Wealth + Innovation + Natural resources Abstract of the 2020 Thuringia Trend Atlas
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Wealth + Innovation + Natural resources
Abstract of the
2020 Thuringia Trend Atlas
2
Contents
Contents
Foreword – Matthias Machnig 4
1 Growth for Thuringia 6
2 Thuringia’s return to the centre of Germany 8
2.1 Thuringia: making a comeback since 1991 8
2.2 Thuringia today: challenges and potential for the future 10
3 Opportunities for Thuringia: using global megatrends 14
3.1 2020: future growth from megatrends 14
3.2 Potential areas of growth for Thuringia 15
4 Recommendations and impetus 23
4.1 Focusing economic promotion on the areas of growth 23
4.2 Transforming the instruments for promoting economic development and
establishing economic policy expertise 24
4.3 Promoting company growth 25
4.4 Promoting company cooperation 27
4.5 Boosting business start-ups and entrepreneurial cultures 28
4.6 Actively opening up potential international markets and creating
sustainable structures – primarily for SMEs 30
4.7 Strengthening funding for technology 31
4.8 Developing science and research 34
4.9 Systematising and accelerating the commercialisation of research results 35
4.10 Guaranteeing effective infrastructure 36
4.11 Securing and strengthening investment expenditure 38
4.12 Prioritising industry and industrial services 39
4.13 Developing the Thuringia Aufbaubank (development bank)
into the Landesstrukturbank (regional structural bank) 40
4.14 Securing the supply of skilled workers 41
4.15 Modernising administrative structures 43
4.16 Improving cluster management and strengthening regional networks 44
Be bold for the future 46
Imprint 48
3
Foreword
Dear Readers,
Thuringia is one of the most attractive invest-
ment locations in Germany. A few years ago,
anyone who ventured to say this in public
would probably have been greeted by disbe-
lieving amazement and derisive comments.
Bavaria, Baden-Württemberg, yes, probably
also Hesse or Hamburg, maybe Saxony — but and simplistic view of the new federal states
Thuringia? of Germany as the ’east’ is no longer in
keeping with the times; the same goes for the
Times have changed. The assertion that Thur-
idea of their ’reconstruction’. Now we need to
ingia is one of the most attractive investment
consolidate our achievements and every fed-
locations in Germany does not by any means
eral state has to find their own way of doing
come from Thuringia. It is the result of an ana-
so. We are therefore moving from the decades
lysis by the renowned American trade journal
of reconstruction in the east into Thuringia’s
‘Site Selection’.
phase of development.
The ranking by international experts demon-
The time has come to honestly take stock of
strates that a lot has been done since Thuringia
the situation. How has Thuringia developed,
moved to the centre of a united Germany in
what are its strengths, but also its weak-
1990. This success is primarily due to the
nesses, and what are the central challenges
people of Thuringia, the companies and the
that Thuringia is going to have to face in the
employees whose courage and determination,
coming years? We must get to the bottom of
hard work and intelligent investments have
these questions to set the right course for the
resulted in the state staging an unparalleled
future. The Thuringia State Ministry for Econ-
economic comeback. However, our achieve-
omics, Labour and Technology has therefore
ments should not give us cause for compla-
commissioned the renowned Roland Berger
cency. Whoever stands still falls behind; if we
Strategy Consultants to carefully examine
content ourselves with updating the past, we
Thuringia as a business location and produce
will end up on the losing side. The past 20
recommendations for Thuringia’s economic
years have been greatly influenced by the
and location policies.
‘Aufbau Ost’ reconstruction programme in the
former East German states. But this phase is The analysis is not just limited to survey-
now on the home straight. The sweeping ing Thuringia as a location and identifying
4
Foreword
the strengths and weaknesses, risks and Roland Berger has produced a comprehensive
opportunities. The Roland-Berger study goes report, the summary of which you have in
further, placing the economic development front of you. The complete work in German,
of Thuringia in a global context. On the face ‘Trendatlas Thüringen 2020’, is on sale in
of it, this may seem presumptuous, but it is bookshops nationwide. We chose this title
absolutely vital: merely considering Thuringia because the characteristic of the trend atlas
without looking at the bigger picture would is to primarily take into account those dynamic
be to neglect a vital element. Global industries which particularly profit from the
developments take place globally – and even global megatrends. Of course, at the same
Thuringia needs to bear these in mind. The time, we have to ensure that other industries
climate is also changing in our free state, which are not named explicitly, yet are still
medical progress happily does not stop at our the primary pillars of the Thuringia economy,
state borders and the finite nature of fossil do not disappear from our field of vision and
fuels also affects companies and private receive adequate support in our economic
households in Erfurt and Jena, Gera and policies.
Weimar. Climate change, energy efficiency
On the following pages, you will find the
and medical progress: just three of the global
abridged version of the recommendations for
megatrends that are also of great importance
the economic and location policies with which
to Thuringia and offer potential for growth and
Thuringia can continue to defend its top pos-
employment.
ition as one of the most attractive investment
That is why global megatrends must be locations in Germany throughout this decade.
reflected with the potential for Thuringia’s We are delighted to invite you to join the dia-
economy. This makes it clear that we are well logue concerning our economic policies. We
prepared in many areas. Our optics compa- are calling for everyone to work together with
nies enjoy an excellent reputation worldwide the players at local and regional level and
and medical technology firms contribute to business, the sciences and the state govern-
Thuringia’s booming health sector. We are an ment on the ‘Thüringen 2020’ concept.
important location for the solar power industry
and universities in Jena, Ilmenau, Erfurt and Yours sincerely,
Weimar prepare our young people for the
challenges of the globalised labour market. In
other areas, Thuringia still needs to catch up:
from the very low investments in research and Matthias Machnig
development to the struggle for the smartest Thuringia Minister for Economy,
minds which began long ago under the head- Labour and Technology
ing ‘skills shortage’.
5
1 Growth for Thuringia
1 Growth for Thuringia
Consolidating strengths and sustainably tunities, demographic changes, economic
strengthening investments, innovation and restructuring working to endorse an efficiency
internationalisation revolution (energy/resources).
Economic policies are never a question of
Innovation is the key to securing the eco-
dealing with current problems – economic
nomic future. Modern economic policies are
policies are always about structuring the
therefore also always innovation policies,
future. The more dynamic the changes, the
because a sustainable economic policy is
greater the need to develop smart solutions.
more than just the lack of an economic crisis.
A self-supporting upturn and stable growth Ideas that reach out beyond the short-term
can only be achieved when we succeed in political events have to be developed, and a
recognising the great challenges of the fu- further horizon is needed. The idea is to
ture as opportunities: globalisation, location deduce potential demand from the most
competition, the acceleration of technologi- significant and reliable trends for the next
cal progress, dynamic employment oppor- 20 years and thereby grant a long-term
A sustainable economic policy engages current strengths with short-term potential and long-term trends.
6
1 Growth for Thuringia
sustainable direction to the economic economic dialogue, global developments are
development in Thuringia and its economic taken into account by local actors.
policies.
Experience, expertise and objectivity are
Such an analysis requires the integration of needed for this kind of analysis. That is why
both current strengths and short-term poten- the Thuringian Ministry for Economy, Labour
tial and long-term trends as well as the and Technology (TMWAT) has sought expert
resulting markets. knowledge and expert experience. The
Roland Berger Strategy Consultants (RBSC)
For this, the ‘bottom-up’ approach of the
have looked at the bigger picture for the
concepts, strengths and strategies that are
TMWAT, investigating 30 global megatrends
familiar in Thuringia has to be supplemen-
and 259 trend areas, and relating these to
ted with a previously neglected ‘top-down’
the free state. In doing so, they fell back on
perspective. The aim is to look at the potential
the expertise of other experts from research
changes and derive from them opportunities
establishments and industry associations –
for the regional economy. In a sustained
some 4,500 Thuringia-based companies
took part via a survey.
Finally, 11 areas of growth were identified
for Thuringia’s economy. The result is a port-
folio strategy which consolidates existing
strengths while developing new ones,
concentrates on a few promising areas of
growth and strengthens investments and
support in the medium term.
These recommendations should serve as
signposts for the future economic direction
and development of the free state. Specific
recommendations for Thuringia’s economic
policies have been developed taking into
account Thuringia’s recent history, the
current challenges and potential of the fed-
eral state, future global megatrends and
potential areas of growth.
7
2 Thuringia’s return to the centre of Germany
2 Thuringia’s return to the centre of Germany
2.1 Thuringia: making a comeback since 1991
The economic development of the last 20 years speed of growth among the eastern German
has been a success story – thanks to many states to date approached the lower federal
company founders and employees, as well average. The development of productivity
as federal and state policies that have also also slackened. In the two decades after
played their part. the fall of the Berlin Wall, industry and
production-related services were the drivers
Since reunification, the Free State of Thurin-
of growth in the free state. In the second
gia has made a massive effort to success-
decade, 75% of total growth in the Thuringian
fully restructure its economy from a state-
economy was already accounted for by these
directed economy to the market economy
two areas.
and has laid stable foundations for further
development in the 21st century. Never- Industry and production-related services
theless, substantial regional differences, are the basis of Thuringia’s leading position
continuing structural problems and a lack of in comparison with the other eastern German
modernisation require new responses. federal states. The free state is the captain
of business growth. Yet the gross value added
As Thuringia also started with a relatively
per earner in Thuringia today is around
low level of economic development, the
12,000 euros below the national average.
ascent was initially very fast. The stunning
comeback in the first ten years following the But only by moving at a faster rate than the
fall of the Berlin Wall was, however, followed region in front can we close the ranks. The
by a slower second post-reunification de- rate of growth in the Thuringian economy
cade. Between 2000 and 2008, the highest and in the industry, in particular, has to be
accelerated again.
8
2 Thuringia’s return to the centre of Germany
1st decade 2nd decade
34
22
20 Thuringia
18 Germany
16 growth GVA
14
12
10
8
6
4
2
1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008
Annual growth rate of gross value added as a comparison between
Thuringia and Germany (D) [%] (source: Destatis).
9
2 Thuringia’s return to the centre of Germany
2.2 Thuringia today: challenges and potential for the future
En route to becoming one of the leading processes lead to competitive products.
and most dynamic locations in Germany, Innovations are also an essential key for
there are structural problems that must be productive and competitive workplaces.
overcome. In addition to migration, the low
Thuringia is significantly below the German
level of research intensity and the lack of
average, both for the number of patents filed
taxpaying ability, the small size of firms is a
and the research and development expend-
predominant factor. Only 0.3% of all Thuringia-
iture (R & D) per earner as a measurement of
based companies employ more than 250
innovation capacity. The lack of expenditure
people. Only a fraction of the few larger
is in large part to be ascribed to the low level
companies are listed on the stock exchange
of research and development, due to the lack
and only a few headquarters are based in
of large research-led companies.
the state. The lack of large companies means
that the free state lacks the natural core As well as innovation, it is primarily invest-
of investment, innovation and also export ment that increases technical progress in the
strength. The results are low market power company. Without investment, innovation
and innovation dynamics. An innovation- is unthinkable. Innovation is the natural
oriented economic policy must take account prerequisite for the emergence of growth,
of these structural problems. and we therefore have to invest more in it.
R & D expenditure as a share GDP is under
The five ‘I’s are the critical factors for a
two percent in the free state. A glance at the
sustainable and successful economy for
Lisbon Strategy goals reveals how inadequate
tomorrow:
the endeavours in Thuringia have been up to
> Innovation. now: the three percent marker was the aim
by 2010, in order to become one of the most
> Investment.
dynamic economic regions in the world. A
> Infrastructure. prerequisite for investment is for investors to
be established here.
> Internationalisation.
Investors need to be attracted; an attractive
> Integration of talented individuals
environment with high-performance and
and workers.
modern infrastructure contributes to this.
Growth is generated first and foremost where Besides the economy-oriented infrastructure,
innovative developments and production such as sufficient industrial and commercial
102. Thuringia`s return to the centre of Germany
Here, investments are in demand: research and development are the driver of technological progress.
premises, the entire transport infrastructure for instance, by completing ongoing transport
and connection to (high) capacity data projects.
networks form part of a location’s attractive-
Apart from opening up new markets in
ness.
Germany, the path to increasing economic
Initial, important steps have already been growth also depends predominantly on
taken in this area with the large industrial participating in the above-average growth
space and broadband initiative. This extends opportunities on the international market.
the range of attractive industrial and com- As a result of the correlation between share
mercial premises and increases the level of of exports and growth in sales, energetic
connection of the rural area to broadband. endeavours should be made to close the
However, there is a further need for action – globalisation gap. Targeted and supported
112 Thuringia’s return to the centre of Germany
development of foreign markets with the particular, the emigration of well-educated
greatest growth prospects can generate young people – is leading to the deterioration
additional growth in Thuringia. Measures of the workforce potential. Over the last ten
such as the introduction of ‘technology years, a decrease of 11% has been recorded.
scouts’ are appropriate methods. In a few professional fields today, there is
already a visible lack of highly qualified skilled
Another necessary requirement for the in-
workers, and this is only going to get worse.
crease in growth is, above all, the availability
Talented young people must be attracted to
of sufficient skilled workers resulting from
Thuringia and encouraged to stay here.
the integration of wide-ranging talents and
skills in the labour market. In 2010, the The future belongs to the region that identi-
population of Thuringia fell by 46 residents fies the lead markets – in other words, those
every day. The demographic change – and, in areas in which the greatest bursts of growth
Innovation is an important key for modern, sustainable jobs.
122 Thuringia’s return to the centre of Germany
are to be expected in the coming years. > Engineering.
First, we should stress that the strengths
In addition, there are four cross-sectional
in Thuringia today are also the strengths of
technologies:
tomorrow. Innovation is an important key for
modern, sustainable jobs. > Plastics and ceramics.
Previous analyses leave no doubt that > Micro- and nanotechnology.
industry and production-related services will
> Measurement and control technology.
also continue to form the backbone of the
Thuringia economy – especially due to the > Optics/Optoelectronics.
spillover effects. The areas that profit from
These fields of technology drive growth and
this are those that are more geared to local
jobs in all industries – significant synergies
and regional distribution such as agriculture
are also expected between these individual
and forestry, the building industry, trade, and
fields, thus amplifying the impact.
the hotel and restaurant industry as well as
household-related services. When listing the economic strengths of
Thuringia, one industry above all cannot go
Using the criteria strength (share of industrial
unmentioned: the food industry. It is of huge
employees in employment), dynamism
economic importance, drives employment
(gross value added [GVA] and employment
and supports innovation, thus making it
of growth) and sustainability (R & D activities
vitally important to the free state. In Thuringia,
and network structures), eight areas have
it is the second sector in terms of industry
been identified in industry and production-
turnover and third in terms of employment.
related services which could, and in all
To sustainably strengthen the food industry,
likelihood will, drive growth in the region.
a cluster must be formed in this sector. A
The focus is on four application-oriented
cluster summit later this year will act as a
technologies:
catalyst in this process.
> The automotive industry.
> Life sciences.
> Environmentally friendly energies and
energy storage.
133 Opportunities for Thuringia: using global megatrends
3 Opportunities for Thuringia:
using global megatrends
3.1 2020: future growth from megatrends
A signpost for the future sustainable direc- technological development and a variety
tion of Thuringia’s economic policies natur- of interviews with experts have helped us
ally remains incomplete if we only analyse predict how Thuringia can profit from the
existing strengths. worldwide developments that are apparent
today.
The central question is: what are the de-
cisive global areas of growth for tomorrow Through a complex process of analysis and
and the day after tomorrow, and what can deduction, we were able to determine that
be done to ensure that the free state, com- there are altogether 11 promising areas of
panies and the people of Thuringia take ad- growth with great potential for Thuringia’s
vantage of the dynamism of these markets? economy. Eight of them are old friends in
Thuringia and are already listed above. In
It is necessary to determine an exact road
addition to these four application-oriented
map for the economic-policy route to the
and four cross-sectional technologies, three
year 2020. This is possible. The next decade
budding areas – known as ‘trend-induced
is not entirely unknown terrain. Today, there
areas of growth’ – could be identified from
are already clues for credible predictions.
the highly relevant megatrends. These are:
RBSC compiled a ‘trend compendium’ based
on economics for the World Economic Forum > Green technology (excluding energy gener-
in Davos that described which megatrends ation and energy storage).
will shape future economic development. This
> Service robotics.
compendium was also used to establish this
roadmap. Complementary studies on global > Creative industries / Edutainment.
as well as regional aspects of economic and
143. Opportunities for Thuringia: Using global megatrends
Which megatrends are shaping our future? According to predictions,
the photovoltaic industry is one of the areas of growth.
3.2 Potential areas of growth for Thuringia
It appears that Thuringia can adapt to the In close collaboration with Thuringia experts,
areas of growth driven by trends. There are recommendations have been formulated that
eight sectors which are solidly established will help to change the positioning of compa-
and from which economic momentum can nies in such a way that enables greater market
be developed. It will be the task of future success.
economic policies to increase the pace, on
the basis of the five ‘I’s and with the right The prediction shows that the targeted devel-
new additions. To ensure that the potential opment of the 11 areas of growth in Thurin-
growth in the 11 sectors named is actually gia by 2020 can bring about an increase in
realised, the right course needs to be set. gross added value of up to 67–77% in the
153 Opportunities for Thuringia: using global megatrends
eight application-oriented and cross-sectio- in the added value of 2.9–3.3 and 1.0–1.1
nal technologies, up to 89–100% in the trend- billion euros respectively and the creation of
induced areas of growth and a rise in employ- almost 36,000–44,000 and 11,000–13,000
ment of up to 39–48% and up to 57–66% new jobs respectively.
respectively. This means an outright increase
Since green technology, a central key
technology of the future, plays an important
role in all areas and is closely interwoven
with them, in the future it will no longer be
possible to strictly separate the individual
sectors and simply add them up. Below is an
overview of the concepts for 2020 that are
specific to areas of growth – in the sense of
‘future concepts’ – and the most important
recommendations:
Automotive
Automotive suppliers will concentrate on
high-quality systems and be strongly inte-
grated along the value chain. They will have
to tackle the development of skills in the
field of sustainable mobility together. The
industry will develop its primary role as an
employer in Thuringia by 2020.
Priority measures:
> Strengthening research and development
expertise and increasing systems expertise
through intensive use of the Thuringia Cen-
tre for Innovation and Mobility (ThIMo).
> Setting up a support unit for collaborative
Well positioned in the areas of growth: Thuringia research projects.
can look to the future with optimism.
163 Opportunities for Thuringia: using global megatrends
Gross value added and number of persons employed in application and cross-sectional technologies, as well as the trend-induc
growth areas for 2020 (Source: Roland Berger Strategy Consultants)
GVA change 2008–20 Percentage change Persons employed Percentage change
(in millions of euros) compared to 2008 change 2008–20 compared to 2008
Application technologies
Automotive +720–810 +80–90% +10,500–12,400 +51–60%
Biotechnology +140–150 +140–150% +1,600–1,800 +100–113%
Medical technology +270–300 +123–136% +3,800–4,300 +83–93%
Energy and energy storage +470–530 +104–118% +7,100–8,100 +73–84%
Engineering +220–300 +20–27% +1,500–3,000 +6–13%
Cross-sectional technologies
Plastics and ceramics +520–610 +55–64% +6,100–7,700 +30–38%
Micro- and nanotechnology +90–100 +69–77% +1,000–2,400 +34–55%
Measuring and control +180–210 +72–84% +2,100–1,300 +48–45%
Optics +270–290 +135–145% +1,900–2,600 +46–63%
TOTAL +2,880–3,300 +67–77% +35,600–43,600 +39–48%
Trend-induced growth areas
Green technology +820–930 + 82–93% +9,400–11,000 +52–61%
Service robotics +8–9 +73–82% +100–120 +48–52%
Edutainment +120–130 +200–217% +1,500–1,600 +167–178%
TOTAL +950–1,070 +89–100% +11,000–12,700 +57–66%
Gross value added and number of persons employed in application and cross-sectional technologies,
as well as the trend-induced growth areas for 2020 (source: Roland Berger Strategy Consultants).
173 Opportunities for Thuringia: using global megatrends
Life sciences – biotechnology Environmentally friendly energies
and medical technology and energy storage
In 2020, the biotechnology sector will be The photovoltaic industry in Thuringia will
present worldwide in markets for bio- withstand the international competition
instruments, sepsis diagnostics and thera- through pioneering technology and econ-
peutics. To become niche leaders in tech- omies of scale. A new research institution
nology, targeted existing strengths must be for process optimisation will help to reduce
built on and tied in with the sector again. the costs.
Thuringia can particularly profit from strong
growth in ‘red’ biotechnology. Priority measures:
> Development of a centre of excellence for
Priority measures:
solar production technology.
> Even closer cooperation between scientists
and industry.
Engineering
Improved access to venture In 2020, engineering will lead the field with
and equity capital energy-efficient machines and account for
high-quality stages in the value chain. The
In 2020, medical technology in Thuringia will
theme of energy efficiency must therefore
be among the best in the world for opto-
be promoted in R & D and simple production
technological products and prosthetics. Sci-
steps must be outsourced in the long term.
ence and industry will have to conduct joint
Engineering will grow further to a high level
research and convert ideas from practice
by 2020 and create additional jobs.
into products. By 2020, medical technology
will grow strongly and really drive growth,
Priority measures:
predominantly through exports.
> Foundation of an interdisciplinary applica-
Priority measures: tion centre for manufacturing technology.
> Foundation of an ‘Application and Develop- > Promotion of close integration of engineer-
ment’ network for joint, practical research and ing with other sectors and with the cross-
development by scientists and the industry. sectional technologies in Thuringia.
183 Opportunities for Thuringia: using global megatrends
Plastics and ceramics Priority measures:
In order to remain competitive, the plastics > Production of common system capabilities
industry will concentrate on promising within the network and the improvement of
sectors like automotive engineering or founding conditions.
‘green’ building services engineering. Cer-
> Rise in the number of members in the
amics have attractive special applications.
Mikro-Nanotechnologie Thüringen e. V.
Plastics and ceramics will strongly increase
(MNT) network.
in both added value and employment by
2020.
Priority measures:
> Regular screening of innovative possible
applications and trends for materials and
joint related collaborative projects.
> Close interconnection with the respective
application sectors.
Micro- and nanotechnology
Close interlocking of excellent research and
application will lead to strong growth in the
micro- and nanotechnology industry.
The excellent research will be quickly
converted into marketable products. Micro-
and nanotechnology themselves will grow
strongly according to conservative estima-
tes and will have great upward potential.
Future from the laboratory: research as a foundation
for the technologies of tomorrow.
193 Opportunities for Thuringia: using global megatrends
Measurement and control technology dynamism must be transmitted even more
intensely into new products and establish-
Measurement and control technology manu-
ments with new jobs. By 2020, the optics
facturers will together implement innova-
industry will have more than doubled its
tive measurement and control technology
added value and be one of the cross-sectional
solutions, e.g. for reducing the consumption
technologies with the greatest potential for
of energy and resources in buildings and ma-
applications.
chines. To do so, measurement and control
technology companies will have to dispel
Priority measures:
reservations about cooperation within their
network structures and find joint projects. > Accelerated growth through the revival of
By 2020, the measurement and control the start-up impetus in a ‘second start-up
technology industry will be growing through wave’.
diverse applications and cross-sectional
> Support of the broad and rapid conversion
technologies.
of research results into products and applica-
tions.
Priority measures:
> Complete maximisation of the potential for
Green technology
innovation within the industry, including
through cooperation and collaborative A shared ‘green’ industry identity connects
projects in the Elektronische Mess- und Ge- companies from various sectors which, even
rätetechnik Thüringen eG (ELMUG) network. at an international level, compete together
for green projects and also implement them.
> Joint research projects with areas of appli-
Focal points are the fields of green building
cation.
services engineering and sustainable water
management.
Optics/Optoelectronics
In green building services engineering, the
In 2020, the Thuringia-based components companies will build and renovate buildings
suppliers will have become integrated sys- in and around Thuringia together. By provid-
tems manufacturers with problem-solving ing a ‘one-stop shop’ range, an efficiency
expertise that occupy future markets like platform will create demand for building
green photonics. For this, the research restoration.
203 Opportunities for Thuringia: using global megatrends
Priority measures: of cooperation partners will be central for
the development of pioneering products.
> Foundation of an efficiency platform which
Over the next few years, robotics will remain
brings together and communicates the
small, yet it has a high future potential.
offers of Thuringia-based companies.
With innovative niche technologies, the water Priority measures:
management sector in Thuringia will supply
> Foundation of a robotics centre.
international markets according to their
needs. In cooperation with cross-sectional > Procurement of subsidies from the German
technologies, the companies will be develop- federal government and the EU through a
ing innovative, sustainable products. Today, central contact point.
water management is already an important
sector and will be able to further grow
through the ‘green’ development of foreign
Creative industries / Edutainment
markets.
Besides the prominent significance of
production-related services for a sustainable
Priority measures:
burst of growth in the Thuringian economy,
> Creation of a state map of Thuringia-based the combination of the sub-segments of the
expertise in the field of green technology creative industries, software/games indus-
by the Thuringia Energie- und GreenTech- try and film and broadcasting industries in
Agentur (ThEGA). the edutainment field of growth promise an
exciting starting-point for potentially sensa-
> Formation of working groups for specific
tional growth.
needs of diverse foreign markets.
‘Edutainment’ brings together ‘education’
and ‘entertainment’ to provide knowledge
Service robotics
transfer in an amusing and playful way. It is a
In connection with other technologies from booming market. On the one hand, the need
Thuringia and the rest of the world, pion- for (further) education will have significantly
eering products will be launched by the increased. On the other, increasing numbers
service robotics industry. The foundation of target groups will need products with dif-
of a robotics centre and the identification ferent content, from which will arise various
213. Opportunities for Thuringia: Using global megatrends
When products grow from ideas: in industries such as microelectronics,
Thuringia demonstrates great potential.
niches for children and schools, education- Priority measures:
conscious adults, companies, etc. The
> Cooperation between various media
trend for multimedia applications on mobile
producers.
devices for learning and knowledge software
will also kick-start growth. > Foundation of a central media
marketing agency.
224 Recommendations and impetus
4 Recommendations and impetus
4.1 Focusing economic promotion on the areas of growth
In the coming years, particularly after the end To realise this growth, it is also necessary:
of the current programming period for the
> To guarantee the co-financing of all instru-
European Structural Funds, the funds avail-
ments that promote the economy which
able for measures of economic promotion will
are partially funded by the German federal
decline.
government and the European Structural
The state is therefore faced with the challenge Funds until 2013.
of initiating a burst of growth while grants
> Progressively to set up revolving funds.
from the EU are declining and state subsidies
specially tailored to eastern Germany are set > To check funding instruments, create more
to be phased out. It will therefore be necessary transparency and put the focus on areas of
to concentrate resources on the areas that growth.
promise the most growth.
> To organise annual cluster summits.
In the opinion of RBSC, these are the fol-
lowing 11 areas of technology:
> Automotive.
> Life sciences.
> Environmentally friendly energies and
energy storage.
> Engineering.
> Plastics and ceramics.
> Micro- and nanotechnology.
> Measurement and control technology.
> Optics/Optoelectronics.
> Green technology.
> Service robotics.
> Creative industries / Edutainment. Automotive: in the future, the industry will further
develop its primary role as an employer in Thuringia.
234 Recommendations and impetus
4.2 Transforming the instruments for promoting economic
development and establishing economic policy expertise
Whilst focusing on the potential for promo- companies with specific expertise in each of
ting economic development, a new focus the technology areas are located. This would
should be developed in the form of funding help cooperation between companies within
instruments. With the decline in funds, the and across all fields of technology.
importance of grants will wane and, in the
In the past few years, the state has used the
future, support will be provided more in the
‘technology scout’ to create an instrument
form of advice and guidance. Guarantees and
that companies can use to more effectively
if necessary loans may also bolster and pro-
determine sales opportunities for innovative
tect industrial development without requiring
products at home and abroad.
direct subsidisation.
> Scouts could possibly be used across
> The state should develop practical eco-
companies who, together with SMEs, assess
nomic policy expertise for this to support the
and develop business models for Thuringian
reinforcement of the areas of growth, the re-
companies using innovative technologies,
gional implementation of the growth policy
helping to make them successful.
and its further development, both conceptually
and specifically, for Thüringen. > As an extension to the consultation ser-
vices offered, approaches are conceivable in
> A key part of the further development should
which the state provides support to com-
be a dialogue between academics and com-
panies in critical situations and assists in the
panies, which would analyse the effects of
formulation of measures, e.g. the financing of
the trends on the Thüringian economy and
growth phases for the introduction of new
translate this into economic policy measures.
products or for companies with liquidity
> Regular reports on trends and areas of problems. Companies should be able to go
growth, with discussions regarding the pos- to a contact point and get a quick overview
sibility of putting them into practice to be of what is on offer in Thuringia.
held as part of a conference (e.g. the Weimar
> We also recommend the hosting of annual
Economy Talks).
investor summits to provide information
> The state can furthermore adopt an orienta- about the financial funding programmes and
tion role and create ‘maps’ and ‘expertise investment opportunities.
atlases’ to clearly point out where in the state
244. Impetuses and recommendations
In the central technology areas of Thuringia, growth rates are expected to be around or even
above 50% by 2020 – automotive suppliers are playing an important role in this.
4.3 Promoting company growth
The Thuringian economy suffers from the tions. The Thüringer Aufbaubank (TAB) and
smallness of scale in its economic structure. the Thüringer Industriebeteiligungs GmbH &
Small companies run into more difficulties Co. KG (TIB) need to develop corresponding
when commercialising ambitious innovations financial instruments for this.
and accessing international markets. When
> When supporting organic growth, more
it comes to network projects or centres of
consideration should be given to acces-
growth, larger companies are usually of cru-
sing new markets and the development of
cial importance.
new products, e.g. through research and
> Organic growth and growth from acquisitions demonstration projects as well as promoting
can be considered as development opportun- sales abroad. The acquisition of other com-
ities. From the point of view of the state, the panies can be made easier with guarantees
base and headquarters of the company must or contribution of capital, e.g. through the
remain in Thuringia in the case of acquisi- investment company of the TAB.
254 Recommendations and impetus
> Particularly for smaller companies (most > Where possible, companies should gain the
prevalent in Thuringia), the equity base opportunity to develop new equity reserves.
explains the existence of business risk
> Continuation of the start-up and growth
and is much more than just a technical
financing interest rate reduction programme
balance sheet quantity. It must therefore
(GuW – Gründungs- und Wachstumsfinanzie-
be sustained. A healthy equity base is also
rung) through the TAB.
in the interests of the state, because weak
companies can easily become the subject > An equity assistance programme should
of acquisitions – a relocation of innovative be developed together with the Thüringer
business divisions out of Thuringia, how- Aufbaubank, with the aim of enabling affect-
ever, runs contrary to the growth strategy ed companies to strengthen their financial
outlined above. structures through instruments such as
subordinated loans, offers for participations
Thus, the following measures are recom-
or mezzanine financings.
mended:
Proportion of large firms (250 or more employees) of all firms in 2008
(Source: Federal Employment Agency, Roland Berger Strategy Consultants)
Germany (D) 6.41%
Old federal states (ABL) 6.70%
New federal states (NBL) 5.30%
Bremen (HB) 9.62%
Hamburg (HH) 9.22%
Saarland (SL) 7.87%
North Rhine-Westphalia (NW) 7.51%
Berlin (BE) 7.21%
Hesse (HE) 7.17%
Baden-Württemberg (BW) 7.07%
Bavaria (BY) 6.15%
Saxony-Anhalt (ST) 5.53%
Lower Saxony (NI) 5.48%
Rhineland-Palatinate (RP) 5.29%
Schleswig-Holstein (SH) 4.87%
Saxony (SN) 4.81%
Thuringia (TH) 4.74%
Brandenburg (BB) 4.57%
Mecklenburg-West Pomerania (MV) 4.57%
Proportion of large firms (250 or more employees) of all firms in 2008
(Source: Federal Employment Agency, Roland Berger Strategy Consultants).
264. Impetuses and recommendations
Collaborations between research, industry and service providers increase
innovative power and improve market success.
4.4 Promoting company cooperation
The depiction of seminal technology areas in results and lead to an environment of
Thuringia clearly shows one thing: cooper- market-oriented research. A good example
ation between companies within and across to mention here would be the integration
all fields of technology offers huge potential. of clinical research, effects and operational
Thuringia has exhibited a unique combination research, development and practical tests in
of closely related application fields and cross- the area of medical technology.
sectional technologies, which suggests the
> Integrated proposals for industrial products
mutual development of products and ranges
and related services promise considerable
of services.
potential. Companies must cooperate for the
In the future, collaboration should be even long term, establish interfaces and emerge
more strongly promoted, particularly in three on the market as a virtual company with an
formats: integrated service portfolio (e.g. engineering/
planning services and plant engineering).
> A closer connection of application-oriented
companies and research institutes can > Integrated systems provided by closely
accelerate the commercialisation of research cooperating companies (e.g. measure-
274 Recommendations and impetus
ment technology, control technology and is still considerable potential to be tapped
regulation technology with micro- and in the cooperation between companies and
nanotechnology) is another area in which with research institutes.
new markets could be accessed through
Strengthening the network of Thuringian
close collaboration, even between small
companies (support for syndication agree-
companies. Companies can work together
ments, stimulating the formation of existing
in innovative niche markets in particular –
cooperation structures) would be productive,
from research and development to commer-
both for boosting innovative power and for
cialisation abroad.
improved market success. The efficiency of
The analysis of areas of technology has the collaboration should be measured regu-
shown that in nearly all of these areas, there larly using concrete results.
4.5 Boosting business start-ups and entrepreneurial cultures
When it comes to the quantity of business mercialisation has been low up to now (e.g.
registrations per capita, Thuringia lies below nanotechnology, and biotechnology to some
the country average. extent) the foreseeable surge in the start-up
of highly innovative companies should be
The number of start-ups in Thuringia has gone
contained and channelled into local suc-
down over the last few years in particular. This
cessful company start-ups in Thuringia.
concerns start-ups in innovative and skill-
intensive industries, which can be a key driver > Consultation and support services must be
behind the development of jobs. offered directly to the research institutes.
> In terms of the start-up potential in the areas > The funding programmes for company
of technology outlined above, the general founders are rich in terms of the instruments
conditions for company founders must be available in Thuringia and present the
optimally mapped out. In areas where com- current instruments in a similar way to the
284 Recommendations and impetus
other German states. As part of the Thürin- options should be made available. This does
ger Gründerinitiative (Thuringian start-up not have to be financing provided in full by
initiative [ThGi]), key activities have been the state – all that is needed is a commit-
combined together into a common project ment of partial financing and a
between the ministries for economics, guarantee to make other financial provi-
labour and technology and for education, sions accessible to founders.
science and culture – in particular, the
> Particularly in areas of technology where
establishment of a consultation network,
the assessment of business plans involves
the development of a start-up prize, the pro-
major technical requirements (e.g. nano-
vision of equity capital and the networking
and biotechnology), it would be beneficial
of founders in the Thüringer Netzwerk für
if the Thüringer Aufbaubank or the regional
innovative Gründungen (Thuringia network
development company (LEG) could develop
for innovative start-ups [ThürInG]).
the relevant skills and carry out the assess-
> In the Business Angels Network (THÜBAN), ment of business plans. Where a lack of
Thuringia has a consultation network that expertise results, this will prevent decisions
can offer founders valuable help in terms of being made against a business idea in
business management. cases of doubt, also preventing promising
start-ups from becoming operational.
> In the future, technical support should be
provided to potential founders through > Contact with existing successful companies
technology cluster networks and this should in the same field of technology as well
incorporate the skills and services offered by as the Business Angels Network could be
the Thüringer Aufbaubank, the chambers of beneficial when validating business ideas
commerce, the Kreditanstalt für Wiederauf- within the networks and the Thüringer
bau, savings banks and private banks. Gründerinitiative. This would mean that
market opportunities in the target market
> The possibilities of financing for start-ups
of the founders could be explored in a
must also be improved. The ThürInG is only
practical manner.
the first step.
> For founders who – due to technical require-
ments, for example – need to make consid-
erable investments, appropriate financing
294 Recommendations and impetus
4.6 Actively opening up potential international markets and
creating sustainable structures – primarily for SMEs
Today, Thuringia already has considerable the first step towards more export business.
success in the field of exports. Particularly in Standardised procedures are feasible here
the automotive industry and the industries of and can help to achieve rapid success. Infor-
optics, medical technology and measurement mation packs should cover the main target
as well as control and regulation technology, markets, whereby extremely comprehensive
sales in other countries play a key role and information from existing services can be
make a significant contribution to growth and used for reference.
employment. Yet the export rate in Thuringia
> Grants should primarily be of a mobilising
is still significantly lower than the average for
nature and not represent long-term support.
the whole of Germany.
It is a good idea to restrict the number of
Export companies expand quicker, create more assisted trade fair visits per country and
employment and can expect the company‘s company, e.g. to two, after which business
performance to be more positive. A stronger must be stable enough to be able to fund
presence from Thuringian companies on world future trade fair visits.
markets is therefore a promising starting-
> For marketing aid, the proposal should be
point.
critically reviewed for financial aid in favour
> The challenge for the state of Thuringia, in of a platform where companies can search
view of the limited resources, lies in paving for suitable private service providers (e.g.
the way for promotion on an international translators, Web designers, etc.).
level which facilitates exports, helps to over-
> New markets, different challenges: future
come the small-scale nature of the companies
markets which are often currently cited as
and assists the Thuringian economy in a
‘exotic’ yet difficult, e.g. the fast-growing
targeted manner – where support is effective
Asian regions beyond China and India or
and can be employed in a resource-efficient
Turkey, must continue to be explored by
manner. The topic of exports must be ‘ex-
Thuringian companies. These represent key
plored’ for small companies, in particular.
growth areas for the future. A ‘Thuringia
> Supporting companies in ‘related’ markets International’ unit should be set up in the
– e.g. in the USA, western Europe but also regional development company (LEG) for
largely in central and eastern Europe – is this to include the following activities:
304 Recommendations and impetus
> The link-up of a strategic, industry-specific assessed, and the prospects for success in
selection of target markets from a particular the target countries must be evaluated when
technology area with delegation trips and selecting the right target markets.
long-term support from the German institu-
> It would also be extremely helpful in terms
tions in the region can effectively promote
of guiding the companies if the target mar-
access to future markets further.
kets were regularly analysed across the key
> Political support can also be extended areas of technology in Thuringia.
through on-site representation. In view of the
> The active exploitation of international
limited resources in Thuringia, close cooper-
markets and support for the development of
ation with the German embassies, economic
sustainable and highly productive cooper-
bureaux and chambers of foreign trade are
ation structures between companies mean
crucial here, and cooperation with other
that it will be necessary to boost foreign
states in Germany would seem sensible.
trade aid. Thuringia is poorly positioned in
> The opportunities for growth in specific terms of resources in comparison with other
industries or areas of technology must be German states.
4.7 Strengthening funding for technology
The TMWAT adopts a focused approach in (ThEGA) in 2010, an institute was set up that
the area of technology funding. The funds are can assist participants in the area of green
applied to the technology areas identified as technology with coordination and drive for-
the most important, and key areas of technology ward key priority projects.
such as green technology are also specifically
RBSC sees improvement potential in the in-
funded.
tegration of SMEs in research projects and in
For example, with the foundation of the the definition of strategic areas for collabora-
Thüringer Energie- und GreenTech- Agentur tive projects with the participation of SMEs.
314 Recommendations and impetus
> Setting up an industry board at management be funded by the state, if possible through
level under the aegis of the ministry of the the contribution of national or EU funds.
economy, which incorporates both relevant
> In all, an increase of state funds in the area
state departments and TAB, TIB, LEG and
of technology funding that is clearly fo-
representatives of the cluster.
cused on growth rather than broad funding
> The free state could establish a single point budgets would be preferable.
of contact for SMEs in particularly important
> In addition, the transparency of running
research and application areas through co-
research projects (collaborative projects as
ordinators, who could take part in research
well as individual operational measures)
and development projects within the scope
should be improved across all departments
of collaborative projects.
and the success of projects should be subject
> The coordinators could also support the to regular assessment, also in terms of their
definition of strategic projects, which could value for the companies involved.
Success abroad means growth at home. The automotive industry in Thuringia already
has considerable success in exports today.
324 Recommendations and impetus
Export quota in Germany by federal states 2008 (Source: Destatis)
Export quota in Germany by federal states 2008 1) CAGR 2000 – 2008 2)
D 3) 32.0% 3.8%
ABL 34.1% 3.4%
NBL 22.5% 9.5%
SN 24.4% 7.4%
ST 23.5% 12.9%
BB 22.4% 11.3%
TH 22.0% 9.0%
MV 16.7% 9.7%
1) Only goods (without services)
2) Compound annual growth
3) As a total of the federal states’ exports – no overall value for Germany, as not all exports
are recorded in the statistics of the federal states
R&D costs
Export 2008
quota per employed
in Germany person
by federal (euroResearch
states 2008 (source:and development costs per employed person in 2008
Destatis).
(Source: Destatis, Roland Berger Strategy Consultants)s)
R & D costs per employed person in 2008 (euros)
D 1,652
ABL 1,762
NBL 940
SN 1,342
TH 934
MV 710
BB 687
ST 598
SMEs (4 Recommendations and impetus
4.8 Developing science and research
In recent decades, top–level research institutes The acquisition of funding must be systemat-
in the particularly research-intensive fields ically supported by the state through:
of technology have taken up residence in
> Monitoring measures.
Thuringia – for example, for optics, micro- and
nanotechnology as well as biotechnology. > Establishment of a coordination centre
which provides support by identifying suit-
Federal and EU aid were acquired on a large
able grants funds, accompanies applications
scale to make this possible, both from re-
strategically and collects particularly suc-
search funding (like the BMBF ‘Entrepreneur-
cessful applications, provides them to other
ial Regions’ programme) and from funding for
players and documents successes.
infrastructure.
> Strengthening of the research and education
Since there will be a severe cutback in such
activity of scientific, technical and medical
funding in the future, third-party funds will
fields in Thuringia such as:
have to be acquired with more zeal than to
> Setting up microsystems and nanotechnol-
date from the ‘normal’ sources of research
ogy in Ilmenau.
funding for Thuringia – for example, from the
> Sepsis research in Jena.
aid of the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft
> Research facilities in the area of optical
(DFG) or from the EU research framework
technologies (also in Jena).
programme.
> Guaranteeing of co-financing for subsidies
These efforts to acquire funding should
by the state.
concentrate on programmes that target the
commercialisation of research results in the > Joint initiatives/overall strategies of the minis-
medium term such as collaborative projects, try for economy, labour and technology and
centres of growth, centres for innovation ex- the ministry for education, science and culture,
pertise or large demonstration projects from including the development of a more focused
the EU research framework programme. profile and a clear direction for universities.
344 Recommendations and impetus
4.9 Systematising and accelerating the commercialisation
of research results
The conversion of research results into eco- framework programme and programmes
nomically usable developments is central for from the commissioners) and evaluation
the economic progress in Thuringia and must with regard to the areas of technology.
be optimised. Network structures and innov-
> Networking of companies and research in-
ation forums must be able to assume their
stitutes and moderation of joint research
function as links between research institutes
and development applications.
and the economy.
> Support in handling formal and administra-
A good example that can be mentioned here
tive hurdles.
is the application centre at the TU in Ilmenau.
Technically high-quality basic configurations,
regional proximity to the research institutes
and available rental area serve to reduce
costs and integrate founders with other founders
and with scientists. In addition, as part of an
innovation forum promoted by the German
ministry for education and research, an ex-
change takes place between representatives
of the research institutes (for example, the
MacroNano Centre for Innovation Competence)
and interested companies as well as the MNT
and ELMUG networks.
In its own way, this approach is exemplary
and should also be widely copied in other
areas. The elements are as follows:
> Advice for small to medium-sized com-
panies on successfully obtaining research
and development aid.
> Active monitoring of government funding
programmes from the state, federal govern- Greater integration means that small to medium-
ment departments and the EU (research sized companies also benefit from research projects.
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