Industrial Relations Program

Links
ETH Zurich
ETH Foundation
Industry
Licensing opportunities
Contracts

Topics

1. Introduction

2. Competence analysis

3. Lab tour

4. Ideas Lab

5. Project types

6. Additional funds

Contact
Dr. Niklaus Bühler
Sr. Industrial Relations Officer
niklaus.buehler@sl.ethz.ch
+41-79-3040042

1. Introduction

The aim of the Industrial Relations Program is to extend the high-quality industrial contacts the ETH Zurich has with both Swiss and foreign companies. With this program, ETH transfer will facilitate contacts between industrial partners and researchers along both interdisciplinary and subject lines with the goal of establishing mutually beneficial, substantial partnerships.

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2. Competence analysis

An overview of ETH Zurich strengths and abilities will be made based on the areas of interest indicated by the company. Such an overview will be presented in the form of a competence analysis. Based on this analysis the company can select the groups of interest among the large pool of experts at ETH Zurich.

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3. Lab tour

A lab tour can be organized with ETH transfer’s support and selected laboratories can be visited to establish first contacts. In case of mutual interest, contacts can be extended and potential research collaborations can be discussed in more depth.

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4. Ideas Lab

The Ideas Lab is a one or two day workshop in which ideas for collaboration projects will be initiated and solidified. Problems and challenges can be approached from different angles based on the participation of experts from the company and ETH research groups in various fields. The structured workshop enables the creation of interdisciplinary and innovative project proposals. Dependent on the company’s project choice collaborations can start in a very short time.

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5. Project types

Many different project types are possible when collaborating with ETH Zurich. Often projects will be carried out by a PhD student or PostDoc with direct support from Professors and scientific staff. Masters students are often integrated in subtasks to complete the picture. In larger partnerships, the projects will most often be carried out by interdisciplinary teams consisting of several PhD students and PostDocs.

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6. Additional funds

Additional funding may be obtained from public funding agencies such as the Swiss Innovation Promotion Agency CTI or from the European Framework Programmes.

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