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Applied research drives SME innovation
Universities of applied sciences have grown into indispensable innovation partners for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) over the past decade. A network analysis published today by Birch reveals that the number of research partners has grown tenfold between 2015 and 2024, reaching over 64,000 unique partners. Three quarters of these partners are SMEs. BUas actively contributes to this growing collaboration — including with SME partners across Europe — but sees a risk: without structural funding, innovation support for businesses will come under pressure.
Universities of applied sciences as R&D partners for SMEs
For many SMEs, a university of applied sciences is the most accessible research partner: nearby, practical, and fast. Over ten years, the network of research partners grew tenfold — from a handful of contacts to more than 64,000 unique collaborations. Universities of applied sciences are uniquely positioned to reach smaller businesses, addressing concrete innovation challenges: from energy-efficient plastic recycling to the use of drones and robotics in agriculture.
Growing demand, shrinking budget
Demand for applied research is growing faster than available funding. Universities of applied sciences have access to only a twentieth of the research funding available to research universities. To keep projects viable, institutions redirect part of their educational funding towards research each year. With demographic decline putting pressure on that educational funding in the coming years, this important safety net will no longer be sustainable.
Maurice Limmen, Chair of the Netherlands Association of Universities of Applied Sciences: "For SMEs, the university of applied sciences is often the R&D partner just around the corner: accessible, fast, and practical. But the network has grown tenfold in ten years, while resources have not kept pace. This puts research under pressure, with direct consequences for businesses' earning capacity. We must structurally fund applied research; otherwise, the very companies that want to innovate will increasingly be left behind."
Investing in knowledge pays off
Applied research is an engine for innovation, productivity growth, and regional development. Additional government investment would give universities of applied sciences the capacity to expand their contribution and channel knowledge more rapidly into professional practice and education. Together with the Netherlands Association of Universities of Applied Sciences, BUas is calling for structural funding to make this collaboration sustainable in the long term.
Read the full coverage and report on the website of the Netherlands Association of Universities of Applied Sciences (in Dutch).
