Mesa+, the UT research institute for nanotechnology, wants to become shareholder of spin-off companies and other commercial partners. This is said by commercial director Cees Eijkel. 'The contribution of Mesa+ will only be knowledge', he assures, 'and not money'.
It is a novelty at the UT: a research institute that wants to cash in on its knowledge in the market place. Normally speaking, a scientist publishes his findings and everybody can freely use those. From now on Mesa+, the largest and best-known research institute of the UT, wants to share, where possible, in the profits of its knowledge consumers.
'Mesa+ regularly generates small technical companies', commercial director Cees Eijkel relates. 'They grew on the breast of the institute. When they were strong enough, we let them go. And often Mesa+ saw them prosper in the market place.' This should continue, in the opinion of Eijkel, he would just like to see a return on part of the investment in the future.
'Mesa+ invests a lot of knowledge and time in this kind of business. That is how it should be, it is an academic duty. But why not make it a proper investment? A starting high-tech-knowledge company needs three parties - three shareholders. A financier, an entrepreneur, and a scientist.'
'In our case Mesa+ is the last one: we supply knowledge and are therefore shareholder in the company.' Eijkel has at this moment seven business plans on the shelf. 'The first will go to the board of governors shortly. First the board has to agree, because the university serves as the legal body in this case. The UT is formally the shareholder.'
If all these small companies go belly-up? Will the UT lose out too?
'Formally, yes', Eijkel laughs. 'But in practice, no. We do not invest capital, but knowledge. So, no money can be lost. Moreover, we will be entering into limited-time contracts. We will be supplying knowledge for, say, two years, and after that it stops.'
Which seven starters are involved?
'That is still a secret. I can say that it concerns things like glass-fiber circuitry - the so-called photonics - and lab-on-chips-like applications. But there are also medical initiatives.'
And what about the academic independence of the shareholder?
'We have to watch that very carefully', Eijkel recognises. 'At thisuniversity there are different views on the subject of commercial activities. But the point is to guarantee independence. To that end we have brough in experts. These are very transparent, clear plans.'
According to Eijkel the idea is absolutely not a novelty in academic Holland. 'The universities of Utrecht, Leiden and Groningen have research institutes that make use of similar constructions.' To be able to continue doing state-of-the-art research, market participation may be the deciding factor in the future, Eijkel suspects. 'Research is expensive. And the government will less often say: here is a bag full of money.' This week that did happen. The Foundation for Technical Sciences (STW) granted, through the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Mesa+ 3.5 million guilders, for infrastructure. Eijkel: 'Yes, that is very good. That means that The Hague thinks we are doing well. And... three-and-a-half million in the hand is worth a hundred in the bush, is it not?
