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A new member within EIPG


The European Industrial Pharmacists Group (EIPG) is pleased to announce the Romanian Association (AFFI) as its newest member following the annual General Assembly of EIPG in Rome (20th-21st April 2024). Commenting on the continued growth of EIPG’s membership, EIPG President Read more

The EU Parliament voted its position on the Unitary SPC


by Giuliana Miglierini The intersecting pathways of revision of the pharmaceutical and intellectual property legislations recently marked the adoption of the EU Parliament’s position on the new unitary Supplementary Protection Certificate (SPC) system, parallel to the recast of the current Read more

Reform of pharma legislation: the debate on regulatory data protection


by Giuliana Miglierini As the definition of the final contents of many new pieces of the overall revision of the pharmaceutical legislation is approaching, many voices commented the possible impact the new scheme for regulatory data protection (RDP) may have Read more

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EU’s Industrial Forum, the future of advanced manufacturing technologies

October 6, 2023 , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

by Giuliana Miglierini

The expert group “Industrial Forum” is a multistakeholder body created by the European Commission to support the implementation of the Industrial Strategy launched in March 2020 and its following update of May 2021. Its members include Member States authorities, NGOs, industrial representations, research institutions and social partners representing different industrial ecosystems.

Its recently published report is the result of the structured dialogue among members on how to accelerate the deployment of advanced manufacturing technologies (AMTs) across the European industry. Among members which participated in the drafting of the document is also EuropaBio on behalf of the biomanufacturing industry.

Europe is leader in advanced manufacturing

Advanced manufacturing is based on the integration and convergence of the most advanced industrial technologies, i.e. automation, robotics, artificial intelligence and digitally connected solutions. New processes, new products as well as new business models based on this new approach are deemed to represent a fundamental competitive factor in the next few years.

Europe is currently well position in the ranking on “future of production” readiness, with 18 out of 25 countries considered by the World Economic Forum to be leading the change in manufacturing. Despite this, according to the report many efforts are still needed to accelerate the implementation of advanced manufacturing technologies in the EU, so not to be superseded by other fast-evolving competitors.

In order to achieve this challenging goal, the Industrial Forum identified seven different areas of attention, each of which is addressed by specific recommendations based on a SWOT analysis.

The seven areas of recommendation

The transition to new manufacturing models should, first of all, meet the EU sustainability goals established by the European Green Deal: the “net-zero industry” plan for renewables and industrial efficiency technologies is confirmed as a priority action, together with the expansion of the use of REPowerEU. The Commission is working on new energy savings directives, which should be timely implemented. Circularity of manufacturing processes and products is another main goal of EU’s industrial policies, to be supported by a set of new fit-for-purpose rules. A more rapid uptake of advanced manufacturing technologies should also be supported by both the availability of specific public procurement guidance and a targeted communication of the environmental benefits of European clean technologies.

The second area of action addresses how to improve access to capital, a key factor in ensuring the timely implementation of advanced manufacturing technologies. This may include a better use of public investment, as well as a cautious application of state aid instruments specifically targeted at later stages in the innovation and deployment process. The potential of these new technologies for sustainability should also be recognised within the upcoming EU Taxonomy de-legated acts.

The resilience of supply chains could be tackled by the rapid implementation of AMTs. In order to achieve this goal, the Industrial Forum highlighted the need for workable and proportionate rules on Due Diligence. No less important is the negotiation and activation of new Free Trade Agreements with third countries (such as the EU-Mercosur FTA). A critical area refers to the improvement of EU semiconductor capacity. According to the report, incentives and funding aimed to increase the supply chain resilience should be exempt from directing specific outcomes. The European institutions should also better support the local and regional industrial supply chains. Secure access to critical raw materials should be pursued by leveraging the trade policy.

The building of an EU Single Market is a main goal of the European Commission, also in the pharmaceutical field. Its freedoms should be safeguarded by narrowing down the scope of the Single Market Emergency Instrument, while promoting mitigation measures for advanced manufacturing. The Industrial Forum also recommends the availability of a single platform to provide companies with all the needed information to expand and/or export. Furthermore, a Single Market test should be included in the impact assessments of national laws to minimise the occurrence of gold-plating phenomena. New standards for AMTs would also be needed, an area which according to the Industrial Forum should conjugate an enhanced flexibility in standardisation requests and timely delivery in standard setting. Digital product standardisation should also be promoted, and adhesion to the New Legislative Framework should be ensured.

Data is a fundamental asset of the new economy. Recommendations in this area include supporting existing initiatives to create a strong European manufacturing data space, as well as ad-dressing the protection of both personal data and intellectual property rights and trade secrets. As artificial intelligence (AI) will assume an increasingly relevant role in future advanced manufacturing processes, the Forum recommends the development of clear, focused criteria on high-risk AI, while avoiding unnecessary regulation of industrial AI.

The availability of data should be pursued through the identification of a method for data collection in the advanced manufacturing category. It would also be important to generate trusted data sets at the European level for advanced manufacturing deployment, global competitive position, and economic / environmental / societal gains.

Many new skills will be needed in the next few years to handle the expansion of AMTs. To this instance, the Industrial Forum highlighted the importance to promote the harmonisation of Vocational Education and Training (VET) practices and qualification systems and to encourage women and girls to study STEM subjects and working in manufacturing. Other recommendations re-fer to the possibility of developing a Pact for Skills partnership and the proposal of a Blueprint Alliance for Advanced Manufacturing. A better entrepreneurial culture in Europe should also be promoted, as well as capitalisation on European creative industries.

Examples of biomanufacturing

Weaknesses to biomanufacturing identified by the Industrial Forum include the fact that it is still an emerging production process compared to chemical manufacturing. The report also mentions existing regulatory barriers, mainly linked to a process rather than product approvals pathway. Furthermore, significant investments in biomanufacturing are primarily located outside Europe. Possible risks identified by the report also refer to biomanufacturing being excluded or overlooked in key policymaking e.g. taxonomy supporting biomanufacture and sustainable financing.

The report includes two examples of AMTs linked to the health and agrifood sector. Chimeric antigen receptor T cells (CAR-T) represent one of the main areas of innovation in cancer treatment over the past two decades, in which the patient’s immune cells are engineered to produce the final immunotherapy. Many pharmaceutical companies are building specialised manufacturing facilities for CAR-T therapies within Europe, a biomanufacturing process which is highly complex and patient-specific, and requires long term investments, skills development, and integration into the European Union industrial base.

Biomanufacturing may also be applied to the production of vitamin B2 (riboflavin), that multi-step chemical synthesis is complex, requires hazardous agents and has low yields (~60%). Biotechnologies allow for the one-step production of vitamin B2, starting from vegetables as carbon sources and using a genetically modified bacterium (Bacillus subtilis) or fungus (Ashbya gossypii).


The Pact for Research and Innovation in Europe

September 17, 2021 , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

by Giuliana Miglierini

The roadmap to support the implementation of the new vision of the European Research Area (ERA) made a concrete step forward on 16 July 2021, with the adoption by the European Commission of the proposal for a Council Recommendation on “A Pact for Research and Innovation in Europe”. The chosen form of a Recommendation supports the final adoption of the Pact in the form of a single non-binding initiative.
The Commission’s proposal was drafted taking into consideration the results from the public consultation ran between 15 April and 13 May 2021, the views generated within the ERA Forum for Transition (set up as an informal Commission expert group), and the out-comings of workshops involving selected stakeholders.
“The pandemic has shown us the importance of uniting research and innovation efforts that swiftly bring results to the market. It has shown us the importance of investment in jointly agreed strategic priorities between Member states and the EU. The Pact for Research and Innovation we propose today, will facilitate better collaboration, and join our efforts to tackle research and innovation objectives that matter the most for Europe. And it will allow all of us to learn from each other”, said Margrethe Vestager, EU Commission’s Executive Vice-President for a Europe Fit for the Digital Age.
According to Mariya Gabriel, Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth, “The objective of the Pact is to foster the future dialogue process with key actors putting a clear emphasis on sharing best practices and facilitating the collaboration of Member States to invest in and coordinate on common research and innovation objectives”.

The main features of the document
The goal of the Commission is to update the approach used to manage the European Research Area to the most recent models of R&I and financing of scientific research. The new model for ERA was already described in the “Communication on A New ERA for Research and Innovation” (COM(2020) 628 final) adopted on 30 September 2020.
Integration of national policies instead of a simple collaboration is one of the main points to achieve sharing of key principles and values and to guide joint actions in priority areas. These values and principles are now better detailed in the new Pact for Research and Innovation (R&I), which shall represent the basis for national authorities to reform their internal R&I frameworks in the direction of an improved harmonisation between different member states.
Coordination of efforts at the central and national level should benefit from a Union-level coordination and support mechanism, a common ERA policy agenda of jointly agreed ERA actions to be implemented, a dedicated ERA policy online platform for reporting, and a ERA score- board to monitor progress towards common objectives. Regular bilateral and multilateral policy dialogues between member states and the Commission is expected to favour the sharing of best practices and mutual learning exercises.

The inspiring values
Three different dimensions characterise the declination of the principles and values called to inspire future R&I activities. The “upholding values” include ethics and integrity of research and innovation, freedom of scientific research, gender equality and equal opportunities.
“Working better” values target the free circulation of researchers, excellence and value creation as a tool to support European excellence in science generation, together with early sharing of scientific knowledge through open science practices, attractive and merit-based careers, enhanced framework conditions for mobility and exchanges between academia and industry, and open access to research infrastructures, technology infrastructures and their services. The common goal of all these actions refers to the achievement of the highest quality of R&I activities, to be supported by new models of selection and funding; re-use of previous results should be also pursued during research management activities.
The “working together” dimension is based on the key principles of coordination, coherence, and commitment. Member states are called to coordinate their R&I policies and programmes in areas of common interest and to direct research and innovation investments and reforms to- wards achieving the ERA and speed up the green and digital transition. Global outreach should base on collaboration with partners from third countries and regions, while inclusiveness should support the exploitation of ERA’s full potential to compete at the global level. Furthermore, societal responsibility should aim to increase public trust in science and innovation.

Synergies of action
The Pact for R&I is expected to act in synergy with many other pieces of European legislation to achieve its goals. Challenge-based ERA actions should support the increased integration of the Commission and member states, including their regions, cities, and municipalities. The operative tools may be represented for example by collaborative projects to be run as a part of Horizon Europe Missions, European partnerships including EIT Knowledge and Innovation Communities (EIT KICs), joint programming initiatives or multilateral alliance. Inspiration can be obtained also from existing coordination initiatives, such as the Strategic Energy Technology Plan (SET Plan) or the ERAvsCorona initiative.
Integration with the EU Skills Agenda is also important to ensure the alignment of R&I with higher education, and synergies are expected between ERA and the European Higher Education Area (EHEA). Not less important are possible synergies with the EU’s Industrial Strategy, for example in the field of technology infrastructures, industrial Alliances, and common industrial technology roadmaps. A more active citizen and societal engagement in R&I is another target of the Pact.
At the financial level, the EU Commission looks at improved synergies between EU’s, national and regional funding programmes, with attention to favour the excellence-based integration of research-performing organisations from countries with lower R&I performance into EU’s scientific networks and innovation ecosystems.
The proposal adopted by the Commission provides insights on the expected level of investments in R&D: the total expenditure on research and development should reach the 3% target of EU GDP by 2030, with a total public effort on R&D up to 1.25% of EU GDP. The share of national public R&D expenditure committed to joint programmes, research infrastructures and European Partnerships should also reach 5% of national public R&D funding by the same year.
Voluntary targets for investments
A possible weak point in the vision of the Commission for the future of ERA may be represented by the voluntary adhesion member states are called to with respect to the expected level of expenditure on R&I activities. According to Science Business, the 3% target was achieved in 2019 only by Germany, Sweden, and Austria, while the EU average (2.2%) is below that of US, Japan, and Korea.
Critics to the current EU’s “boom and bust” approach to basic research funding came by the outgoing president of the European Research Council (ERC), Jean-Pierre Bourguignon, during a meeting of EU science ministers in Slovenia in July (see Science Business).
According to Bourguignon, basic R&D should be not necessarily targeted towards topics which represents the priority of action of the EU Commission, such as the green and digital agenda. Sufficient funding for bottom-up research should be always available in order to support curiosity-driven research.