Interview with Olivier Romain, Vice President Innovation and Transfer at CY Cergy Paris Université

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Could you tell us about the PUI?

CY Cergy Paris Université is part of a global approach to innovation development. On January 20, through CY Transfer, the university submitted an application on behalf of CY Alliance and with 3 other founding members (CNRS, CEREMA and SATT ERGANEO), as well as some twenty partners, to the French government's call for projects for the PUI (Pôles Universitaires d'Innovation - University Innovation Clusters). It aims to provide a one-stop-shop approach, within a given territory, to create a link between the socio-economic world and research laboratories.

The aim of the Pôles Universitaires d'Innovation (PUI) is to increase the efficiency of innovation support systems in all their dimensions, from partnership research to company creation, and to facilitate the transformation of technologies and knowledge into innovations, notably through DeepTech start-ups.

CY Transfer and its partners were accredited at the end of July in the seed phase and have been awarded 2.5 million euros, with a mid-term review, to develop their project.

To find out more about PUI: https://cytransfer.cyu.fr/en/university-innovation-hubs

Can you tell us a little about CY Transfer?

Within CY Cergy Paris Université, CY Transfer's mission is to support the development and transfer of knowledge with industrial, state and academic partners. It is a cross-functional tool that reinforces the university's third mission, which is to contribute to innovation with the help of its academic players.

CY Transfer, a business unit of CY Cergy Paris Université, was created in 2021 and has been active since the beginning of 2022. It offers a wide range of services for companies wishing to benefit from the expertise of its researchers and those of CY Alliance, as well as state-of-the-art equipment, in its fields of excellence: heritage sciences, health and well-being, education, security and mathematical, economic and financial modeling sciences.

CYU brings together 27 laboratories, 1,200 researchers including 500 PhD students, 5 innovation platforms grouped under the CY Genius Platforms identity. CY Transfer is part of a much more global alliance, involving numerous schools, including engineering schools covering all fields (mechanics, electronics, cyber security (with CY Tech), biology with EBI, cosmetics with ISIPCA), etc.. One of its primary missions is to connect companies to the CY Alliance galaxy.

CY Transfer's value enhancement strategy is based on the development of strong partnerships with key external players, capitalizing on the potential of our research units, platforms, experts and know-how, while anchoring our innovations in high-visibility fields.

Key figures :

38 Patents
3 Licenses
3 start-ups supported
18 CIFRE
120 industrial contracts
5 CIREX
19 assimilated CIREX

Our main scientific and technological areas:

CY Transfer acts at various key points in the innovation chain: From the detection of projects and technologies within the laboratories, to support for the maturation of technologies, right through to the search for companies who may either need technologies from the laboratories, or who are looking to develop their own and could benefit from the laboratories' expertise, CY Transfer acts as a key player and a real facilitator, supporting companies and laboratories in the networking, construction and monitoring of their innovation projects.

The team also plays a guiding and coordinating role in all innovation-related activities, from training to support and acceleration for start-ups (e.g. the CY EdTech Labs program: https://cytransfer.cyu.fr/en/cy-edtech-labs).

The team works closely with internal CYU teams involved in these areas (doctoral school, CY Entreprendre, Research Department, DOIP, etc.).

To find out more: https://cytransfer.cyu.fr/en/who-we-are

Could you tell us what an innovation platform is, and what are the advantages for companies to get access to this structure ?

CY Cergy Paris Université's CY Genius Platforms are 5 high-tech innovation platforms run by university researchers, available to the private and public sectors to develop tomorrow's solutions. Their “reason for being” is to connect creativity and expertise by giving industrialists and entrepreneurs access to cutting-edge technological equipment, as well as to university experts who can support companies in their innovation, not only by operating the equipment, but above all by providing their expertise in analyzing the results.

Setting up a research project in-house is a heavy investment (recruitment, equipment, planning...) With CY Genius Platforms, you have outsourced platforms ready to go.

Top of the line equipment: Access to equipment to carry out services, and the possibility of training on the machines with CYU experts.
Confidentiality: A secrecy agreement is proposed from the outset, to guarantee the protection of the innovation project.
Research tax credit (CIR): when a collaboration with one of our laboratories, backed by our CY Genius Platforms, is envisaged, it is possible to benefit from the Research Tax Credit.

CY Genius Platforms' fields of expertise are varied and cover the following innovation sectors: safety, environment, chemistry/biology, medical, agri-food, cosmetics, automotive, aeronautics, aerospace, materials. CYU's 5 Genius Plateforms are:

CY PeptLab: Peptide design, synthesis and optimization. Specialized in the preparation of natural or synthetic peptides.
CY Microscopies & Analysis: Multiscale & multimodal imaging and analysis. A team of experts in materials and life sciences.
CY U-Maker: 3D for research, education and scientific mediation CAD-CAM and 3D printing for the geosciences. Open to all projects. Expertise in scientific mediation.
CY LaserInnov: Non-destructive testing solution. Characterization of materials at different scales.
CY Cosmetomics: Evaluation of cosmetic products. Tests and measurements of molecule efficacy, stability and interactions.

To find out more, click here: https://cytransfer.cyu.fr/en/our-platforms

The entire team of CY Transfer is at your disposal to discuss your innovation projects. Don't hesitate to contact us: https://cytransfer.cyu.fr/en/who-we-are/operational-team