Two highly successful webinars entitled ‘Introduction to Innovation Contracts’ were held by Information Society in the framework of the GRdigiGOV-innoHUB project, garnering a great reaction.
More than 250 representatives of the Public Sector participated and had the opportunity to be informed about the Greek Digital Innovation Hub for the Public Sector, the institutional framework and the economic rationale of Public Innovation Contracts, as well as about Pre-Commercial Public Contracts (PCP).
During her presentation, Information Society’s Director of Communication and Sustainable Development, Ms. Eleni Dede, referred, among other things, to Information Society’s expertise and experience in digital transformation projects, and to its important role in the design and implementation of innovation projects. “With these actions, Information Society strengthens the conditions for the birth and adoption of innovations in the field of artificial intelligence, leading to greater digital progress and sustainable development,” she concluded.
Mr. Thanasis Kountzeris, Head of the European Projects Department at Information Society, gave an introduction to the definition of public procurement and the regulatory framework that defines it, as well as the specific exceptions that apply to public procurement of innovation. With examples from the response to the COVID-19 pandemic through machine learning and robotics-based solutions, he emphasized the smart combination of PCP/PPI as a prudent means to procure solutions to pressing needs of public agencies through new R&D.
Concluding the seminars, Ms Nina Gialousi, member of the European Projects Department at Information Society, referred to pre-commercial procurement (PCP) methodologies, using examples of PCP tenders from international experience in the energy and cultural management sectors, and specifying the stages of preparation and implementation of PCP tenders. With regard to the pre-production phase, particular reference was made to the processes of needs identification, market consultation, and preparation of the technical parameters and budget of the tendering procedures, and with regard to the implementation phase, to the exploration of solutions, prototype development, and field acceptance testing of solutions.
It is worth noting that during the seminar, questions raised by the representatives of public bodies were answered, and the interest of those organisations interested in receiving more information and/or exploring PPI methodologies in the framework of the Innovation Hub was recorded.
