The transition to a highly competitive, low-carbon European manufacturing sector requires not just advanced science, but strong commercial viability. Under the INCIRCULAR initiative, we have established an business acceleration mentoring program designed to bring technological innovation from laboratory prototypes to full-scale industrial market deployment. The mentoring program pairs SMEs with world-class technical and business experts, ensuring that retrofittable deep-tech innovations integrate seamlessly into active industrial lines, de-risking investments and proving that sustainability is highly profitable.
Each of our funded SME innovators is paired with a dedicated INCIRCULAR Mentor who possesses a unique blend of technical expertise, business acumen, and intimate knowledge of industrial site operations. The cornerstone of this program consists of monthly hands-on support workshops (lasting up to 3 hours each), customised entirely around the operational hurdles and upscaling challenges identified by the SME.
To maintain tight alignment and rapid project progression, mentors and SME representatives coordinate via bi-weekly progress reporting, ensuring that modular hardware and software plugins (such as AI vision systems and digital twins) are successfully validated and integrated on the factory floor.
Our mentoring curriculum goes far beyond technical troubleshooting to provide complete, end-to-end business acceleration. Mentors actively coach SMEs in business modelling, financial planning, supply chain logistics, innovation management, and investment pitching. Furthermore, mentoring activities focus heavily on managing intellectual property rights (IPR) and defining sustainable, long-term post-project commercialisation tracks. Upon request, our mentors leverage their extensive networks to build interregional B2B matchmaking bridges, connecting SMEs with raw material suppliers, regional clusters, and prominent European circular economy investors.
At INCIRCULAR we take the protection of your personal data very seriously. Our purpose is to protect the privacy of the data you provide us and to comply with the current regulations on the protection of personal data.
In compliance with the Act 3/2018 of 5 December on the Protection of Personal Data and Guarantee of Digital Rights transposing Regulation (EU) 2016/679, we inform you of the following information about our privacy and data protection policy:
The organization responsible of your data is TECOS – Slovenian Tool and Die Development Centre. This is a Research and Technology Organisation located in Celje, Slovenia.
The legal basis for the treatment of your data is the consent of the data subject under article 6.1 a) of the Regulation, as well as the legitimate interest of the data controller under article 6.1 f) of the Regulation.
The data we request from you are adequate, relevant and strictly necessary and in no case are you obliged to provide them to us, but their non-communication may affect the purpose of the service or the impossibility of providing it.
Your data will be kept for the time required for the proper provision of the service offered, as well as to meet the responsibilities that may arise from it and any other legal requirement.
While processing your data, TECOS may share your data with:
On Projects Advising SL, as web management and maintenance service providers.
The controller retains the right to restrict the rights set forth in Article 23 of the EU Regulation, if such restriction is provided to safeguard, in particular fundamental rights and freedoms and is a necessary and proportionate measure.
If any interested party considers that their data are not being treated correctly, they can send their complaints to the following e-mail address; info@tecos.si.
The data subject declares to have acquired all this information.
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After graduating with a degree in chemical engineering from ENSIACET, Amélie Gousseau built extensive expertise in managing R&D projects within consulting firms specialising in innovation financing. In 2022, she joined Polymeris—the leading French competitiveness cluster for plastics, rubbers, and composites—as the Innovation Project Manager for the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region. She coordinates an extensive network of industrial members, supporting polymer-related innovation projects at the regional, national, and European levels, with a strong focus on cross-border technology transfer under the INCIRCULAR initiative.
Conny Weber is a prominent innovation expert dedicated to accelerating investments in breakthrough industrial technologies. With extensive experience in financing the development and deployment of technical innovations, she specialises in deep tech, including artificial intelligence (AI) and distributed ledger technology (DLT). Her work focuses on driving the green and digital twin transition of European industrial ecosystems. As a member of the European Innovation Council (EIC) Jury, Conny advises a diverse range of large corporations, SMEs, and public authorities on robust investment strategy and global commercialisation tracks.
Jorge Contreras Ubric, MSc, is an experienced EU Project Manager at the University of Jaén and On Projects Advising (COO and director of R&D), specialising in Interregional Innovation Investments (I3) and EU public funding. Combining technical expertise with a background in Architecture and a Master’s in heritage research, Jorge has completed postgraduate studies in international R&D projects and business management. He serves as an Associate Professor in the Master of Materials Engineering and Sustainable Construction at UJA. Jorge excels in multidisciplinary team leadership and managing international investment activities across European innovation networks. As an external expert evaluator of the European Institute of Technology (EIT) and an appointed expert for the Andalusian S3 strategy, Jorge assesses a diverse range of technological innovation projects.
Simon Kotnik, MSc, obtained his degrees in mechanical engineering from the University of Maribor and has been employed at Gorenje since 2003. Since 2009, he has steered major research initiatives at the Gorenje Innovation Centre, leading the coordination of extensive national and international circular manufacturing projects. Drawing from two decades of industrial expertise across European programs (such as Horizon Europe, Horizon 2020, and FP7), Simon heads Gorenje's operational replication and technology integration, ensuring that advanced circular compounds and digital twins run seamlessly under high-volume industrial conditions.
Dr. Vesna Žepič Bogataj obtained her Ph.D. in Biosciences from the University of Ljubljana, specialising in renewable resource management and materials science. She serves as the Head of the Laboratory for Applicative Materials at TECOS, where she manages multiple high-impact national and international circular economy R&D projects. Her scientific expertise covers the chemical functionalisation of lignocellulosic materials, fibre/polymer interfaces, and the processing optimisation of natural fibre-reinforced biocomposites. Dr. Žepič Bogataj has authored over 150 scientific papers and acts as a leading technical mentor validating second-life material formulations.
