Summary of the information event on the real-world laboratory innovation portal.
On March 12, around 25 participants from the NRW Cluster community, as well as other interested parties, came together as part of the digital exchange format NRW Clusters meet … to learn more about the Real-World Laboratories Innovation Portal and current developments surrounding the German Federal Government's planned Real-World Laboratories Act. Alexander Bullinger, project manager of the Real-World Laboratories Innovation Portal, provided an overview of the portal's goals, functionality, and current activities, and presented the role of real-world laboratories as an instrument for testing innovations under real-world conditions .
Living labs are temporary experimental spaces where innovative technologies, products, services, or approaches can be tested under conditions as close to real-world conditions as possible. They are conducted by stakeholders from business, science, administration, or civil society and generally involve the relevant authorities. The goal of such experimental spaces is to gather practical experience with new solutions and to gain insights for the further development of regulatory frameworks. This can be based on experimental or trial clauses that allow for time-limited exceptions to legal requirements .
The Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy's Living Lab Innovation Portal compiles information on living labs in Germany and provides an overview of existing initiatives, best practices, and legal frameworks. Furthermore, the portal offers background information and additional resources that can provide guidance for planning and implementing living labs. The aim is to provide stakeholders from business, science, administration, and politics with central access to information on living labs, to increase the visibility of existing activities, and to promote exchange on this instrument .
In discussions with participants, it became clear that clusters and networks can play a crucial role in identifying and sharing practical experience. As an interface between companies, research institutions, and policymakers, they can gather information on regulatory challenges and highlight potential use cases for real-world laboratories. It was also evident that clusters can contribute their experience by, for example, providing insights into regulatory hurdles, ideas for potential real-world laboratory projects, experiences with experimental clauses, or participation in thematic working groups .
Further information about the real-world laboratory innovation portal can be found below.
Source: www.nrwinnovativ.de
