Projects

Information Service for the European Small Boat Industry (NAUTIS)

Duration: 01.10.1995 – 30.09.1997

Coordination: Marine Technology Directorate ltd

Partners: Instituto Superior Técnico (Portugal), National Technical University of Athens (Greece), Technical University of Denmark (Denmark) and University of Southampton (United Kingdom).

Funding Entity: EU IMPACT Programme

The small boat and leisure craft industry comprises a key element of the company in several regions of Europe, where it has an important role to play in expanding prosperity and employment. Innovation within boat-building firms, and their suppliers, is an essential ingredient of that growth. Almost all firms in the industry are classified as SMEs, and this presents particular problems in terms of measures to encourage innovation. This proposed project will make targeted information accessible to firms. Information services will be made available using both on-line and CDROM media, the former using the World Wide Web on Internet. Users will be helped to migrate to on-line access by designing the CDROM interface to match the on-line interface. The proposed project will build a pilot system, using a base of existing knowledge and experience, which demonstrates a needed information service. The pilot system will justify further expansion to create an information resource for firms throughout the European boat-building industry. The pilot will also act as a model for replication in other industries where poor access to information is limiting innovation and growth.

Project Team

Associated Publications