Browse through a selection of Energy Innovation Organizations in Western Switzerland
Swiss Competence Centers for Energy Research
The Swiss Competence Centers for Energy Research (SCCERs) are looking for solutions to the technical, social and political challenges relating to the 2050 Energy Strategy. Eight SCCERs are currently working on seven action areas. The centres bring together academia and industry, going a long way towards ensuring the transfer of knowledge and technology. They deal with the full spectrum of the energy innovation chain, from basic research and applied R&D to legal, regulatory and behavioural aspects. The SCCERs also provide research infrastructures as well as many opportunities to network with key experts and young researchers from the areas concerned. CHF 120 million has been allocated to carry out this mandate in the 2017 – 2020 period. For the promotion of innovation projects, Innosuisse has earmarked an additional CHF 19 million on top of the regular budget for the same period.
With five sites nationwide, Switzerland Innovation offers universities and companies the opportunity to network. It creates a platform for domestic and international companies of all kinds – a platform allowing companies to further their research activities in partnership with Swiss universities and higher-education institutions.
The smart living lab project is a cutting-edge, inter-disciplinary, interinstitutional platform that combines several lines of research related to construction technologies: material sciences and renewable energy production systems that take into account aspects that are related to the occupation of a building, living space and housing, such as comfort, health and air quality. It aims to be a center of national scope, recognized on an international level and involving a variety of players and institutions.
Founded in 2014, Bluefactory Fribourg-Freiburg SA has the mission to promote, develop, build, operate and animate the innovative district blueFACTORY located in the heart of Fribourg, by interconnecting all the companies located on its site, all the promoters of innovative projects and all the partners of the hub by acting as incubator and developers of ideas.
School of Management and Engineering Vaud
Located in Yverdon-les-Bains, the School of Management and Engineering Vaud (HEIG-VD - Haute Ecole d'Ingénierie et de Gestion du Canton de Vaud) offers ten Bachelor programs in engineering and business management. With its 1,600 Bachelor students, it is the largest partner in the University of Applied Sciences of Western Switzerland. HEIG-VD offers ten Bachelor of Science programmes, among which: Energy and Environmental Engineering, Microengineering, Systems Engineering, Electrical Engineering, and Computer Science & Engineering.
Services Industriels de Genéve - SIG
SIG is a Swiss supplier of local energy services. The company serves 250,000 clients in the canton of Geneva, providing water, gas, electricity and thermal energy. SIG manages wastewater, waste recycling and also offers energy and telecommunications services. All SIG activities seek to promote smarter energy consumption, within a framework of on-going sustainable development.
CleantechAlps provides a gateway to clean technology in western Switzerland. Whether you are a research organisation, an SME or a start-up, the CleantechAlps cluster gives you visibility, support and networking opportunities. As part of their strategy to promote different industrial sectors, the conference of ministers of economic affairs of western Switzerland decided to launch subject platforms. CleantechAlps is one of them, the others are BioAlps for life sciences, AlpICT for information and communication technology and Micronarc for micro- and nanotechnology.
Read the brochure "An Overview of Cleantech Start-Ups".
Initiated by the State of Valais with the support of the City of Sion, the Energypolis Campus enables the Valais to be an integral part of the extended EPFL campus in Western Switzerland and to benefit from its national and international impact. The Energypolis Campus is part of Switzerland Innovation, which wants to position Switzerland as a world leader in innovation. In Western Switzerland, the Swiss Innovation Park Network West EPFL consists of EPFL, five cantons and six locations: Campus Biotech (GE), Blue Factory (FR), Microcity (NE), EPFL Innovation Park and Biopôle (VD) as well as Campus Energypolis (VS).
CSEM is a private, non-profit Swiss research and technology organization focused on generating value for a sustainable world. CSEM is a national innovation accelerator—a catalyst for the transfer of technologies and know-how from fundamental research to industry. This role involves four principal tasks: we develop and maintain technology platforms, we integrate and combine technologies into workable systems, we mature those technologies until using them will add value to our industrial clients, then we support the process of transferring those technologies to industry.
MassChallenge is the most startup-friendly accelerator on the planet. No equity and not-for-profit, we are obsessed with helping entrepreneurs across any industry. We also reward the highest-impact startups through a competition to win a portion of several million dollars in equity-free cash awards. Through our global network of accelerators in Boston, the UK, Israel, Switzerland, Mexico, and Texas; and unrivaled access to our corporate partners, we can have a massive impact - driving growth and creating value the world over. To date, 1,211 MassChallenge alumni have raised over $2 billion in funding, generated approximately $900 million in revenue, and created over 65,000 total jobs.
With an area of over 50 hectares, Y-PARC – Swiss Technopole offers many opportunities for carrying out research & development as well as industrial production. More than 150 companies with about 1,200 employees have already been convinced by Y-PARC. From start-ups through SMEs to multinationals, all have discovered an environment as well as solutions tailored to their needs.
The diversity of their skills and activities — especially in information and communication technology, precision engineering, and medical technologies — offers a rich potential for synergies and innovation.
OPI is a foundation under private law that was founded in 1976. It originated from the Geneva government’s desire to support its industries. Approximately ten years ago the Foundation acquired a Lake Geneva basin dimension by being co-financed by the Canton of Vaud in addition to the State of Geneva. Since 2003, the OPI has also been mandated by the Conference of Departments of Economic Affairs of Western Switzerland (CDEP-SO) which gives it a French-speaking regional dimension.
The Greater Geneva Bern area (GGBa) is the investment promotion agency for Western Switzerland, bringing together the cantons of Bern, Fribourg, Vaud, Neuchâtel, Geneva and Valais. Its mission is to provide support to foreign companies allowing them to get established quickly and develop their activities in Western Switzerland. Since its creation in 2010, the GGBa, in cooperation with the cantonal economic promotion agencies, has guided over 400 companies from around the world in launching their activities in the region.
Since 1998, the HES-SO University of Applied Sciences and Arts Western Switzerland has become a great source of skills, ideas, innovation, creativity and knowledge. The HES-SO is recognised by the Confederation and member of swissuniversities.
With its six faculties and network of schools of higher education, the HES-SO plays a preeminent role in the socio-economic and cultural development of the seven cantons of Western Switzerland and is a recognised player within the Swiss and international landscape of higher education. With 21,000 students, the HES-SO is the largest UAS in Switzerland. Its study programs and research activities are divided into six faculties: Design and Fine Arts; Business, Management and Services; Engineering and Architecture; Music and Performing Arts; Health; and Social Work.