SIP Metallic Materials

The strategic innovation program Metallic Materials aims to realize the strategic research and innovation agenda National assembly on Metallic materials. The program is part of Vinnova’s, the Swedish Energy Agency’s and Forma’s investment in strategic innovation programs and brings together Sweden’s metal industries: steel, aluminum, cemented carbide, cast steel, cast iron and cast non-ferrous metals.
The initiative to start the program were taken by the organizations Jernkontoret, Svenska Gjuteriföreningen and Svenskt Aluminum. At the turn of the year 2014 – 2015, the program Innovative Advanced Tooling (InnovAT) was also incorporated into the program, which also meant that companies that deliver solutions for cutting and shaping processing were linked to the program.
The program’s activities include:

• Manage and update the strategic agenda
• Create an overall picture of ongoing initiatives in the innovation area of metallic materials, nationally and internationally, assess how these contribute to the strategic agenda, work to ensure that the efforts become known by all relevant actors and that the players come into contact with each other
• Conduct open calls in areas that are important to achieving the agenda goals
• Work to ensure that projects that are important for achieving the agenda’s objectives and which are of such a nature that they cannot be collected through open calls will be implemented
• Quality-assure projects financed within the program by actively following them and supporting them
• Evaluate the program’s project portfolio and efforts and to ensure that the program’s efforts, such as open calls for proposals, individual projects and possibly other initiatives, are in line with the strategic agenda

The program board is the highest decision-making body within the program. In support of this, the Board has appointed an Agenda Council, to whom it can refer strategic issues. The Agenda Council specifically has the task of ensuring that the programme’s efforts are in line with the strategic agenda. The operational activities are carried out by a Program Office headed by a Program Manager.