Croatia – Traditionally Innovative 1

Croatia TradITIonally
InnovaTIve

Invention
is the most
important
product
of man’s
creative
brain
Nikola tesla electric light-bulb
1856 – 1943 with a metal filament
inventor and Franjo hanaman, 1878 – 1941
futurist inventor and chemist
Croatia – Traditionally Innovative

1860 Torpedo – Ivan Vukić (Gio-

vanni Lupis) envisioned a
1892 Dactyloscopy – invented
by Ivan Vučetić, a Croatian-
floating device for destroy- born Argentinean anthro-
ing ships, which would be pologist and police official
unmanned and controlled who pioneered the use of
from land, with explosive fingerprinting.
charges detonating at the
moment of impact (Salva-
coste – Coastsaver).
1903 Electric light-bulb with a
metal filament– invented
1617 Parachute – Leonardo da
Vinci may have made a by a Croatian engineer and
sketch of it, but it was the
Croatian inventor, Faust
1885 Alternating current – the
first patent for alternating
chemist, Franjo Hanaman,
but the patent was bought
Vrančić, who assembled it current system was issued by the company General
and performed the very first to Nikola Tesla, and he pre- Electric Co.
jump. He jumped with his sented it to the scientific
parachute from a tower in
Venice, in 1617. He called it
community in 1888.
1906 Mechanical pencil and
solid-ink fountain pen
Homo Volans and published
it in his book of inventions
1888 Speedometer – invented
by Josip Belušić and pre-
(1907) – invented by an
engineer and inventor,
Machinae Novae, together sented at the World Fair in Slavoljub Penkala. He also
with the sketches of other Paris, in 1889 (known as ve- invented the hot water bot-
advanced machines. locimeter). tle, mechanical toothbrush,
anode battery and in 1910,

1650 Cravat – a neckband, the the first Croatian aircraft to

forerunner of the modern fly in the country (Penkala
tailored necktie and bow Monoplane).
tie, originating from the
17th-century military unit
known as the Croats in the
Thirty Years’ War. Around
1650, during the reign of
Louis XIV, it was accepted
as a fashion innovation a la
croate, an expression that
soon entered the root of the
French word “cravat”.
 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative

1910 Maritime compass – pat-

ented by a Croatian inven-
1964 Apaurin ("a paure" can be
translated as against fear)
1981 Azithromycin (Sumamed)
– discovered and patented
tor, Marcel Kiepach. This – today, this drug is known by a team of researchers at
compass points north re- all over the world and it was the Croatian pharmaceuti-
gardless of the presence of registered by Franjo Kajfež cal company PLIVA. It was
iron or magnetic forces. – a doctor of chemical sci- a new kind of antibiotic,
ences and the author of 88 completely different from

1912 Dynamo – patented by

Marcel Kiepach in France,
patents and 150 scientific
papers. He was a member
any antibiotics applied until
then.
for vehicle lighting. of the New York Academy
of Sciences and it is con-
1997 “AMP” MP3 decoding en-
gine – invented by a Croa-
1953 Puretic power block – in-
vented by Mario Puratić, it
sidered as the first among
other things, the founder tian programmer, Tomislav
is a special kind of mecha- of the vitamin C production Uzelac and it is considered
nised winch used to haul technology. the first successful MP3
nets on fishing vessels. player. Soon after its launch,

1975 SOS response – discovered two American students,

1959 Vegeta – a condiment, sold

worldwide. It is a combina-
and named by the Croatian
biologist Miroslav Radman.
Justin Frankel and Dmitry
Boldyrev, took the AMP,
tion of salt, flavour enhanc- SOS response is a global added Windows interface
ers, spices and various veg- response to DNA damage, and called it “Winamp“.
etables. It was invented by resulting in the cell cycle
a Croatian scientist, Zlata arrest, DNA repair and mu-
Bartl. tagenesis.

1979 Maglite – invented by Ante

Maglica, it is a flashlight
brand manufactured in the
USA by Mag Instrument
Inc., owned and founded
by him.
Croatia – Traditionally Innovative

Contents
Innovation 1 Success 3
is the Driving Force Stories in Croatia

Health 5 Energy 15 Transport 25

And Quality Of Life and Sustainable and Mobility
RONNA 6 Environment RIMAC AUTOMOBILI 26
MARINALAB OPUS 8 GEOLUX 16 ALTPRO 28
GLYCANAGE® 10 TEMA AUTOMATIZACIJA 18 VISIOBIKE 30
SENSE 12 MEMBRAIN DESIGN 20 SPIN CITY 32
MOBILISIS 22

Security 35 Food 45 About 55

DOK-ING 36 and Bio-Economy HAMAG-BICRO & EEN
HIPERSFERA 38 AGRIVI 46
CITUS 40 GAMMACHEF 48
SUPRACONTROL 42 PROBIOTECH 50
BIOCENTRE 52

KEY FACTS ABOUT CROATIA

Official name: Republic of Croatia

Area: 55,594 km2
Population: 4,190,700
Capital: Zagreb
Language: Croatian is the official
language and it became the
24th official language of the
European Union upon Croatia’s
accession in 2013.
GDP per capita (PPP): 20,429.99 US dollars in 2015
National currency: National currency is the
Croatian Kuna (HRK).
HRK 7.5 ~ EUR 1
Corporate tax: 20%
Employment rate: 57.40%
Time zone: CET (UTC+1)
CEST (UTC+2)
 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative 1

Innovation is the Driving Force

Throughout the history, Croatia has invented a number of novelty. An innovation may not be new to the world, but it
of innovations that have achieved great market can be new on the market, in a certain sector or just new to the
success for the benefit of other world economies. Now company/institution.
is the time for Croatia to finally use this innovative and
creative potential for its own economic development. CREATIVITY vs. INNOVATION
Over the last decades, innovation and creativity have become
WHAT IS INNOVATION? critical skills for achieving success in developed economies. The
The term “innovation” is used to describe a variety of need for creative problem-solving has arisen as more and more
phenomena, from scientific discoveries to simply “thinking management problems require creative insights in order to find
outside the box”, which are accomplished by applying creative suitable solutions.
solutions. Innovation entails implementation of a new or Even though every creative idea does not become an
significantly improved product, service, process, marketing or innovation, there is no innovation without creativity. Without
organizational method within an existing business process, the right steps to implement innovation, creativity itself is not
work organization or other type of contractual relationship. enough for a new idea to be successful.
OECD (Oslo Manual, third edition) identifies four types Creativity can be a tool for making a change, but creativity
of innovation in companies: product innovation, process alone is not enough if there are no ambitious and proactive
innovation (technological innovation), marketing innovation individuals to give the final touch to the idea, i.e. to come up
and organizational innovation (non-technological innovation). with its applicability and relevance in everyday life.
It should be noted that innovations can have different degrees

Four tips to support creative environment in a company:

1 2 3 4
Create an Provide regular Hold ideation Delegate
environment feedback and sessions with responsibility
where mistakes keep the lines of diverse and highly and encourage
are tolerated and communication charged creative ownership
free of punitive open people in your
measures organization
2 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative

RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT new economic growth model that will increase the EU’s overall
Research and development comprise systematic creative work competitiveness and reduce the heterogeneity among its 28
directed towards increasing knowledge of nature, man, culture economies.
and society and towards practically applying such knowledge. Croatia’s Smart Specialization Strategy (S3) presents a
It covers basic research, applied research and experimental comprehensive assessment of the country’s governance
development (according to the Frascati Manual), where the latter structure, innovation facilitating instruments and key innovation
may include the realization of technological demonstrators, i.e., assets – research and human capital.
devices that demonstrate the performance of a new concept or The main purpose of Smart Specialization is to increase Croatia’s
a new technology in a relevant or representative environment. competitiveness by concentrating knowledge resources and
linking them to a limited number of priorities, which are defined
ECONOMY AND POLITICS based on strengths and R&D and innovation development with
The European Union launched the Research and Innovation export potential.
Strategies for Smart Specialization, a new approach to S3 provides sectoral analysis of five priority sectors of the
economic development, anchored on targeted support for economy and their innovation potential.
research and innovation. Member States focus on creating a

Thematic Priority Areas

HEALTH AND ENERGY AND TRANSPORT FOOD

QUALITY SUSTAINABLE AND SECURITY AND
OF LIFE ENVIRONMENT MOBILITY BIO-ECONOMY

Cross-cutting themes: KETs & ICT

 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative 3

Success Stories in Croatia

Success Stories
in Croatia
HEALTH AND QUALITY OF LIFE

ENERGY AND SUSTAINABLE ENVIRONMENT

TRANSPORT AND MOBILITY

SECURITY

FOOD AND BIO-ECONOMY

4 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative
 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative 5

Health and MARINALAB OPUS

RONNA

Quality of Life GLYCANAGE®

SENSE

The European Commission recognized healthcare sector

as one of the hotspots for development of technologies
that are essential for Croatia’s economic growth.
Furthermore, this thematic priority area contributes to
the establishment of a network that connects companies
and public research laboratories as an excellent base for
further investment in the TPA.
6 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative HEALTH AND QUALITY OF LIFE

“Innovations in Croatia
are best applied through
programs that encour-
age cooperation between
scientific institutions and
the private sector.”
B. Jerbić, PhD
HEALTH AND QUALITY OF LIFE Croatia – Traditionally Innovative 7

RONNA
– Robotic Neuronavigation
Project RONNA – robotic neuronavigation was initiated by a group of enthusiasts FACULTY NAME

within the Department of Robotics and Production System Automation at the Faculty Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and Naval
Architecture, University of Zagreb
of Mechanical Engineering and Naval Architecture, University of Zagreb. Bojan Jerbić,
NAME OF INNOVATION
Gojko Nikolić and Darko Chudy discussed the applicability of robotics in neurosurgery. RONNA – robotic neuronavigation
That resulted in the decision to start the project RONNA - robotic neuronavigation.
INNOVATOR
This innovative and commercially competitive robotic system for applications Prof. Bojan Jerbić, PhD
in neurosurgery has been developed as a project based in Zagreb, Croatia. In its Prof. Gojko Nikolić, PhD
first stage of development, the RONNA project was funded by the HAMAG-BICRO Assist. Prof. Darko Chudy, PhD
within the TEST program. In addition, the EU funded the project “RONNA – Robotic STAGE OF DEVELOPMENT

Neuronavigation” from the Regional Development Fund, contributing through the Active clinical testing of the commercial ver-
sion of the robot system for neurosurgical
“Regional Competitiveness” Operational Programme for the 2007-2013 programming application. Preparation phase for the CE and
period. FDA approval.
IPR STATUS
The new system is composed of a master robot, for pre-planned navigation, Industrial design of the RONNA system was
protected. The design of an innovative medi-
and an assistant robot, for handling complex medical instruments, enabling
cal robotic platform for which a Hague regis-
it to perform specific and complex actions that require incredible precision tration was made within WIPO.
and accuracy.
PARTNERS
Clinical Hospital Dubrava
Benefits of using the RONNA system in neurosurgery:
• Better and faster performance of surgical procedures
• Less invasive procedures
• Faster recovery of the patient (shorter hospital stay, reduced costs) ronna-eu.fsb.hr

• Better utilization of operational resources of the hospital

• Mastering new skills within a clinical team
• Introduction of new technologies in medical practice

Within the spin-off, it is planned to establish a within the Clinical trials, which will potentially
continuation of the R&D activities which will attract new joint project proposals between
help boost the RONNA system to the global the RONNA team and Clinical centres. These
market after experimental testing. The spin- projects will have mutual benefits, both for
off is planned as a strong collaboration with the RONNA research and technical team and
the University and the industrial partner from for the Clinicians providing them with state-
the RONNA project to ensure the stability of-the-art robotic neurosurgery methods, all
of activities. Further research and new for the sake of patients and their better clinical
applications are also planned to be carried out treatment.
8 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative HEALTH AND QUALITY OF LIFE

Acidosalus
MarinaLab Opus Ltd is a family-owned company that produces medical products,
cosmetics, special purpose cosmetics and food supplements. Their business is
focused on the production of high quality, safe and effective products, in line with the
legislation and international standards. Constant customer satisfaction is of the utmost
importance to them.

COMPANY NAME The company's objective is to improve all aspects of business through
MarinaLab Opus Ltd
implementation of quality assurance system, through constant
DIRECTOR AND INNOVATOR
improvement of knowledge, methodology and products and through
Rosa Ferinčević
ensuring open communication with their employers, customers and
COMPANY’S MISSION
Production of innovative food supplements, suppliers. The most famous company brand is Acidosalus – a line of products
medical products and cosmetics based on (18 of them) with probiotic bacteria, recognized at the international level.
natural raw materials that are truly effective The products have won a number of awards and are clinically tested. We
for maintaining health and beauty.
would like to present three of them in more detail.
NAME OF INNOVATION
Acidosalus
IPR STATUS
ISO 9001:2008 and ISO 13485:2003

acidosalus.com/en/

“We want to improve all aspects of our business through

implementation of quality assurance system, and through
constant improvement of our knowledge, methodology
and products with ensured open communication with
our employers, customers, and suppliers.”
R. Ferinčević
 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative 9

ACIDOSALUS® ACIDOSALUS® Plus

nose and mouth spray Fortified formulation of the basic Acidosalus for enhancing the
Alleviates symptoms of allergies, cold, and flu; protects the immune system. Helps with treatment of bacterial, viral, and
nose, mouth and throat mucosa from bacterial, viral, and fungal fungal infections.
infections.

ACIDOSALUS® Baby ACIDOSALUS® toothpaste 3-in-1

Used for enhancing the immune system. New and unique For intensive hygiene of teeth and oral cavity. Does not contain
probiotic product, Acidosalus® Baby was produced based on fluorides or artificial fragrances. Helps to wean from smoking.
the concept that already proved its efficacy both in Croatia and For maintenance of normal bacterial flora in oral cavity, thus
abroad. Intended for use in children. Enhances the immune providing protection against caries and other bacterial and
system, regenerates intestinal flora after an antibiotic treatment fungal infections. Ensures healthy gingiva and prevents its
and helps with various gastrointestinal disorders and diarrhoea. bleeding.
Effectively helps as an adjuvant in the treatment of bacterial,
fungal, and viral infections.
10 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative HEALTH AND QUALITY OF LIFE

GlycanAge®
- the Most Reliable
Marker of Biological Age
COMPANY NAME Genos is a research-intensive SME located in Croatia. It was established by Prof. Gordan
GENOS LTD Lauc as an academic startup in 2007, with two main areas of interest – genetics and
FOUNDER AND INNOVATOR glycobiology. Today, Genos DNA Laboratory is one of Croatia’s leading scientific
Gordan Lauc
institutions in the field of DNA analysis. Genos Glycoscience Research Laboratory is the
COMPANY’S MISSION
To enable scientists to include glycomics into
world’s leading institution in the field of high-throughput glycan analysis. It is also the
their clinical trials and enable the develop- home of the Croatian Centre of Research excellence for Personalized Healthcare. Genos
ment of supreme scientifically based prod- is currently a partner in six FP7 and three H2020 projects.
ucts and services in order to reduce the risks
of illnesses and improve quality of life.
The extensive research performed in Genos within these and other
NAME OF INNOVATION
GlycanAge® - the most reliable marker of bio- collaborations included over 40.000 individuals worldwide. Its results
logical age. revealed immunoglobulin G glycans to be an excellent biomarker for
IPR STATUS estimating biological age. Glycan age shows information on our hidden
Under patent protection in Croatia as the biochemical age and is therefore a far better indicator of overall health and
GlycanAge® test. National patent applica-
tions in the EU and the USA are pending. ageing process than chronological age. This discovery is under international
patent and trademark protection as the GlycanAge® Index.

genos-glyco.com

Genos scientists have recognized

the opportunity for translating
these research results into an
innovative product for the global
healthcare market. Financial
means obtained through the
HAMAG-BICRO POC 5 program
were used to co-finance the
testing of validity of the GlycanAge
Index on a large population (1,000
individuals) and to obtain proof of
concept for a new - simpler, more
efficient, more robust and more
cost-effective - blood sampling
method.
HEALTH AND QUALITY OF LIFE Croatia – Traditionally Innovative 11

The project was successfully completed

in 2014, and it was the basis for
development of the commercial
product GlycanAge®. GlycanAge® test
is the most reliable biological age
marker on the market, providing more
predictive information than any other
single biological age marker (such as
telomere length or gene methylation).
GlycanAge® test will be launched in the
UK in the spring of 2017, and become
available worldwide soon after (www.
glycanage.com).

"Research projects we are

working on are challenging,
innovative and recognized
at a global level. Pushing
the boundaries of scientific
knowledge is the thought
that keeps us motivated."
G. Lauc

In 2007, Prof. Gordan Lauc

established Genos as an
institution where young people
can develop professionally. In
2013, Genos was ranked as the
world's "Best Place to Work" for
researchers in industry by the
Scientist magazine. Today, this
small Croatian scientific institution
is one of the best in the world
in their area of expertise. Their
research projects are innovative
and globally recognized as
they move forward and push
the boundaries of scientific
knowledge.
12 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative HEALTH AND QUALITY OF LIFE

Sense - Smart
Temperature
Measurement
Researchers at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Computer Science and Information
Technologies designed an innovative product for measuring body temperature,
connected with a smart bracelet for reading of the collected data. The main researchers
and authors behind the idea are Tomislav Matić, PhD, Marijan Herceg, PhD and Joseph
Job, PhD. According to Mr. Matić, it is an attractive product for the market, with
wide applications and a large number of potential consumers. The product allows
continuous remote monitoring of body temperature, with the possibility of setting an
alarm in case of deviations from the preferred level.

At the global level, the product has received confirmation of innovation

and entered the final stage of obtaining the US patent and EU patent
in 4 selected countries. The protection procedure is also carried out in
Korea and China.

FACULTY NAME Preparation of the product for the market and its commercialization is managed by
Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Computer TERA Tehnopolis, through TTO program (Technology Transfer Office). The funds are
Science and Information Technologies
also provided by HAMAG BICRO and are intended for the costs of intellectual property
NAME OF INNOVATION
protection, making zero-series products, certification and preparation for entering the
Sense - innovative product for measuring
body temperature, connected with a smart market.
bracelet
Following successful product development in terms of technology, the
INNOVATORS
Tomislav Matić, PhD, second step is commercialization in the global market. For the purpose of
Marijan Herceg, PhD, commercialization, the profile of the product has already been published in
Josip Job, PhD database of the Enterprise Europe Network (EEN). In addition, researchers
STAGE OF DEVELOPMENT have been engaged in bilateral business meetings (Brokerage Events)
Making zero-series products
organized by the Network.
IPR STATUS
US patent received, in the process of gaining
the EU patent, in the process of patent pro-
tection for the territory of China and Korea
 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative 13

The idea was originally developed

through the application of the
innovative concept program,
PoC, funded by HAMAG
BICRO. PoC financed the
development of a prototype
system for wireless measuring
of biological signals and for the
start of international patent
protection.
14 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative
 Energy and GEOLUX

TEMA AUTOMATIZACIJA

Sustainable MEMBRAIN DESIGN

MOBILISIS

Environment
Total installed capacity within the Croatian power
system is currently made of app. 45% of thermal power
plants, 45% of large hydro power plants and 10% of
renewables. Croatia has been increasing investments
in R&D projects, primarily to develop and increase the
capacities of local industry and services directed towards
high-tech solutions and applicative innovations.
16 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative

From its founding in 2007, Geolux

has focused on development of
advanced radars such as 3D FMCW
radar, which was one of the first
devices on the market for civilian
use without any moving parts, be-
ing able to measure the distance,
angle and speed of targets in one's
visual field. The device combines
complex microwave systems and
high processing power to enable
the robust and small size, operat-
ing in harsh environment, very
high reliability and features that
were almost impossible in civil ap-
plications with other technologies.
With all the afore-mentioned fea-
tures, the RSS-3-150CS device can
detect and locate a single walking
human within a range of up to
150m, vehicles within a range of
up to 500m and it can track up to
32 targets simultaneously.

Advantages and innovation:

 Produces savings in public
street lighting (up to 70%
of the costs)
 Reduces carbon dioxide
emissions
 Continuous location of all
targets
 Solid state radars without
moving parts
 Very low power
consumption
ENERGY AND SUSTAINABLE ENVIRONMENT Croatia – Traditionally Innovative 17

Smart LED Lighting

Geolux Ltd is a research and development oriented company, with competences in COMPANY NAME
Geolux Ltd
microwave engineering, digital signal processing, embedded systems and electronics
FOUNDERS AND INNOVATORS
development for demanding applications such as high processing power computing
Nikša Orlić / Tomislav Grubeša
and alike. It was started in 2007, as a typical outsourcing company providing research and
COMPANY’S MISSION
development services to other companies worldwide, with a few very successful projects Development and manufacturing of high-
in the field of RF and microwave engineering. The idea for development of a simpler and tech radar sensors
better radar sensor, mainly for traffic applications, was born and realized in the first two COMPANY’S VISION

years of the company's existence. The sensor became quite successful in the next few Research and development of
innovative and complex radar systems for
years, which resulted in acquiring clients from all over the world. It also triggered further industrial, security and defence applications
research and development of more complex radar-based sensors and devices. NAME OF INNOVATION
Small size 3D radar for smart industrial appli-
The radar is attached to an existing street lamp pole, registering movement at a cations (LED lighting smart control, contact-
less water and mass flow meter, advanced
distance of up to 150 meters for pedestrians and up to 500m for car-sized vehicles. The
perimeter control, etc.)
radar then wirelessly sends the location of the detected object to nearby street lamps,
so that the lamps closest to the object can light up. As the detected person or car
moves, the radar keeps following it and turns on the lights around it. When the street is
empty again, the lights gradually dim back to the minimum intensity level.

geolux-radars.com
In the last decade, Geolux has received significant assistance from HAMAG-
BICRO for continuous research and development process, especially within
the PoC program.

In the following few months, Geolux will introduce a new radar sensor, RSS-4-500,
which will bring additional innovative technologies to the market, along with the
features almost impossible in civil applications with current technologies.

Based on the same technology, the radar device can also be used for
contactless water or mass speed measurement, at a distance of up to
50m from the sensor, with the precision of ±0,02m/s. Combined with
ultrasound level meter as an expansion module, the RSS-2-300W sensor
is used worldwide for very precise, easily installed and almost no-
maintenance river and streams flow measurement, industrial waters
flow measurement and control, detecting avalanches, aircraft vertical
speed measurements and many more applications.
18 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative ENERGY AND SUSTAINABLE ENVIRONMENT

PerMarDrive - Your
Permanent Power
The company was founded in 1989, with the intention of merging academic and
scientific research with practical engineering resources to offer sophisticated industrial
automation products to the market. For a long time, the company was orientated
COMPANY NAME
towards commercializing their know-how in advance electric motor technology.
Tema Ltd
The innovative idea is the result of organized and strategically guided R&D efforts,
YEAR OF ESTABLISHMENT
1989 intensive work and financial investment. The result was presented on several
FOUNDER AND INNOVATOR conferences and many innovation trade shows, which led to numerous merits and
Branimir Ružojčić excellence recognitions.
COMPANY’S MISSION
To supply on-board premium efficiency
electric machines
NAME OF INNOVATION
Electric motor with multilayer permanent
magnets built into the rotor lamination, pro-
filed for large contribution of reluctance to This new technology in electric motor drives has been introduced in the
the total motor torque last ten years, following prior R&D work. The advantages pertain mainly
to high efficiency and reduction of dimensions. Still, some problems
regarding the robustness and increased rotor speed have been critical
in mass production and overall usage. The innovative rotor design has
tema.hr
eliminated those problems, promoting a robust machine design suit-
able for heavy industry and demanding marine applications.

Receiving support from HAMAG-BICRO and the Ministry of Entrepreneurship and Crafts
was greatly appreciated and helpful at different stages of development, especially in
the POC and “commercialization start up” stage.
TEMA now has an established presence on the global market with its high quality
products, and its customers receive the very best service.

“Our plan is to find a partner for joint investment in

a larger production facility, stronger publicity and
reinforcement of our global sales representative
network.”
B. Ružojčić
ENERGY AND SUSTAINABLE ENVIRONMENT Croatia – Traditionally Innovative 19

Maritime industry is intensively

looking for ways to design and
operate marine vessels that
generate less CO2, as well as
the ways to further modify the
existing fleet to reduce emissions.
Maritime industry accounts for
3% of the global emissions, which
will continue to rise to 5% by 2050
if the old propulsion technology
does not improve. PerMarDrive is
a marine propulsion system being
developed to address maritime
emission through reducing fuel
consumption by 15% and lowering
vessel maintenance costs by
50%. PerMarDrive includes our
Permanent Magnet AC motor,
which offers incomparable speed
(2300RPM) within mid-high power
range (up to 1000KW) - applications
that will be coupled with an
innovative integrated clutch drive.
20 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative ENERGY AND SUSTAINABLE ENVIRONMENT

Ekoedar - Sustainable
Modular Buildings
Membrain design Ltd was founded by eight young engineers specializing in different
fields, whose mission was to design and build sustainable buildings and use renewable
energy sources. Having worked for two years on the development of the Concept
Membrain, and having participated at the competition Solar Decathlon Europe 2014,
they became aware of the fact that the knowledge and innovativeness of the team
working on the Membrain was just as good as that of the experts from the world’s top
universities and technology institutes.

COMPANY NAME
Membrain design Ltd
DIRECTOR
Hrvoje Nikola Vučemilo The way the company works is a step forward compared to classic
INNOVATORS building design – instead of experts from different fields working only
Hrvoje Nikola Vučemilo, Matija Pajić, Matej on their part of the project, the employees at Membrain design work
Peretin, Ivan Vrca and Ivana Krželj
together on solving all the issues, which makes it easier to integrate
COMPANY’S VISION
Expand the use of renewable energy sources
technical systems in buildings and give clients a quality product.
and reduce the negative impact of building
construction on the environment. We plan to
accomplish our vision through interdiscipli- Advantages of using Ekoedar: fast and cheap construction, small energy bills and
nary approach to building design and use of easy upgrade and repurpose of space with minimal environmental impact.
nature materials in construction.
NAME OF INNOVATION
Ekoedar “In the future, we would like to increase the number of
sustainable and smart buildings with creative and eco-
friendly approach to design and construction. ”
H. N. Vučemilo
membrain-projektiranje.hr
 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative 21

Ekoedar is a building system that

uses renewable energy sources
and modular building components
made from natural materials. With
Ekoedar modular building com-
ponents, users can have a sustain-
able building suitable for various
purposes - tourist accommodation
facilities, offices, public toilets, gal-
leries, etc. In addition, users can
also choose from a wide range of
building envelope designs (tim-
ber with crust, saw timber, stone,
green facade and roofs, glass, etc.)
and technical systems - solar pan-
els, heat pump, water purification,
rain water collection, smart house
automation, etc.

Participation at the competi-

tion Solar Decathlon Europe
2014 was an incentive for them
to use the knowledge and ex-
perience gained on that project
and start a company that would
give to its clients a unique inter-
disciplinary approach to prob-
lem solving.
22 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative ENERGY AND SUSTAINABLE ENVIRONMENT

Fully Automated
Parking System
Mobilisis company has developed modern and innovative IT infrastructure for
COMPANY NAME management of industrial and business processes, and for mobile data collection and
Mobilisis Ltd
transmission. The products are advanced hardware and software components with
FOUNDER/S
high level of integration, which enable flexible use in the most demanding business
Goran Kanižaj, Davor Balažinec, Berislav
Skupnjak, Krešimir Meštrić processes, as well as the transfer and processing of all kinds of information in the
DIRECTOR processes essential for real-time consideration.
Goran Kanižaj
COMPANY’S VISION The "Fully Automated Parking System" solution is the first system that offers
Our vision is networking of various items, a complete, comprehensive, turn-key solution that solves and integrates
which will create an intelligent system mul-
tiplying the effects of an individual action, all the disciplines and necessities of a modern parking system, providing
while constantly improving the quality of our benefits for drivers, authorities and wider public interest.
products and services.
NAME OF INNOVATION
Fully automated parking system

mobilisis.hr
 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative 23

Benefits of the system are as fol-

lows:

1. Enables automated parking in

unmarked streets
2. Enforces parking regulation in
real time, enables strict time-
limit enforcement
3. Provides information on the
space occupancy status ac-
cording to the street address
4. Besides guiding the driver to an
empty parking space, it also pro-
vides information on whether it is
legal to park in the space in that
particular zone, and on available
time and status of the user
5. Controls the streets in real time
and prevents illegal parking in
locations such as bus stops, etc.
6. Directs traffic inspection ef-
forts only towards violators -
this enables the city to reduce
almost 75% of the traffic in-
spection manpower
7. Enables fully automated hand-
free paying parking fees, start-
ing at car arrival and ending at
its departure
8. Reduces air pollution by approxi-
mately 30% as it prevents drivers
from unnecessary cruising while
looking for a parking space
9. It is the most user-friendly
parking system - it guides the
driver to a free space, enables
hands-free parking, prevents
fines and prevents money loss
with meters change and prob-
lems with cellular parking ter-
mination

"Our plan for the future is to constantly

improve our technological leadership,
both in terms of quality and reliability, so
that we are always able to offer the latest
and most efficient solutions available."
G. Kanižaj
24 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative
 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative 25

Transport RIMAC AUTOMOBILI

ALTPRO

and Mobility VISIOBIKE

SPIN CITY

Transport has a direct impact on the expansion of in-

dustrial market, consequently resulting in economic
growth, improved standard of living, competition among
regions and local communities, as well as physical ex-
pansion and infrastructure integration. This thematic
priority area is characterized by a long tradition in pro-
duction and comprises export-oriented sectors (metal,
plastic, electrical and ICT sector for automotive, rail and
maritime applications) and a knowledge-intensive ser-
vice sector (logistics).
26 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative TRANSPORT AND MOBILITY

Concept_One
- Fastest Electric Supercar
Rimac Automobili is a high-end technology company and car manufacturer. It is
disrupting the concept of traditional car manufacturers with an innovative business
model, manufacturing philosophy and product diversity. Rimac Automobili has a
COMPANY NAME
strong R&D base that enables it to develop entire vehicles in-house.
Rimac Automobili Ltd
All added-value systems in Rimac products, such as battery-systems, are designed,
DIRECTOR AND INNOVATOR
Mate Rimac engineered and manufactured in-house. The company has an extremely
COMPANY’S MISSION
knowledgeable, skillful and motivated young engineering and development team
The mission is the development and produc- who can tackle incredible technical challenges and deliver high-quality solutions in a
tion of high quality electric vehicle battery short time-frame.
systems, components and prototypes that
continually push the boundaries of what is
considered technologically possible, and at HOW IT ALL STARTED
the same time contribute to quality of life The groundwork for the company began in 2007, as a garage-housed hobby
and the greenplanet, and position Rimac
Automobili among global technology com-
of the company's founder Mate Rimac. The e-M3 was Rimac Automobili’s
panies first test mule. Mate started to convert this car when he was only 19 years
GOAL old. He owned an old BMW E30 (MY 1984), which he used for drift and
Producing the most advanced electric sport circuit races. At one of the races, the gas engine blew up. Then he decided
cars in the world to try to build an EV. After a year, Mate could drive the car, but he was not
NAME OF INNOVATION satisfied with the result. The car was heavy, not very powerful and its range
Concept_One
was very limited. Mate then started to form a team of experts to develop
their own components, since he believed that the electric propulsion can
give much more compared to what was available on the market. At that
time, Mate already had a very clear vision of the ultimate goal – building
rimac-automobili.com the fastest electric supercars and improving and developing EV technology
in the process. Much of the early financing came from selling patents and
the company has also received an SME Instrument (Phase 1) for the battery
pack implemented in the car Concept_One.

Rimac Automobili plans to put Rimac Automobili business model is based on four pillars:
an emphasis on mass produc-  Sportscars: In-house production and development of innovative
tion and further development sports cars
of the technology, future mo-  Future Mobility: Development of mobility solutions for urban areas
bility and engineering, while  Technology:
the sports cars production is - Cutting-edge technology solutions and components for various industries
planned to remain in the cur- - ”One-stop-shop” for vehicle electrification and hybrid powertrains
rent production range (limited - Market-leading high-performance powertrain and battery systems
number of produced cars).  Engineering & Prototypes: Providing design, engineering and pro-
duction services to other vehicle manufacturers
TRANSPORT AND MOBILITY Croatia – Traditionally Innovative 27

Concept_One is the world's first electric supercar. Concept One can reach 100 km/h
from a standstill in 2.6 seconds and continue to accelerate to the limit of 355 km/h.
92 kWh of energy in the battery modules deliver enough power for the range of up to
500 km.
The story behind the innovation is that the company needed to develop its own systems
that will function with 700 volts, while all the other car producers already developed
the systems that function with 400 volts. Therefore, Rimac Automobili developed
their own systems (air condition, etc.) to be compatible. The company developed its
own torque vectoring system that greatly improves vehicle dynamics and handling,
thus making the vehicle more agile and responsive. With that system, the vehicle
reaches its maximum cornering performance, as well as the optimum acceleration
and braking on all road conditions. Furthermore, the company developed the battery
management system that enables optimized battery usage through advanced SoC
and SoH Algorithms, extremely high measurement accuracy and refresh rate, as well as
the ultra-low power consumption.
Finally, Concept_One is the car for which Rimac Automobili has developed one of the
most advanced In-Vehicle Infotainment systems, with both the hardware and software
manufactured in-house. The main features of the IVI system are its fast implementation,
integrated connectivity and advanced features.
28 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative TRANSPORT AND MOBILITY

ALTPRO-
Safety and Signalling
Products
Company ALTPRO was established in 1994, based on a vision of several enthusiastic
railway engineers who saw the opportunity and had the knowledge to encourage
the development of railway systems worldwide. Today, ALTPRO has over 20 years of
experience in research, development and production of safety-signalling equipment
for rolling stock and infrastructure. Based on the company's know-how, ALTPRO
products have been fully developed and produced in Croatia and have proved their
competitiveness on the global market. Since the very beginning, ALTPRO has invested
in its most valuable resources - its employees. Today, the company employs more
than 120 experts in the fields of research, development, engineering, production and
maintenance.

COMPANY NAME
Altpro Ltd
DIRECTOR AND INNOVATOR
Zvonimir Viduka
COMPANY’S MISSION As a market-oriented company, ALTPRO identified the need for specially
To contribute to the quality, safety and in- designed sensors for non-conventional transport systems, such as
teroperability of railway transport through
research, development and production of in-
rubber-tyred metro vehicles, APM (automatic people movers), monorail,
novative, safe, reliable and sustainable safety etc. After studying the movement trajectories of the afore-mentioned
and signalling railway systems. means of transport and the possibilities for application of train detection
NAME OF INNOVATION technology, with financial support received from HAMAG-BICRO for POC
Railway wheel sensor M1
(Proof of Concept), the company was able to reach a solution for the
detection of these vehicles.

 Owing to its complete safety and signalling product range for rolling
stock and infrastructure, ALTPRO is one of few producers of such
altpro.hr equipment in the world
 Products are available on the markets of more than 45 countries on 6
continents
 ALTPRO has developed 900 different systems and devices, which it still
manufactures
 All its safety products have been certified by the independent
assessment bodies, such as TÜV Rheinland, in accordance with the EU
standards
 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative 29

ALTPRO sensor serves as part of

the train detection system on the
infrastructure of the afore-men-
tioned means of transport. Since
ALTPRO has extensive knowledge
in train detection technology, they
decided to enter that specific mar-
ket. Standard train detection tech-
nology could not be implemented
due to physical restriction and
field-of-view restrictions. Howev-
er, the company's M1 sensor suc-
cessfully detects passing vehicles
and fulfils its role in the whole train
detection system.
30 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative

“Visiobike brings high-tech features,

previously available only in cars, to
electric bike industry”
M. Matenda
TRANSPORT AND MOBILITY Croatia – Traditionally Innovative 31

Visiobike
Visiobike Ltd is a high-tech company which develops and manufactures connected
electric bicycles and battery packs.

Visiobike started as an idea that electric bicycles should be smart. “I’ve always been a
techno freak, with love for bikes. When I saw that ebike technology was stuck in the
1990s, the only logical thing for me was to combine the smartphone features with an
electric bicycle. That’s how Visiobike started” – explains Marko Matenda, Visiobike CEO.

COMPANY NAME

Visiobike is the first fully connected electric bicycle available on the Visiobike Ltd
market. The company developed a technology that enables users to use DIRECTOR AND INNOVATOR
Marko Matenda
their smartphone as a dashboard for their Visiobike in order to control
COMPANY’S MISSION
the electric motor, automatic transmission, lights and alarm system. User Visiobike provides a solution for daily
can track and activate Visiobike alarm in real time through my.visiobike. commuting in the form of a cool, eco-
com website, as well as check all statistical information about the rides. friendly and technologically advanced
electric bicycle.
Visiobike firmware can also be updated through the Internet with a
NAME OF INNOVATION
simple click of a button. Riders' safety is also enhanced with a HD camera
Visiobike
under the seat, which streams real-time view of what is happening
IPR STATUS
behind the rider to a smartphone mounted on the handlebar. In case of Protected design
an accident, Visiobike will automatically notify emergency services and
your next-of-kin, unless the user cancels this action within 60 seconds. It
will also automatically record 60 seconds prior to the accident which can
be used to reconstruct accident conditions.
visiobike.com

Visiobike received a pre-seed grant from the Ministry of Entrepreneurship and Crafts,
which helped the company to develop a new model of electric bicycles, commercialize
their first model and hire much needed employees.

Visiobike's plans for the future are to continue developing the most
technologically advanced electric bicycles in the world and sell them on
the EU and the US market.
32 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative TRANSPORT AND MOBILITY

Spin City- Electric Car

Sharing
Urban Mobility Ltd is a startup company, designed as a platform for services based on
green-tech solutions that will contribute to innovative user experience and quality of
COMPANY NAME urban life.
Urban Mobility Ltd
DIRECTOR AND INNOVATOR
Matija Krznar
COMPANY’S MISSION
Enrich the quality of urban life and environ-
ment by connecting green-tech platforms
with people and providing modern mobility Two years ago, the founders of the company, Matija Krznar and Florian
lifestyle. Grubišin, started thinking about innovative models of mobility that could
NAME OF INNOVATION suit the modern needs of citizens, especially young people. Insufficiently
Car sharing CRM
flexible network of public transport in Zagreb directed them to the area
NAME OF INNOVATION
of car sharing.
Car sharing CRM

Spin City service allows flexible and eco-friendly movement around the city. With the
use of modern technology, the concept integrates sharing economy with modern
spincity.hr
green economy. Through such a defined system, Spin City customers are able to rent a
vehicle just as often as they need it, without the cost of ownership or maintenance. This
improves their quality of life, as well as the quality of life of their fellow citizens.
Car sharing CRM:
Completely customised solution
Second part of the CRM is the user dashboard platform, created as a web interface
created to support car sharing
for car sharing customers. Web interface serves for locating/booking a car, buying
services. Car sharing CRM allows
products, payment, tracking the details of a customer account, such as booking driving
centralized management of our
history, invoices, etc.
customer base, while effectively
managing the marketing, sales,
billing and customer support ac-
”Our plan is to become the market leader in the SEE
tivities. The CRM platform can be region, through creating innovative experiences in order
integrated with other systems in to improve the quality of urban life. People, movement
order to run businesses, such as
booking system, gateway pay-
and urban life is what inspires me.”
ment, telephone exchange or cus- M. Krznar

tomer support applications. Car

Support from the institutions
sharing CRM, as a general man-
Investment in system development was financed through a special loan program
agement system, ensures delivery
approved by the Croatian Bank for Reconstruction and Development (HBOR), where
of functional and high-quality op-
the guarantee (EUR 100,000) was secured by HAMAG-BICRO. Their understanding and
erations.
guarantee was one of the crucial elements in the project realization.
TRANSPORT AND MOBILITY Croatia – Traditionally Innovative 33

In the first phase, Matija carried out

an analysis on local transport network
and community in general, which later
became the basis for their car sharing
concept design.

“After a few months, we created

"free-floating" concept based
on smart access and completely
custom CRM system. Before
the final implementation,
there was a lot of negotiations
with partners/suppliers, city
government and financial
institutions. After six months
In addition to this, the Fund for Environmental Protection and Energy Efficiency also
gave a subsidy for co-financing 10 electric vehicles - 40% of their purchase price.
on the market, we now have
over 1.200 customers and
The fleet consists of 30 Volkswagen up! vehicles, including 10 electric cars. These cars are at the we are working on further
disposal of the public and they are located around the city. Users are able to locate the nearest
vehicle via their smart phones, which are also used to unlock the vehicles. All a person has to
improvements in terms of
do is register on the Spin City’s website moj.spincity.hr (part of the CRM system) to be able to user experience and processes
access and use the cars. Before using the service, each customer is validated in the system optimization.”
based on personal documents and his/her own SELFIE for identity check. M. Krznar
Users are charged for the exact amount of time they were using the car. Last but not least
- fuel, parking, insurance, maintenance and cleaning are included in the price, as well as one-
way trips.
34 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative
 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative 35

Security DOK-ING

HIPERSFERA

CITUS

SUPRACONTROL

Its competitiveness is based on the focus to produce and

integrate high-tech innovative products and/or associ-
ated services of high added value. This orientation re-
sults from the very nature of this thematic area, which
does not tolerate unreliable products and services for
the market.

Emerging new technologies in the aerospace and de-

fence industries significantly contribute to the develop-
ment of novelty products for civil markets. Despite this
fact, there is no clear methodical classification of the
Security industry at the EU level, due to the following
reasons: security industry as such is not covered by the
main statistical nomenclatures (NACE, Prodcom, etc.);
production of security-related items is hidden under a
wide range of headings; statistics for those headings do
not distinguish between security and non-security relat-
ed activities; there is no statistical data source available
at the European level from the industry itself. These
reasons apply to Croatia as well.
36 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative SECURITY

DOK-ING
- Don’t send a man
to do a machine’s job
COMPANY NAME
DOK-ING Ltd
YEAR OF ESTABLISHMENT
1991 DOK-ING is a 100% privately owned Croatian company, established in the late 1991.
FOUNDER AND INNOVATOR It is registered for the production of robotized and special purposes systems and
Vjekoslav Majetić equipment. The headquarters, production facilities and service occupy 15,000 square
NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES meters in Zagreb, Croatia. The secondary production facilities are in Slunj, some 100 km
200
south of Zagreb. Along with a branch office in the USA, there is a subsidiary in South
NAME OF INNOVATION
Africa, DOK-ING Africa, which supports the program for South African mines.
Specialized robotic systems for mine clear-
ance (MV-4 and MV-10), for underground
mining (XLP dozer, ULP dozer), for firefight-
ing (MVF-5), small urban electric car (xd, loox),
solar charging station, small industrial multi-
purpose vehicle
Company's motto ""Don't send a man to do a machine's job"" definitely
says a lot about the person behind it.
“Just as in the beginning, I still have the same dream – to produce
dok-ing.hr
machines that would protect human lives and ensure safety for people
working in dangerous and life-threatening conditions. If you keep your
eyes wide open, you can see a vast number of opportunities, ideas just
come up and there is an unlimited space for improvements in every
”Croats, especially the segment of our lives, especially in the area of robotic systems.”
younger population, have
proven to have innovative
minds,necessaryknowledge,
curiosity, imagination and
courage. Our innovators
are acknowledged all over
the world, and they win
the most prestigous awards
for their inventions at
international shows and
exhibitions.”
V. Majetić
SECURITY Croatia – Traditionally Innovative 37

During its first years, DOK-ING was

actively engaged in demining activities.
Consequently, it has gathered vast
experience in different types of landmine
clearance, on all types of terrains in
the Republic of Croatia, as well as
in the neighbouring countries. This
experience was the basis for designing
and manufacturing the first remotely
controlled demining systems, constructed
exclusively for humanitarian demining.
As those were upgraded and improved,
the company participated in R&D projects
with various international and domestic
organizations, including the Croatian
Ministry of Science, Education and Sports,
as well as the State Maritime Institute,
Faculty of Electrical Engineering and
Computing of the University of Zagreb
and Geneva International Centre for
Humanitarian Demining. At the same time,
demining systems were sold to more than
30 countries worldwide, to a number of
government agencies and humanitarian
organizations, and to commercial
companies. Altogether, more than 250
light and medium-sized demining systems
have been produced so far.

Visit to the platinum mines of South

Africa was another challenge – once
again, people in hostile and dan-
gerous environment needed a ma-
chine that could help them not only
raise productivity but also provide a
higher level of safety. The design of a
remote-controlled ultra-low profile
dozer for mineral excavation met
those requirements. Almost every
new project received an award,
which convinced us we were on the
right path. Some of the recent inno-
vative and development projects of
DOK-ING have been supported by
the EU funds such as Horizon 2020.
38 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative SECURITY

HiperSfera - Persistent
Aerial Positioning as a
Service (PAPaaS)
HiperSfera is a rapidly expanding aerospace R&D company, with a interdisciplinary
technical team composed of twenty engineers from various fields of new and
emerging technologies: aerodynamics, composite structures, automation, wireless
communications, electronics, power electronics, imaging, and system software
programming. The company was started in 2006 as a startup SME, and the idea for
innovation developed while doing research on the operating costs of similar planned
military systems in the early 2000s.

COMPANY NAME
HiperSfera Ltd HiperSfera leverages proprietary unmanned aerial vehicle technology
DIRECTOR AND INNOVATOR to deliver Persistent Aerial Positioning as a Service (PAPaaS) to service
Bojan Pečnik, PhD operators through its unique Unmanned Aerial System (UAS). PAPaaS is
COMPANY’S MISSION a turnkey service, allowing payloads to be persistently, accurately, and
HiperSfera is all about creating, nurturing,
and sustaining a globally competitive aero-
flexibly positioned anywhere within a non-restricted airspace from low
space research and development team, ca- to high altitude, as well as to be operated over extended periods at low
pable of providing disruptive solutions to operating costs.
local and global challenges based on lighter
than air technologies.
While combining Commercial-Off-The-Shelf (COTS), emerging technology payloads
NAME OF INNOVATION
and ground systems, HiperSfera enables breakthrough applications based on aerial
HiperSfera
mission profiles which were previously cost-prohibitive – persistent positioning
IPR STATUS
EPO and USPTO patents surveillance missions, continuous remote sensing and all-weather static operations.

Hipersfera.hr
In the initial seed stage, HiperSfera raised €1.1 million from the
government (HAMAG – BICRO) and other private investors. Since then,
HiperSfera has secured additional €2 million, with deals structured
through strategic financial partner - ebank.

In the future, HiperSfera will provide disruptive turnkey aerospace solutions

to local and global challenges based on proprietary lighter-than-air industrial
platform, providing Persistent Aerial Positioning as a Service.
SECURITY Croatia – Traditionally Innovative 39

APPLICATIONS:
Security Surveillance - the ulti-
mate patrol & station-keeping plat-
form for continuous surveillance
Disaster Management - integrat-
ed system comprising of Continu-
ous Remote Sensing, Situational
Awareness, Resources Coordination
and Mobile Broadband Network
Smart Farming - the most cost-
efficient and fully integrated real-
time service used to monitor,
analyze and optimize efforts of the
agricultural industry
Mobile Broadband Services (Tel-
ecom TERA) - the ultimate station-
keeping platform for broadband
telecommunication services
Autonomous Driving - Single Sys-
tem to provide near-real-time opti-
cal and LIDAR uHD maps to auto-
motive industry, along with robust
and broadband mobile connectiv-
ity for autonomous vehicles.
40 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative SECURITY

C@N Motion -
Interactive Multimedia
Solution With Gesture-
Controlled User Interface
COMPANY NAME
Citus Ltd
YEAR OF ESTABLISHMENT Citus employs highly educated professionals with great experience in development of
1999
complex information systems and IT consulting, which can be confirmed by numerous
FOUNDER AND INNOVATOR
references and prestigious certifications. Quality management system, ISO 9001:2008:
Tomislav Bronzin
(SI-Q-486) has been implemented in all areas of the company since 2002.
IPR STATUS:
Business fields:
Patent: PK20130471A, Trade Mark:
Z20130838A 1. Design and development of software based solutions
2. Education and consulting - seminars for designers of information systems, architects
OBJECTIVE
Introduce technology in everyday life to and developers, and strategic IT consulting; seminars for computer operators
improve quality of life in every aspect 3. System integration of all parts of complex information systems and of existing
computer systems

C@N Motion is an award-winning interactive Gesture Controlled Content Management

System that allows fun interaction via computer driven content using hand movements.
can-motion.com C@N Motion and its advanced technology solution enable innovative, attractive,
intuitive and easy-to-use motion control user interface, which does not require any
physical contact with the screen or any other device (mouse, keyboard).
”To work on an innovation It is possible to create a video wall, e-poster or other type of presentation through
and with innovation is a which one or more users can communicate while being 2-4 feet apart, and it is also
possible to store data in the cloud via the web portal.
challenging and demanding Set your C@N Motion behind the window or beam it to the big video-wall and allow
process. If the times are your potential customers to run it through the glass touch-free.
not suitable for such new
approach or if the economy
is not ready to use it, an
innovation will remain C@N Motion provides multimedia platform that can be used for:
only a sketch, no matter  New channel of communication
how good it is. Things are  Kiosk-like applications
getting better and better,  Gamification of business applications
but still there is a lot of
 Education - learning through games and experience
space for improvement.”
T. Bronzin
 Possibility to create human communication by translating sign
language of hearing-impaired people to everyday speech
 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative 41

C@N Motion can be applied in a

wide range of industries: education,
healthcare, retail, financial and ser-
vices industry, tourism and hospital-
ity, transportation, public services
and administration, culture and arts,
sports, conference and trade shows,
beauty industry, fashion industry,
corporate communications and
business centres, theme and amuse-
ment parks, entertainment industry,
cinemas etc. In the first stage of de-
velopment, company received sup-
port from HAMAG-BICRO through
Proof of Concept (PoC) program. In
the future, the plan is to commer-
cialize all their products world-wide
with the support of their partners
and clients.
42 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative SECURITY

Supracontrol - ICT
Security Solution
Supracontrol Ltd is a company specialized for in-house design and manufacturing of
embedded systems as efficient security solutions for physical ICT infrastructure inside
data centers, server rooms and server racks located within critical infrastructure facilities.

The idea of Supracontrol came in 2008, within the Supra Net Ltd, as a
response to clients’ specific needs. Around that period, Supra Net was a
solution partner with the leading system for access control and monitoring
of server racks operating conditions. Over the years, through the stages
COMPANY NAME
of design and implementation, some deficiencies of this solution were
Supracontrol Ltd detected, and they could not be overcome by other products on the market.
INNOVATOR
Daniel Majer, Ivan Miličević With the aim of developing and launching a comprehensive system that
COMPANY’S MISSION would eliminate the shortcomings of competitive solutions, Supra Net
To develop fully scalable solutions and offer company established a new R&D department and proceeded with the
them on the market for efficient manage-
ment and control of ICT infrastructure within development of the Supracontrol system. After intensive development, in
data centers and server rooms. August 2012, the CE certificate was received for the first production series
NAME OF INNOVATION of the Supracontrol devices.
Supracontrol
In October 2015, a decision was made to establish an independent
company that would continue with the development and commercialize
the product.

supracontrol.com Supracontrol represents hardware and software solutions that can be adjusted
to specific business needs. This is achieved by providing an integrative service that
combines access control, environmental monitoring, video surveillance, energy
measurement and process automation into a single solution. Products are fully scalable
and integrated. They represent the most technologically advanced security solutions
for data centers and server rooms that are managed by simple web and mobile apps.
Their main purpose is to notify the users on potentially dangerous events inside data
centers, server rooms and server racks. The system can deliver over 100 different alarms.
In addition, the users can easily manage all Supracontrol devices through web and
mobile apps, perform detailed troubleshooting by browsing through the events and
generate monthly reports.
 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative 43

Supracontrol's target groups are both SMEs and large enterprises in fields of IT and
telecommunications, banking, financial services and insurance (BFSI), public sector,
media and entertainment, healthcare, manufacturing, oil & gas and energy & power.

”In an environment full of

challenges, creativity and
experience will always
Supracontrol has received numerous awards for this innovative solution.
The most prominent award is the Seal of Excellence SME Instrument Phase result in a solution that
2, under the Horizon 2020 program, by the European Commission. The is complete, without any
solution won the first place in the “Business and Production” category at real shortcomings, and
the Pioneers of the Balkans Conference, among more than 600 startup
companies. The company has also received support from the Croatian truly innovative.”
Agency for SMEs, Innovations and Investments (HAMAG – BICRO). D. Majer

The demand for a large variety of sensors is growing steadily and with their
competitive prices, Supracontrol solutions will disrupt the current IoT smart
sensor market. Company’s main objective is to provide services worldwide,
as well as to collaborate with enterprises and service providers in order to
meet the customers’ unique needs.
44 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative
 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative 45

Food and AGRIVI

GAMMACHEF

Bio-Economy PROBIOTECH

BIOCENTRE

Croatia has great natural resources available in

this sector: plenty of good quality arable land,
the Adriatic Sea, forests and water resources that
enable conversion into food, feed, wood and bio-
based products.

• Surface area of the Republic Croatia is 87,661

km² and it comprises 56,594 km² (64.5%) of land
area and 31,067 km² (35.5%) of territorial sea.

• Total surface area of forests and forestland in

Croatia amounts to 2,688,688 ha, accounting for
48% of the total land area.

• Agriculture accounts for 12.4% of total

employment, forestry for 1%, and food production
and food processing industry for 3.4%
46 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative FOOD AND BIO-ECONOMY

Agrivi's plan is to acquire over

100 million users, i.e. farmers,
in the following 5 years, as well
as to change the global food
production industry in its core.
FOOD AND BIO-ECONOMY Croatia – Traditionally Innovative 47

Agrivi - Smart Farming

Agrivi is a global AgTech company. Its vision is to change the way food is produced,
and thus positively impact over 1 billion lives by helping farmers reach sustainable,
resource-efficient and profitable production. Since its founding in 2013, the company
has managed to position itself as the most complete farm management software on
the market. It is also one of the leaders in the farm management software industry.
COMPANY NAME
Over 25,000 farmers in 150 countries have recognized the value of Agrivi solutions and
Agrivi Ltd
started using them to improve their production.
DIRECTOR AND INNOVATOR
Matija Žulj
Agrivi addresses various stakeholders in the agricultural industry – farms COMPANY’S MISSION
of all sizes, agricultural cooperatives, food sourcing industry, retail chains, Delivering knowledge-based farm manage-
banks, telecoms, NGOs, governments and all other parties interested in ment software solutions directly to farmers
worldwide and improving their productivity
achieving sustainable, resource-efficient agricultural production in their and profitability.
network of farmers. STAGE OF DEVELOPMENT
Growth stage, already delivering solution to
farmers in 150 countries.

Matija Žulj, an entrepreneur with strong business and ICT educational

background, founded Agrivi in 2013 in Kutina, Croatia. He was inspired agrivi.com

to create a solution for the frustrations he experienced while running

his own blueberry farm. He was able to realize his project with the
help of HAMAG-BICRO, the EU project FRACTALS and the Ministry of
Entrepreneurship and Crafts, which supported Agrivi in the seed stage “Global AgTech market is
of development. evolving rapidly and as we have
managed to position ourselves
among the key global industry
Agrivi is a knowledge-based farm management platform that offers farmers the most
complete farm management solutions on the market. It also provides best practices on
players, market demand for
how to achieve optimum yields, and provides pest and disease alerts to reduce risk of our technology is very strong.
lower yields through timely crop protection. Furthermore, the platform gives an instant In the following period, we
insight into overall farm performance with a single click. The platform is multilingual,
which enables farmers to use the software in their local language.
will focus on penetrating the
markets of key agricultural EU
countries and on positioning
ourselves as the global leader
in the niche industry verticals
serving customers worldwide.”
M. Žulj
48 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative FOOD AND BIO-ECONOMY

GammaChef
– Robotic Chef

COMPANY NAME
GammaChef is a robotic chef capable of preparing any one-pot meal. It is a pragmatic
Gamma Chef Ltd household appliance that brings the 21th century technology into our kitchens.
FOUNDERS AND INNOVATORS GammaChef is a story about tasty, healthy and homemade food. It is not only a story
Dražen Drnas and Đulijano Nola about food, but also about families eating together. It is about slowing down a bit.
COMPANY’S MISSION It is about helping mums to take care of their children. It is about helping people
To be a company whose name is associated
eat healthier. It is also a story about you, your health, your free time, as well as your
with new generation of kitchen devices and
good food creativity. GammaChef inventors believe that, with a little help, anyone can cook.
NAME OF INNOVATION
GammaChef – robotic chef
IPR STATUS
Industrial design registered at WIPO
International Registration Number DM/091
175
GammaChef is a unique machine because not many machines can cook
a really tasty risotto! A digital recipe is at its core. Based on the recipe,
GammaChef will prepare you a fresh, homemade and tasty meal at the
desired time. It is as easy as this: you just have to use your smartphone,
gammachef.com tablet or a built-in touch screen and choose from hundreds of pre-
programmed recipes. You can control GammaChef from any location
via the Internet. Since it is connected to the Internet, you can also find
new recipes online, buy cookbooks, follow diets, adapt existing or create
new meals, share content, comment, etc. Once digitalized, you can
share digital recipes with your friends who can prepare a meal on their
GammaChef following your recipe.

Their strategic partner and investor Podravka d.d., one of the leading food companies
in South East, Central and Eastern Europe, actively supports the GammaChef project
with their R&D and know-how.

Although a functional prototype of the robotic chef has been created, the
project is still in the R&D phase and there are still many challenges left. In
the future, inventors hope that GammaChef will be a successful and proven
consumer product on the shelves.
 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative 49

“We like to imagine that

GammaChef will be cooking
thousands of homemade
meals on a daily basis. We
see families sitting together
at the table, with healthy
and tasty meal ready when
a working mum comes
home from work.”
D. Drnas and Đ. Nola
50 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative FOOD AND BIO-ECONOMY

The project results are set up and

equipped ProBioTech laboratory
with bioreactors specially de-
signed for biological agro-industry
waste treatment and necessary
analytic equipment, enhanced
process of anaerobic co-digestion
of cow manure and biologically
pre-treated agricultural waste,
and drawn up technical documen-
tation and feasibility study of the
technological process. Additional
outcomes of the project are Bach-
elor and Master thesis, scientific
papers, and national and interna-
tional conference attendance.
FOOD AND BIO-ECONOMY Croatia – Traditionally Innovative 51

ProBioTech
Within this project, scientific research organization J. J. Strossmayer University of Osijek, FACULTY NAME
Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek
Faculty of Food Technology as the project leader together with industrial partner Faculty of Food Technology
Bovis Ltd developed an innovative technology with the aim of increasing the use of
PROJECT TITLE
renewable energy sources and promoting environment protection. Development of innovative process of agri-
With regard to the research program, the Faculty of Food Technology Osijek needed cultural waste biological treatment in biogas
an industrial partner that possesses technology required for further research and production - ProBioTech
PROJECT LEADER
development, which is anaerobic co-digestion of cow-manure and agricultural waste.
Dr. Marina Tišma, PhD, Assoc. Prof.
PARTNER
Currently, anaerobic co-digestion of cow manure and corn silage presents Bovis Ltd, Ivankovo, Slatine 13, Vukovar-Sri-
a well-established and widely distributed process on dairy farms that jem County, Croatia
generate biogas. When agro-industrial residues or any other lignocellulose FUNDING SOURCE
materials are used independently or together with manure for biogas ProBioTech project (RC. 2.2.08-0045) is co-
financed by the European Regional Develop-
production, or when they are used in bioethanol production, they have to ment Fund (ERDF) and Ministry of Science,
be pre-treated due to their recalcitrant structure. There are several different Education and Sport of the Republic of Croa-
methods of lignocellulose pre-treatments, generally belonging to physical, tia within Operational Programme Regional
physiochemical, chemical and biological pre-treatments. Competitiveness 2007-2013.

In the recent years, there has been an increase of interest for research
in the implementation of biological methods of lignocellulose material
pretreatment, but until now, these methods have not been successful on
the industrial level. One of the biological methods is the application of white ptfos.unios.hr/probiotech/hr/
rot fungi. White rot fungi, such as Trametes versicolor used in the project,
are known as good producers of ligninolytic enzymes. In addition, they
are also known to degrade different environmental pollutants, including
phenolic compounds from solid and liquid waste. With regard to anaerobic
digestion, these compounds can inhibit the process or cause the problems
during digestate use.

In this project, the implementation of white rot fungi for lignocellulose

waste treatment was investigated in newly-designed solid-state biore-
actors. Anaerobic co-digestion process was studied in a mobile pilot
plant situated near an industrial biogas plant. Technical documentation
and feasibility study of the novel process, including the integration of
biological pre-treatment and anaerobic co-digestion, were prepared
based on the experimental results.
52 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative FOOD AND BIO-ECONOMY

BIOCentre - Home for

Biosciences
COMPANY NAME
BIOCentre Ltd
YEAR OF ESTABLISHMENT
2015
BIOCentre is Biosciences Technology Commercialization and Incubation Centre, the
FOUNDER/S
HAMAG BICRO, University of Zagreb, City of first of its kind in Croatia and SE Europe. The project was funded through the Regional
Zagreb Competitiveness Operational Programme for the 2007-2013 programming period
NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES under the management of HAMAG-BICRO.
10 The primary goal of BIOCentre is to provide infrastructure and services necessary
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
for growth and development of early stage biotech companies and to facilitate
Dubravko Kičić, PhD, EMBA
Sanja Šale, MD, PhD collaboration between academic institutions and the industry. BIOCentre has a state-
COMPANY’S MISSION
of-the-art core facility (central lab), where experienced experts provide contract
Supporting and driving the growth and de- research services.
velopment of early stage biotech companies

biocentre.hr BIOCentre addresses specialized needs of target groups in the following

5 activity areas:
- Infrastructure support
- Incubation support
- Technology transfer support
- Education/Training support
- Networking support

“At BIOCentre, we have “We are excited to see

the opportunity to build that BIOCentre’s resources
an organization that will are being utilized for
promote scientific excellence development of innovative
and entrepreneurial spirit, projects ranging from
with the goal of fostering academic groups to large
the next generation of commercial companies!”
bioscience innovators in D. Kičić

Croatia.”
S. Šale
FOOD AND BIO-ECONOMY Croatia – Traditionally Innovative 53

Users of the BIOFacility program can rent laboratories, offices and meeting rooms. BIOCentre target groups include
The BIOIncubation program provides advisory services in business development academic researchers, startup
and consults biotechnology startups during their incubation process. BIOTransfer companies (i.e. spin-offs from
program provides contract research services necessary for technology transfer and universities and other research
commercialisation. BIOEducation program is developed with the purpose of providing institutions), SMEs and existing
the BIOCentre's tenants and clients with customized training in business and/or companies, as well as national
technical skills. BIONetwork program facilitates networking between the bioscience and international research in-
community and potential partners from other sectors: investors, public institutions stitutions and groups involved
and business partners. The overall objective of BIOCentre is to become a national and in the implementation of inno-
regional biotech hub. vative projects with significant
commercial potential.
 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative 55

About HAMAG-BICRO & EEN

In recent years, Croatia has made great efforts to develop institutional frameworks MAIN OBJECTIVES
in order to support the innovation process. This led to investment of public funds in  Support the development of small
innovative SMEs and encouraged companies to invest in research and development. and medium-sized enterprises,
improve the innovation process and
encourage investments;
 Create a unique system that
provides support to entrepreneurs
through all development stages of
operation - starting from research
and development of an idea to its
commercialization and placement
hamagbicro.hr
on the market.

HAMAG-BICRO is the Croatian Agency for SMEs, Innovations and Investments,

founded by the Government of the Republic of Croatia with the aim of supporting the
development of SMEs, catalysing the innovation process and encouraging investment.
The Agency is an independent institution supervised by the Ministry of Economy, SMEs
and Crafts.

SME innovation support Pilot projects for system support Financial instruments
EEN PPLight ESIF R&D grants
SME instrument PPI2Innovate Loan guarantees
Eureka/ Eurostars KISSME Micro credits
STPII* Smart Factory HUB Pre-seed / Seed/ VC funds

*Second Science and Technology project – innovation process support programs

funded by the World Bank loan, implemented in collaboration with the Ministry of
Science and Education (through programs PoC-Proof of Concept Program, RAZUM-
Development of Knowledge-based Enterprises Program, IRCRO-Collaborative Research
and Development Program and TTO-Technology Transfer Office Support Program)
56 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative

OTHER AREAS OF SPECIALISATION EU PROGRAMMES & STRATEGIES IMPLEMENTED BY

 Creation of science, technology and innovation strategies, HAMAG-BICRO:
internalisation of innovation and smart specialization;  Horizon 2020/ COSME
 Programme development (program procedures / public  Operational programme Competitiveness and Cohesion
call / evaluation / contacting / monitoring); 2014 - 2020
 Capacity building activities  Smart Specialization Strategy
 Development of adequate technology infrastructure
 Supporting technology transfer in public scientific
institutions

HAMAG-BICRO INNOVATIONS IN NUMBERS:

386 370 milion HRK 612 milion HRK

innovative projects
supported by HAMAG- amount of grants total value of projects
BICRO programmes

een.ec.europa.eu

01
Enterprise Europe Network provides free
internationalisation and innovation support services
to small and medium sized enterprises.

Launched in February 2008 by the Commission’s DG

GROW (previously “Enterprise and Industry” ENTR) 02
03
Co-financed under the EU’s COSME and HORIZON
2020 funding programmes - encouraging
competitveness and innovation of European SMEs

Total funding of over 180 milion EURO

04
 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative 57

3000local
600+
locations
60+
countries
experts worldwide

We combine international business expertise with local knowledge

to take innovations to new markets.

A broad range of services for growth-oriented SMEs

INTERNATIONAL ADVISORY INNOVATION

PARTNERSHIPS SUPPORT SUPPORT

Access to finance
Advice on EU laws
Partnership database and funding
and standards
— —
—
Brokerage events Innovation
Market intelligence
— Management Srvices
—
Company missions —
IPR expertise
Technology transfer
58 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative

How it works: international

partnerships
The Network's business databases contains thousands of company profiles to find the
perfect match. In addition we organise:
Matchmaking events across Europe where SMEs Company missions where we set up and prepare
can meet potential business partners in person. you for targeted international meetings with strong
bussiness prospects.
 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative 59

Boosting growth and creating jobs in

the EU (2008 - 2014)

11,000 90,000 1,7 70,000 600,000

companies companies milion targeted questions
have signed attended people business on EU issues
business, international perticipated in meetings answered
technology brokerage events events every year
or research and company
partnerships missions

13,000 10,000 7,000 SMEs 13,000

Business Technology Connecting Technology
Connections and business every month audits and
Via B2B offers & business reviews
matchmaking requests per year
with companies available
outside the EU

For any enquiries about the EEN, creation of profiles for the international base, search for possible partnerships, participation in a
brokerage event, as well as other necessary information on innovative business internationalization, please contact the EEN partners
throughout Croatia:
ZAGREB: [email protected]; [email protected]
VARAŽDIN: [email protected]
OSIJEK: [email protected]
RIJEKA: [email protected]
SPLIT: [email protected]
60 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative

M-parking (Pay-by-phone parking) -

invented by young Croatian innovators
and introduced by VIPNET, allows any
PhotoPay, created by the company Mi-
driver parking in a fare required space
croblink, is a software development kit
the option to divert the expense to a
(SDK) widely used in mobile banking
credit card or to a mobile network op-
apps for payments. Instead of manual
erator via the use of a mobile phone,
data input simply position a mobile
mobile application or computer, as op-
camera on a slip and data is ready in a
posed to inserting change into a park-
few seconds, allowing fast payment and
ing meter or pay and display machine.
significantly improved mobile banking
Today pay-by-phone parking is used by
usability.
millions of people all around the world.
PhotoMath, Microblinks’ other innova-
tive product, is a practical smart mobile
application that reads and solves math-
ematical problems by using the camera
of a mobile device in real-time. One of
their first innovative products, BlinkID, a
mobile scanner application, was used in
American elections 2016 for an ID check.
Blink, created by a Croatian company
Amphinicy Technologies, is a CCSDS-
compatible satellite data acquisition and
processing software solution developed
primarily for Earth observation missions.
Main qualities of this product are its ex-
ceptional price competitiveness, short
lead times and easy maintenance. The
software is currently measured to be at
least 20 times faster than its counterpart
developed by NASA.

Farmeron is the first cloud-based dairy

farm management software platform
for tracking, predicting, analysis and im-
provement, created by Matija Kopić, and
brought to more than 650 farms in 14
countries worldwide.
 Croatia – Traditionally Innovative

Nanobit is world-famous for their pro-

duction of smart phones game appli-
cations such as Hollywood Story, Chef
Town, Knight Raiders, Bakery Town, Field
Commander, Superstar Life, Happy Zoo
etc.

Wamster is a synchrophasor measure-

Product COMPA, a technology of steel ment and storage system which in-
ship structures and tubes repair by cludes all equipment necessary to cre-
means of composite patches, was cre- ate an ad-hoc PMU wide-area network.
ated by the company Alveus – already PMU devices are designed with port-
recognised on the European market. ability and quick deployment in mind,
while the concentrator server provides
Steora, the world's best street bench, easy web access, event triggering and
provides phone charging and inter- data export.
net to users and beautifies the street,
ShoutEm, a service that enabled the as is powered by green solar energy. It STEMI project provide the opportunity
user to quickly and cheaply start its own was invented by Croatian student Ivan to learn STEM fields (science, technol-
social network without the initial invest- Mrvoš and his startup Include sold al- ogy, engineering and mathematics)
ment, was first independent project in most 100 units in first year. through fun projects - which will consist
2009 by the company Pet minuta. of educational multimedia content on
needed subjects and applicable elec-
The product Repsly, created by the tronic components.
company Mobilna informatika, is a mo-
bile data collection and field manage-
ment tool that has been focused on
providing mobile software solutions for
enhancing field activity management
since its inception in 2010. Setting out
to simplify processes for field teams and
their managers, Repsly has customers in
over 40 countries.
How can we help you?

een.ec.europa.eu
een.hr