FOODTECIP

Innovative Food Science as an Opportunity for Lower Saxony: Using an Efficient Patent System to Gain a Competitive Advantage for the Food Industry

Projektstatus

Laufend

Projektlaufzeit

01.04.2024

- 01.12.2028

Ansprechpartner

Theresa Nienaber

Ausgangslage

To establish an efficient and strategic intellectual property policy aimed at strengthening research transfer, the FOODTECIP project—funded by the MWK—seeks to optimize and expand internal structures and processes related to patent management. The goal of the project is to improve the commercialization of existing intellectual property and to specifically promote the creation and protection of new inventions.

Projektbeschreibung

FOODTECIP achieves its goals through targeted initiatives in training, digitization, and organization. Employees receive training through lectures, seminars, and consultations on patent protection, invention disclosures, and legal topics such as employee invention law; Inventor consultation hours help assess specific patentability options and raise awareness of innovation protection. At the same time, DIL-specific patent management software is being introduced to securely record and transparently manage invention disclosures, patent applications, deadlines, costs, and contractual documents. To ensure a structured implementation, the new position of Patent Manager was created to serve as a liaison between inventors, senior management, contract management, and external patent law firms. This enables the coordination of patent-related processes, the further development of intellectual property policy, and the creation of a sustainable foundation for the commercial exploitation of innovations.