R-Aces means a step-change in the contribution of European Industry to the climate targets of the EU. The sector after all represents 25% of all energy demand – and 50% of all cooling and heating - on the continent; yet only 16% comes from renewables. By focusing on collective measures and clustering, the efficiency of industry can be drastically increased. The focus of R-Aces therefore is to turn high-potential, high-impact industrial clusters into EcoRegions that achieve at least a 10% reduction in emissions. An Eco-region is an area where energy, material and information exchanges occur between various companies and actors to reduce waste and energy/material consumption. Each region is centered on an (eco-)industrial park or (eco-)business park, linked to its surroundings by a 4th/5th generation district heating/cooling network. The consortium sees this project as a capping stone, condensing the knowledge and experience gathered throughout H2020 into a set of three focused tools embedded in selected support actions. The tools consist of an assessment tool; legal decision support for joint contracts; and a smart energy management platform for clusters. The support actions are built around peer-to-peer learning, more formal coursework and serious games. Together they enable a cluster to really become an EcoRegion and set up meaningful energy collaboration. The entire package of tools and support is aimed at the high-potential clusters identified in the European Thermal Roadmap. It will be validated in three of them (all are part of the consortium); actively deployed in another seven; and disseminated to ninety of them. In addition, the tools and support methodology will be made available to third parties in a sustainable way after the end of this two-year project. The project consortium consists of the entire value chain needed for energy collaboration – suppliers, ESCO, cluster managers, support – and represents many years of proven experience in this field.

The European Key Enabling Technologies (KETs) strategy is important for the European global competitiveness, the creation of jobs and the European growth. Focusing on the development and valorisation of these KETs is crucial to this strategy. The industry-centred LEIT-NMBP part of Horizon 2020 is instrumental to the support of four of the six KETs: Nanotechnologies, Advanced Materials, Biotechnology, Advanced Manufacturing and Processing. The Work Programme (2016-2017), LEIT-NMBP focus on the valorisation of KETs. One of the activities supported by the European Commission are “events of a major strategic nature” such as conferences organised within the framework of the EU presidencies to create better synergy between initiatives launched by the Commission and by the Member States. This proposal is developed within the framework of the Dutch EU-Presidency (2016) and aims at the organisation of an international conference on Industrial Technologies. The main focus of the conference is the impact of KETs on the future of industry, that emphasizes the application of new and innovative technologies in the field of manufacturing to prepare the European industry for the future. Within this conference, the Dutch strategy on Smart Industry will act as the focal point to enhance the momentum to enter into a new manufacturing era in Europe. The overall aim of the conference is to co-develop the European agenda for the new industrial revolution and review the EU research agenda(s), to enhance the competitiveness of the European manufacturing industries. The conference will be held in the Netherlands in 2016 and last 3 days with an expected number 1250 participants over 30 nationalities from divers target groups (research, industry, private investors, policymakers and education). Specific attention will be paid to stimulate the gender balance at the conference and within the target groups. The conference will be international with an EU wide geographical spread.

Constant extraction of increasingly scarce fresh water puts a vital demand on increasing water-use efficiency in all sectors. The ECWRTI project will demonstrate the EColoRO concept on full industrial scale in two locations in the European textile industry. The EColoRO concept uses electro-coagulation (EC) combined with flotation to remove pollutants, colorants and chemicals from waste water very effectively. This unique feature enables using ultrafiltration and reverse osmosis membrane processes downstream in an optimized way. The key advantages are: - Total reuse of waste-water in textile industry reducing fresh-water intake by at least 75% - Low-cost and economically highly attractive - Very flexible, containerized and modular, easy scalable, low footprint, suitable for retro-fit, brownfield or greenfield application - Low energy use, no use of chemicals or flocculants, producing concentrated waste streams with very high re-use potential - Enabler for optimizing use of water, allowing for advanced energy and resource efficiency in the textile manufacturing processes EC and the EColoRO concept are currently proven at TRL 6. The ECWRTI project will run for 48 months and will deliver technological proof at TRL 8, ready for commercial uptake. It will further deliver the materials, analysis and tools needed for rapid commercial roll-out. The consortium consists of a focused and well-balanced team. The project is SME driven with EColoRO as coordinator and 6 partners from 3 EU member states with key know-how on waste water purification (VITO, EColoRO), textile technology and production (Inotex, Utexbel, Tintoria Pavese), electro-coagulation and engineering (Morselt), process technology, open innovation and project support (ISPT) and EU wide market access in the textile sector (Euratex). An advisory board with stakeholders from textile, process industry and waste water sectors will provide guidance, critical feedback and dissemination support.

This project aims to facilitate the implementation of the Circular Economy package and the SPIRE Roadmap in various process industries by developing the necessary concepts, technological solutions and business models to re-design the value and supply chains of minerals (including magnesium) and water, while dealing with present organic compounds in a way that allows their subsequent recovery. This is achieved by demonstrating new configurations to recover these resources from saline impaired effluents (brines) generated by process industry, while eliminating wastewater discharge and minimising environmental impact of industrial operations through brines (ZERO BRINE). The project will bring together and integrate several existing and innovative technologies aiming to recover end-products of high quality and sufficient purity with good market value. It will be carried out by large Process Industries, SMEs with disruptive technologies and a Brine Consortium of technology suppliers across EU, while world-class