Company services

• R&D planning and management
• Innovation planning & implementation
• Lean manufacturing & manufacturing excellence
• R&D proposal preparation including FP7
• Strategy and business development

Project Management services

• International proposal development including FP7 proposals
• Management/administration of projects for international and national consortia
• Proposal development for new international research centres - could be accessing international sources of funding
• Access to international partners for new consortia.

National science, technology and innovation services

• National policy studies
• Institutional strategies and reviews
• Programme evaluation and value for money assessments
• Review of international organisations
• Key technologies - Life sciences, environment, energy
• STI in national and regional development incl. Smart Economy

Higher Education services

• R&D strategy, planning and management
• IPR commercialisation
• R&D proposal preparation including FP7 and research centre feasibility assessments

Milestone Work by CIRCA

Much of the work undertaken by consultants, like the CIRCA Group, in the area of public policy and national development is usually only part of the contribution to a considerably bigger picture. But every now and then we get the opportunity to make a more direct and individual contribution that leads to significant advance and permanent change. These we call our MILESTONE projects.

Some examples of our Milestone Projects include

Innovation Audit (BMW Region)  
R&D Management in Irish Universities
Thematic EvaluationImpact of CSF Funds on RTDI in Objective 1 & 6 Regions
National Strategy for Aquaculture Development (2000-2015)
The Establishment of the Tipperary Institute

R&D Management in Irish Universities
This assignment was a complete assessment of research management in all the Irish universities. It was undertaken at a time when public policy was beginning to redefine the role of the Irish university and move it from its traditional core of education, learning and independent research to also incorporate a greater contribution to national economic and social development. Research management varied considerably from university to university and its importance and role was only beginning to be understood and developed. The CIRCA Group team benchmarked the performance of the seven Irish universities with 16 leading universities in the UK, France, and the Netherlands across a range of indicators.

Three key conclusions arising from this work were:

• The real need for more investment in university research to allow them to respond to the demands of public policy
• The need to use our limited national intellectual resources in a more strategic manner in the future, both within each university and collectively across the system
• The need to encourage greater co-operation between universities so that scare infrastructures, facilities and expertise would be better utilized in the future.

This assignment has resulted in:

• Greater recognition of the contribution the university sector makes and can make to national economic and social development as well as fulfilling its education role
• Political recognition of the poor state of national investment in university research and the need to change this
• Political commitment to increase the investment in university research generally and to provide additional research funds in key national areas
• Recognition of the need to raise Irish university research management performance to the level of the best in Ireland

The measurable impacts of this assignment were:

• The Government invested more than €1200 million in university research
• It also committed a similar amount to Biotechnology and ICT research
• All universities now draw up strategic research plans
• All universities now have co-operative agreements with other Irish universities