Innovation on track
This month, SPNT and county authorities will sign an agreement giving the park rights to use a 14-ha plot located in Szczecin's Niebuszewo district. A tender for construction of a further phase of SPNT's complex, called Park Pomerania, will be held afterwards.
A turning point
SPNT was founded in 2000 as a non-profit organization and it belongs in full to the City of Szczecin. Little was accomplished in the years following its establishment, however, and it had financial difficulties.
"The park previously had huge debts," said Grzegorz Fiuk, the president of SPNT. "In order to start SPNT's real work, SzczecinCity Hall had to pay the debts, transferring zł.140,000," he added.
The park now plans to be an incubator for new businesses. "We are just getting started," said Fiuk. "Now our main aim is to build Park Pomerania. This will be a place for new companies to start their activity and develop. It is mainly for IT, telecommunications, new technology and innovative companies," he explained.
Once completed, Park Pomerania will offer 100,000 sqm of class-A and A+ office and lab space. The entire investment, together with the computer network, laboratories, other facilities and equipment will cost zł.500-800 million. This will be co-financed from the city budget and EU funds and the complex should be completed in 2011.
New strategy
Last year marked a turning point for SPNT, and not just in terms of finances. The project's strategy also changed significantly.
"Until [then], the park played just an informational and educational role. We want to keep that, to educate both companies and residents, but this education needs to have an aim. Education without direction and future goals does not make much sense," Fiuk told WBJ.
Now SPNT's authorities want to develop its commercial side, so the park can better help new companies in the incubator phase and develop projects financed from EU funds. Among other things, the park offers its accumulated know-how, IT solutions and infrastructure to companies, institutions and public administrations throughout the whole voivodship. It also provides IT advice for young companies and public administrations.
"It is difficult to help companies without money and without generating even larger debts," said SPNT's Fiuk.
Although it originally partnered with universities, the park is now changing its targets for long-term partnerships. "This resulted in the park becoming just an extension of a university and it did not really develop. We [now] want a broader portfolio of partners," said Fiuk.
A few projects have already been set up with the help of SPNT. One is Szczecin's interactive online tourism website, a portal created by two PhDs from the Szczecin University of Technology and a group of students from the University of Szczecin. Another is the website Dizajnerzy.pl, a web-2.0-style social site for young fashion, interior and industrial designers.
