Boost4 BSO addresses the Call topic “Industry 4.0/Adv. Manufacturing”, aiming at improving knowledge build-up and sustainable knowledge transfer linkages among CE BSOs. The project consortium consists of 7 BSOs + 1 Excellence center from AT, CZ, DE, HR, IT, PL, committed for jointly developing a comprehensive BSO competence pack and implementation toolbox to support local SMEs at different levels of transformation towards I4.0. A novel snowball mechanism will be demonstrated for downstreaming the project results to numerous CE BSOs. The main project objective is to enable CE BSOs, as key innovation system actors, to provide effective+efficient support services for local companies covering all key aspects of transformation towards I4.0. This will help CE SMEs that nowadays lack basic knowledge on the potential of I4.0 to cope with their own transformation demand and develop I4.0 related business strategies.

For this purpose, Boost4BSO will integrate the training curriculum from InnoPeer AVM with the product/service innovation approach from Things+ (both Interreg CE), enriching this BSO competence pack with practical SME upscaling cases from IoT4Industry (H2020). These core projects succeeded in piloting highly promising capacity building methodologies for SMEs, however, the interaction between companies and local innovation support actors could only be addressed at a case-to-case level so far. As the deficits that prevent SMEs from taking up I4.0 business opportunities can only be overcome through interventions and transf. support, regional BSOs - as local innovation intermediaries - will now be addressed as the main Boost4BSO target group. Boost4BSO combines an innovative systemic approach of co-developing I4.0-related BSO capacities and SME competences to develop a comprehensive package of BSO support services, adaptable to different levels of SME maturity, and demonstrates a novel downstream mechanism reaching out for wide BSO networks.