Startup Europe Awards

ASIME AND FINNOVA LAUNCH SEUA-MINDTECH AWARDS

ASIME AND FINNOVA LAUNCH SEUA-MINDTECH AWARDS

Mindtech (Metal Industry and Technologies International Trade Fair), Finnova Foundation and the EU launch the second edition of SEUA- Mindtech Awards


These awards seek to highlight the best projects and innovative initiatives undertaken by businesses as well as to help them develop their projects and get EU funds


The call for awards, which will close on 15 August, is open to European companies with relevant projects dealing with innovation, 4.0 technologies, circular economy, corporate social responsibility, mobility and start-ups

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Brussels, 16 June 2021. On 15 June, the second edition of SEUA-Mindtech Awards was launched. This new call is targeted at all companies or entities (both start-ups and consolidated companies) located in Europe and having a relevant project or background in one of the six already mentioned categories. Deadline for applications will close on 15 August.

SEUA-Mindtech Awards have been organized together with the EU and will be held during the second edition of the international trade fair Mindtech on 14-16 September in Vigo. They will be delivered during the gala dinner on 14 September.

These awards are organized in collaboration with StartUp Europe Awards (SEUA), an initiative of open innovation set up by the European Commission and implemented by Finnova Foundation. It has the support of the President of the European Parliament, the President of the Committee of the Regions, the Vice-President of the Economic and Social Committee and various MEPs.

The jury for these awards was formed in Asime’s HQ in Vigo. It consists of the organisers of the fair as well as other relevant institutions in the innovation and entrepreneurship sectors, i.e. Asime, Finnova, Igape, Gain, Concello de Vigo, Deputación de Pontevedra, Icex, Ifevi, CZFV and Abanca.

After the jury was selected, some of its members said that “these awards are an excellent example of how promising the metal industry and its associated technologies are at an international level. This is actually the main focus of Mindtech, which has consolidated itself as the best platform to exhibit the enormous value of our industry in the current time of economic recovery after corona”.

Awards will be delivered according to six different categories. Applications will be considered based on criteria like sustainability, innovation, business models, social impact, European outreach and commitment to SDGs:

  • Innovation Award. Best innovative company.
  • 4.0 Award. Best company implementing Industry 4.0 technologies.
  • StartUp Award. Best Start-Up or Spin Off.
  • CSR Award. Best organization helping develop an inclusive and permanent Corporate Social Responsibility.
  • Circular Economy Award. Best company optimizing the life cycle of resources, from eco-designing to reduction, recycling, fixing and reuse.
  • Mobility Award. Best initiative promoting a disruptive change in mobility.

Awards will be delivered during the Mindtech gala dinner on 14 September. The winner in the start-up category will additionally receive a €5,000 acceleration cheque funded by the Xunta de Galicia. The winner may exchange the cheque for mentoring services to get EU funding, networking and other consulting and support activities through Finnova Foundation. Jury will choose a winner based on a previous public election of 10 finalists. 

Finnova’s CEO Juanma Revuelta said that “winners may count on Finnova’s support to get EU funds for innovation (Horizon Europe) under EIC – which offers up to €15M in investment and €2.5M in grants for entrepreneurs and SMEs –, or LIFE, – which offers up to €2M, 60% outright grant, for projects dealing with environmental innovations, circular economy, climate change and renewable energies”.

About Mindtech

Mindtech is a leading industrial fair in the Iberian Peninsula. During its first edition, Mindtech hosted over 200 stands, 20,000 visitors, 10 different countries, 24 international speakers, more than 250 B2B meetings and 7 awarded companies. This year, Mindtech will turn Vigo once more into a hub of knowledge and innovation.

Top-notch companies from many areas like the automotive, aeronautics, metal mechanics, metallic structures and renewable energies industries will once again show up in this event. The startup arena will showcase future technologies and business models and will also host a brokerage event so that startups can look for funding. In addition, there will be on-site and online B2B meetings in order to foster highly valued trade contacts. Finally, the Mindtech International Conference will address the last trends and novelties at an international scale.

For more info, click on www.mindtechvigo.com

About Finnova Foundation

Finnova Foundation is a Belgian-Spanish foundation providing funds for innovative projects. Its objectives are to promote private-public cooperation through innovation in order to address social challenges, e.g. employment, training, entrepreneurship, SDGs, circular economy, etc. As a staunch defender of innovation, Finnova has been organizing the Startup Europe Awards since 2016. This is an initiative launched by the European Comission’s DG Connect.

Finnova’s HQs are located both in Belgium and across Spain – in the Valencian Community, the Basque Country, Andalusia, Madrid and the Canary Islands. It also has branches in Chile and Panama.

For more info, click on https://web.finnovaregio.org/

About Startup Europe Awards

Startup Europe Awards is an initiative by DG CONNECT and has been implemented by Finnova Foundation since 2016. Startup Europe Awards are an innovative mechanism aimed at identifying disruptive startups promoting private-public partnership alliances. They also seek to raise awareness on the importance of self-entrepreneurship as a driving force for job creation. In addition to promoting networks to meet the UN SDGs and the European Green Deal objectives, they also contribute to circular economy, sustainable tourism and fighting against climate change.

For more info, click on http://startupeuropeawards.eu/

About Startup Europe Accelerathon

Startup Europe Accelerathon seeks to identify innovative ideas eligible for EU funding including LIFE, the Green Deal, Horizon 2020 or NextGenerationEU. Startup Europe Accelerathon aims to contribute to all UN SDGs, and is part of the broader methodology Startup Europe Awards by DG CONNECT. It was set up by DG Research and Development in 2020 with paneuropean campaign Hackthevirus. Startup Europe Accelerathon has had successful results, such as project involving the Valencian Community government dealing with industrial toxic wastewaters or the one involving the Andalusia government dealing with climate change, forests, innovative preventive mechanisms, fight against bushfires and recovery of burnt areas.

For more info, click on www.accelerathon.eu

About Startup Europe      

Startup Europe is an initiative from the European Commission which serves as a meeting point for cutting-edge start-ups, scale-ups, investors, accelerators, corporate networks, universities and the media. It has the support of a project pipeline funded by the EU and of policies such as the EU Start-up Nation Standard; the Innovation Radar and the Digital Innovation and Scale-up initiative (DISC). It is fully aligned with the European Commission’s strategy for SMEs.

For more info, click on https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/policies/startup-europe