On 26 January, the University of Latvia (UL) Academic Centre Science House in Riga will host the Industry Day of the long-term national research programme “BioPhoT”. During the event, you will have the opportunity to get acquainted with current BioPhoT-funded research, innovations and prototypes, their practical applications, as well as to develop new cooperation projects.
The aim of Industry Day is to strengthen the dialogue between science and industry, promote knowledge transfer and support the development of new research and innovation projects. The event will bring together representatives from the fields of biomedicine, medical technology, pharmaceuticals, photonics, smart materials, technology and engineering systems to foster targeted collaboration between academia, industry and investors.
The working language of the Industry Day is English and participation is free of charge.
Registration for the event: https://luma.com/i81hmsl0
The event will be of particular interest to researchers and academics who want to broaden the visibility of their research, better understand industry needs and develop collaborations with companies and investors.
The Industry Day programme will include presentations by foreign and Latvian experts on successful models of cooperation between science and industry, knowledge transfer and research commercialisation, including Hello Tomorrow Partnerships Coordinator Alexander Saivz (Alexander Cywes), Jakub Jasiczak, President of the Polish Association of University Knowledge Transfer Companies (Jakub Jasiczak), professor at the University of Tartu and Alliance4Life Toivo Maimets, president of the consortium, and EIT Health Director of Education Selina Karera (Céline Carrera).
The programme will be complemented by a panel discussion “What hinders successful cooperation between industry and academia?”, which will be attended by Raivis Bremšmits, State Secretary of the Ministry of Economics, representatives of industry and academia, including Prof. Prof. Māris Turks, representatives of Alternative Plants co-founder and Executive Director Anna Ramata-Stunda, Chairman of the Board of the Latvian Chemical and Pharmaceutical Entrepreneurs Association (LACCEA) Vitālijs Skrīvelis and other experts.
In thematic parallel sessions, companies and organisations such as Labrains, Olpha, Kinetics Science Foundation, LMT and the Latvian Federation of Security and Defence Industries will share their technological and research challenges.
Several BioPhoT platform project teams will present their innovations to a panel of investors and industry representatives for advice on how to further develop their ideas and take them to market. The Biomedicine, Medical Technologies and Pharmaceuticals section will showcase a sink-integrated disinfection device to control antibiotic-resistant micro-organisms in healthcare facilities, a compact and robust laser system for high-precision optical sensors and medical devices, and a next-generation blood collection barrel to improve the safety of bone regeneration procedures. Also on show will be a solution for safe cleaning and reuse of dental drills, an aptamer-based device for faster and more accurate diagnosis of malaria, and a non-invasive sweat analysis platform for the detection of clinically relevant biomarkers, which is particularly important in neonatal health monitoring.
The photonics, smart materials, technology and engineering systems project teams will receive feedback on solutions for sustainability and industrial applications. These include a technology that converts worn tyre rubber into a smart additive for asphalt concrete, robust EMI protection coatings for cyber security systems, and a highly efficient non-contact heating system for metallurgy that reduces energy consumption and CO₂ emissions. Projects will also be presented on the development of next-generation photonics chips, luminescent coatings for early detection of wind turbine blade damage, precision optical sensors for structural monitoring and smart packaging solutions for real-time quality monitoring of fresh seafood.
To strengthen long-term partnerships, the event will see the signing of two MoUs between the BioPhoT platform and leading international innovation and health organisations – with the global deep tech innovation ecosystem Hello Tomorrow and with EIT Health – Europe’s largest network of health innovators. “The Biomedical and Photonics Research Platform for Innovative Products (BioPhoT) is a long-term interdisciplinary research and innovation platform that brings together leading Latvian research institutions and universities with the aim of facilitating the translation of scientific results into competitive and marketable solutions.
The project “Long-term State Research Program «Research platform for innovative products in biomedicine and photonics» (BioPhoT)” is implemented within the framework of the long-term national research program “Innovation Fund – Long-term Research Program” funded by the Ministry of Economics. Platform No. IVPP-EM-Inovācija-2024/1-0002.
