2013 Press Releases

UCC targets €80bn EU research funds

26 Nov 2013
Dr Imelda Lambkin, National Director of Ireland's National Support Network for Horizon 2020, Mr Seán Sherlock, TD Minister for Research and Innovation and Professor Anita Maguire, Vice-President of Research and Innovation, UCC

UCC has established a new project management service, PrimeUCC, to help its researchers win and manage EU Horizon 2020 research and innovation funds worth nearly €80 billion.

PrimeUCC is the first such service of its kind in Ireland and was launched by Mr Seán Sherlock TD Minister of State, Department of Enterprise, Jobs & Innovation and Department of Education & Skills.

Irish higher education institutions have been very successful in competing for EU research awards, securing over 62% of the total Irish draw down of €570 million funding from the 7th Framework Programme for Research (FP7).  UCC performed particularly strongly in this programme receiving more than €67 million from over 190 awards, reflecting a success rate of 20.8% — this compares very favourably to UCC’s performance in the previous European research programme (FP6), in which €30 million was secured in total.

As the EU prepares to launch its next big research and innovation programme, Horizon 2020, UCC Research Support Services are gearing up to help the research community prepare and submit the complex, multi-partner, interdisciplinary proposals. Where bids are successful PrimeUCC will then help staff with grant negotiation, project set-up and implementation. This service will free up researchers to do what they do best by lessening the administrative burden and bringing in financial and other expertise as needed.  PrimeUCC promises to offer the University a significant competitive advantage in competing for Horizon 2020 funding which were approved by the European Parliament last week. 

Minister Sherlock was accompanied by the National Support Network for Horizon 2020 led by Enterprise Ireland who visited UCC to support researchers in preparing for the new EU programme.

Minister Sherlock said:

"A key element of the national strategy for Ireland's participation in Horizon 2020 is to increase engagement by Higher Education Institutes and their associated research centres. I commend this new initiative from UCC and I would like to see it replicated in as many HEI’s as possible.  We are determined at national level to maximise the benefits for Ireland of Horizon 2020 and this initiative, as part of our strengthened national strategic approach, can help Ireland win over €1 billion in awards under the programme."

Dr Michael Murphy, President of UCC said:

“I am delighted that the EU has reached agreement on the c. €80 billion Horizon 2020 programme.  Research and innovation are key drivers of growth and job creation.  The programme represents a new horizon for UCC researchers to come together in multidisciplinary teams, reach out to collaborators in Ireland, Europe and the world, and achieve vital economic and societal impact for their research and innovation.”

Professor Anita Maguire, Vice President for Research and Innovation at UCC said:

“We recognise that EU research proposals can be challenging for busy researchers as typically the projects are large in scope and value, multi-partner and with collaborators dispersed across Europe and further afield. Project management is vital to support researchers bid for proposals in the first place and then to implement the subsequent projects. Horizon 2020 offers opportunities to research teams across a very broad range of disciplines from science and engineering to humanities and the social sciences, and indeed transdisciplinary engagement is particularly encouraged. We hope to build on our success in the last EU programme (FP7) with even more successful bids for projects which will give us access to non-exchequer funds at a time when funding at national level for higher education is diminishing.”

UCC is an internationally-competitive, research-led university that plays a key role in the development of Ireland’s knowledge economy. In the recently published Sunday Times University League Table of Irish Universities, UCC topped the research category for the third year in a row.

UCC researchers collaborate with close to 700 of the world’s top universities across 110 countries and 62% of Ireland’s most highly cited researchers are from the University.  UCC’s research income was €401 million over the past five year period.   

The University leads four and co-leads a fifth of seven centres created by Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) in the largest joint state/industry research investment in Irish history worth €300 million announced last February. At the recent SFI Summit in Athlone, UCC Professor, Fergus Shanahan, was named this year’s SFI Researcher of the Year. Professor Shanahan is a leading international expert in gastrointestinal research and Director of the SFI funded Alimentary Pharmabiotic Centre in UCC.

At the international level, income from new awards from the EU in the last financial year (2011/2012) topped €13 million, a 170% increase since 2008/2009. Non-exchequer funding now accounts for 25% of UCC’s research income, up from 17% in 2009/2010.  

UCC’s research has helped to both create and sustain jobs. The University has established 12 spinout companies since 2008, which currently employ 110 people.  The University has signed over 70 licences (including options and assignments) in the last five years with both SMEs and Irish based multinationals.

Ends

University College Cork

Coláiste na hOllscoile Corcaigh

College Road, Cork T12 K8AF

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