The SPEAR project (ITEA 16001) ran from September 2017 to September 2020 as a pan-European research initiative under the ITEA programme, part of the Eureka Clusters Programme. The consortium gratefully acknowledges the support of its national funding agencies and the broader Eureka ecosystem that made this collaborative effort possible.
Funding Bodies
SPEAR received financial support from the following national funding bodies across the five participating countries:
Germany
The German SPEAR partners were funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (Bundesministerium fur Bildung und Forschung, BMBF). Germany contributed the largest national sub-consortium with nine partners spanning industrial companies, SMEs, and three universities.
Portugal
Portuguese partners received support through national ITEA funding mechanisms. The GECAD research group at ISEP played a central role in demand response and consumption forecasting research within the consortium.
Sweden
Swedish participation was funded through Vinnova, the Swedish governmental agency for innovation systems. Swedish partners contributed expertise in physics-based simulation and automotive production optimisation.
Spain
The Spanish partners were supported through national ITEA co-funding channels, contributing expertise in control systems, industrial sensing, and IT services.
Turkey
Turkish partners received co-funding through national mechanisms, bringing real-world industrial use cases in forging, air suspension manufacturing, and telecommunications technology to the consortium.
ITEA and Eureka
ITEA is a transnational research and development programme in the area of software-intensive systems and services. It operates as a Eureka Cluster, facilitating international collaboration between companies and research institutes to develop innovative solutions in areas such as smart mobility, smart health, smart energy, and smart industry. The SPEAR project (project number 16001) was one of many ITEA-labelled initiatives that brought together partners from different European countries to tackle shared industrial challenges.
The Eureka network played a crucial role in supporting cross-border coordination, facilitating the alignment of national funding timelines, and providing a framework for intellectual property management and dissemination.
Eureka Innovation Award 2022
In June 2022, two years after the project's official conclusion, the SPEAR consortium was honoured with the Eureka Innovation Award in the category "Best Sustainability Innovation" at the Global Innovation Summit in Estoril, Portugal. This recognition underscored the lasting relevance of the project's outcomes in the context of Europe's growing focus on energy efficiency and sustainable industrial practices.
The award specifically highlighted SPEAR's unique approach to energy optimisation, using real device-provided simulation models rather than simplified estimates, and the tangible impact this had on participating industrial partners. The energy cost reductions and new business opportunities generated by SPEAR's technology demonstrated that research-driven innovation can deliver concrete returns while contributing to broader sustainability goals.
Project Leadership
The overall coordination of the SPEAR project was led by Dr. Anton Strahilov at EKS InTec GmbH in Weingarten, Germany. Dr. Strahilov served as the responsible project leader throughout the three-year duration, managing the international consortium and coordinating activities across all work packages and national sub-groups.