Encouraging Swiss Innovation

Cleantech provides huge opportunities for innovation and manufacturing in Switzerland, a means of creating jobs and maintaining living standards. At the same time, efficient and clean technologies play an important role in meeting global challenges such as climate changes, depletion of natural resources or increasing environmental pollution. For this reason, the Federal Department of Economic Affaires (FDEA) and the Federal Department of the Environment, Transport, Energy and Communications (DETEC) worked together to draft the Swiss Cleantech Masterplan (SCMP). With this plan, the federal government seeks to increase make Swiss cleantech companies more innovative by encouraging close cooperation between scientific, business, government and political stakeholders.

•  The cleantech sector in Switzerland is essentially well-positioned
•  There is a broad knowledge base and also considerable specialization. While the number of Swiss cleantech patent applications is increasing, Switzerland’s share of cleantech – related patents worldwide has fallen slightly.
•  Switzerland enjoys a strong position as far as foreign trade in cleantech products is concerned. Swiss exports of cleantech products and services are growing, albeit at a slower pace than Swiss exports in general. Furthermore, Switzerland’s share of the world’s cleantech market is diminishing.
•  Switzerland has lost some of its lead in the cleantech sector to intercontinental competition and has even fallen behind in some cleantech sub-sectors. These developments clearly run counter to the dynamic growth witnessed in the cleantech sector outside of Switzerland.

  Vision:

Switzerland will reduce its consumption of resources to environmentally sustainable levels (footprint “one”). Switzerland will become a leading location for business and innovation in the cleantech sector. In doing so, Switzerland will set the pace for the efficient and economic use of resources.

Objective 1: Leading position in cleantech research

By 2020, Switzerland’s knowledge base in the cleantech sector will improve thanks to research activities. In selected cleantech sub-sectors and competencies, Switzerland will hold a world-class position.

Objective 2: Considerable progress in knowledge and technology transfer

By 2020, the general conditions for research, knowledge and technology transfer and education will be in place, leading to greater innovation in the cleantech sector. Swiss companies will be able to effectively use the knowledge gained by higher education institutions as a means of developing their cleantech innovations.

Objective 3: Leading position in cleantech products and services

By 2020, resource-efficient technologies will be increasingly developed, in demand and used for processes and products relating to the environment and energy.

Objective 4: Cleantech stands for Swiss quality

By 2020, Switzerland will become a leading location for the production and export of cleantech products and services. Cleantech will be associated with Swiss quality and “Swissness”.

The materials are taken from Swiss Cleantech Masterplan.