Access to expertise and training through EIC Tech to Market Training Programme and Venture Building Activities

The European Innovation Council and SMEs Executive Agency (EISMEA) has issued a call for tenders, EISMEA/2025/OP/0007, under the initiative "EIC Tech to Market 2.0." This procurement opportunity aims to support EIC Pathfinder and EIC Transition projects in transitioning from laboratory research to market deployment. The services being procured include training and venture-building support for entrepreneurial researchers, aimed at equipping them with necessary skills to turn research into viable deep tech innovations.

Eligible applicants for this tender can include various entities capable of providing business services, including training providers, consulting firms, and larger enterprises. Although there is no explicit prioritization for SMEs, the nature of the services suggests that organizations with relevant expertise are suitable candidates. The funding type is a public procurement contract for services, with an initial contract value of €4.5 million, potentially renewed for the same amount, bringing the estimated total value to €9 million.

The application process follows an open procedure requiring electronic submissions. The deadline for submitting tenders is set for May 26, 2025. Entities eligible for this funding are likely to be based in EU member states and associated countries. The project focuses on sectors including biotech, medtech, cleantech, and AI, among others.

Training services are intended to enhance researchers' understanding of creating viable business models and strong value propositions. Venture-building activities are designed to facilitate the identification of promising business ideas and assist in the creation of startups to capitalize on research results. The evaluation for the award will be based on a best price-quality ratio, emphasizing quality over cost.

The contract duration is 48 months, and specific documents related to the tender—including specifications, service contracts, and necessary declarations—are available for review. Interested applicants must ensure they submit all required documentation electronically through the designated system, adhering to the file size and format regulations outlined in the tender documents.

Overall, this tender represents a substantial opportunity for organizations to engage in training and venture support for emerging deep tech sectors, thereby aiding the commercialization process of cutting-edge research.

The European Innovation Council and SMEs Executive Agency (EISMEA) has issued a call for tenders, EISMEA/2025/OP/0007, titled "Access to expertise and training through EIC Tech to Market Training Programme and Venture Building Activities." This is an open procedure with electronic submission. The objective is to support EIC Pathfinder and EIC Transition projects in their transition from lab to market. This support will be provided through tailored services to entrepreneurial researchers for the market deployment of research results.

The services to be procured include:

Training: To help researchers acquire the necessary critical knowledge for turning research results into deep tech innovations with viable business models and strong value propositions. Guidelines and minimum requirements for the training courses of Service 1 are described in section 1.4.2.2.1 of the tender specifications.

Venture Building Services: A range of activities from identification of promising business ideas to venture creation and development, to help build start-ups to exploit promising research results from EIC beneficiaries.

The estimated total value of this procurement is 9,000,000 EUR. The contract's nature is for services, with a maximum duration of 48 months. The award method will be based on the best price-quality ratio. It is not a framework agreement.

The TED publication date was 03/04/2025. The date and time of the public opening is scheduled for 26/05/2025 at 15:00 Europe/Brussels time. The deadline for receipt of tenders is 26/05/2025 at 10:00 Europe/Brussels time. The contracting authority is not bound to reply to questions submitted after 16/05/2025 05:00 Europe/Brussels.

The selection criteria include:

Suitability to pursue the professional activity (consult procurement documents).
Economic and financial standing (consult procurement documents). The economic and financial capacity selection criterion applies to the tenderer as a whole.
Technical and professional ability (consult procurement documents).

Available documents include:

Tender specifications EIC Tech 2 Market 2.0 corrigendum 2 (Information for candidates and tenderers), published on 21/05/2025, Version 1, no translations available.
Draft service contract EISMEA2025OP0007 corrigendum 2 (Information for candidates and tenderers), published on 21/05/2025, Version 1, no translations available.
Invitation to tender EISMEA2025OP0007 EIC Tech to Market 2.0 (Invitation letter), published on 03/04/2025, Version 1, no translations available.
Tender specifications EIC Tech 2 Market 2.0 final (Tender specifications), published on 03/04/2025, Version 1, no translations available.
Annex 1 List of documents to be submitted EISMEA 2025 OP 0007 (Tender specifications), published on 03/04/2025, Version 1, no translations available.
Annex 2 Declaration on honour EISMEA2025OP0007 (Declaration on honour tender), published on 03/04/2025, Version 1, no translations available.
Annex 2.1 Statement of turnover EISMEA2025OP0007 (Tender specifications), published on 03/04/2025, Version 1, no translations available.
Annex 2.2 Technical capacity EISMEA2025OP0007 (Tender specifications), published on 03/04/2025, Version 1, no translations available.
Annex 3 Power of attorney EISMEA2025OP0007 (Tender specifications), published on 03/04/2025, Version 1, no translations available.
Annex 4 List of identified subcontractors EISMEA2025OP0007 (Tender specifications), published on 03/04/2025, Version 1, no translations available.

Submissions must be sent exclusively via electronic means to the address provided in the tender documents.

Regarding the budget, the initial contract value is EUR 4,500,000, including all charges and expenses and excluding possible renewal. No contract offer above this amount will be considered. The maximum amount for the possible renewal, including all charges and expenses, is EUR 4,500,000.

Within three years following the signature of the contract, the Contracting authority may use the negotiated procedure under point 11.1.e of Annex 1 to the Financial Regulation to procure new services from the contractor up to a maximum of 50 75 % of the initial contract value. These services would consist in the repetition of similar services entrusted to the contractor and would be awarded under the following conditions: new types of beneficiaries or beneficiaries from associated programmes to be included in the Business Acceleration Services, if there is a need to develop further actions in this area, or if there is high demand on the services offered through this contract.

The submission deadline has been extended until 26/05/2025 10:00 Europe/Brussels time, as per Corrigendum No. 2.

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This tender, EISMEA/2025/OP/0007, is an opportunity for organizations to provide expertise and training to EIC Pathfinder and EIC Transition projects, facilitating the transition of research results from the lab to the market. The European Innovation Council and SMEs Executive Agency (EISMEA) seeks services to train researchers in developing viable business models and to provide venture building activities to help create start-ups based on promising research. The total estimated value is 9,000,000 EUR, and the contract duration is up to 48 months. The tender is awarded based on the best price-quality ratio. The deadline for submission is May 26, 2025. Interested parties should provide training services and venture building activities.

Eligible Applicant Types: The eligible applicant types are not explicitly stated but can be inferred to include entities capable of providing business services, law, marketing, consulting, recruitment, printing, and security. This suggests that eligible applicants could include SMEs, large enterprises, consulting firms, training providers, and other organizations with the relevant expertise and capacity.

Funding Type: The funding type is procurement, specifically a service contract. The European Innovation Council and SMEs Executive Agency (EISMEA) is procuring services related to training and venture building.

Consortium Requirement: The call for tenders welcomes both single applicants and consortia. The Q&A section includes a question about annexes to be signed by the group leader in the case of a group tenderer, indicating that consortia are permitted.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility): The geographic eligibility is not explicitly stated, but given that it is an EU tender, it is highly likely that entities from the EU and possibly EEA countries are eligible. Further details should be consulted in the procurement documents.

Target Sector: The target sectors include innovation, DeepTech, training, consulting, and business acceleration services. The tender focuses on supporting the transition of EIC Pathfinder and EIC Transition projects from lab to market.

Mentioned Countries: No specific countries are mentioned. The opportunity is at the EU level.

Project Stage: The project stage targeted is the transition from research and development to commercialization and market deployment, specifically supporting EIC Pathfinder and EIC Transition projects.

Funding Amount: The initial contract value is EUR 4,500,000, including all charges and expenses and excluding possible renewal. The maximum amount for the possible renewal, including all charges and expenses, is EUR 4,500,000. The estimated total value of the tender is EUR 9,000,000.

Application Type: The application type is an open call for tenders, with electronic submissions required.

Nature of Support: The beneficiaries will receive non-monetary services through this opportunity. The selected contractor will provide training and venture building services to EIC beneficiaries.

Application Stages: The number of application stages is not explicitly mentioned, but it can be inferred that there are multiple stages, including submission of the tender, evaluation of suitability, economic and financial standing, and technical and professional ability.

Success Rates: The success rates are not mentioned in the provided text.

Co-funding Requirement: There is no mention of a co-funding requirement in the provided text.

Summary:

This is a call for tenders (EISMEA/2025/OP/0007) issued by the European Innovation Council and SMEs Executive Agency (EISMEA) for the "EIC Tech to Market 2.0" initiative. The objective is to procure services that support EIC Pathfinder and EIC Transition projects in their transition from laboratory research to market-ready innovations. The selected contractor will provide training to researchers, equipping them with essential knowledge for transforming research results into viable deep tech innovations with robust business models and value propositions. Additionally, the contractor will offer venture building services, encompassing activities from identifying promising business ideas to venture creation and development, ultimately assisting in the establishment of start-ups that can effectively exploit research results from EIC beneficiaries.

The initial contract is valued at EUR 4,500,000, with a potential renewal of EUR 4,500,000, bringing the estimated total value to EUR 9,000,000. The contract duration is 48 months. The procedure type is an open procedure, and submissions must be made electronically. The deadline for receipt of tenders is 26/05/2025 at 10:00 Europe/Brussels. The contracting authority will not reply to questions submitted after 16/05/2025 at 05:00 Europe/Brussels.

The tender documents include the invitation letter, tender specifications, draft service contract, and several annexes related to required documents, declarations, and statements. Tenderers must demonstrate their suitability to pursue the professional activity, economic and financial standing, and technical and professional ability. The award method is based on the best price-quality ratio. The eSubmission system supports various file types and has specific requirements for attachment names and sizes. The system also supports all 24 official EU languages and uses encryption to ensure the integrity and confidentiality of the information.