Pedro Nunes Institute (IPN) aims to promote innovation and technology transfer, establishing the link between the scientific and technological environment and the production sector. Created at the initiative of the University of Coimbra (UC) in 1991, it develops its activities on three fronts that reinforce and complement each other: (1) Research and technological development (R&D), consultancy and specialized services through its 5 laboratories (materials, automatics, informatics, geotechnic, corrosion and pythopathology); (2) Incubation and acceleration of technology-based companies; (3) Specialized training.
With about 150 employees, IPN thus forms an integrated model that operates in all phases of the cycle of transferring knowledge and qualification of entrepreneurship, generating synergies, and enhancing complementarities in the areas of specialized training, including R&D, valuing the knowledge generated and culminating in the incubation and acceleration of companies. It houses ESA BIC Portugal, one of the 20 current incubation centres of the European Space Agency (ESA).
With extensive experience in the implementation of projects, IPN has more than 60 R&D projects per year in close collaboration with companies; it participates in more than 170 dissemination activities per year, including its active contribution in the 35 national and international networks of which it is a part. IPN is a VET Provider and member of Pact4Skills, equipped with highly qualified internal and external employees to respond to the training needs of young entrepreneurs, researchers, companies, and recently graduated students, being a training entity certified by the respective national authority (DGERT). In close collaboration with all IPN units, the Training department also actively collaborates in mentoring and coaching activities for the same audience.
IPN has three of its R&D Laboratories with accredited tests according to ISO 17025 standard, LED&MAT, LABGEO and FITOLAB. It also has a laboratory, LAS, in the process of certification according to the EN ISO 13485 standard, as a result of their activity in the Medical Devices Sector.
Gonçalo Brásio has a Degree in Management from the University of Coimbra. He works at IPN Training Department since 2009, as a Training Project Manager. He is a certified trainer and a Pedagogical Coordinator within DGERT Training Certification Framework. Collaborated deeply in the implementation of several consultancy and training programs, counting hundreds of Portuguese SMEs intervened throughout the years. He is responsible for IPN’s Moodle Implementation and Operation, which serves, since 2020, as a platform for several financed (ESA BIC; EIT HEALTH) and unfinanced online training courses. He was directly involved in the implementation of ERASMUS+ Projects (EU LEARNING, DIGILIFE) and INTERREG V Projects (CONECTA PYME 4.0). He is responsible for the Implementation of IPN’s Summer Internship programme (Summer@IPN).