HOCHSCHULE ZITTAU/GOERLITZ

Their core work

Hochschule Zittau/Görlitz is a German university of applied sciences located in Saxony, near the Polish and Czech borders. They serve as a regional innovation support hub through the Enterprise Europe Network (EEN Sachsen), helping local businesses — especially SMEs — access EU innovation opportunities and manage technology transfer. Beyond advisory work, they contribute technical expertise in power electronics, semiconductor technologies, and industrial digitization within large European Electronic Components and Systems (ECS) initiatives.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

From 2015 to 2018, the university focused almost exclusively on regional innovation brokerage through the EEN Sachsen network, centered on key account management and helping local SMEs connect with EU opportunities. Starting in 2018, they added a clear technical dimension — joining large-scale Electronic Components and Systems projects (iDev40, Power2Power) dealing with industrial digitization, power semiconductors, and electric mobility. This shift suggests the university is moving from pure innovation advisory work toward contributing applied research in electronics and energy systems.

They are transitioning from a purely advisory/network role toward applied technical contributions in power semiconductors and industrial electronics — expect deeper involvement in ECS and green mobility projects.

How they like to work

Hochschule Zittau/Görlitz operates exclusively as a participant, never as a coordinator — they join consortia rather than leading them. Their 86 unique partners across 11 countries suggest broad exposure through large Innovation Action consortia (iDev40 and Power2Power are both major ECSEL-type projects with dozens of partners each). The EEN projects involve regional German partners, while the technical projects connect them into pan-European industrial networks.

With 86 unique consortium partners across 11 countries, their network is substantial relative to their project count — largely because the two ECS Innovation Actions (iDev40, Power2Power) involve very large consortia of industrial and academic partners across Europe.

What sets them apart

Their location in eastern Saxony, at the crossroads of Germany, Poland, and the Czech Republic, gives them a natural bridging role for cross-border innovation in Central Europe. They combine two usually separate capabilities: hands-on SME innovation support (through EEN) and applied research in power electronics and industrial digitization. For consortium builders, this means a partner who understands both the technology and the business adoption challenge — particularly for SME-focused dissemination and exploitation work packages.

Highlights from their portfolio

• Power2Power
  Their largest funded project (EUR 136,026), focused on next-generation silicon power semiconductors for electric mobility and grid — a strategically important European supply chain topic.
• iDev40
  A major Industry 4.0 initiative addressing digitization of development processes and cyber-physical systems across the European electronics industry.