INSTITUTO DE FOMENTO DE LA REGION DE MURCIA

Their core work

Instituto de Fomento de la Región de Murcia (INFO) is the regional development agency of Spain's Murcia region, responsible for promoting economic growth, business competitiveness, and innovation among local enterprises. Their H2020 work centers on delivering SME innovation management services — diagnostic audits, coaching plans, and innovation capacity assessments — under the EU's SME Instrument and INNOSUP programmes. They also design and implement innovation voucher schemes and demand-driven co-creation models that connect public entities with businesses. More recently, they have expanded into circular economy initiatives in the agrifood sector, reflecting Murcia's strong agricultural base.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

From 2014 to 2018, INFO focused almost exclusively on SME Instrument support — coaching, innovation diagnostics using IMP3rove methodology, and key account management for high-potential SMEs seeking internationalisation. Starting around 2019, their focus broadened significantly: they began coordinating projects on demand-driven innovation models (inDemand-RCT) and entered the circular economy space with Agro2Circular, linking digitalisation with agrifood waste upcycling. This shift suggests a move from pure innovation services delivery toward designing regional innovation ecosystems and addressing Murcia's agri-industrial transition challenges.

INFO is transitioning from an SME services provider into a regional innovation architect, increasingly focused on circular economy and agrifood — expect future projects at the intersection of digitalisation, sustainability, and regional economic development.

How they like to work

INFO operates primarily as a participant (8 of 10 projects), joining consortia where they contribute regional implementation and SME access rather than scientific research. Their two coordinator roles (INNOVOUCHER and inDemand-RCT) were both coordination and support actions, indicating they lead when the task is about designing and testing innovation policy instruments. With 77 unique partners across 16 countries, they maintain a broad but not deep network — typical of a regional development agency that connects into different European initiatives rather than building long-term research alliances.

INFO has collaborated with 77 unique partners across 16 countries, indicating wide but relatively shallow European connections. Their network likely concentrates on other regional development agencies, innovation intermediaries, and public authorities across Southern and Western Europe.

What sets them apart

INFO brings something most research organisations cannot: direct, hands-on access to the SME ecosystem of Murcia, one of Spain's most important agricultural and food-processing regions. Their decade of experience running SME innovation diagnostics and coaching means they understand not just the theory of technology transfer but the practical barriers companies face when adopting innovations. For consortium builders, they are an ideal partner when a project needs real-world SME engagement, pilot testing with businesses, or a regional authority that can implement policy instruments on the ground.

Highlights from their portfolio

• INNOVOUCHER
  Their largest project (EUR 927K) and a coordinator role — designed a European label for innovation vouchers enabling transnational SME-research collaboration.
• inDemand-RCT
  Second coordinator role (EUR 497K) developing a replicable demand-driven co-creation model connecting public sector needs with business innovation.
• Agro2Circular
  Marks a strategic pivot into circular economy and agrifood — their most recent and longest-running project (2021-2025), signaling a new direction.