only important to the TH Nuremberg from a technical point of view; it also brings with it a great deal of prestige. Like a champions league match, as the university’s president Professor Michael Braun puts it. On its journey to joining the consortium, the university received support from the Bavarian Research Alliance (BayFOR) and Bayern Innovativ’s New Materials Cluster.

BayFOR provided advice during the application process, working closely with the university’s Centre for Knowledge and Technology Transfer (known as the ZWTT). Throughout the course of the seven-year project, BayFOR is on hand to provide the TH Nuremberg with further advice. The New Materials Cluster also supports the Fraunhofer project group for material cycles and resource strategy. As a supporting partner, it applies its expertise in the field of sustainability and resource efficiency and actively supports the “Entrepreneurship” task force.

Find out more at: http://eitrawmaterials.eu