Top marks for Scandinavia and Germany
The European Commission praises the higher education sector and the close links between industry and research.
ENGINES FOR THE FUTURE. The quiet, fuel-efficient and low-emission low-pressure turbines developed by MTU Aero Engines in Munich are outstanding technological developments from Germany that have been honoured with the German Innovation Prize and the Innovation Prize of German Industry in 2013. They represent just one example of the countless ideas developed by German companies that contributed to Germany’s second place in the European Commission’s latest Innovation Union Scoreboard. This innovation performance ranking examined 24 indicators and classified the top four countries – Sweden, Germany, Denmark and Finland – as Innovation Leaders. Germany’s strengths include the development of patents, corporate spending on innovation and the export of knowledge-based services. The highly developed higher education sector and the close relations between industry and research are among the most important advantages of the four most innovative European countries. The European Commission praises their ability to transform ideas into commercial products and services and emphasizes the role of small and medium-sized enterprises as drivers of innovation.
