Promoted by the MANUFUTURE Technology Platform, one of the largest and most influent technology platforms in Europe, this event’s main goal was to discuss the future of the European manufacturing industry and the conditions for its sustained development, namely the investment in R+D+I and in the qualification of human resources.

The four previous sessions were hosted by the countries that were assuming the presidency of the European Union at the time. Annually, the conference welcomes about 350 participants from all European countries, other than national and European senior regulators and internationally acknowledged speakers.

This year’s edition was part of the program for the Portuguese Presidency of the EU, which focused on:

• The context conditions that influence the investment in R+D+I and its conversion in entrepreneurial competitive advantages.
• The main areas of scientific and technological development for the European manufacturing industry.
• The analysis of the first execution stage of the 7th FP and the perspectives for the future.

Other than the presentation of the proposals (during the first day), conclusions and recommendations (during the second day), the debate was organized around 8 theme workshops (in the afternoon of the first day) that took place in companies or other entities with relevant interventions or experience in this area. In these workshops, the cases of the companies that hosted the workshops were presented, as well as the studies and proposals, which were afterwards discussed. The conclusions and recommendations were presented during the following day’s plenary session.

This year, the intention was also to include opinions and visions outside the European space, namely from the USA or Asia, on relevant themes, such as private investment in R&D or the globalization of research activities. Thus, the conference program included interventions from two experts in this area:

• Prof. Mitchell Tseng, University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong.
• Prof. James D. Thompson, Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, USA.

This is, unquestionably, a strategic area in Europe, and especially in Portugal, due to the impact that it has on the economies’ competitiveness and sustainability. The organization of this event in Portugal, an event that gathers a unique set of competences in the area, was both relevant and timely. This event also aimed at strengthening the external image of Portuguese companies, research and the country in general, other than attracting investment and R+D+I through debate sessions supported by a scientific sustained base and by the experiences and competences acquired thus far.

The conference registered 365 participants from 35 different countries. At the conference’s website (www.manufuture2007.inescporto.pt), you can access the distribution of participants by type of organization and country.

During the conference, there were 41 presentations, 16 of which were company cases. The latter were presented in parallel theme workshops that took place in 8 Portuguese companies. The result was a set of conclusions and recommendations, which are available at the website.
The Portuguese companies that welcomed the workshops and presented their cases were the following:

• QIMONDA
• CODIZO
• MULTIWAVE PHOTONICS
• MABERA
• SONAE INDUSTRIA
• BIAL
• FREZITE
• EFACEC

The foreign companies that presented their cases were the following:

• ACCIONA (Spain)
• HOMAG (Germany)
• BITECIC (United Kingdom)
• PTC (Germany)
• KARCHER (Germany)
• SINTESI (Italy)
• CLAAS (Germany) 
• AVIATION VALLEY (Poland)

It is also important to highlight the presence of Professor Castro Guerra, State Secretary for Industry and Innovation, Professor Mariano Gago, Minister for Science, Technology and Higher Education, and Herbert von Bose, Director of the European Commission’s DG Research.

Two agreements were signed in the context of the event:

• A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the MANUFUTURE Technology Platform and the European Footwear Technology Platform.
• A Collaboration Agreement to establish the Portuguese Alliance for Science-based Innovation in the Manufacturing Industry (PAM).

Finally, it was decided that a Public Declaration should be drawn, containing the main conclusions and recommendations from the two days of debate sessions. The document will be handed to the President of the European Commission and to the Member State Ministers of these areas.

In its whole, the event was quite successful. This classification is the result of the opinions that were transmitted to the organization during the conference, and of the messages that were sent afterwards. The image of Portugal, its organizations, and mainly its industry benefited largely from this event and that was, without a doubt, one of the event’s main goals.