CR Midi-Pyrenees

The Regional Council of Midi-Pyrénées as a legal institution is directly in charge of the management and total funding of its calls for projects, its R&D regional funds for innovation and its R&D regional loans for research. It cooperates with the national agencies, such as CNRS, and universities.

The participating programme is entitled: MNT FOR MATERIALS, SYSTEMS, PROCESSES AND FACILITIES. Through its main focus on process engineering of nanomaterials, it complementary fits with the three already defined axis of the existing MNT ERANET organisation, i.e. Micro(system)technology – Materials – Nanotechnology.

It is the key player for its region in MNT research support. Almost a dozen large programmes are running in 2004 involving at least 100 public permanent positions and twice as many PhD students and post-docs working in more than twenty units. Due to the fact that in the Midi-Pyrénée region (around Toulouse) there is a lot of industrial activity in MNT, the focus of applied MNT is strengthened.

An additional value of the participation of the Regional Council of Midi-Pyrénées is the strong regional network with Aragon and Wallonia in the area of MNT.

www.cr-mip.fr

OSÉO (France)

OSEO is a company funded by the french government and aiming at funding SMEs. OSEO is divided in four subsidiaries : OSEO Financement, OSEO Garantie, OSEO 
Services and OSEO innovation. This last subsidiary is taking part of the MNT ERA NET consortium.
The mission of OSEO innovation is to fund innovative projects of SMEs up to 2000 people. The way to finance projects is a loan at 0% reimbursable in case of sucess of the project. In case the project falls, the loan is transformed onto a grant. This operation is called a help for innovation.
In 2006, the activity of OSEO innovation represented 260 Millions euros of interventions.
In the field of micro and nanotechnologies, around 20 Millions euros of help contracts were signed.
It is important to notice that OSEO innovation doesn't select thematic priorities. Innovative projects can be funded in every industry sector.

CEA Leti

CEA is a French government-funded technological research organisation. A prominent player in the European Research Area, it is involved in setting up collaborative projects with many partners around the world.
As the European leader in micro and nanotechnologies, the CEA groups together fundamental research and technological innovations serving industry, to develop intelligent, miniaturised solutions in the fields of information, communication, health and energy. It is a founding member of the Minatec project, the leading European centre in this sector.
Microelectronics is the "driving force" for micro and nanotechnologies, with a major challenge: component miniaturisation. CEA research also covers microsystems, integrating electronics and mechanics (MEM - microelectromechanical) or electronics and optics (optoelectronic). The CEA also plays a part in integrating these technologies with other systems (e.g. flat screens, smart devices, medical imagery, etc.).

www.cea.fr