Technopolis is being created under the concept of Science and Technologies Parks as a production complex of knowledge-based business enterprises and research, providing a chance of entering the World market for innovative medium and small enterprises of Kaunas.
Mission
- To concentrate advanced enterprises of Kaunas City, Kaunas Region, and other parts of Lithuania, to assist them create and sell enhanced value-added products and services.
- To establish favourable conditions for efficient interaction and to create engineering environment and knowledge infrastructure suitable for innovative, knowledge-based production and creative work.
- To transmit knowledge and technologies as well as to collect financial resources needed to foster the production in Kaunas region and the entire country.
- To encourage communication between the state institutions of higher education, research institutions and innovative enterprises in order to utilize the knowledge of scientists, the outcomes of scientific research and human potential for creation of new information, technologies, products, and services.
Technopolis in the near future
- The Epicentre of modern Lithuanian economy
- The knowledge-based production activity centre delivering high-tech and IT products to the open market and representing Kaunas in Europe and the whole World
- One of the greatest complexes engaged in creation of intellectual products and services in the Eastern and Central Europe.
Location. Kaunas, the southern part of the territory of S.Darius and S.Girenas airport in Aleksotas, close to the European avenue, only 3 kilometres away from the city centre.
Territory. TECHNOPOLIS will occupy the area of 6.7 hectares. The administration offices and companies will be offered the total of 60 thousand square meters of space. This will include public buildings for administration and public services, private buildings of common use and private individual buildings of enterprises. The buildings will represent a common architecture style and will be surrounded by public infrastructure, including planning and arrangement of the territory, access roads, engineering networks, etc.
Land at disposition. The land area will be allocated for Technopolis itself and its tenant enterprises by Kaunas municipality.
Number of work places established - about 3000.
Investment. The investment in TECHNOPOLIS will make up around 200 million Litas.
Commencement. The public institution Technopolis (founders are Kaunas municipality and Kaunas Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Crafts) was established in August 2004. This institution will provide an operator’s role and will be acting as an umbrella organization for the enterprises.
Public infrastructure will be established in 2006. The first enterprises will be located in 2007.
PHARE project. PHARE PPF project “Preparation of the technical documentation for establishment of modern technology town – TECHNOPOLIS” started in April 2005. The consulting companies “Projektu gama” and “Kauno komprojektas” are responsible for preparation of the feasibility study and investment project, strategy for Technopolis, technical design of engineering infrastructure, environmental impact assessment and for submitting the application for obtaining financial support from the ERDF. This will include the investment into the public engineering infrastructure and administration building. The project will be financed under the SPD priority 3, measure 2 “Improvement of business environment”, activity group “Science and technology parks, technology centres”.
Benefits to Lithuania
“Technopolis” will have a strategic impact on Lithuania’s economy by:
- consolidating the knowledge-based economy
- fostering the local and foreign investment into production
- raising the competitiveness of business and industry
- stimulating the growth of economy
- reducing the brain drain from Lithuania.
TECHNOPOLIS – technology town in Kaunas
Kaunas, the second-largest city in the country, was chosen for the establishment of TECHNOPOLIS not accidentally. Kaunas is the city of a great number of universities, possesses solid industrial traditions and has a favourable medium for knowledge-based enterprises, where creative specialists’ enthusiasm goes alongside with scientific experience and knowledge. This potential will be exploited by TECHNOPOLIS – the centre of technology, the aim of which is to create favourable conditions for technology enterprises developing enhanced value-added products.
TECHNOPOLIS will represent Kaunas as a modern technology centre in Europe and all over the World. Besides, the city will be adorned by the infrastructure of the new Science and Technology Park, recreation zones and modern buildings. Private investment as well as EU structural funds will be used for Technopolis development. A number of local and foreign companies are already interested in the possibility to establish their operations in Technopolis.
Under the initiative of Kaunas municipality in 2005 TECHNOPOLIS project was presented in one of the biggest Real Estate events in Europe – MIPIM exhibition held in Cannes, France, which annually receives great attention of the most prominent investors of the world.
Knowledge-based economy – the priority in EU and Lithuania
The establishment of TECHNOPOLIS is completely in line with EU policy and Lithuanian priorities to develop knowledge-based economy. The communiqué of European Commission issued in 2003 “Innovation policy: resuming community approach according to Lisbon strategy” states that EU member countries must support innovations in all possible ways, including tax exemption. New EU member countries are encouraged to support innovation development relying on EU experience but first of all taking conditions of their own countries into account.
TECHNOPOLIS – the opportunity for small enterprises
Having limited strategic resources but maintaining high potential of science and education, Lithuania has an opportunity to compete in the World market as a creator of innovative solutions, services and products. To make this vision come true it is necessary to unite the potential of science and knowledge-based business. Therefore, it is of particular importance for Lithuania to encourage the activity of enterprises, creating enhanced value-added intellectual products. However, small and medium size innovative companies find it difficult to compete separately with industrial giants. This problem might be solved by establishing large innovative enterprise complexes, where not only companies themselves but also laboratories of research and research institutions would be concentrated. This in turn would help to minimise administration costs as well as unite the potential of production and science. TECHNOPOLIS should become one of the largest complexes of science and knowledge-based business in Lithuania.
Exploiting the advantages of creative Technopolis environment innovative enterprises will be able to implement new ideas, create enhanced value-added products, conduct efficient advertising campaigns and find international business partners.
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About Technopolis