Nanotechnology Cluster Programme

The PrintoCent programme, which was launched in 2009, has created a world-class innovation centre for printable electronics and optical measurement in Oulu. The centre will have a total volume of EUR 15 million by 2012. The PrintoCent community has received EUR two million in investments from both Finland and abroad to support commercialisation, preform demonstrations and start-ups. Nine new businesses have been established to date.

PrintoCent has created an innovative environment for printable electronics prototypes: roll-to-roll (R2R) processing takes new technologies from the laboratory and turns them into mass-produceable prototypes. PrintoCent’s Pilot Factory offers this service to companies throughout Europe. PrintoCent is also part of COLAE, an EU-level project that’s coordinated by the VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland. The COLAE project consists of leading European clusters with 17 partners in 12 countries.

New kinds of companies and business models – 50 new jobs per year

FocalSpec Oy, Spektikor Oy and Global Innovation Network Oy all operate in this community. 2011 has been a significant year for these companies in terms of international product launches, deliveries, and mergers and acquisitions. FocalSpec Oy delivered its first products to Outokumpu Stainless Steel Oy in September 2011, and the company is currently in negotiation with several foreign organisations on both systems deliveries and OEM product development projects. Another company that’s been quick to make an impact is Global Innovation Network Oy (GIN), which started up in Oulu in September. GIN has already signed a letter of intent on both sewerage solutions for sparsely populated areas and the acquisition of Green Rock Oy, a company that manufactures products for oil absorption and spill containment.

The acquisition will reinforce the company’s market position in water treatment systems and boost further development in water treatment for sparsely populated areas in Finland, the Nordic countries and Russia. Spektikor has also progressed well with its development of a disposable heart-rate monitor. Last summer, the monitor’s functionality in crisis situations was tested during Pyörremyrsky, an armed forces’ combat training exercise. All of these PrintoCent companies share one defining characteristic: a knack of translating research results into global businesses.

PrintoCent is a collaborative community whose founding members are: the VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, the University of Oulu, the Oulu University of Applied Sciences and Business Oulu (previously Oulu Innovation). Research activities launched by the VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland in the late 1990s led to the foundation of PrintoCent. Within the PrintoCent community, these activities have since expanded to an annual level of over 100 person-work years. Business Oulu implements Finland’s national Nanotechnology Cluster Programme in Oulu.

For more information:
- VTT - Ilkka Kaisto, Director, +358 40 149 4006
- BusinessOulu - Christian Sundell, Director of Programs, ICT & Nanotechnology Centre of Expertise, +358 50 368 9609