How to organize a technology
transfer office?
Lessons learned and pitfalls
experiences from The Netherlands
Louise van den Bos
• Director of Technology Transfer &
Licensing
• Erasmus University Rotterdam, The
Netherlands
• vice president ASTP
• Association of European Science and
Technology Transfer Professionals
Erasmus University Rotterdam
• 7 Faculties/Schools & Rotterdam School of
Management
• 20.000 students
• 3500 employees
• budget 2002 EURO M260
History
• 1979 - 1985 establishment of so-called
transferpunten at 13 Dutch universities
• 1985 - 1989 funding by the Ministry of
Economic Affairs
• Aim: making available the existing body of
science and technology to industry, esp.
SME’s
• 1989 and onwards: discussions about role
and function of transferpunten
Lesson learned
• define your mission very well
• have it approved by the academic
community
• support by the Board of the University and
the Deans is essential, but …..
• Support by the scientists is even more
essential
Structure
• Transferpunt established in 1984
• office in the central administration of the
university
• until 1995 working for all the
faculties/schools
• from 1996 - 2003 specialized TTO for the
Medical School and the University Hospital
• 1995 establishment of Erasmus Holding
company- aim transparency
Structure TTO
• 4 - 5 fte
• 1 commercial /business person
• 1,5 legal advisors with commercial
background
• 1 advisor from the business community
• 1 office manager
• 0,5 secretarial support
Output per year
• 150 requests for extensive support of
researchers
• 60 -70 agreements ( MTA/Research
Agreements/License agreements/Strategic
Alliances)
• yearly research income from industry for
the MedicalSchool < EURO M 20
• royalty income difficult to trace - university
administration!
Patents
• Until 1995 Professor’s privilege, but….
• Professors prepared to bring their
inventions under the university umbrella
• Patents often filed in the name of the
university
• 1995 revised Dutch patent law:
• employer retains the rights in inventions,
also the universities,but the inventor has
to
Patents
• Until 1998 IPR were mostly regulated in
early stage Research & License
agreements
• due to the developments in the USA and
the
• upcome of the Life Sciences the University
was forced to file patents in her name;
• we have now about 50 patent families in
portfolio
Lesson learned
• Filing patents is one thing
• Defending patents is costly
• Be prepared, also financially for
unpleasant
• surprises
• Monitor your patents and licenses
regularly
Present situation
• Huge reorganization:
• merger of Medical School and University
• Hospital into Erasmus MC
• TTO transferred to Erasmus MC
• TTO based on the Administrative model
Present situation
• Holding company partly dissolving
• Erasmus MC will establish their own
company- 6 subsidiaries of the Holding will
be transferred
• Deans of the Schools of Economics and
Business Administration want to integrate
the businessactivities in their resp.Schools
• 1 subsidiary nearly was bankrupt last
year.````
Lesson learned
• Importance of networking for the
exchange
• of information / advise / experiences
• set up a Norwegian network
• make use of existing networks such as
AUTM in the USA and ASTP in Europe.