SFI Confidential 1 Science Foundation Ireland Presentation to Joint Oireachtas Committee on Education and Science. 31 January 2008
SFI Confidential 1
Science Foundation Ireland
Presentation to Joint Oireachtas Committee on Education and Science.
31 January 2008
SFI Confidential 2
Science Foundation Ireland
VISION:• Through strategic investments in the people, ideas and
partnerships essential to outstanding research in strategic areas, Science Foundation Ireland will help build in Ireland research of globally recognised excellence and nationally significant economic importance.
MISSION:• SFI will build and strengthen scientific and engineering research
and its infrastructure in the areas of greatest strategic value to Ireland’s long-term competitiveness and development.
SFI Confidential 3
Frontiers (academic) Research & Economic Output: Cause, Pause & Effect
economic
academic
research of…globally recognised excellence
Ou
tpu
t
research of…nationally significant economic importance
Time
SFI Confidential 4
Technology Transfer EI
SFI
IDA
• Tech Transfer
• HEIs
From Brains to
Business
investment €€€
Return €€€€€€€€€
SFI Confidential 5
SFI is not working in isolation
SSTI
SFI
IDA
EI
HEA
HEIs
HRB
DCENR
IRCSET
Teagasc
Marine
FAS
Others
Active engagement of SFI with
SFI Confidential 6
The SSTI Challenge 1The PI as the fulcrum
•The PI is at the centre of what
SFI is about…..
•PhDs, papers, commercial
opportunities will flow from the
PIs
•and SSTI demands 350 (240)
PIs over and above existing
levels!
•Targets being Achieved
1 PI
5 PhD
3 Post Doc
1 Tech
Figure 2: The PI-centric Research Team
1 PI
5 PhD
3 Post Doc
1 Tech
Figure 2: The PI-centric Research Team
SFI Confidential 7
Estimated number of Post Docs / PhDs
Award/PI Category # Post Docs # PhDs
PI/Invest/Fellow/Res
Prof/PICA/PIYRA/
Maths
530 780
CSET 150 140
SRC 0 0
RFP 0 450
Approx. Total 680 1370
SFI Confidential 8
Number of Articles Published in Journals by SFI-funded Researchers
2002 20032004 2005 2006
Total Journal Articles Published 135 453
1,308 1,252 1,318
SFI Confidential 9
Breakdown of Funding by HEI
DCU8%
RCSI2%
NUIG9%
NUI Maynooth5%
TCD26%
Institutes of Technology
1%
UL6%
UCD17%
UCC13%
Tyndall12%
Dublin Institute of Technology
1%
Other0%
Other
Institutes of Technology
Dublin Institute of Technology
Dublin City University
NUI Galw ay
NUI Maynooth
RCSI
Trinity College Dublin
Tyndall National Institute
University College Cork
University College Dublin
University of Limerick
SFI Confidential 10
Research Impact
SFI Research Impact: National and International Comparisons, 2006 (Virtual Impact Factors*) n = 22,378
Scopus Subject Area SFI Ireland World
Agriculture and Biological Sciences
108 99 100
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology
117 102 100
Immunology and Microbiology 111 102 100
Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics
109 99 100
Neuroscience 125 94 100
All BIO 115 99 100
Computer Science 132 105 100
Materials Science 181 122 100
Physics 116 98 100
All ICT 141 109 100
Source: INDECON Bibliometric Assessment of SFI Research Outputs
SFI Confidential 11
2008 Budget Payout Projection
32%
64%
2% 2%
Programmes with direct links withIndustrial Research
Capacity & Research Competence Building
Raising the international profile of Ireland
OutreachPI, RFP, PIYRA, PICA, SIRG, Stokes etc.
CSETs/SRCs
Conf. & W’shops, Waltons etc
STARs, UREKA, DELL/SFI Scholarship, Women in Science
SFI Confidential 12
Total Commitments by Category
69%
1%
1%
29%
Programmes with direct links withIndustrial Research
Capacity & Research CompetenceBuilding
Raising the international profile ofIreland
Outreach
CSETs/SRCs
PI, RFP, PIYRA, PICA, SIRG, Stokes etc.
Conf. & W’shops, Waltons etc
STARs, UREKA, DELL/SFI Scholarship, Women in Science
SFI Confidential 13
Build up of Industry Engagement
Suite of programmes now developed;
• Smaller Scale; Single company – single PI
• PI Industrial Supplement Programme – first awards 2004
• Medium Scale; 2+ companies – 2+ PI’s
• Strategic Research Clusters Programme – first awards 2007
• Large Scale; Multiple Companies – multiple PI’s
• CSET Programme – first awards 2003
• In addition, Industry collaborations develop organically across all programmes
SFI Confidential 14
PI Industrial Supplement Programme
• 27 PI Industry Supplements funded to date
• Irish SMEs; Sigmoid Biotechnologies, Eblana Photonics, Alimentary Health, Compass Informatics, Aerogen
• MNCs; Intel, Siemens, IBM, Seagate, SUN, Oracle, Eli Lilly, Agilent, Mitsubishi, Dow Corning
SFI Confidential 15
CSETs
• 8 Centres funded to date – 42 companies now engaged
• Acting as magnets to attract new R&D; both academic talent and
companies
• Additional companies continue to be added – HP (CRANN), GSK
(APC), Smith & Nephew (REMEDI), Xilinx (CTVR), Nortel (DERI)
• 4 CSET (REMEDI, APC, CRANN, DERI) entering 2nd term funding
request process in 2008
• 2 further potential CSETs at final review stage
SFI Confidential 16
Strategic Research Clusters
• 12 projects funded in 2007• Approx 490 highly skilled personnel including senior PIs,
Post docs and PhD Students• Extensive academic collaboration with an average of > 3
HEIs per cluster• 48 companies engaged in projects, again both Irish SMEs
and MNCs• 2nd Competition now live (including special call for
Financial Mathematics proposals)• Results expected Q4’08
SFI Confidential 17
SFI CSET and PI Industry Collaborations
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
2002 2003 2004 2005 2006
Year
# o
f In
tera
ctio
ns
Indigenous Irish
MNC Irish base - Irish collaboration
MNC Irish base - Overseas collaboration
Overseas collaboration
Total
Total PI and CSET awardees Collaboration with Industry
2002 2003 2004 2005 2006
Indigenous Irish 3 24 46 50 73
MNC Irish Base –
Irish Collaboration
1 17 60 65 73
MNC Irish Base –
Overseas
Collaboration
0 6 12 36 29
Overseas
Collaboration
3 14 68 80 89
Total 7 61 186 231 264
SFI Confidential 18
SFI – Is it working?
• Increase in quality/quantity in human capital
• Increased international visibility (Stokes etc.)
• Increased industry collaboration (CSETS/SRC/PIs)
• Coordinated Inter Agency implementation
• Plan in place and operational
• Industry focus; Internal reorganisation in place, planning & strategy implementation
• Increased emphasis on visibility by Stakeholders, i.e, society, industry, scientists, HEIs